How to become a pharmacy leader

I am often asked “How do I get involved in advocacy?” I also had a friend ask me once: “Why did that company choose you to speak about that product—I know about that product.” And students often ask “How did you open your pharmacy?”There is no blueprint for a path to leadership in the pharmacy world. Before I found myself in a leadership role in this world, I often saw the same names re-appearing as speakers at all of the things and wondered how they got there. With tens of thousands of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians across the country, my aim in this new series of blog posts is to share my path to this point and give some pointers for your journey, which will look different than mine!Your path to leadership can begin at any time. I was definitely a slow starter, focusing more on my personal life (marriage, kids) for the better part of the first decade of my career. I only joined LinkedIn in spring 2023. Getting into spaces is a conscious decision and many of the steps required are deliberate actions that will lead you to where you want to be. Don’t think you’re going to fall into these spaces. I found the rooms I wanted to be in and shoved my foot in the door before it closed. For this first post I want to tackle studentship and early career. I ran, and was soundly defeated, for class president in 4th year at UofT Pharmacy. Student government, student leadership, CAPSI— all of these are opportunities to lead. But what I believe might be even more important, is the opportunity they provide to network. Nothing I’ve accomplished was done on my own. It was always with the help of contacts; with guidance and reassurance from others. You’ll find that some of those who were active in student government continue to lead today. Others have shifted focus. Being a failed student politician has not had any negative effects (that I know of) but honestly, what I remember the most is campaigning with my friends – friends with whom I still speak regularly today. One particular friend opened her pharmacy before I opened mine. We still use the friendship we created in those days to bounce ideas off each other and to help each other navigate the difficulties of ownership in today’s world of pharmacy.In the early days of my career, I completed very little Continuing Education. There were years I did next to nothing. I regret wasting that time (I was working at a very quiet independent pharmacy, I had the time). I would have done more in travel medicine and understanding congestive heart failure, which often still eludes me. I truly feel my clinical prowess came from my years in long-term care, which helped me become a much more comfortable clinician. Often, when I lecture in a third year business class at UWaterloo, I survey the students to understand who wants to work in community pharmacy. Very, very few students admit to this goal. A trend I’ve seen is many wanting to go into tech. While I like the idea of being solution-driven, I’d also suggest that working to create a solution for a problem that you may not understand intimately might not go as planned.Read: CAPSI puts out call for National Mentorship ProgramMy suggestion for early career is to establish yourself firmly as an excellent clinician. This will open the door to a number of things, including growth in your community and respect from other pharmacists. Commenting on others’ questions in WhatsApp and Facebook groups will garner name recognition. This lends credibility when you begin to speak on topics publicly, either through social media or at conferences or CE events. You don’t have to be an expert on everything (see above my troubles with CHF). But even specializing in one particular area (a classmate of mine is the only pharmacist expert I know in Thrombosis. I’m moderating a CE with her this month!) allows for growth and leadership opportunities. My other suggestion for your early career is try on all the hats. Don’t limit yourself to designing the next big app. Try community pharmacy. Try hospital pharmacy. Do a shift in a big box and an independent. Cover a locum or mat leave for long term care. Work with technology. Sign up for focus groups. Sometimes pharmacy feels a bit like high school – we were told we could be doctors or lawyers, but never electrical engineers or football match analysts (stuff my 10 year old is considering). There’s so much more out there than just institutional or community pharmacy. Lastly, for this first in the series of leadership, it’s never too late. If you’re not in your early career, you can still do some of these things. Position yourself in your community. Become an expert in something: maybe it’s complex med management, maybe it’s compounding, maybe it’s customer service. Next, identify the rooms you want to be in. With the next blog post we can talk about opening the doors to those rooms.

How to become a pharmacy leader

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More Blog Posts in This Series

Penalizing the patient for my care? That’s a hard no.

How to become a leader: Part 2

Professional services and total compensation: A model shift?

Blog Author

Kristen Watt

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