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Technicians Aren’t Asking for a Party with Mike Johnston | CPhT Connect · Pharmacy Podcast Network

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: You are listening to the global network of podcasters dedicated
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: to the pharmacy profession.
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: Welcome to the Pharmacy Podcast Network.
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: Welcome to CPHT Connect, the only weekly podcast specifically for
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  Speaker 1: pharmacy technicians. Join us as we dive into the hot topics,
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  Speaker 1: tough conversations, and industry trends affecting pharmacy technicians. In each episode,
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  Speaker 1: we connect you with industry leaders who want to help
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  Speaker 1: you expand your patient care, pharmacy practice, and professional advancement. Now,
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: here's your host, Mike Johnston, CPHD.
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: 47%. That's how many technicians told us last year that
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  Speaker 2: their pharmacist, their manager, their employer No one recognized Pharmacy
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: Technician Day. At all. Not a card, not a cake,
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  Speaker 2: not even a happy tech day on the way past
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  Speaker 2: the counter. Think about who we're talking about. The people
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  Speaker 2: in your pharmacy who already feel the most overlooked. The
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: ones who already believe nobody sees what they do. And
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  Speaker 2: then the one day on the calendar that's supposed to
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  Speaker 2: be theirs comes and goes. and nobody says a word.
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  Speaker 2: How do you think that makes that technician feel? Here's
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  Speaker 2: what I've learned. Your techs, they're not asking for a party.
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  Speaker 2: They're asking you to notice. And noticing costs you exactly
• 1:45
  Speaker 2: one sentence. Welcome to the CPHT Connect podcast. I'm your host,
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  Speaker 2: Mike Johnston, founder and CEO of NPTA. Now, this is
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  Speaker 2: a special episode of the podcast as it's being published
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  Speaker 2: as part of our partnership with the Pharmacy Podcast Network.
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: So if you're new to the show, welcome. Today, I'm
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  Speaker 2: not specifically talking to technicians. I'm talking to you, the pharmacist,
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  Speaker 2: the owner, the manager, the person who builds the schedule.
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  Speaker 2: World Pharmacy Technician Day is coming up on Tuesday, October 20th.
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  Speaker 2: That's two weeks from today, and plenty of time to
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  Speaker 2: do this right. And I want to be straight with
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  Speaker 2: you about... why it matters. You see, the technician who
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: doesn't feel seen usually doesn't complain. She usually doesn't file
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  Speaker 2: a grievance. She doesn't make a scene. She updates her resume.
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  Speaker 2: And when she leaves, you're the one covering the counter.
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  Speaker 2: So this isn't solely about being nice. It's about keeping
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  Speaker 2: the people you can't run your pharmacy without. And here's
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  Speaker 2: my promise for the next 15 minutes. I'm going to
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  Speaker 2: tell you exactly what your technicians said they want in
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: their own words. And I promise none of it is complicated. Now,
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  Speaker 2: I've owned my own company since 1999, so I'll be
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  Speaker 2: honest with you. I've been the boss a lot longer
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  Speaker 2: than I ever had one. When I started, there wasn't
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  Speaker 2: much of a tech day to speak of. Recognition wasn't
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  Speaker 2: really part of the conversation. Over the years, the day grew.
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  Speaker 2: The job grew faster. Today, your techs are chasing prior authorizations,
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  Speaker 2: working insurance rejections, managing inventory that you'd lose sleep over,
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  Speaker 2: and calming down the patient who's been on hold for
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  Speaker 2: 40 minutes and would like to speak to someone about it. Now,
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  Speaker 2: I also know what your week looks like. You're short-staffed.
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  Speaker 2: You're fighting reimbursement that sometimes, oftentimes, doesn't even cover what
• 3:47
  Speaker 2: you paid for the drugs. You're verifying, counseling, and answering
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: the phone yourself because somebody called out. So when somebody says,
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  Speaker 2: recognize your text, it can land like one more item
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  Speaker 2: on a list that's already too long. I get it.
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  Speaker 2: You're not alone in that, and that's not your fault.
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  Speaker 2: But here's the good news. We don't have to guess
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  Speaker 2: what would help. We asked. This fall, NPTA asked our
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  Speaker 2: members one question. What advice would you give an employer
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  Speaker 2: or manager or pharmacist who wants to actually recognize you.
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  Speaker 2: What would make you feel seen? Honestly, I expected a
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  Speaker 2: wish list, bigger party, better food, maybe a nicer t-shirt.
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  Speaker 2: That's not what came back. When the answers came in,
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  Speaker 2: they fell into two buckets. Bucket one, cost nothing, attention. Specific, honest,
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  Speaker 2: regular attention. Bucket two, cost something real, pay. and for
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  Speaker 2: the chance to use the skills that they've worked for.
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  Speaker 2: And the thing most pharmacies actually do on tech day,
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  Speaker 2: it sits right in the middle. It's too generic to
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: feel personal, too small to change anything. Of course, I'm
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: talking about pizza. Now, look, I am not anti-pizza. Trust me,
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  Speaker 2: I don't think I have ever once in my life
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  Speaker 2: turned down pizza. And food did come up in the answers.
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  Speaker 2: Gift cards came up. It's not like anybody said, don't
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  Speaker 2: feed us. But every time food showed up, it came last.
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  Speaker 2: Ella laid it out perfectly. First, she wants her hard
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  Speaker 2: work highlighted. The behind-the-scenes stuff. Then, and she literally typed
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  Speaker 2: the words, and then. Certificates. A day of PTO. Gift cards.
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  Speaker 2: Maybe a small gathering with snacks. The pizza is the
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  Speaker 2: And then. We've been treating it like the whole thing.
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  Speaker 2: One answer was just one line from Michelle. I want
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  Speaker 2: them to acknowledge that I am a human. That's where
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  Speaker 2: the bar is. That's where some of your techs think
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  Speaker 2: the bar is. And some of them are frustrated with
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  Speaker 2: how we handle the one day we do celebrate. Romy
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  Speaker 2: didn't hold back. She said techs are the spine of
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  Speaker 2: the pharmacy. They do a lot of the grunt work.
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  Speaker 2: And then she asked why they wait all year for
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  Speaker 2: leadership to decide, hey, let's celebrate Pharmacy Tech Day like
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  Speaker 2: they're doing us a favor. When recognition shows up once
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  Speaker 2: a year and it feels like a favor, it doesn't
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  Speaker 2: land as recognition. It lands as a reminder of the
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  Speaker 2: other 364 days. Think about that. Somewhere out there, a
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  Speaker 2: technician counted your patient's medications all year. And the most
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  Speaker 2: she's hoping for is to be treated like a person.
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  Speaker 2: That is not a pizza problem. That's a noticing problem.
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  Speaker 2: So let me say it again. Your techs are not
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  Speaker 2: asking for a party. They're asking you to notice. And
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  Speaker 2: here's what noticing looks like in their own words. First,
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: don't cookie cutter it. Francine said it plainly. Do not
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  Speaker 2: cookie-cutter the appreciation. Each department is different. Your front counter
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  Speaker 2: and your compounding lab do different work, so thank them
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  Speaker 2: for their work. Second, be fair. Jeff stated he remembered
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  Speaker 2: asking for time off for an out-of-state trip, and his
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  Speaker 2: pharmacist made him feel guilty, told him his absence would
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: make an already-lean staff work harder. Sometimes the requests just
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  Speaker 2: get denied. Wilna retired after 39 years. She said a
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  Speaker 2: good manager is impartial, honest, and trustworthy. And then she added, sometimes,
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  Speaker 2: just a thank you is enough. Third, when they hit
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  Speaker 2: the goal, stop and say so. Dawn told us about
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  Speaker 2: how they grew new patients. And the only thing she
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  Speaker 2: heard back was a new vaccine quota. They won, and
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  Speaker 2: the prize was more worth. Fourth, and this was the
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  Speaker 2: biggest one. See the work nobody sees. Loretta said what
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  Speaker 2: she wants is someone speaking the honest truth about her
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  Speaker 2: unseen achievements, not flattery, just the truth. Sonia said most
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  Speaker 2: employers don't really know what a technician is even responsible for.
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  Speaker 2: There's a lot of responsibility between all those jobs. Ella
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  Speaker 2: talked about fighting for hundreds of dollars worth of medication,
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  Speaker 2: about saving the company thousands.
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  Speaker 3: Hey there, pharmacy technicians. Mike Johnston here, founder of NPTA
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  Speaker 3: and BPTS. For over 25 years, I've helped thousands of
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  Speaker 3: techs grow their careers. And now I want to help you.
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  Speaker 3: I built a free online community where you get instant
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  Speaker 3: access to my top on-demand trainings, including the Career Catalyst Framework,
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  Speaker 3: Know Your Worth, Leveraging LinkedIn, and more. So if you're
• 8:59
  Speaker 3: ready to take the next step, join the community now
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: at rxmike.com. and start moving your career forward.
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  Speaker 2: You know what that looks like. The prior auth somebody
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  Speaker 2: chased for three days. The rejection that didn't die at
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  Speaker 2: the counter. The patient who went home with their medication
• 9:22
  Speaker 2: because your tech refused to let it go. And Jessica
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  Speaker 2: said what would make her feel seen is if her
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  Speaker 2: manager actually told me sometimes that I'm doing a great job.
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  Speaker 2: Just sometimes. Every one of those is one sentence. I
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  Speaker 2: saw you fight that claim. You hit the number, and
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  Speaker 2: I noticed. Take the trip. We'll figure it out. None
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  Speaker 2: of that cost you a dime. It cost you attention.
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  Speaker 2: That's all. Now let's talk about bucket two, because I'd
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  Speaker 2: be lying to you if I said this was all
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  Speaker 2: about kind words. Some of the answers were short. Really short.
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  Speaker 3: 110.
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  Speaker 2: In Connecticut wrote a single word. Money. Period. That was
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  Speaker 2: the whole answer. Zarin was similar by stating a raise
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  Speaker 2: would be nice. Shelby suggested a small bonus or maybe
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  Speaker 2: a paid weekend getaway for the employee and a spouse.
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  Speaker 2: And Jessica came back to it also. She's the only
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  Speaker 2: full-time tech where she works, and she wants her pay
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  Speaker 2: to reflect that, compared to the part-timer. In her words,
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  Speaker 2: a tech that works their butt off should be compensated accordingly.
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  Speaker 2: Now here's what I hear in all of that. They're
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  Speaker 2: not asking you to hand out money just for showing up.
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  Speaker 2: They're asking for pay that tracks what they carry, the credential,
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  Speaker 2: the training, the extra hours, the responsibility, and recognition that
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  Speaker 2: costs something doesn't have to mean a big raise on
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  Speaker 2: day one. It can be a pay step when she
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  Speaker 2: earns a new certification. It could be a spot bonus
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  Speaker 2: when she saves the store real money. It could be
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  Speaker 2: a paid day off that nobody makes her feel guilty
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  Speaker 2: for taking. The point is this. When a tech earns
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  Speaker 2: something new and her paycheck never notices... She does. Now,
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  Speaker 2: to be fair, if you own an independent pharmacy, you
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  Speaker 2: might be listening to this and thinking, Mike, I'd love
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  Speaker 2: to give my staff raises. I'm literally trying to keep
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  Speaker 2: the lights on. Reimbursements keep getting squeezed. Pizza is what
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  Speaker 2: the budget allows. And honestly, some of my techs really
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  Speaker 2: do love the party. All of that can be true.
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  Speaker 2: Margins at independent pharmacies are beyond thin. Not every owner
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  Speaker 2: can hand out a raise in October, and I'm not
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  Speaker 2: gonna pretend otherwise. But look at what your techs asked
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  Speaker 2: for first. Attention, fairness, being noticed. The number one ask
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  Speaker 2: was free. And the part that isn't free, the pay
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  Speaker 2: we just talked about, deserves a better comparison than the
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: pizza budget. Ask anyone who's had to replace a technician
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  Speaker 2: lately what it cost. In overtime, in training hours, In
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  Speaker 2: the prescriptions that went out late while you were short staffed,
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  Speaker 2: in my experience, keeping that tech is almost always cheaper
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  Speaker 2: than replacing them. So I'm not asking you to announce
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  Speaker 2: a raise on the 20th. I'm asking you to start
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  Speaker 2: a conversation. And it gets worse because there's a cost
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  Speaker 2: we almost never talk about. Ellen is retired now, and
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  Speaker 2: she opened her answer with this. I can say this
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  Speaker 2: now that I'm retired. She completed advanced sterile compounding training.
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  Speaker 2: She got no recognition for it. She wasn't even allowed
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  Speaker 2: to use the sterile room, even though, in her words,
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  Speaker 2: there were plenty of opportunities there and no bump in pay.
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  Speaker 2: But then she wrote this. I was proud of me.
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  Speaker 2: The only person who recognized that accomplishment was her. And
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  Speaker 2: she could only say it out loud after she retired.
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  Speaker 2: So here's what keeps me up at night. How many
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  Speaker 2: technicians are on your schedule right now thinking the exact
• 13:11
  Speaker 2: same thing, but not saying it out loud? Look at
• 13:14
  Speaker 2: it from the business side too. Somebody invested in that training.
• 13:18
  Speaker 2: She invested in it, and it sat on the shelf.
• 13:21
  Speaker 2: That's a morale problem, a retention problem, and a skill
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  Speaker 2: you paid for and never used. Susan spent time in
• 13:28
  Speaker 2: management herself. She started with day one, proper training, with
• 13:32
  Speaker 2: real people supporting the new hire. Her line was simple.
• 13:36
  Speaker 2: Modules do not teach alone. She also said letting staff grow.
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  Speaker 2: Learn something new. Take on more responsibility. Keeps them engaged.
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  Speaker 2: We also feel seen. And then she said the part
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  Speaker 2: every owner should hear. An engaged staff drives production. When
• 13:54
  Speaker 2: a tech learns something new and you let her use it,
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  Speaker 2: that's recognition. Probably the loudest kind there is. So what
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  Speaker 2: do you do? You got two weeks. Here are three things.
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  Speaker 2: Number one, today, grab a sticky note for every technician
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  Speaker 2: on your schedule. Write down one specific thing each of
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  Speaker 2: them did this month. Not great attitude, something real. The
• 14:18
  Speaker 2: claims she fought, the patients she calmed down, the inventory
• 14:22
  Speaker 2: mess that she fixed. Number two, this week, ask each
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  Speaker 2: of them the same question that we asked. What would
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  Speaker 2: make you feel seen here? And then stop talking and listen.
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  Speaker 2: Number three, Tuesday, October 20th. I want you to say
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  Speaker 2: what you wrote on those sticky notes. Out loud, in
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  Speaker 2: front of the entire team. Then put a date on
• 14:48
  Speaker 2: the calendar for a real conversation with each tech about pay,
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  Speaker 2: about growth, and about any skills that they're ready to use.
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  Speaker 2: And yes, order the pizza. Just let it be the
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: and then. And then... Keep going on the 21st. Because
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  Speaker 2: here's what your text told us over and over. One
• 15:09
  Speaker 2: day isn't the problem. It's the other 364. So make
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: it a habit. One specific sentence to one tech every week.
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  Speaker 2: Say something the same day she hits a milestone, especially
• 15:23
  Speaker 2: before you hit the next quota. Say something when she
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: finishes a training and give her a chance to use
• 15:28
  Speaker 2: it within the month. We're talking four sentences a month.
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  Speaker 2: That's the whole system. Now, if you've never done any
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  Speaker 2: of this before, you're not behind. You're two weeks early.
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  Speaker 2: And we put together some free resources to help you
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  Speaker 2: plan it. You can get those resources at rxtechday.org. That's rxtechday.org.
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  Speaker 2: And hey, if you're interested in help making this a
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  Speaker 2: year-round thing, not just one Tuesday in October, We invite
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  Speaker 2: you to learn more about our new program called RxTeamBuilder
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  Speaker 2: at cpht.org forward slash employers. It takes one sentence to
• 16:07
  Speaker 2: show a technician that you notice them. Say it on
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  Speaker 2: the 20th. Say it again on the 21st. Thank you
• 16:14
  Speaker 2: for tuning in to today's episode. We hope you found
• 16:17
  Speaker 2: it both informative and inspiring. For links, show notes, and
• 16:21
  Speaker 2: resources from today's episode, visit cphtconnect.com. And hey, we'd love
• 16:25
  Speaker 2: to hear from you. So send us your feedback, questions, stories,
• 16:29
  Speaker 2: or show ideas to podcast at cphtconnect.com. We appreciate your
• 16:34
  Speaker 2: support and look forward to having you join us again
• 16:37
  Speaker 2: next week as we chat with other amazing pharmacy professionals
• 16:41
  Speaker 2: and hear all about their career journey. Thanks for listening.
• 16:44
  Speaker 1: Thank you for listening to this week's episode of CPHT Connect.
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: Be sure to subscribe and review the show on your
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: favorite podcast platform. For additional resources, show notes or to
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: connect with this week's guest, go to cphtconnect.com.