The Moment Of Truth
After owning the pharmacy for 2 years, Ken’s moment of truth arrived with the possible deregulation of the pharmaceutical industry and the introduction of discounting. It became apparent that discounting had to be done in volume for the business to survive. So he decided against discounting, opting instead for a policy of adding value.

This meant he needed help.

Ken had just read Brad Sugars’ book Instant Cashflow and responded to an advertisement that ActionCOACH had placed in the local newspaper.

When Ken and Julia first approached ActionCOACH, their initial goal was to try and free-up their time. They were working a 120-hour week between them. They wanted to leverage Julia out of the business first, and then Ken.

One of the challenges they faced was that the business was making a profit while they were working it, but it wouldn’t if they stepped out. Obviously they wanted to change this, but they also wanted to create a business model that could be replicated through franchising.

Since teaming up with ActionCOACH, the business has undergone a complete transformation. They created a business model that proactively takes responsibility for people’s health, they developed values that are set in concrete, and they created a unique business around those values.

The core values of Health Information Pharmacy include the following:
• Reducing medication problems.
• Empowerment of people.
• Strengthening their community.
• Helping the less fortunate.

They started by doing an Alignment Consultation and setting goals (which have since changed, but were nevertheless a good start). They then embarked on a program of team training that improved their customer service levels exponentially, and developed a team incentive program called Teamaximiser™.

Teamaximiser™ is designed to give incentives to all team members based on their job description. Based on ActionCOACH’s 5 Ways Leverage Chart, it also encourages companion selling and the giving out of information, while allowing the owner to know what team members are doing every hour of the day.

One of the keys to the success of Teamaximiser™ is that there are bonuses based on individual and team performances; therefore, team members are not just working for themselves but also for a common goal. This is powerful and works well, even without the owners being there. It has also proved highly successful at different sites.

The creation of a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) was also another system that came about through their work with ActionCOACH. Chemconsult™ is now trademarked and is a unique pharmaceutical consulting process. The pharmacy USP fits in with the vision of the pharmacy, which is: “Advice for a happier, longer and healthier life.”

Through this system, Health Information Pharmacy is helping to improve patients’ lives and keep people out of hospital. In 2001, there were 140,000 hospital admissions due to medication problems. And Ken and Julia believe these problems, to some extent, could have been picked up at the pharmacy level.

Through monitoring at Health Information Pharmacy, it has been shown that 1 in 6 prescriptions contain potential medication errors. Chemconsult™ picked up on them and in various cases actually kept people out of hospital. This does not only benefit the patient, but it’s also a major benefit to society as a whole.
The Lee’s have been able to take responsibility for their business and attack it head-on. This, they say, is one amazing result of Business Coaching.

The creation of a loyalty club is another system that was developed with the help of ActionCOACH. The Platinum Care Club is the loyalty club exclusive to Health Information Pharmacy, and it offers members more than the normal loyalty club does. Members have access to a 24-hour, 7-day a week pharmacist hotline and a local area discount book, plus they have free access to a naturopath and a $10 gift voucher for every $150 spend.

It is based on a referral system, which has been fantastic for building up the customer base. This fits in well with their core values, which are:

1. Reducing medication problems. This is done through Chemconsult™.

2. Empowerment of people. This is done through the incentive program and management development program in which people are empowered to step-up to the next level.

3. Strengthening their community. Unique marketing through Strategic Area Alliances and databases make this possible.

4. Helping the less fortunate. They donate $10 to the customer’s favorite charity for every 3 people they refer to the loyalty club. Most business owners believe they should be donating to charity but don’t have a vehicle through which to do so. This is a win-win situation that helps them grow their business while helping needy charities and people at the same time.

Health Information Pharmacy started testing and measuring everything they did. From this, they stopped running newspaper ads that didn’t work. They tested and measured headlines as well as guarantees. And while some of the guarantees got them into trouble with the Pharmacy Board, because the Pharmacy Act didn’t allow them, Ken said this was a valuable lesson, as it put them right on track.

It also helped them ascertain how far they could go in marketing, yet stay with their core values as well as the industry guidelines.

Pharmacists were also employed as managers. Systems and Key Performance Indicators were set up to track performances and Ken’s routine changed dramatically. He went from working IN the business to working ON it, and now he is working on other people’s businesses through franchising. He has also had the ability to create and be creative within the pharmacy setting.