Project

An example of a project for CVS would be filling a prescription. The tasks to this project would be to enter the prescription information under the correct patient, make sure that insurance is billed correctly, fill the prescription, have the pharmacist verify the prescription, and run the transaction through the register. Our pharmacy uses Gantt charts to assign the work flow and see how the work flow pattern is going. The recommendations that I have for the assignment of the workflow is to make sure that one person is not overwhelmed with activities. Especially, when mistakes can be very costly, we want to make sure that the person can focus on what they are doing and not be interrupted by answering the telephone or assisting customers. We also want to make sure that the pharmacist is spending the right amount of time verifying prescriptions, because if they are rushed then they could skip over important information.

Supply Chain Management

According to Supply Chain Digest, the new performance that CVS has, is designed to impress. CVS has improved in every aspect of the supply chain. For instance, in terms of delivery, store delieveries are 98.4% on time, plus or minus 15 minutes. As for quality, inbound products are deboxed before being placed into storage to eliminate this task from the pick lines, and CVS is working with suppliers on new packaging concepts to eliminate this step altogether. Furthermore, the logistics group has direct intregration with each store's planogram, allowing the DC to pick in aisle/stocking sequence for each store. This speeds goods to the shelf, increase store productivity, and decreases clutter in the aisle.


What supply chain management do they currently have in place?

- CVS has selected Infor, a $2Bn leading supplier of Supply Chain Management warehouse software, to manage its nationwide retail pharmacy outlets. With over 6,200 stores and 14 distributiopn centers covering 43 states and the District of Columbia, CVS is well positioned to deliver on its mission to be the easiest pharmacy to do business with for consumers and employers. CVS are currently deploying Infor SCM, developed with Genero and using the Web Client as its primary user interface. Infor SCM is a proven, advanced Warehouse Mmanagement System for manufacturing, distribution, and retail enterprises and third-party logistics providers (3PLs). Infor's value proposition is to maximize product placement strategies, prioritize tasks, implement fair productivity standards, and increase logistics efficiency.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rmV__Yrk7Q


http://www.dsa.us/images/infor-partner.jpg

Quality Control

CVS uses the Quality Control (QC) model to help improve their customer service level that is provided by their employees. They use the QC model to measure the level of customer service that each store or region provides to their customers. At CVS good customer service is a standard because good customer service equals a loyal customer for CVS and if employees do not show or demonstrate good service to a customer there is a chance that this customer will not return. CVS does use the continuous improvement model to improve their levels of customer service and under this model they follow the Pareto Analysis. CVS definitely follows the Pareto Analysis because they try to fix or repair the most important areas first. For example CVS has the strategy that every transaction must have five E’s (Eye Contact, Exchange, Extra Care, Extra Selling, and Ending) this is a strategy developed for employees to engage in more conversation and interaction with a customer, which the end result improves the level of customer service. They started at the root of the problem because if employees do not have the proper training on the standards of the company they cannot provide the highest level of customer service that CVS lives by. By CVS assessing the main problem first it not only increases their level of customer service but it also increases their sales, because a happy customer will always return. The improvements that CVS can make is to make sure that they spend the time and money necessary to train their staff and make sure that their staff is fully aware of what the company is trying to achieve.

Customer Service

The three elements of the service-product bundle are the tangible service, the psychological benefits of the service, and the physical goods. In relation to our company, CVS, we could use the example of dropping off a prescription to get filled by our pharmacy staff. The tangible service would be the convenience of dropping the prescription off and knowing that it will be filled. The psychological benefits of the service are that there is someone that you can talk to and ask questions if there is a problem. The physical goods would be to walk away with your medication in your hands. The cell that CVS operates in on the service matrix is the co-routed services. They offer a number of choices with regards to customers and how they can choose to get their prescriptions filled, whether it’s a refill that they can request online, through the phone, or sending a fax or physically coming into the store. CVS encounters a high customer contact and they are continuously coming up with new ways to stay on top of the customer service game. Using some technology but trying to not get away from the advantage of having a friendly face help with an issue a customer is having is something they pride themselves on. They support employees by empowering them to do whatever it takes to make sure that the customer leaves the store happy. The guarantee that CVS offers is a 100% buy back guarantee on their CVS products and on all beauty products with or without a receipt. The refund policy is one that guarantees that as long as someone can provide a receipt for the product than we will gladly do a return on the product. The service recovery CVS has in place is doing whatever it takes to make sure that the customer leaves the store happy. In regards to getting a product from another store, calling other stores to see if they have the product, using expired coupons, their ultimate goal is to have each customer walk out of a CVS 100% satisfied.

Process Selection

The type of product flow that CVS Pharmacy uses can be classified as a batch flow. They have medium volume and medium variety and there are a few stops that are made to get products to a CVS store. Products are bought and are then sent to warehouses all across the country which are then broken down and packed again by what the store has ordered which is then delivered to the store. They type of customer order that CVS processes can be classified in two ways. The front store can be classified as made to stock which means that the products are ordered ahead of time and can be restocked on the shelves as often as needed to make the consumers happy. The pharmacy can be classified as an assemble to order because every pharmacy patient has a different prescription with different needs. The category they fall into in the process characteristics matrix is batch flow and assemble to order. The things that influence their process selection is that the stores are not very big and cannot handle the big shipments straight from a manufacturer and they buy in large amounts to cut costs. Also with having stores in almost every street corner it makes it easier for them to have one big warehouse and ship orders to the stores from there. It's a lot easier for them to keep track of their inventory. I don't think that they could mass customize their process selection, unless they build bigger stores to hold the inventory.

CVS PHARMACY

For All The Ways You Care Contest

CVS/pharmacy Announces National Contest for Stories of Extraordinary Caregiving

Last update: 10:57 a.m. EST Jan. 29, 2009

WOONSOCKET, R.I., Jan 29, 2009 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Second Annual "For All the Ways You Care" Contest Invites Participants to Share and Celebrate Accounts of Caregiving
CVS/pharmacy, the nation's leading retail pharmacy, today announced its second annual "For All the Ways You Care" contest created to celebrate and honor caregivers across America.
CVS/pharmacy invites caregivers and others to submit stories of caring online at http://www.forallthewaysyoucare.com/, a growing community that strives to celebrate the unsung caregivers in our society. The site provides a forum for people to share a story about someone who has touched their life or how they personally have touched another's.
"CVS/pharmacy is committed to caring for women and those they care for. We are pleased to see the For All the Ways You Care community continue to grow as people exchange stories and discuss all aspects of caregiving," said Rob Price, senior vice president, Marketing and Advertising, CVS/pharmacy. "Thousands of stories have been shared on ForAllTheWaysYouCare.com since it launched last year, and we continue to be truly amazed by the selfless devotion demonstrated by so many caregivers."
From the stories submitted from October 5, 2008 through March 1, 2009, CVS/pharmacy and an esteemed panel of judges will select a group of finalists and ultimately a grand prize winner whose stories best represent a nurturing spirit and dedication to others. The finalists will be honored for their inspirational stories at a luncheon and luxury weekend in New York City in May. In appreciation for their commitment to caring, nine finalists will each receive $10,000 and the grand prize winner will receive $25,000 from CVS/pharmacy.
Panelists selecting the winners include Lee Woodruff, author and wife of ABC News Correspondent Bob Woodruff; Dr. Roseanna Means, founder of Women of Means, a program of volunteer doctors who provide free medical care to homeless women and children; Tina Sharkey, BabyCenter chairman and global president; and Rosemary Ellis, Good Housekeeping editor-in-chief. The members of the panel will post their own personal caregiving stories on http://www.forallthewaysyoucare.com/.
"I am privileged to be part of this growing campaign," said Woodruff. "Our family continues to receive an outpouring of love and support, and I am grateful to help give back by honoring special caregivers across America."
To join the community of caring and enter the For All the Ways You Care contest, please visit: http://www.forallthewaysyoucare.com/.
About CVS/pharmacy
CVS/pharmacy, the retail division of CVS Caremark Corporation (CVS:
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CVS 26.79, -0.09, -0.3%) , is America's largest retail pharmacy. The Company operates more than 6,800 CVS/pharmacy and Longs Drugs stores. CVS/pharmacy is committed to improving the lives of those we serve by making innovative and high-quality health and pharmacy services safe, affordable and easy to access, both in its stores and online at CVS.com. General information about CVS/pharmacy and CVS Caremark is available at http://www.cvscaremark.com/.

Inventory Management

CVS Pharmacy uses the Assisted Inventory Management system, often referred to as AIM by their users, to help keep their inventory levels down and have a controlled amount of overstock. This system is designed to help the employees be attentive and organized. While the AIM system allows employees to override orders and order more items for promotional sales, the main goal was to incorporate a system that can auto replenish an item when it is scanned through the checkout counter. This is the key to CVS in maintaining products are in-stock.

Although the AIM system is meant to work, many employees come across problems when working with the program. The system auto replenishes products but it does not consider refunds, which affects the balance on hand. That is a problem a lot of managers face, along with the AIM system does not count the products that are shipped in pre-packed boxes with a display by the manufacturer. This can also affect balance on hand numbers in a negative way.

All in all, the Assisted Inventory Management system is a wonderful tool for CVS pharmacy. It has reduced the amount of man hours it would take to order products for that store. It also helps maintain the correct amount of products on hand every day.

Background Information

CVS is a national pharmacy that offers prescription drugs, over the counter drugs, beauty products, cosmetics, seasonal products, photo services, and snacks. The company offers many different options on getting a prescription filled - with mail order, online refills, and even a prescription plan. There are over 6,000 stores in the United States and their headquarters are located in Woonsocket, Rhode Island. Their CEO Tom Ryan has been CEO for 8 years. CVS is currently expanding the services offered at their retail locations by adding a MinuteClinic, which is a health clinic where patients could come in if they have a sore throat or a cold and get a prescription. The company has also recently bought out several small chain pharmacy retail locations and hope to convert them into CVS's very soon.