Area Operations Manager

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Overview of the role

Glasgow & Surrounding Area

We're looking for an experienced Area Operations Manager with a proven background in multi-site pharmacy management to lead and inspire a portfolio of community pharmacies across the Glasgow area.

This is a hands-on, fast-paced leadership role for someone who thrives in pharmacies, loves engaging with colleagues and patients, and is motivated by delivering tangible, measurable results including the successful delivery of Pharmacy First.

If you're confident you can demonstrate the following, then read on
About You

You're a leader who:

• Thrives on colleague and patient interaction
• Is passionate about spending 90% of your time in pharmacies
• Works at pace while maintaining high levels of accuracy
• Is resilient, adaptable, and enjoys constant change and challenge
• Is motivated by leading teams to deliver real, measurable performance improvements

The Role

As an Area Operations Manager, you'll be responsible for the overall management, performance and development of 8-15 pharmacies. You'll build capable, high-performing teams that deliver an outstanding community pharmacy experience, while ensuring patient safety, quality, compliance and strong commercial performance.

A key focus of the role will be the effective implementation and delivery of Pharmacy First, ensuring services are embedded, well-promoted and consistently delivered across your area.
Key Responsibilities
Operational Excellence

• Visit each pharmacy at least every two weeks, leaving clear, SMART actions to drive performance
• Support and embed our Delivering Well strategy by aligning pharmacy activity to corporate objectives
• Drive delivery of Rx growth, Pharmacy First, other NHS and private services, and OTC sales in line with agreed budgets
• Ensure excellent standards through full compliance with processes and procedures
• Monitor competitor activity and identify opportunities to grow market share

Patient Safety, Quality & Standards

• Ensure all pharmacies meet GPhC standards and NHS contractual requirements, including those relating to Pharmacy First
• Complete first-line investigations into Patient Safety Incidents (PSIs) and Controlled Drug discrepancies
• Ensure delivery of all NHS quality standards

Delivering Outstanding Care

• Ensure teams actively promote and deliver Pharmacy First, all other NHS and private services
• Ensure all complaints and incidents are reported, resolved or escalated appropriately
• Build and maintain strong relationships within the local healthcare community, supporting local referral pathways for Pharmacy First
• Ensure teams offer tailored advice and products to support prevention, treatment and wellbeing

High-Performance Teams

• Recruit, develop and retain trained, motivated and capable teams
• Actively manage performance through coaching, feedback and formal reviews, with a strong focus on service delivery
• Identify and develop internal and external talent to build a strong talent pipeline
• Ensure clear communication so everyone understands their role, priorities and objectives
• Commit to your own development and foster a culture of continuous learning

Knowledge, Skills & Experience

Essential:

• Proven experience in field or multi-site management, ideally within pharmacy
• Strong understanding of Pharmacy First and its operational delivery
• Experience managing BAU operations, cross-regional working, relief teams and/or project work
• Strong commercial and analytical capability
• Excellent communication, coaching and feedback skills
• Strong planning and organisational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities
• Ability to build effective professional networks based on trust and credibility
• Sound understanding of the NHS contract and GPhC standards

Desirable:

• A strong understanding of the UK pharmacy market and profession

We reserve the right to close this vacancy prior to the advertised closing date.

About the Company

For over 70 years, we've been looking after the health and wellbeing of communities across the UK. Well Pharmacy (part of Bestway Healthcare) is the second largest pharmacy chain in the UK with c.760 pharmacies and a team of around 7,000 colleagues based across our Community Pharmacies, Online Pharmacy, Healthcare Services Centre, Community Drivers, Bestway Medhub & Wardles team and our Support Centre team.

Our mission is to be here for the wellbeing of our patients and customers, to provide the best community pharmacy experience in the UK for everyone, for our patients, our customers, our people, and our NHS.

The pharmacy of the future will look very different from the one we know today. It will play a huge role in transforming primary healthcare and we will play a central role in bringing it to life.

We will use our clinical expertise and technological ambition to take advantage of the potential this future has to offer us. Making medicines, advice, services and care available in the places and spaces that people need and want it most.

We want to be a great business. To be recognised as delivering a community pharmacy experience that is the best there is. To do this we want our teams to feel proud about the positive impact they make, feel valued as part of a close-knit and expert community, and feel confident in their role in a business that is stable, innovative, and caring.

'Together we make a difference'