McKesson ideaShare 2025: Pharmacy Owner Keri Bates on Career Growth, Technician Pathways, and Building a Sustainable Pharmacy Team

For Keri Bates, PharmD, pharmacist and owner at Rocky Ridge Drug Co. in Birmingham, Alabama, a career in pharmacy began behind the counter at age 16 and evolved into pharmacy ownership and leadership. In this candid conversation, Bates shares her journey through independent, chain, and long-term care pharmacy, discusses how compensation challenges have shaped her business strategy, and explains how she developed a structured, transparent technician career ladder. Her insights offer a roadmap for creating a sustainable pharmacy workforce while strengthening patient care and operational efficiency.

Q: Can you describe your own career path in pharmacy? What key decisions or opportunities led you to where you are today?

Keri Bates, PharmD: I started in an independent pharmacy when I was 16 years old. I started out as a cashier, just selling prescriptions to customers, and then worked my way up over the years as a pharmacy technician. I later became an intern for that independent pharmacy when I went into pharmacy school. Throughout that time, I also worked for a chain pharmacy. I started my career at a chain pharmacy and also worked in long-term care before opening Rocky Ridge Drug Company.

Q: Reflecting on your career, what do you consider the most significant challenges you’ve faced, and how did you overcome them? How did these experiences shape your professional development?

I was doing the math on this recently, and I've been in the industry for 25 years now. What I’ve noticed most over the years is how the health care industry as a whole has changed in how it's compensated for the services we provide. That’s been something we’ve gradually lost control of, and it's something we've had to continuously educate ourselves on, get involved with, and fight for—just to remain profitable and stay open so we can continue providing health care to patients.

Yes, this is a major issue in pharmacy, but it’s really impacting the health care industry overall. As pharmacists, we have to do our part to ensure that we keep pharmacy relevant and that we can continue providing care to our patients and have access to those patients to do so.

Q: Beyond your own advancement, you foster the growth of pharmacy technicians. Can you elaborate on your philosophy regarding technician career development in pharmacy?

Bates: It definitely helps that I worked as a pharmacy technician and then also as a pharmacy intern. We all start with the bare minimum knowledge when we first walk into a pharmacy, and there’s a huge progression that can take place from that first day into building a long-term career.

We take that very seriously here at Rocky Ridge Drug Co. It’s a joy to bring in an employee who knows nothing about pharmacy and be able to teach them the progression to the point where, honestly, they could run the pharmacy on their own. There are so many different roles pharmacy technicians can take on now. It's becoming more patient-interactive, more clinical, and even administrative. We’ve created a model that establishes clear career paths for technicians. It’s really important to communicate with technicians and employees from the beginning about where they want to take their careers.

Q: What specific initiatives or programs have you implemented to help pharmacy technicians expand their skills, take on greater responsibilities, or pursue certifications?

Bates: It’s twofold—it’s rewarding to help develop a pharmacy technician, and it helps your business run better. It’s also helpful for your patients and customers to have a staff that’s educated and knows how to do their jobs.

From a financial perspective, it can be challenging to staff your pharmacy and compensate your employees appropriately. We found ourselves struggling with the pay structure when hiring pharmacy technicians. Whether someone had 1 year or 10 years of experience, they would often come in expecting the same specific number in terms of pay.

We wanted to move away from a “pay-for-potential” model to a “compensate-for-qualifications” model. At Rocky Ridge Drug, every technician comes in and starts at the same place. From day 1, during their interview and hiring process, we explain that as they meet certain qualifications and progress along their career path, their compensation will change accordingly.

This has been extremely helpful. Everyone in the pharmacy understands the structure. The culture is great because it’s transparent and fair—everyone is compensated for the extra work they do. Maybe there’s a student who’s in school for 8 hours a day and just wants to come in and count prescriptions without doing administrative work. That’s okay too, and they’re compensated accordingly.

There’s no concern or confusion—everyone is compensated for what they do, and everyone is okay with that. We’re not paying someone for what they might do one day—we are compensating them based on their current qualifications.