1- Based on this case study, what are the problems that Sunpharma is currently

facing? (10 points)

Like any other company, problems can be faced and the ones faced by Sunpharma are the
following:
- Unfavorable laws and regulations did not allow more than one pharmacy per license.

- Sunpharma faced several internal environment problems such as the limited budget
for training and the need to prioritizing training. The need to exercising greater

- authority and being resistant to changes in HR policies is caused by the laws and
regulations stated in 2011 where one license or concession is given to only one person
which means that every pharmacy in Slovakia has to have a lead pharmacist.

- The emigration of pharmacists from Slovakia o other European nations where salaries
are higher has exacerbated the situation.

- The entire training program was cost and time expenditure as it was repeatedly
conducted for all employees.

- Pharmacists are required by law to earn at least twenty credits per year by
participating in continuing education programs once they took a job. The last was
governed by a licensing regulatory authority
2- Why is Linda proposing a training program for the pharmacists at Sunpharma? What
benefits does she expect to see? (10 points)
recruiting was always a major problem for all of Slovakia’s pharmacies, and Friedrich Plail’s
goal was to be the most popular pharmacy in Slovakia, and after receiving accreditation in
training and development, Linda Dolinova proposed a training program for the pharmacists at
Sunpharma for many reasons:

- Changing the environment by supporting human faith and provide time for learning and show
how important the training is for the everyday work of their employees.
- An innovative training system would help to serve as an incentive for applicants to take a job
in Sunpharma.
- New employees should be aware of understanding the philosophy, direction, and values of
the company.
- Many pharmacists were still students so Linda proposed this program to help them continue
their education which was required by the law.
- To be knowledgeable of the work students need to be trained by the company especially that
they were not trained in school to detect the costumer’s needs.
- To emphasize flexibility and adaptability to market’s trends and consumer’s needs and to
improve the communication skills.
- Highly trained employees have better performance than untrained employees.
- The right training program increases the motivation and confidence of the employees in the
company.
- A good training program is able to attract candidates that are interested in self-improvement.

On the other hand, Linda’s expectations were clearly high and she mainly expected that:
- This program would serve as an incentive for applicants to take jobs with Sunpharma over
their competitors.
- She expects the program to identify important competencies that should be focused on and
developed in the employees of Sunpharma
- the program should improve effectiveness, productivity, and the satisfaction of Sunpharma’s
costumers and patients
- she also expects that the program will help in increasing Sunpharma’s competitiveness
- the importance of training in achieving the company’s strategic goals since it is hard to get
people to buy their products without a good strategy

In conclusion, having a training program will improve the company’s relationship with its
customers and help them to achieve their strategic goals knowing that strategy is an essential
part of the company’s success or failure. However, the expectations of Linda will only
happen if the company worked on this effective program and tried to improve it as much as
possible.
3- Describe and evaluate the process that Linda used to identify training needs. Based on
Sunpharma’s industry environment, strategy, and the Mystery Shopper report, what
specific competencies (knowledge, skills, attitudes) does Sunpharma need to improve to
support its strategic initiatives? (20 points)

Linda identified the need for training by simply looking at the report that highlighted that
there is a lack in providing the costumer with good services. And after that, she asked to meet
with the CEO of the company to discuss the mystery shopper’s report, and she believed that
the best strategy is providing the costumer with high quality service. In addition to that,
looking at the statistics of 2010 Linda realized that there were over 1,500 pharmacy students,
high number of immigrant students, and many pharmacies has opened at the same time which
made her realize that these student need a proper training to break out of the box and develop
the pharmacy industry. However, she focused on Sunpharma because she believed that they
had competent employees but Sunpharma needed to do a better job of showing their
employees what areas they needed to master in accordance with the company’s strategic
goals. Moreover, Linda’s belief that Sunpharma can do better in satisfying the costumer, is a
good strategy because nowadays costumer service is appreciated by every costumer that
walks in a store or a pharmacy where welcoming the costumer with a smile and good
communication skills may lead the company to gain new customers. So Linda’s process was
successful because it was based on the mystery shopper’s report.

On the other hand, some competencies needs to be improved in Sunpharma based on the
environment, strategy, and the mystery shopper report. And here are the following things that
they need to improve:
- Sunpharma should improve the learning skills of their employees because they couldn’t
identify the symptoms of health problems
- They should include loyalty program in sales transactions
- The environment should make the costumer feel relaxed and satisfied
- Employees should be more knowledgeable of their products
- Communication skills should be improved
- The mission statement should be shorter and catchy
- To attract customers who buy OTC drugs
- To give costumers loyalty programs and discounts

4- What modifications would you recommend for the job description (case Exhibit 6), to be
more appropriate for the organization in the selection process of employees? (5 points)

The job description is good but the company should do a test before recruiting to make sure
that the person is not hiding or giving any false information. However, new employees should
have essentially good communication skills and sales skills, and to know more about each
 product to be able describe it to the costumer. In addition, there is a program called CNPR
which is a pharmaceutical sales training program that makes sure that the person is qualified
enough to work in the pharmaceutical industry. Moreover, certificates in basic life skills
would be an additional factor when recruiting an employee for example, being a scout shows
that the person has good communication and leadership skills and this should be a plus for
this person and they should be recruited effective immediately.

5. Suggest a suitable training system for the SunPharma Company. What should Linda
propose to the CEO, to show him that the benefits of a training program would yield
more than its costs? (10 points) (Note there is no need to calculate anything just tell me
what would you do or use to show the benefits)

In the case of Sunpharma, we realized that most of their problems and challenges are HR
related so their training should be based on solving and trying to overcome these challenges.
To do so, I would like to suggest some training method:

- The focus of training should be on providing the costumer with a pleasant purchasing
experience.
- Make the training hybrid which means train the employees in class sessions and on the job.
- Collaboration with universities curriculum development suiting the needs of the job where
‘Education Sponsorship program’ will join the company after graduation- results in better and
suitable talent acquisition, reduce future training needs.
- Assess training needs by mystery shoppers and costumers feedback.
- Reward and recognize the employees every month by starting the initiative of “employee of
the month”

However, training program will yield more than it costs for an important main reasons which
is:
Good HR will help the company on the long term in producing more and having a good
reputation, so paying a small amount of money on the training program in the present will
help the company succeed in the future. For example in exhibit 8, if we accumulate all the
budgets, we will have approximately 3,500 euros spent on training the whole team in the
company which is nothing compared to the revenues and profit of the company. So of course
Linda was going to convince the CEO to adopt the training programs.
6. What other changes in the HR system, policies, or practices might be needed to
reinforce your training plan and SunPharma’s need to improve customer service? (5
points)

The HR department is a kind of middle man between business and employees, so adopting
HR best practices will ensure a balance between Sunpharma and its employees. Here are
some ways that will help Sunpharma reinforce its training plan:
Sunpharma should be more interested in employees' and trainees' comfortability in the
workplace, so everyone would be able to produce good quality work which can lead to the
business’s growth. The HR team should consider giving bonuses or other forms of incentives,
so employees will get motivated and would feel appreciated, so they will able to share their
happiness and comfortability with customers.
By monitoring employees' and trainees' productivity and the amount of effort and time spent
on completing a task, the management can focus on the productivity of the workforce.
Conducting an employee survey, trying to discover what types of roadblocks are impeding
productivity, the environment they are working in, and the flexible work options. Adding on
this room for flexibility, innovation, and creativity should be provided to employees, by
tending on this method, employees will be able to produce more and enhance sales and
reduce costs.
Continuously update tools and materials (educational and others) to keep the business process
running smoothly. HR leaders should focus on attracting new talent by designing bonus
programs to keep compensation up to date with market trends and focusing on recruitment
programs Also, the company should follow up with the market needs.