Janet Morrison has been leading Community Pharmacy England (CPE) for two years. Being new to the sector, having worked in policy and in the charity sector before that, her first impression of community pharmacy was to recognise the multitude of skills that business owners must use every day other than the clinical attributes the public see at first glance.

Speaking about the future of the sector, Ms Morrison opined that it needs to be “a great place for people to work, for pharmacists and their teams to have careers to grow and develop and to be a destination of choice in the future for independent prescribers”.

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Part of that ambitious future for the sector is encouraging “diversity of thought”, she said. Although CPE has a female CEO and chair, Ms Morrison stressed the importance of fresh thinking and encouraging a diverse pool of thinking within the organisation. “Policy is much stronger and more thought through when you have a variety of views and influences and ideas put in,” she told C+D.

Speaking about her career to date, Ms Morrison says she has been keen to build “honest and open relationships” and stresses the importance of authentic leadership. “I’ve had lots of inspiration through the years, but I’ve also been given opportunities, I’ve got to reflect on that,” she said.

“Sometimes we set the bar really high in terms of what people have already done, and actually we need to look at potential,” she advises others when looking for new recruits to a team.

Advice to future female leaders

“Keep open, keep learning, and look for people from whom you can get ideas that might be helpful for you too to improve your path.” Ms Morrison also advises that asking for help from people is important.

Speaking on her time as a mentor in other sectors, the people that asked her for most help were women with young families who were interested in advice on balancing a family and a career in practical terms. “People are often really willing to help if you just ask,” she says, while highlighting the importance of role models and mentorship for women within industry.

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