Villanova School of Business

VSB 1002- Business Dynamics II

Pharmacy Service Improvement at CVS (A)

Harvard Business School Case 9-605-015
(Rev. October 20, 2006)

Case Study Assignment

1. Pharmacy services accounted for what percentage of CVS revenue, according to this
case study?

2. CVS experienced a drop in customers in the late 1990s/early 2000s. What were the
major customer-related concerns about CVS pharmacy operations?

3. Describe the five steps in the process of filling prescriptions.

4. During the data entry of prescriptions, what information is logged in? What other
information does it interact with? Where does this information come from? What are
the results of such interactions?

5. What is DUR? When does DUR issue a “hard stop?” Is a DUR hard stop good or bad?
Why?

6. Which parts of the 5 step order-fulfillment process were problematic in terms of

providing satisfactory service at the pharmacy? Describe the potential problems.

7. What do you think should have been done to have to streamline the fulfillment
process at CVS pharmacies and increase customer satisfaction? For each problem
identified above, give a possible solution.