Results from a global pharmacy leadership needs assessment: Opportunities to advance pharmacy leadership

Background: Leadership skills in the pharmacy profession are essential for career development and advancement. Pharmacy education is often not focused on developing these leadership skills. This study determines the exact pharmacist leadership traits needed across the globe. Methods: A three-part leadership needs assessment was developed by three International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) global leads for leadership development. Pharmacy management leaders within FIP headquarters vetted the survey for external validity, and their feedback was incorporated. In January 2021, the survey was disseminated to around 3000 FIP members using Qualtrics. The survey took approximately 15 minutes to complete 28 questions. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were used for the data. Results: A total of 239 participants (8%) completed the survey. On average, participants felt that innovation/entrepreneurship, negotiating, strategic context, conflict management, and vision were among the top five leadership competencies that they would like more training in. When stratified by work setting, pharmacists in academia ranked conflict management, in inpatient hospitals ranked change management, and in community/retail settings ranked prioritisation as the top leadership competency need. Conclusion: Pharmacists in different work settings and different parts of the world have a need for different leadership skills which should be carefully considered when providing leadership training.