10/12/2026
In this special "Off Script" episode of CPhT Connect, host Mike Johnston, CPhT-Adv, goes solo to speak directly to pharmacists, owners, managers, and anyone who builds the schedule. With World Pharmacy Technician Day coming up on Tuesday, October 20th, Mike shares what technicians told NPTA when asked one question: what would make you feel seen? Last year, 47% of technicians said no one recognized Pharmacy Technician Day at all, and Mike argues that recognition matters for retention, not just for being nice.
Drawing on real responses from NPTA members, Mike explains why technicians aren't asking for a party. They're asking their employers to notice. He breaks their answers into two buckets: free recognition that costs only attention and recognition that costs something real, like pay that tracks the credentials, training, and responsibility they carry. Mike also speaks candidly to independent pharmacy owners working with thin margins, and closes with a simple three-step plan to use before October 20th.
In this episode, we discuss:
* It's a Noticing Problem, Not a Pizza Problem: Why the typical Tech Day pizza party is too generic to feel personal and too small to change anything, and why food showed up last on technicians' wish lists.
* Bucket One: Recognition That Costs Nothing: What technicians said noticing looks like in their own words: don't cookie-cutter the appreciation, be fair, celebrate when they hit the goal, and see the work nobody sees.
* Bucket Two: Recognition That Costs Something: Why technicians want pay that reflects their credentials, training, and responsibilities, and why keeping a tech is almost always cheaper than replacing one.
* The Hidden Cost of Unused Skills: How training that sits on a shelf creates a morale problem, a retention problem, and a skill you paid for and never used, and why letting techs use what they learn may be the loudest recognition there is.
* A Three-Step Plan Before October 20th: Write a specific sticky note for every technician, ask each one what would make them feel seen, and say it out loud to the whole team on Tech Day, then keep going on the 21st with one specific sentence to one tech every week.
About The Host:
Mike Johnston, CPhT-Adv, is the founder and CEO of NPTA and founder of BPTS. He has owned his own company since 1999 and has spent more than 25 years helping thousands of pharmacy technicians grow their careers.
This episode is part of CPhT Connect's partnership with the Pharmacy Podcast Network.
Listen now at CPhTConnect.com to hear why one sentence is all it takes to show a technician you notice them. For free planning resources, visit RxTechDay.org, and to learn more about making recognition a year-round habit, explore the new Rx Team Builder program at cpht.org/employers
