Case study CVS Pharmacy 2024

Pharmacy modernisation.

A vision for the in-store software used in 9,000+ CVS pharmacies. From script processor to genuine healthcare provider.

Role: Senior Product Designer
Client: CVS Pharmacy (US)
Agency: TCS Interactive
Duration: 9 months

Brief

Reimagine RxConnect, a platform that pre-dates the iPhone, without losing the speed pharmacists have spent years building into muscle memory.

Modernise a keyboard-driven, command-bar-led system without forcing experienced staff to start from zero
Reduce cognitive load in pharmacies where shortkey memorisation and workarounds had become the path to speed
Enable lower-traffic stores to pick up work for high-traffic ones, so capacity flows where it's needed
Create space for CVS to grow into a broader healthcare role

My contribution

Led the definition of hero journeys and key flows, mapping the full prescription intake to patient handoff journey across six scenarios
Identified 350+ improvement opportunities across the existing RxConnect platform and designed cross-platform experiences across desktop and handheld devices
Ran research interviews and workshops with CVS staff, working with a dedicated super group of current and former pharmacists and technicians to test concepts and validate hero journeys
Contributed to research and analysis during the Understand Context phase, helping map real pharmacy workflows and pain points across the existing platform
Worked closely with the creative developer to build and refine prototypes, and with the motion team on storyboarding, flow mapping and assets
Co-created weekly drop decks with the Design Director, mentored junior and mid-level designers, and presented work directly to CVS stakeholders throughout the programme

Challenge

Why now.

A platform older than the iPhone

RxConnect pre-dates 2007. It’s keyboard-driven, navigated via a command bar at the bottom of the screen. Pharmacists rely on shortkeys and workarounds learned over years.

Speed locked behind experience

Real productivity required 4+ years of muscle memory. New staff couldn't get there fast, and the network couldn't move work to where there was capacity.

Process over patient care

Fragmented, command-driven tools left no room for clinical judgement. Colleagues were processing, not caring.

Approach

From the ground up.

Understand the system

Shadowed pharmacists and technicians in store to see real workflows, not idealised ones.

In-store observation across high- and low-traffic pharmacies
Mapped the journey from prescription intake to patient handoff
Interviewed 4+ year veterans and newer hires to understand the experience gap

Define the vision

Built a north star anchored in clinical need, not just process efficiency.

Six hero scenarios spanning the full pharmacy day
Experience principles to guide cross-team decisions
Identified 350+ specific improvements to feed the roadmap

Make it real

Prototyped and validated across the hero journeys, keeping engineering close.

Iterative prototyping with pharmacy staff
Focus groups to pressure-test the most disruptive ideas
Cross-platform design across desktop and handheld devices

Solutions

Key features.

Intelligent workflows

Reduced cognitive load across the most critical and time-sensitive tasks. Fewer clicks, clearer next steps, less room for error.

Speed shouldn't depend on memorising shortkeys learned over years. The system should carry that load, so new hires can be effective fast.

Patient 360

A unified view of patient information: prescriptions, history, flags. Built for faster, more confident decisions at the counter.

Unified rather than aggregated. Pharmacists needed confidence in a single view they could trust at the counter.

Empowering colleagues

Tools designed around the realities of a busy pharmacy floor, including onboarding flows that got new staff up to speed quickly.

Built for varying digital maturity, from experienced pharmacists to staff on their first week.

AI-assisted production

Automation that removes manual effort from routine tasks, freeing pharmacists to focus on patient-facing work.

Automates the routine to free capacity for patient-facing work. The work only pharmacists can do.

Impact

What it set in motion.

Opportunities identified

Across six hero journeys.

350+

Prototypes & ideas

16 prototypes · 12 hero journeys.

Reach

Pharmacists, technicians, patients.

9,000+