THEORETICAL AND METHODICAL ASPECTS OF MEASURING THE EFFICIENCY OF PHARMACEUTICAL ENTERPRISES

The purpose of the article is to identify the most appropriate approaches to measuring the efficiency of pharmaceutical enterprises, classifying them, and developing the appropriate methodical approach. In search of appropriate approaches to measuring the efficiency of pharmaceutical enterprises, the authors considered the results of relevant studies that were published in the scientific literature in recent years. Regarding the Balanced Scorecard (BSC), it is determined that the use of the BSC system can be considered as a possible tool for measuring the efficiency of large pharmaceutical enterprises, whose activities and environment are not very variable, and whose strategies do not require frequent revision. Its use in the majority of Ukrainian pharmaceutical enterprises, which are not large companies, is inappropriate due to its inflexibility, high cost and complexity for small businesses. All identified performance indicators of pharmaceutical enterprises, depending on one or another aspect, are classified by the authors into seven groups according to the main characteristics. Analysing the existing methods of measuring efficiency in the pharmaceutical industry, the authors established that it is appropriate to develop a methodical approach to measure the efficiency of domestic pharmaceutical enterprises, which will use the most accurate and informative methods of non-parametric frontier analysis – Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Free Disposal Hull (FDH), as well as the Malmquist total factor productivity index (Malmquist TFP index). The article proposes a methodical approach to measuring the efficiency of pharmaceutical enterprises, which includes six stages using non-parametric methods of frontier efficiency analysis, in particular DEA, FDH, as well as the Malmquist TFP index. The obtained results should contribute to a better understanding of the essence of measuring the efficiency of pharmaceutical enterprises, as well as to improve the process of making informed managerial decisions regarding the improvement of the efficiency of their activities.