Ranarda Jones, CEO of PSyn, built her career inside the corporate healthcare environment before deciding to step back into entrepreneurship, motivated by a desire to create more flexible, solution-driven ways of supporting patients, providers, and health plans.
After serving as Director of Medicare pharmacy services and pharmacy consultant and overseeing complex benefit structures, she gained a deep appreciation for how pharmacy operations, insurance frameworks, and regulatory requirements intersect. “Over time, that experience shaped my vision for building a company that could operate with greater agility while staying closely aligned with real-world healthcare needs,” Jones says.
When Jones founded PSyn in 2017, she brought with her a strong understanding of Medicare operations and managed care strategy. She explains that early in the company’s development, they invested significant time in creating an internal audit tool designed to support Medicare performance audits. While the product itself was technically strong, Jones recognized that client priorities were evolving in different directions. Rather than viewing this moment as a setback, she treated it as a formative learning experience.
“It helped refine our focus,” Jones explains. “We became much more intentional about aligning innovation with what organizations actually needed at that moment.” That clarity helped PSyn pivot toward quality performance programs and operational optimization.
Jones’s perspective is shaped by a career that spans nearly every layer of the pharmacy ecosystem. As a licensed pharmacist, she has worked in retail pharmacy, mail-order operations, pharmaceutical environments, and managed care insurance. The insurance component, she says, completed her understanding of the full system. “It allowed me to see how decisions made on the administrative side affect what happens at the pharmacy counter,” Jones notes. “That combination helps us anticipate challenges and design solutions that work in practice, not just on paper.” This cross-functional experience has become a defining strength of PSyn’s advisory approach.
Three years ago, Jones expanded that hands-on perspective by acquiring an independent pharmacy. While the pharmacy operates sustainably on its own, it also serves as a valuable source of real-time operational insight for PSyn’s consulting work. By observing pricing dynamics, reimbursement timelines, and regulatory changes as they occur, the PSyn team gains practical data that supports contract negotiations and strategic guidance. “It keeps us closely connected to day-to-day pharmacy realities,” Jones says. “That perspective strengthens the advice we provide to our clients.”
Today, Jones leads a growing team across five states. According to her, the value of delegation and trust is one of the most important leadership lessons she has learned. Early in her journey, she believed that maintaining high standards meant doing everything herself. Over time, she realized that sustainable growth required empowering others. “I learned that building the right team is just as important as building the right strategy,” she reflects. Jones now prioritizes hiring individuals who demonstrate strong customer service skills, curiosity, and a collaborative mindset.
The human side of healthcare remains central to Jones’s leadership philosophy. She explains that one experience that continues to stand out involved a Medicare beneficiary who was initially flagged for medication non-adherence. When contacted, the patient explained that her primary challenge was not the medication itself, but a broken wheelchair that limited her mobility.
“We worked through the insurance process to help secure a replacement, and it reminded us that meaningful impact often comes from listening first,” Jones says. “Sometimes the most important solution isn’t the one you expect.”
Jones places a strong emphasis on staying current with federal Medicare guidance, regularly reviewing regulatory updates to ensure PSyn’s recommendations remain accurate, compliant, and well-informed. “Understanding the rules allows us to advocate more effectively for our clients,” she explains. “This foundation of regulatory fluency has helped establish PSyn’s reputation as a trusted partner for organizations navigating complex healthcare environments.”
As the company evolved, PSyn underwent a strategic rebrand from its original name, Pharmacy Synergistics. The change reflected the organization’s broader role as a consulting and technology-driven partner rather than what people thought was a traditional pharmacy operation. The new brand identity emphasizes collaboration across pharmacy, insurance, and care delivery.
For Jones, the concept behind PSyn’s tagline, Simply Better Together, reflects her belief that organizations achieve stronger outcomes through partnership. “When teams work together with transparency and shared goals, the results are greater than what any one group can achieve alone,” she says.
Looking ahead to 2026, Jones plans to grow PSyn thoughtfully rather than rapidly. She intends to add a limited number of major Medicare clients to preserve close working relationships while expanding the company’s software platform for government quality improvement programs. “Our main focus currently is on building sustainable partnerships with self-funded employer groups,” Jones notes. “We want to grow in ways that strengthen trust, maintain quality, and continue delivering meaningful value to the healthcare organizations and communities we serve.”
