SAN DIEGO — H.D. Smith senior vice president of strategic planning Joe Conda was given the National Association of Chain Drug Stores’ Harold W. Pratt Award at the association’s annual Pharmacy & Technology Conference held here last month.

An NACDS spokeswoman notes that Conda, who has spent four decades in the pharmacy industry, has led H.D. Smith’s strategic development process, translating opportunities into measurable objectives and assisting senior executive leadership with long-term planning.

Prior to joining H.D. Smith, Conda served as an executive consultant with pharmaceutical, consumer packaging and medical technology companies. Earlier in his career he was president of Owens Illinois Healthcare Packaging.

“Joe has spent his time building relationships and building strategy,” NACDS president and chief executive officer Steve Anderson said in presenting the award during a ceremony on the final night of this year’s conference. “He has forged relationships among many groups that benefited not only his company but also the industry.

“He has helped shape pharmacy into what it has become today, and helped to create the momentum that will continue to enhance pharmacy’s role in health care delivery,” Anderson remarked.

Considered to be NACDS’ highest honor, the Pratt Award is named after Harold W. Pratt, a former Walgreen Co. executive who spent 43 years with the drug chain and was the pharmacy industry’s first director of professional services.

The award was established in 1985 as a way to recognize individuals whose activities have contributed to the promotion, recognition and improvement of the practice of pharmacy within the chain drug industry.