Establishing Effective Recruitment and Staffing Strategies for Your Cannabis Company

It’s Your Cannabis Company - Own It

How do you build your dream business? It starts with due diligence. You understand the business you are in and your process. You have the foresight to fill titles with experienced people. You don’t subscribe to the idea that people with experience have habits that need to be changed (although sometimes they do, and it’s your job to try and change them). 

Expertise is harder to manage because complex people can be rigid. The best talent sometimes comes with an emotional toll more significant than the responsibility of owning a business. Your job is to nurture your staff and provide a living wage and a safe work environment where they want to perform at their peak. You listen to their needs and the needs of the role they fulfill in your vision. When it comes to establishing a work culture for your cannabis business:

• Create an atmosphere within your organization that makes people want to stay and allows them to articulate their needs. 
• As a business owner, you must shepherd its cause. You can not be emotionally transparent without staffing consequences. Without a social ecosystem, you won’t have a company. 
• The key to retaining happy employees is to foster strong communication. While staff helps you build your company, it’s your job to build them up. If you can’t do this, you can’t scale and thrive.

Traditional views line up with the workforce as a financial expense and even a liability. Consider your employees as invaluable assets that can be deployed strategically to enhance your organization’s overall value and reputation. 

This shift in perspective places the focus on Human Capital Management (HCM). Remarkably, it is not uncommon for organizations to overlook the strategic importance of HCM while emphasizing other aspects like mergers, acquisitions, and capital investments.

However, it's time to realize that your workforce can often be the singular appreciating asset within your business. A carefully selected, well-trained, and efficiently managed team of cannabis professionals can generate significant returns on investment for your cannabis venture, continually contributing their growing knowledge and expertise.

Establishing Effective Cannabis Recruitment

Attracting talent to the cannabis industry entails overcoming specific hurdles, such as high turnover rates, systemic dysfunction that comes with constant scaling, and the need for professionals adept at navigating a highly regulated environment. Moreover, the industry requires diverse skill sets, from cultivation experts and scientists to supply chain managers, sales representatives, and delivery drivers. 

You need to know people in your network and within the cannabis industry trade you are entering –this would be fulfilled with proper due diligence. 

If not, consider professional assistance such as a cannabis consulting company like 3C. Cannabis businesses benefit significantly from the services of specialized recruitment agencies.

Top Cannabis Recruitment Firms

Here are a few established recruitment firms that specialize in the cannabis industry:

1. Cannabis at Work: Cannabis at Work is a Canadian-based recruitment firm that specializes in connecting businesses in the cannabis industry with qualified professionals. They offer comprehensive staffing solutions including temporary staffing, executive search, and employer branding services.
2. Ms. Mary Staffing: Based in the United States, Ms. Mary Staffing is a full-service Payroll and Human Resources agency exclusively for the cannabis industry. They offer various services, including temporary staffing, professional employment organization (PEO), and HR consulting.
3. Vangst: Vangst is one of the leading recruitment platforms in the cannabis industry. Their dynamic approach to recruitment leverages technology and a large network of industry professionals to provide efficient staffing solutions. Vangst caters to both temporary and full-time recruitment needs.

Navigating the complexities of staffing in the cannabis industry can seem daunting. Still, with the help of professional recruitment firms in cannabis, companies can overcome these challenges and secure the talent necessary for growth and success. General recruitment options like Indeed or Zip Recruiter can also be reviewed to find candidates to fill your staffing needs with success. 

Strategic Hiring for a Cannabis Business

For a cannabis business, ensuring the right people fill the right roles is paramount. A well-executed recruitment strategy is one of the core competencies of effective HCM. Recruiting is more than hastily filling an open position or yielding to superiors’ demands. It's a meticulous process that involves conducting an in-depth background analysis of prospective employees to ensure they align with the company's ethos, culture, and operational needs. 

In the cannabis sector, hiring is a crucial determinant of success. A wrong choice can impact your business operations and tarnish your brand's reputation. Therefore, each hire must be thoroughly vetted to ensure they're fit for the role and bring value to the organization in the long run.

Investing in Employee Growth: The Road to Sustainability

To remain competitive in the rapidly evolving cannabis industry, continuous skill development is crucial. Cannabis employees who actively upgrade their knowledge and adapt to changing business landscapes are invaluable to an organization. HCM aids in creating robust training programs that facilitate constant skill upgrades, thereby nurturing an efficient workforce that stands out from the competition.

Chief Human Capital Officer (CHCO)

At the beginning of your operation, you, the business owner, are tasked with leading the team by example. How you carry yourself within your organization will be followed by those who work with you. 

If you can navigate corporate social constructs and survive with a strong employee-focused foundation, you will grow until you need someone else to handle this responsibility as a titled position. As you build your cannabis business, the Chief Human Capital Officer (CHCO), or any other head human resources role, becomes instrumental. 

A CHCO strategic leader for a cannabis business reflects the following: 

• strong work communication
• business acumen
• the courage to deliver difficult feedback
• attention to detail
• consistent follow-ups
• oversees all HR operations 
• Establishing competitive compensation packages for employees
• Promote internal growth 
• Maintain consistency in merit increases 

A CHCO will also typically assist the CEO and C-Suite with: 

• Organizational expansion
• Managing relationships with external partners 
• Driving employee retention 
• Diversity & inclusion hiring initiatives 

CHCO Leaders are  the primary drivers of the organization's human capital and talent strategy and play an instrumental role in fostering a positive company culture. 

Over the years, the role of a CHCO has evolved significantly. But, remember: The first CHCO is the founder of the company. 

Crafting a Winning Strategy

Recruiting and staffing your cannabis business involves more than hiring employees; it’s about creating a winning business strategy that ensures business sustainability and growth. Your team is your most valuable asset and should be viewed and managed as such. 

By implementing effective Human Capital Management practices, you can attract, train, and retain best-in-class talent that will drive your cannabis business toward success. While building the right team for your cannabis company may seem challenging, it's worth the time and effort. 

Your staff are the ones who will be at the forefront of making your business vision a reality. Ensuring they are well-selected, adequately trained, and efficiently managed will pave the way for your company to thrive in the rapidly evolving and highly competitive cannabis industry. 

Contact 3C today for assistance with due diligence and strategic planning for your cannabis business.