Marijuana Business Magazine July 2018

IDENTIFYING RED FLAGS W hen hiring for a human-resources professional, marijuana execu- tives need to be alert to potential landmines. Be wary of any candidate who: • Doesn’t like cannabis consumers. • Has a tendency to reveal too much in conversation. • Has felonies on his/her record. • Isn’t a team player. • Can’t follow simple instructions. Joe Hodas, chief operating officer of General Cannabis, a Denver- based holding company that acquires companies across multiple sectors in the industry, won’t hire someone who shows a disdain for cannabis consumers. “I have interviewed people for this industry that, while they know there’s a financial opportunity, they look at people within this industry as somehow lesser than them, because they’re cannabis consumers,” he said. “That would be a huge red flag.” Hodas said he wants people who respect the culture and the indi- viduals in the industry. He’s also wary of an HR candidate who comes off as too gossipy or who tends to share toomuch information. Youwant your HR person to maintain a high level of professionalism and keep sensitive personnel discussions as discreet as possible. “If they shared with me that they were in a circumstance that ultimately led to a negative outcome, that’s going to be a red flag,” Hodas added. Steve Gormley, a member of the board of directors at JuJu Royal, Julian Marley’s brand of medical cannabis products, checks for criminal backgrounds before he hires. “I’m fine with misdemeanors, to be honest,” he said. “But felonies and bankruptcies are two nonstarters for me.” He’s looking for team players and collaborators. “If I see someone who’s in it for themselves, that’s a red flag for me,” Gormley added. Leah Heise, chief experience officer for Mission Partners – a multi- state chain of medical marijuana dispensaries owned by the Phoenix- basedMJ investment andmanagement company 4Front Holdings –will disqualify a candidate who can’t follow simple directions. “If I put in the job board posting that you have to send me your resume in a PDF format, I want your references separately, and I want a cover letter,” she said. “And if you don’t send me those three things in the format I asked you, I’m not even going to interview you. You’re done. I’m going to throw you in the trashcan.” Heise said she wants detail-oriented people. “If you can’t comply with the initial requirements of the job request, I can’t imagine that you’ll be able to comply with the very-detailed, task-focused things that we have to accomplish,” she added. – Bart Schaneman That’s because situations will come up in this industry that don’t come up in others. For example, workers might have a misunder- standing that because they’re work- ing for a cannabis company they can consume marijuana on the job. A good HR professional can deal with that type of situation and carry on with their business. “That’s a hallmark of anyone in this industry,” he said. “You have to be able to roll with the punches.” WHERE TO LOOK Heise will use online job boards and job sites such as Indeed to recruit for an HR pro. But she also finds that old-fash- ioned methods work well. “I’m a strong believer in net- working and word of mouth,” Heise added. Gormley agrees with using traditional methods. “It’s really word of mouth at this point,” he said. “You have to keep in mind the culture of requiring exces- sive levels of trust that people want personal referrals when they’re hir- ing people.” Hodas has used a variety of recruiting services and online job boards, including Vangst and Andrew Hudson’s Jobs List, which is local to Colorado. Hodas is also a fan of LinkedIn’s search function. “I’m always going to go first to LinkedIn and post that I’m looking for somebody,” he said. “I generally get a good assortment of resumes that way.” HOW TO TRAIN AND MANAGE Heise puts her new hires through a multi-week training period. Her company has an onboarding and employment template through its project-management software, Asana. The new hire is taught how to use the different platforms the busi- ness employs. 110 • Marijuana Business Magazine • July 2018