Debra BorchardtJuly 11, 2023
4Front and Trulieve both disclosed declines in staffing for June.
Vangst Archives - Green Market Report
Debra BorchardtJuly 11, 2023Debra BorchardtApril 11, 2023
Demand is high for qualified people in these five roles.
StaffApril 10, 2023
Industry employment across the country fell 2% last year.
Debra BorchardtJanuary 31, 2023
Last year, cannabis employee tip jar stories filled the air. In most of these situations, employees were complaining that customers had left money in tip jars that weren’t making their way to the employees. Social media weighed in suggesting the employees weren’t getting a fair wage and cannabis companies should give them raises. Now it seems the data is showing that these employees are making more than their traditional industry counterparts.
Not So Bad
Cannabis employment company Vangst just released its 2022 salary guide that determined cannabis employees actually made more money when compared to mainstream-non-cannabis-industry roles of the same position. “The roles that reportedly pay higher within cannabis are Budtenders (+45.1% when compared to mainstream Bartenders), HR Generalists (+29.8%), and Customer Support Specialists/Agents (+28.3%). 65% of respondents said their cannabis salary is about the same or more than the salary they earned at their last job.”
Best Paid
The employees that can complain about their salaries compared to the mainstream industry are VPs of Manufacturing (-103.4%) VPs of Marketing (-100.5%), and Controllers (-100.1%). Still, the VP of Manufacturing is one of the highest-paid roles in cannabis with a range of $125-$180k per year. The VP of Retail brings in roughly $140-$200k a year. On the legal side, VP of compliance salary ranges between $130-$180k, the VP of Sales clocks in at $150-$225k and the General Counsel makes between $150-$225k. The roles with the biggest reported positive change in salaries year-over-year were Brand Managers (+56.9%) and Edible Specialists (+42.1%).
Unfortunately, not everyone did so well as the biggest reported negative changes in salaries year-over-year were Directors of Cultivation (-122.7%) and VPs of Operations (-52.8%).
Diversity Improvements?
Vangst reported it saw an uptick in every racial category except Asian American Pacific Islanders in the 2022 survey results. “The largest percentage jump was in people who identify as Asian (+85%), followed by Hispanic or Latinx (+47%), Indigenous People (+35%), Black Americans (+7%), and then White Americans (+11%). It’s important to note that those large increases are the result of relatively small increases in numbers that were already very small. People who identify as white actually made up a larger percentage of cannabis workers in 2022 than they did in 2021 (72.2% v. 65.1%).”
Sadly, the report said that fewer employees report that their company is “very diverse” while more say that their company is “somewhat diverse.” On a positive note, the number of people who said their company is “strongly lacking diversity” dropped by 3 points. Still, Vangst noted that cannabis companies still have a lot of work to do: 64% of those who responded to our survey say they do not have any Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives, working groups, or a diversity council.
Outlook
The outlook from Vangst for 2023 is mostly positive. The report thinks that New York’s focus on social equity applicants will help turn the tide on diversity. The program may be slow to roll out, but the priority placed on diversity could reverberate throughout the industry.
“Our salary guide has been an important resource for hiring managers and job seekers alike for the past five years. While the industry has faced several challenges within the last year, the data provided in this year’s guide points toward a brighter future complete with opportunities for improvement and growth. As in past years, we are confident that this guide will help industry leaders make better-informed decisions about their companies and build a professional, diverse, and engaged workplace as well as guide job seekers to better navigate the cannabis industry,” said Karson Humiston, Founder and CEO of Vangst.
StaffJanuary 13, 2022Cannabis industry hiring platform Vangst has completed a $19 million Series B financing. Vangst said it plans to use the money to expand its platform into new markets to support the influx of jobs. Vangst also said it will use this infusion of capital to launch products that support both cannabis businesses and employees, including training and employee payment solutions. Cannabis employment is expected to grow over 100% by 2025.
“The cannabis industry is one of the fastest-growing industries and job creators in the world, and Vangst is defining how cannabis businesses attract and hire talent in a brand new industry,” said Karson Humiston, Founder and CEO of Vangst. “We are incredibly excited for the opportunity to help thousands of people land their dream job in the cannabis industry.”
Vangst’s latest round of financing highlights the company’s growth over the last three years alongside the maturing cannabis industry. In the past 12 months, the sector reported a 25% increase in full-time employees and currently employs over 400,000 individuals.
Vangst currently works with 1,200 of the leading cannabis businesses, including Green Thumb Industries, Dutchie and Holistic Industries. The Vangst platform streamlines the hiring process by matching both full-time employees as well as vetted, credentialed, W2, on-demand GIG workers, with cannabis businesses across the U.S. As the first and only gig platform in cannabis, Vangst has filled over 150,000 part-time gigs since launching the product in 2018.
The round was led by Level One Fund, with participation from previous investors including Lerer Hippeau, Colle Capital, Casa Verde Capital, Phyto Partners, and new investors including L2 Ventures, Althea, Delta Emerald Ventures, Achari VC and others.
“Cannabis is an undeniably large and fast-growing market, and Vangst is the only company offering scalable recruitment solutions tailored for the industry’s unique needs,” said James Stewart, Managing Partner at Level One Fund. “Few, if any industries, share the constant state of flux and unpredictability that cannabis has, and consequently, there are only a handful of founders equipped to handle the challenges that come with it. Vangst is not only an extremely effective solution to these challenges, but its founder is a true force of nature. We are proud to lead this round and support Vangst as it continues to be a crucial utility to the entire industry.”
StaffDecember 23, 2021
This is a guest column by Karson Humiston, Founder & CEO – Vangst
The cannabis industry is expected to reach $50 billion by the end of 2021. Companies are growing at a rapid pace, but In spite of all the growth, many companies this year are losing employees while struggling to find and retain talent. In the face of this “Great Resignation,” how can companies in the cannabis space build happy, successful and effective teams?
Here are a few tips your organization’s human resources department can apply today:
Tip #1: Clearly Define the Outcome You’re Looking for in the Role
By far, the biggest mistake most companies make when hiring is being too vague when writing the job description. It’s not enough to just list the requirements and day-to-day tasks that you expect from your candidates. Instead, start with the outcome in mind. For example, if you’re looking to hire a salesperson, you could say something like “We’re looking to increase our sales by 20% next year, and in order to do that, we need a salesperson to get us 100 new customers.” By starting with the outcome, candidates know exactly what is expected of them and can judge for themselves if they have the skills to help your company reach its goals.
Tip #2: Make It Clear What Success Looks like in the Position
After defining the desired outcome for the position, it’s important to then show your candidates a roadmap on how they can get there. To stick with our example of hiring a salesperson, you could say something like, “In order to help us get 100 customers, you will need to make X amount of calls a day, and out of those calls we expect Y many closes.” Again, here you’re making it clear what the job will entail and how the position adds value to the business. You’re also demonstrating transparency right off the bat, which reduces turnover.
Tip #3: Cast a Wide Net
In order to find the best talent, you need to make your job posting as widely available to applicants as possible. Posting on Vangst is a great start (especially if you’re a cannabis company), but you should also post to several other reputable job sites. Many companies will start interviewing and find one person they’re happy with and call it a day. We don’t recommend this approach. Even if you really like one candidate, keep in mind the candidate may also be entertaining other jobs and offers. There’s no guarantee that they will accept yours. We recommend you find three people with whom you would be happy to work. This way, you have viable options in case something doesn’t work out with your frontrunner.
Tip #4: Have an Intentional and Clear Onboarding Process
You’ve finally hired an amazing candidate, and they’re now working for your company. Your job as a recruiter is over, right? Wrong. Finding talent is only the first step in this process. After hiring a new employee, you’ll want to do everything you can to get them up to speed and set them up for success. This means having a conscious and straightforward onboarding process. You’ll want to set expectations with your new employee and give them all the tools they need to thrive. This way, your new employee knows what they’re doing and feels they’re being supported every step of the way.
Tip #5: Maintain Good Communication and Give Clear Feedback
As your new employee gets settled into their role, it’s important to keep the line of communication open and establish regular check-ins for the first 90 days and beyond. Make sure your new employee is getting helpful and clear feedback from their manager, so they can improve. You also want to give your new hire a chance to give their manager feedback. It’s important for managers to communicate with employees about where the company is at currently, their role in it, and how that role might evolve in the future. Establishing regular check-ins from the get-go will ensure new employees and the company are always on the same page.
We’re aware that 2021 has been a tough year for many companies when it comes to recruiting though, but if you follow these tips, your company will be armed with the tools it needs to find and retain top talent.
Debra BorchardtFebruary 2, 2021
Cannabis employment company Vangst recently released its new “Cannabis Industry Salary Guide” and while some news is encouraging, there is still a long way to go for cannabis companies. On a positive note, job creation is increasing, and more women are employed by cannabis companies. Unfortunately, entry-level jobs don’t pay much more fast food gigs and the employees are overwhelmingly white.
The Good News
Vangst projects that 26,241 new cannabis jobs will be added by 2025. The company bases this projection on the five newly legalized states: Arizona, New Jersey, Mississippi, Montana, and South Dakota.
| State | Arizona | New Jersey | Mississippi | Montana | South Dakota |
| 2019 Cannabis Jobs | 15,059 | 2,356 | 0 | 1,800 | 0 |
| Projected 2025 cannabis jobs | 16,037 | 21,393 | 1,509 | 2,552 | 2,965 |
| Increase | +978 | +19,037 | +1,509 | +1.752 | +2,965 |
Figures provided by Vangst
Vangst said that maturing markets are seeing a shift in hiring trends as companies adapt to a new pandemic environment. Many companies had to cut back on its employees as COVID disrupted the retail and office environments. Companies also had to move towards more digital options and increase delivery capabilities. Vangst said industry hiring is now returning to pre-pandemic levels.
The report noted it has seen an uptick in companies posting production-related careers resulting in more manufacturing, cultivation, production and supply chain jobs. Sales and marketing jobs have rebounded from the early pandemic cutbacks and maturing companies are adding to HR and finance teams.
Vangst also noted in its report that cannabis companies are beginning to seek out people with past cannabis experience. It had been the trend for cannabis companies to want to hire people from outside industries. The strategy was that the outsiders would bring expertise from other industries and apply it to cannabis. However, this strategy hasn’t always been successful and now it seems cannabis experience is getting more respect.
Karson Humiston, founder, and CEO of Vangst said, “On the executive side, we sort of saw a rush for executives in early 2019. Now, we saw a lot of executives being laid off. I mean because it’s kind of unrealistic for MSO’s to think they’re going to get the CMO from Coca-Cola and that’s what people were trying, you know? Now we’re seeing much stronger demand for mid-level management, more so than the executive level role. Cannabis businesses need people that can actually roll up their sleeves and execute. That’s not a CMO from Pepsi, right? The CMO from Pepsi hasn’t day-to-day managed people in 20 years.
Vangst lists the following jobs that are most in demand:
- Cultivation Technicians
- Trimmers/Packagers
- Budtenders
- Directors of Cultivation
- Delivery Drivers and Logistic Coordinators
- Sales Reps
- Digital Marketing & e-Commerce
- Administrative and Corporate Roles
- Lab Managers
- Directors of HR
The Not So Good News
Salaries for entry-level cannabis jobs don’t pay much more than a fast-food worker. While trimmers are listed as one of the top jobs in demand, the reality is that these jobs only pay between $14.50-$16.00 an hour. Budtenders are the most important customer-facing job in a dispensary. These employees help customers choose a purchase and often work to upsell a customer. They are expected to have a great deal of knowledge about the product for adult-use cannabis and sometimes even medical marijuana. Yet, these positions only pay between $14.50-$17.00 an hour. The lowest pay is in Florida, where budtenders average $12.50 an hour. California pays $16.50, making it the highest paid.
Humiston said, “I hear in some of these states a budtender is making less than $13 an hour. If that budtender worked a $13 an hour job, 40 hours a week … and if they worked 50 weeks a year, they would still be below the poverty line. That just doesn’t add up to me. But what I will say is that I think there’s definitely room for companies to pay their employees more. If you compare this to light industrial or service industries, it’s kind of inline. I don’t think it’s just a cannabis industry problem.
Social Equity seems to be more talk than action. 44% say their companies don’t participate in any social equity programs and 86% have not been social equity candidates. When it comes to diversity hiring, 46% say the company has a plan, but 35% say their company has no diversity hiring plan. When looking at who has been hired Vangst found that over 60% are white, followed by roughly 10% that are Latinx and even fewer as Black. On a positive note, 41% of the cannabis professionals are listed as female-identifying versus 51% as male-identifying.
Who’s Benefiting?
One area where cannabis companies are excelling is benefits. The Vangst report found that as job openings increase, benefits coverage has expanded as well. 57.8% of cannabis workers said that their benefits were equal to or better than the industry they left. The Vangst report showed that medical insurance coverage increased by 3.5%, paid time off increased by 4.9%, and that 90% of all surveyed cannabis companies offered some form of benefits.
Even better than insurance and paid time off, 29% of the companies were offering 401(k) plans and 27% offered equity ownership plans. 52% of the companies said they even offered 401(k) matching plans. That’s becoming rarer in traditional industries. Cannabis companies are also sweetening the deal with creative perks. Life insurance and pet insurance are beginning to crop up in job offers. Even cell phone allowances are a perk that is on the rise.
While cannabis may not be recession-proof, hiring certainly seems to be on the upswing again. Many states had looked to legalization as a way to create jobs and then those jobs began to disappear as capital dried up. That made the cannabis promise of jobs look like an empty one, but as hiring seems to have returned, the industry is looking like a savior once again.
Humiston added, “Four years ago if I said, you know, we could get a regional manager overseeing a few dispensaries to make 150 grand. Everyone would have totally laughed. Now, that’s standard. I think it will continue going up. I really do.”
Debra BorchardtApril 21, 2020What if there were a Bumble for job hunting? A matching service to bring together the job seekers with the job fillers. That’s what the cannabis employment website Vangst has created. The company launched a new talent matching feature that puts the “first move” in the hands of the cannabis job seeker. Vangst timed it with the 420 celebrations and at a time of many cannabis company layoffs.
“The revamped Vangst website reflects our dedication to building community, advancing cannabis careers and companies and being the preeminent resource for talent matching in a time when it is needed more than ever,” says Vangst CEO Karson Humiston. “Our rapid and thoughtful response to the industry’s demands personifies Vangst’s core ethos of ‘let’s get cannabis to work.’”
The new feature on the redesigned company website will let cannabis companies upload temporary and permanent jobs, review applications and autonomously match with ideal candidates from one unified dashboard. If you’ve ever tried to fill a job on a website, you learn that one of the biggest problems is that people apply that aren’t suited at all for the job. Reviewing dozens of resumes is time-consuming and may result in overlooking a great candidate because the employer is drowning in a stack of wrong resumes.
Employers will experience more successful matches through Vangst-Verified, a unique screening process that ensures each candidate is personally endorsed by a Vangst team member for quality and commitment.
“We allow verified candidates to search for and apply directly for the jobs that best match their career aspirations, while on the client dashboard side of the equation, companies posting jobs can review applicant summaries and choose the talent that best matches their hiring needs based on skillset and experience. After matching, all of the mechanics of interviewing, job offers, and HR and regulatory compliance are handled by the company who is posting the job and not Vangst.”
Vangst said its premium GIGS and Direct Hire services are still available. “With our GIGS and Direct Hire services, clients are investing in a team of highly experienced cannabis industry recruiters who will handle their recruiting needs from start to finish and who go beyond Vangst-Verification to ensure that each candidate we recommend is fully vetted to meet a client’s exact hiring needs.” Vangst-Verified is what the company calls its unique screening process that ensures each eligible candidate in the network is personally verified by Vangst for quality and commitment. The company said that before a candidate’s application can be accepted, he or she must engage with our Talent Success team who will verify the candidate’s personal and professional background.
Vangst will still offer its white-glove recruiting services for clients who want an even higher level of support. Additional product and service offerings in line with its focus on connection, community and industry insight are planned to roll out later this year.
StaffDecember 11, 2019
Considering the fact that the cannabis industry is still in its infancy on the grand scale, it comes as no surprise that this industry is still facing a variety of challenges and setbacks.
One of the many challenges that the cannabis industry is currently facing is appropriate levels of workforce and dealing with potential layoffs.
Let’s take a look at California as an example. California has over 7,000 licensed cannabis businesses. At the beginning of the so-called green rush we saw many businesses spring up and quickly hire as many people were trying to get involved in the industry as quickly as possible. Now you have many businesses that are laying off workers due to a combination of the intense regulations, competing with the low prices of the black market, and high taxes applied to Cannabis transactions.
A handful of well-known and respected companies in the cannabis industry were not immune to the challenges everyone in this business is facing and have also had to face layoffs of their own as well. This past October, Pax labs laid off 65 people. Pax Labs is known for manufacturing quality vaporizer pens for cannabis consumption. In that exact same month, Eaze reduced its workforce by one-fifth, which was approximately 36 employees. Eaze is a delivery platform based in the San Francisco area.
The very next month even more prominent names in the cannabis industry suffered some setbacks. Both Flow Kana and CannaCraft let go of nearly %20 of their own workforce. MedMen lost 190 employees that same November or 20% of its workforce.
Karson Humiston Founder & CEO of cannabis employment firm Vangst said, “This year, the industry’s faced a few hurdles with the vape crisis, falling stocks, and layoffs. Although there’s been a lot of noise about these obstacles, the industry is undoubtedly growing. Possibilities for job seekers are still increasing in every vertical and ancillary facet of the industry. Through the internal data collected for our 2019 salary guide, we recorded a 79% increase in total available job opportunities from 2018 to 2019. Businesses are continuing to hire not only for staple positions like budtenders, cultivators, extraction managers, and other plant-touching roles but are also hiring for ancillary roles like sales, marketing, and tech positions. Whether you’re looking to join the industry or already have cannabis experience, companies are hiring for a wide variety of skill sets. As more states continue to legalize, these opportunities will continue to grow exponentially.”
Now let’s not forget that we are still in the early stages of this industry and that we should anticipate challenges as it grows.
Consider this following data from Vangst. Vangst is known to be one of the top recruiting platforms in the cannabis industry.
– The cannabis industry is projected to create up to 414,000 jobs in the United States by 2021
– Between the years 2018 and 2019 there was a 79% increase in the total amount of available job opportunities in the cannabis industry and here in the United States.
– Projections show the potential for approximately 40% of the average company’s workforce to consist of seasonal employees and freelancers by the year 2020.
These are just a handful of examples that are backed by data that indicate the expected growth of the cannabis industry.
Here are some interesting bits of information when it comes to those applying for jobs in the cannabis industry and those looking to hire. This data is also from Vangst:
– Outside sales positions were the most applied for positions in the California cannabis industry. The most popular were the sales account manager positions.
– Sales, administrative, cultivation, and marketing are the top five most desirable positions in the cannabis industry that the majority of applicants desired in 2019.
– Marketing director and creative type positions in the cannabis industry where the most applied to positions in the state of Massachusetts the route 2019.
– The most sought-after cannabis industry jobs in the state of Nevada where those that were office administrative type positions in the year 2019.
– Packager positions are the most popular positions in the Cannabis industry in the state of Colorado. Jobs focusing around post-harvest duties received the most applications in the state of Colorado.
In summary, it is no surprise to see a degree of discomfort or growing pains as the cannabis industry begins to further proliferate. It is important to acknowledge and face these challenges while also looking toward the future with excitement as the data proves that there is still plenty of room for growth, profit, and the opportunity to help others in the cannabis industry.
This was a guest post by Noemi Gonzales.
Anne-Marie FischerJune 4, 2019
The cannabis space is full of opportunities for bright young minds to bring innovation and a new way of thinking to an industry that is rather new and open to different perspectives. As such, Millennials have begun to make their mark within the cannabis industry, and their efforts are being recognized.
Here are three emerging and successful entrepreneurs who are making waves in the cannabis industry and modeling the way for both their successors and predecessors on how to make a serious impact in an emerging industry:
Karson Humiston, Founder & CEO, Vangst
Recruitment has become front and center with numerous platforms that aim to connect eager applicants with vacant opportunities within a growing and established companies.
Karson Humiston, with a background in student travel after founding On Track Adventures, Karson has gone on to become the Founder & CEO of Vangst, the cannabis industry’s leading recruitment and hiring platform.
Since launching in 2016, through Direct Hire & Vangst GIGS, Vangst has connected more than 10,000 people with jobs at over 650 leading cannabis businesses around the US and Canada.
Her accomplishments include raising $12.5M from leading tech and cannabis investors, including Lerer Hippeau and Casa Verde Capital. She was featured on the 2018 Forbes 30 under 30 lists.
Ryan Smith, Co-Founder & CEO, LeafLink
Companies that have aimed to streamline communications and operations processes within the cannabis industry have found great success. POS systems, inventory management systems, and internal/external communication systems are helping cannabis companies find efficiencies that in turn increase profit.
Ryan Smith is the co-founder & CEO of LeafLink, the cannabis industry’s wholesale marketplace. LeafLink connects thousands of cannabis brands and retailers and empowers them to streamline the ordering process, simplify communication, and spend less time on administrative work, so they can focus on growing their businesses.
Launched in Colorado in March 2016, LeafLink is now live in 20 territories across the United States and Canada. Under Smith’s leadership, LeafLink has raised $14 million in investor capital with the software helping cannabis retailers and brands to manage over $1B+ per year in orders.
Smith specializes in managing B2B firms and online marketplaces, successfully founding and exiting two companies, one of which he sold to an NYSE public firm. In 2016, he was the first CEO of a cannabis-facing company to be listed on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list. In February 2018, LeafLink was the first company in the cannabis space to make Fast Company’s 2018 list of Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Enterprise.
Aaron Riley, President & CEO @ CannaSafe
An important component of cannabis legalization has been product testing to ensure all that is sold to consumers are free of contaminants and pesticides while providing information on cannabinoid content for consumers.
With experience in the luxury car industry, Aaron Riley brings his business acumen to the cannabis industry in his role as President of CannaSafe, the first ISO accredited cannabis lab in the world. CannaSafe is a full-service testing lab offering a one-stop solution where cannabis cultivators and distributors can ensure they are in full compliance with all regulatory requirements and that their products are safe and effective for use.
Their 12,500 square foot lab facility, based in Los Angeles, CA, currently tests approx. 25% of all compliant batches in the state. The company has a second facility opening later this year. Riley obtained a Bachelor & M.B.A. from Jacksonville University, earning his way through college on a football scholarship. Under Aaron’s leadership, CannaSafe recently won Testing Facility of the year award for California by Dope magazine.
Follow in their Footsteps
Opportunities abound for emerging professionals within the cannabis industry. Green Market Report featured cannabis companies that are accepting summer internships for young professionals to get their foot in the door and follow in the footsteps of these three professionals under 3 who are getting noticed within cannabis.
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