CannabizTeam’s CEO recently sat down with Jorge Hermida to record an episode of Blunt Business, a podcast hosted by Cannabis Radio. Blunt Business features interviews and round tables with leading cannabis industry business professionals on navigating the challenges and opportunities of this evolving industry.
Liesl and Jorge discuss how diversity and inclusion practices can help companies recruit and retain top talent; improve creativity, innovation and performance; and even boost brand recognition and competitive advantage.
Liesl begins: “I personally believe that there is tons of opportunity in the cannabis industry for both women and men, and that companies perform better when they have more diversity at the top level. Whether that’s women, men, people from other cultures or races – companies alway perform better, so I always promote that when I talk to cannabis executives.”
The interview goes on to discuss a variety of topics surrounding hiring in the cannabis industry:
- Searching for cannabis executives in other more mainstream industries to increase diversity of candidates
- Why the cannabis industry has found success during the pandemic while other industries have suffered
- How the stigma associated with the cannabis industry has changed in recent years
- What is the level of interest from C-level executives to enter the cannabis industry?
- The critical need for cannabis companies to curate a unique company culture and foster a healthy workplace environment
Jorge ends the interview with a quote from Forbes: “A study indicated that as organizations switch to survival mode to address the impacts of the global pandemic, anything that is considered ‘nice to have’ is being jettisoned, with senior stakeholders unable to prioritize anything that isn’t absolutely key to the business. The stark and penetrable reality is that diversity and inclusion are not ‘nice to haves’ – they are absolutely key to the business.”
“The more diversity any company has – especially at the executive level – the more forward-thinking, creative and responsive they are to their consumer needs,” says Liesl. “It goes without saying that if you have different people from different backgrounds that contribute to the thought leadership of any company, that company is going to be more successful.”
To listen to Liesl Bernard on the Blunt Business podcast, visit: cannabisradio.com/podcasts/blunt-business/cannabizteam-with-liesl-bernard.
CannabizTeam recently launched CT Board Placement, a new cannabis staffing division focused on increasing diversity and effective leadership in the cannabis industry. Reach out to our team of specialists today to learn more about how your cannabis company can find the right non-executive directors.
