As the cannabis industry explodes in growth, so does the need for workers to handle the number of jobs the industry is producing.

Those jobs grew 76% in 2018, according to numbers reported by CNBC. They also reported the industry’s acceleration doesn’t appear likely to slow anytime soon, as more states make marijuana legal for medical and recreational use.

Companies in the industry often face a tough time finding qualified applicants to fill cannabis jobs, especially at the management level or in customer-facing roles in a dispensary. Many of the jobs available – from master grower to properly trained dispensary agents – require a specific skill set geared toward the cannabis industry.

Companies have emerged to address this situation. One of the most successful is HempStaff, a Florida-based company that provides recruiting and training services for the legal marijuana industry across the country.

A Focus on Marijuana Jobs

HempStaff separates itself from other job recruiting agencies because it focuses exclusively on finding job applicants to fill positions in the marijuana and hemp industry. They specialize in matching qualified applicants to management-level jobs such as master grower, extractor and dispensary manager.

The company also provides training for dispensary agents.

Since starting the business in 2014, HempStaff has placed thousands of job applicants into positions in the cannabis industry in a dozen different states. They now have more than 50,000 applicants in their job base, making it easier to find the right employee for the right job.

Recruiting For Cannabis Businesses

When a cannabis business has a job opening, they often are flooded with applicants. As noted by Fortune magazine, the cannabis industry has become a “job hunter’s dream” because of the fast-growing number of jobs and the fact some require no experience.

A lack of experience might work for some positions, but others require either experience or a specific set of skills learned in another industry. This is especially true for professional positions such as accountants, marketers, master grower and some lab worker positions.

The same is true for managers (such as at a dispensary) or those who deal directly with customers, such as dispensary agent.

HempStaff provides a service that can quickly cut down a large number of applicants to those who are qualified for jobs in the hemp, recreational cannabis, and medical marijuana industry.

They then work with employers on the short list, helping them find the right person to fill the job. It’s another sign of the growing professionalism in the industry. Job competition is growing because more professionals are becoming attracted to the industry. HempStaff helps companies separate out job candidates who have the qualities they want.

Dispensary Manager

As an example, consider everything a dispensary manager must handle on the job. It includes the following.

• Acting as “the face” of the dispensary, including with patrons, law enforcement and vendors
• Oversee and train staff to ensure they comply with regulations as well as provide excellent customer service
• Maintain all financial records
• Act as the point of contact with grow sites
• Understand and manage marketing for the dispensary
• Determine what products to carry and the proper pricing based on the regional market

And that’s all happening while they do their main job: ensuring the dispensary is selling the highest quality cannabis possible. It’s easy to see why a company that specializes in recruiting cannabis professionals is a welcome addition to the marijuana industry.

Training for Cannabis Employees

HempStaff also has blazed a trail on the other side of the job hunt equation: training potential employees to become qualified dispensary agents. Since 2014, the company has trained more than 6,600 dispensary agents who work in 20 different states.

This is far more complex than people might realize. Each state has its own unique set of laws and regulations surrounding the sale of marijuana at dispensaries. That’s why HempStaff holds cannabis training classes around the country, with a unique education program for each state. For example, some will focus on recreational marijuana sales, while others are for medical marijuana sales only. However, even in a recreational market, a dispensary worker needs to know the medicinal effects of every cannabis product they sell.

Upcoming classes for 2019 include Cleveland, Ohio; Little Rock, Arkansas; Newark, New Jersey; Philadelphia; Boston; Chicago; Tulsa, Oklahoma: St, Louis; and Kansas City.

Training thousands put HempStaff in the unique position of having people already in their database to fill any job openings they are asked to recruit for, giving them an edge on other recruiting services.

HempStaff is another example of how the marijuana industry is maturing as it expands. Businesses now need trained professionals for many important jobs, and HempStaff has proven successful at helping them achieve this goal.