6 minute read
LSBR Blog
Fostering diversity and inclusion in the corporate cannabis world through MBA skills
Everyone is looking to invest in the cannabis market. It is currently among the most profitable businesses to invest in, and everyone wants a chunk of the market from small businesses to major corporations. This article gives a full breakdown into the highly profitable plant and gives an insight into the business model it employs and how to maximise market opportunities.
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It is quite certain that MBA students given the right training would most likely maximise the opportunities that are rampant in this market.
Cannabis goes corporate and swallows the competition
When it came to legalising, decriminalising and relaxing legislation for cannabis, the US was late to the party. Due to this fact, US companies are hustling for a piece of the cake in this trending market. Canadian companies have dominated the space, and US companies have constantly been trying to form fascinating partnerships to have their share of the market.
Currently, the largest cannabis distribution company is a Canadian company called Canopy Growth. They had $4 billion invested into their company by a New York-based beer supplier named constellation in 2018, to help scale the production of recreational marijuana in 30 more countries.
Tilray, a Canada based cannabis company, was the first company to issue an IPO on NASDAQ, and they happen to be the second-largest company for the distribution of recreational marijuana.
The third-largest company is yet another Canadian organisation called Aurora cannabis, but they haven’t been able to make deals with any corporations due to warnings from their US-based consultant Nelson Peltz against penning contracts with any US corporation.
The cannabis industry is becoming more extensive and competitive than ever in history, but how can one make a profit from this boom?
Skills that can advance the modern cannabis industry
One thing that is quite sure about this industry is that it is in its infancy. Students applying for top MBA programs possess a great opportunity of profiting a lot from this market, whether it be a 12 months MBA program, 24-month program, or a part-time MBA program.
Because MBA students can calibrate their studies towards an emerging market’s needs and opportunities, they stand a great chance of making the most of an extremely profitable market, like the cannabis industry.
Let’s consider the skills required to figure out business difficulties that have arisen in the cannabis industry over the last few years.
Business ethics
Back in 1970 when cannabis was labelled and declared a schedule 1 drug, the crackdown and strict enforcement of drug laws, clearly affected black and brown communities more than it did for white communities. But now, cannabis is being seen in a new light with even some arguing that it helps eradicate societal ills. One would think that these communities that have been incarcerated and discriminated against because of cannabis would have a fair stake in this market, but the reverse is the case. There is a high presence of white males at the forefront of large corporations taking a majority and full control of this industry, leaving minorities to miss out on the revenue of the market. This is a big issue, and there is a need for solutions to be offered to this problem.
By taking a 12 months MBA program or part-time program where business ethics would be taught, students can acquire skills that enable them to critically assess a situation and provide solutions that help focus developments on diversity and inclusion in a rapidly growing industry like the cannabis industry. Some of the issues worth attending to include…
Do MBA studies provoke delicate questions and conversations between professors and students? How can the marijuana market be modified to entrench inclusivity as one of its core business principles? Is it better if the government takes full control of the market like some states do with alcohol? How can extremely small marijuana businesses stay in business when large companies drive the cost down?
Further conversations that require a critical look based on business ethics could be:
Does large scale cultivation of cannabis need to be regulated to water down its environmental effects? Are cannabis marketing strategies potentially dangerous towards children in the sense that there are cannabis packaging similar to mint and chocolate or sweets packaging which children might not be able to differentiate from? By concentrating on business ethics during your 12 months MBA program, you can help provide solutions to sensitive issues in the cannabis industry. Especially at a time where the regulations are still in its infancy.
Social impact
Due to the interesting partnerships mentioned above, cannabis companies are considering following a business strategy used by alcohol companies called the 80/20 rule. This means that marijuana companies focus on the 20% of customers who consume 80% of their products, a strategy which lots of alcohol companies employ. It is heartbreaking to realise the 20% that make up the significant consumers of the companies are low-income minorities, highlighting the fact that the population of this demographic are usually settled close to the alcohol dispensaries. And these dispensaries have made minority communities have easy access to them, a strategy that will fare very well with marijuana companies.
So, this brings us to the conclusion that even with minorities losing out on the market, they are potentially harmed by the decisions of the major players in the market. Enrolling for a 12 months MBA program would go a long way in helping you create solutions for these underserved communities and help navigate through the intricacies of the cannabis market. What’s more? MBA students are better informed about issues like the value of homeownership declining due to proximity to marijuana farms, a steady increase in crime rate, and heavy youth cannabis usage in these minority communities.
Design thinking
As was pointed out earlier, diversity and inclusion are major issues in the cannabis industry. Reports show that business owned by people of colour in the cannabis industry is just 4.3%, and blacks are 3.73 times more likely than whites to get arrested for marijuana in states where marijuana isn’t legal. Even in states where marijuana is legal, African Americans still have higher chances of getting arrested 16 times higher than white people.
There is a likelihood that implementing design thinking to the issue of the lack of diversity in the industry could create a way to solve many problems. For example, leading African Americans to use technology to help them navigate the marijuana industry. This, in turn, creates a sort of design-oriented thinking which helps African Americans return into society as entrepreneurs; and also help small marijuana business owners access vocational training to participate in the corporate business world.
A 12 months MBA program would offer design thinking courses that focus on inclusion and diversity. So whenever booming and rising industries like the marijuana industries appear, they’ll be able to apply design thinking to make the most of such markets, while also making solutions for socio-economic issues in the process.
Making a strategic entrance into the cannabis industry
The entry points for the cannabis market and to challenge the status quo are endless. Nevertheless, to enter the market, you must first acquire the skills to do so strategically. With an MBA, you can gain insights on how to assess the market needs and pitfalls critically. The knowledge and skills you develop will help you become a decisive business person in this robust and profitable transnational space.
