How to Craft Your Cannabis Company Mission Statement

John Stearns of MJBiz said it best: Your mission is your rallying point. A purposeful mission statement helps your employees understand their place in the company and gives them a guiding principle to use when making decisions.

Mission statements need to come from the top down to shape company culture: just as CEOs and leadership teams need to embody inclusion values to create an inclusive team, a mission statement is only as powerful as the people behind it. If you let your mission statement be your guiding light, your company can become a force of innovation and community good within the cannabis industry.

To keep a cannabis company’s mission statement front and center, it must be easy to remember. Clarity is a key component of an effective mission statement. While these statements can be as long as you’d like, one sentence is about the limit your employees will remember.

The easiest way to craft a mission statement is to follow the “what – how – why” formula: what your company does, how you do it, and why you do it. This statement should be a vision, reflective of your company as a whole, not individual products or monetary goals. A mission statement is meant to be a living document that evolves alongside your business.

The best mission statements encapsulate a company’s core values and principles. Take the mission statement of the National Cannabis Industry Association: To promote the growth of a responsible, sustainable, and inclusive cannabis industry and work for a favorable social, economic, and regulatory environment for that industry throughout the United States.

Or that of Maine-based growers, The Atlantic Farms: To define the future of craft cannabis by advancing the role marijuana plays in enhancing and improving people’s lives.

Both of these clearly state the intent of the organization and ground the goals in values.

To put together your cannabis company mission statement, fill out each section of the formula. Identify your core values — what drives your team and your company forward? While much of this direction needs to come from leadership, this should be a process that the entire team is involved in. Everyone needs to understand and embody the mission statement.

How you do what you do is your unique value proposition. Consider the market as a whole and what specific needs your company addresses. How do you differentiate from the competition?

Of course, you also need to consider your target audience in this process. Your mission statement should be one your community can stand behind too (like in the example of The Atlantic Farm’s mission statement.) Your statement should summarize for your customers how and why, which are two differentiating factors for a cannabis business in a crowded marketplace.

In the cannabis industry, customer safety is a vital consideration. Your mission statement may reflect your company’s commitment to regulatory compliance and customer safety, so your consumers always know they’re getting safe products from you. Ethics are a standard that consumers appreciate; consider including this in your mission statement if you manufacture products or conduct safety tests.

Of course, the cannabis industry is known for being a quagmire of regulations, and your mission statement can’t escape legal scrutiny. Be sure it doesn’t include any prescriptive language to specific benefits of cannabis or you could land in hot water.

A mission statement is a living document that evolves with your business — it doesn’t include monetary goals. But your business goals, including growth and finances, should be the result of successfully upholding your mission statement.

It can be easy to put your mission statement up in the clouds, in a world where things always go to plan. But it’s important to ensure your mission statement is grounded in reality, in executable, achievable tasks for your team.

At the end of the day, the most effective mission statements are those that get remembered — so ensure that you have a clear, brief statement to summarize your business. Then, use it. Share it with your employees, review it at the start of team meetings, and make it part of annual reviews. Make it easy for your customers to find your website and share it on your social media. Use it as a part of daily business to guide your decisions and align with your values.

But as much as you use it and as attached as you may get to your cannabis company mission statement, remember that it is an evolving document. Review it on a regular basis, such as annually, and ensure that it still aligns; if it doesn’t, it’s time to revise and update it.

Your mission statement is just one piece of the puzzle for long-term success in the cannabis industry. While it may seem easy to put together a short sentence, intentionality turns your mission statement from just a sentence to a guiding light that protects your business.

Protecting your cannabis company can seem confusing; however, we’re a full-service insurance brokerage working with carriers worldwide to offer you the best coverage possible. We’re here to help! Please reach out to us today by emailing [email protected] or calling 646-854-1093 for a customized letter of commitment or learning more about your cannabis insurance options.