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Banking On Cannabis

Given the proliferation of marijuana dispensaries in Florida since smokable medical marijuana was legalized in 2019, it’s often assumed that operating a successful cannabis business is as easy as opening the doors. In reality, the cannabis industry deals with a number of hurdles that other businesses rarely encounter. And the most prominent of those barriers is the lack of banking options.

“Because cannabis is not a federally approved product, we are not allowed to do banking in most of the fin
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Pipeline To Employment

Although Southwest Florida has an enviable 2.6% unemployment rate, many employers are still seeking workers with the skills or credentials for in-demand positions. That continuing need for a more skilled employee pool was the driving force behind the Southwest Florida Equitable Jobs Pipeline, a workforce development initiative created by Florida Gulf Coast University in partnership with FutureMakers Coalition at Collaboratory.

The Equitable Jobs Pipeline will be funded by a $22.9 million grant
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Medical marijuana’s effect on workplace drug testing

Drug testing has been a part of many workplaces for the last four decades. However, the increase in positive drug tests since smokable medical marijuana was legalized in Florida in 2019, and the ongoing worker shortage, have many employers considering if drug testing is still worth it.

“Since COVID, a lot of the companies have stopped drug testing because they’re trying to get people to come back to work,” says Deanna Lukich, owner of drug, alcohol and DNA testing facility Fastest Labs of Fort
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Why There's An Officiating Shortage In Youth Hockey

Massachusetts, along with Minnesota, can likely be considered the hotbed of youth hockey in the United States. However, youth hockey in the Bay State is also on the front lines of what’s becoming a growing problem in every youth sport. That is, a shortage of referees.

Why Is There A Referee Shortage?

While it had been rumored quietly for years, the problem in Massachusetts and everywhere else in youth hockey broke open last fall, when the president of Massachusetts Hockey released a letter det
Gulfshore Business •

How technology is changing the office environment

At Venture X, a co-working space in Naples, members can enter any part of the facility touch-free, any time of the day or night. Inside, the space features an array of flexible workspaces and fiber internet access, and members can even set up their own VPN for online privacy. Plus, the LEED Gold-certified facility offers motion-sensitive LED lighting and an HVAC system with UV air filtration that provides a fresh air exchange every 20 minutes.

“We have a lot of different companies that work her
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Taking a stress rest: The importance of mental wellbeing in the workplace

Though the pandemic may be slowly fading from view, employers are still dealing with lingering effects such as the worker shortage, supply-chain issues and inflation. However, for many businesses, employees’ mental wellbeing, and how it’s managed in the workplace, is having a more significant impact on operations than ever before.

“A lot of restaurants are … wondering where they’re going to find workers right now. The people that are working are working hard,” says Kathy Stephan, operations man
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Critical condition: Addressing Southwest Florida’s nursing shortage — today and tomorrow

According to a recent report from the Florida Hospital Association, the state of Florida will likely have a shortage of almost 60,000 nurses by 2035. While the nursing shortage has been an ongoing problem for years, the pandemic has accelerated the problem significantly.

“One of the contributing factors is COVID—definitely the burnout factor and the acuity level of the patients. When I look at the critical care numbers, the data is saying that one in three critical care nurses have left their p
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Selling social responsibility: Is being a ‘good’ company good for business?

These days, it’s common for companies to publicly state what they consider their core values. In times of social upheaval or focus on hot-button issues, big brands, mom-and-pop shops and all businesses in between seem compelled to announce what they stand for, almost as an automatic response. However, while a generational shift is driving demand for social responsibility from companies, from a marketing standpoint, some businesses are struggling to keep pace.

“Millennials really are at the base
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Bits, bytes and bucks: What’s driving the rise of cryptocurrency?

In his day job, Justin Verley works as the operations manager for the Rainbow Movement Foundation in Cape Coral. However, while others may pursue gardening or golf in their off hours, Verley has a different hobby. His passion is cryptocurrency.

“I got into cryptocurrency in 2017 when one Bitcoin price pumped to $20,000 for the first time. A lot of friends had told me they had made a lot of money. Everything was happening so fast at the time that I got caught up in the hype and got lucky,” Verle
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Marketing Moving Forward

The pandemic forced most businesses to change how they operate. For many, those changes were most apparent in their marketing. And now, as companies find their new normal, they’re also finding other, new approaches to their marketing.

“I look at this as going through filters,” says Lonny Kocina, the Cape Coral-based CEO of Media Relations Agency and author of The CEO’s Guide to Marketing. “The market environment change in the pandemic was a filter we all had to go through and … come out on the
Gulfshore Business •

The Rise of Ransomware

One password. That’s all it took for hackers to breach the Colonial Pipeline system, effectively shut down the company’s pipeline supplying fuel to the East Coast and keep it shut down until a ransom of nearly $5 million was paid. With as many as 65,000 ransomware attacks projected to hit U.S. entities in 2021, some experts say it’s not a matter of if, but when, a business will be targeted.

“Ransomware is a form of malware,” says Brad Rowe, CEO and chairman of the board of Fort Myers-based cybe
Gulfshore Business •

The New Reality of HR

While the worker shortage in the hospitality and service industries has been well documented in Southwest Florida and nationwide, other industries are having difficulty hiring new employees, as well. And while most experts note there are several factors contributing to the current worker shortage, a recent virtual career fair vividly highlighted the problem.

“We average 70 employers [at our career fairs], and there were about 200 job seekers, which was way down from the 1,200 to 1,500 we’d have
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It's in the Badge

As a senior majoring in neuroscience at Florida Gulf Coast University, Ashley Greulich is looking at earning her Ph.D. But, thanks to the digital badge she earned as part of a new program designed to give FGCU students more practical skills, potential employers are already looking at her.

“Times have changed and, especially with COVID, the job market is even more competitive, so I decided to start looking into how to get noticed by employers,” Greulich says. “When I got into the [Medical Device
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