Worcester Business Journal

14 Worcester Business Journal | September 13, 2021 | wbjournal.com WBJ Ensure your team has ALL ACCESS to WBJ. We offer discounted group subscriptions starting at 5 users. Reach out to us at circulation@wbjournal.com for a quote. Banking for your Business We are here to help you build your business, offering simple solutions, responsive support and trusting relationships with you and members of your team. Some of our commercial services include: • Business online banking and bill pay • Wire transfers • Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions • Remote Deposit Capture (RDC) • Lockbox service • Business credit and debit cards And much more! Call or visit us today. Charlton • Holden • Leicester • Rutland • Southbridge Spencer • Sturbridge • Warren • Webster • Worcester cornerstonebank.com 888-338-3696 4.3x5.5 2103081_CB-WBJPrintAd.indd 4 2103081_CB-WBJPrintAd.indd 4 4/6/21 2:39 PM 4/6/21 2:39 PM "We're not trying to set any applicant up for failure," Stebbins said. at companies have historically had issues with their diversity plans is not a secret. Proposed plans have long come in wide ranges, and those submitted as part of the cannabis business license application process have from time to time received criticism from commissioners for their paltry commitments to hiring employees from a wide range of backgrounds. "It's valuing what's important to you," said Laury Lucien, co-founder and CEO of the Major Bloom cannabis dispensary in Worcester. "If I never understood the importance of diversity … you can't communicate that to me. But to them, it's just something you kind of have to meet." At Major Bloom, the city's second economic empowerment applicant to open up shop, diversity within was a priority baked into the business model. For companies who don't inherently value diversity in their companies, Lucien said diversity plans were another box to check, like negotiating a host community agreement or finding real estate. "at's how it feels to them, instead of being something that's rooted into service and what they have to do to make the world a better place," she said. Major Bloom, which Lucien co- founded with President Ulysses Youngblood, set high diversity standards for itself in its licensing application, including a goal to hire and work with vendors who were at least 60% minorities, women, veterans, people with disabilities, and people who identify as LGBTQ+. F O C U S D I V E R S I T Y & I N C L U S I O N Lucien and Youngblood say companies must bake diversity and inclusion into their business model, in order to truly make it a priority. Continued from page 13

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