Our Story
At MedMen, we started our journey in 2010 as a team of two with one big idea and a simple vision; cannabis as a consumer product. It is a simple idea with profound consequences for how marijuana is cultivated, produced and marketed. Quality standards matter, best practices matter, brand reputation matters. Today, MedMen is the most dominant cannabis enterprise in the emerging legal marijuana industry.
Summary
The SVP of Public Affairs will oversee the Policy, Political and Corporate Social Responsibility teams at MedMen. Public Affairs is responsible for executing short and long-term strategy for all current and future MedMen regions. This position will inspire, develop and lead a team of professional, skilled in government relations, public policy issue management, corporate social responsibility and political giving all while aligning such work to the Company’s business interests and objectives. Additionally, they will ensure best practices across jurisdictions, and will serve as the public face of the team. Their primary responsibility will be to manage the VPs of Government Affairs, Political Affairs and Corporate Social Responsibility.
Job Duties
Lead
Sophisticated strategic thinking to determine how to best influence decision makers
Lead, develop and inspire a high commitment, high performing Public Affairs operation
Review performance and results of each team member
Define, propose, negotiate, secure and manage the budgetary resources necessary to sustain and direct the team
Develop and engage effective, trusted working relationships with team members, elected, appointed and career government officials that will enable effective advocacy of the company’s public policy vision
Work in close collaboration with other MedMen leaders
Identify and evaluate potential external specialists and consultants that will work with Public Affairs to deliver defined policy objectives
Determine hiring needs, recruits and selects employees.
Ensure all employees are oriented to their position and provided with appropriate training, development and continuing education.
Policy
Strategize company’s policy, political and CSR priorities
Create company strategy for achieving priorities at federal, state and local levels
Proactively determine when company needs to pivot or adjust priorities
Provide insightful analysis on pending policy matters and build alternative substantive proposals to advance the Company’s interest and competitive positions, including building support form external organizations, policymakers and government agencies.
Serve as subject matter expert
Lobbying
Recruit and manage top tier lobbying firms, political consultants and strategists
Develop, manage and leverage strong relationships with key politicians, legislators and regulators at federal, state and local levels.
Increase MedMen presence at federal, state and local level among policy makers and external stakeholders
Strategize and manage budget for lobbying and political donations
Political Campaigns
Develop strategies to influence public recognition and build a broader profile and reputation for the company
Strategize media relations, crisis communication, press strategy across CSR, Govt Affairs and Political Affairs
Corporate Social Responsibility
Write MedMen’s CSR strategy in concert with VP, CSR
Build a short and long-term giving strategy
Create and implement company volunteerism plan
Oversee branding and marketing strategy for CSR and community focused efforts including philanthropy, pro-social campaigns and volunteerism
Create strategy and process for managing allocation of company’s donations to community partners
Annual CSR report and updates to our community partners
Manage social impact initiatives
Develop Inclusivity and Diversity strategy in concert with VP, CSR
Develop relationships with leadership team on all efforts related to CSR, employee retention, diverse hiring practices and inclusivity practices
Lead implementation of inclusion programs using evidence-based best practices to strengthen results
Partner with Human Resources Business Partners to identify opportunities to promote inclusiveness throughout the talent lifecycle, understand business priorities and develop group-specific diversity and inclusion strategies
Partner with HR/Talent Management to identify techniques to expand Company’s pipeline for diverse talent and provide challenging opportunities for growth for existing high-potentials to position Company to have continuous source of diverse talent
Collaborate with HR to equip managers to cultivate a climate which is inclusive, promotes engaged team and develops/retains diverse talent
Evaluate and recommend strategic partnerships to advance Company’s talent, inclusivity and diversity objectives
Lead and participate in roundtable discussions, internally and externally, to increase understanding of behaviors, programs and culture that will position MedMen to be standout company for diversity and inclusion
Willing and able to facilitate and initiate candid, productive conversations on a variety of topics including race, gender, sexual orientation, age, ability, identity
Internal Communication
Meet regularly with Department heads to understand policy and regulatory problems or pressures – Marketing, Ops, Retail, Cultivation, Manufacturing, Finance, Investment, Legal
Look for new investment opportunities throughout the state from a regulatory and political perspective.
Encourage cross department communication
External Communication
Build strategic partnerships with external stakeholders like advocacy groups, trade groups, industry thought leaders, political and union leaders
Serve as thought leader and respected representative in the external community at conferences and forums, promoting the company’s capabilities, expertise, innovation, strategic vision and corporate values
Competencies
Management
Strategy
Business Acumen
Communication
Organization
Critical Evaluation and Thinking
Relationship Management
Leadership
Legislative, Policy, Political and Campaign Expertise
Supervisory Responsibility
This position manages all employees of the Public Affairs department and is responsible for the performance management and hiring of the employees within that department alongside the HR department.
Required Education and Experience
Master’s degree or equivalent
10-15 years’ experience in policy, political or regulatory environments and political campaigns
Experience establishing and managing a political action committee or independent expenditure campaign
Track record of effective and respected leadership of people and teams
Strong understanding of and experience with effective public policy, political advocacy, public affairs programs, campaign management concepts
Ability to build strong partnerships across all areas of the organization and levels
Press and media strategy for political and policy campaigns
Cannabis experience not required
5-10 years’ experience in leadership, management, social change