5 Ways for Cannabis Operators to Maintain Compliance

When it comes to compliance, cannabis growers and processors not only need to consider state regulations, but also financial reporting requirements and internal policies for running operations efficiently. Failure to comply with regulations could result in financial penalties, or even worse, put you at risk of losing your license to operate.

At the same time, you still need to operate efficiently. And juggling compliance and operations can run you and your team ragged if you rely on a basic accounting solution and spreadsheets.

But by deploying a comprehensive ERP solution tailored for the cannabis industry—like SilverLeaf running on Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central—you gain five key capabilities that enable you to efficiently handle compliance and operations at the same time:

#1 – Auditable Financials

Auditable records allow you to accurately capture, maintain, and report upon financials and operational data. This supports your investor requirements and shows you run your operations like a real business.

If you rely on an accounting solution like QuickBooks, the software allows users to edit anything, which can open you up to mistakes and even fraud if not used properly. Data may be accidentally deleted.

Conversely, SilverLeaf gives you the required security by preventing accidental data deletion and enabling the segregation of duties—such as setting up the system to allow one person to approve checks and another to write checks.

SilverLeaf also has a change-tracking log, so you know who makes every change, and you can set up workflow approvals so nothing can be changed until the right person approves. For each type of data you manage, you can set three levels of security for each user: block users from making changes; force approval before changes take place; or allow changes and track them.

For example, Employee A might need an approval from their manager to sell something to a customer who is past due on their payments. But you might allow Employee A to make changes to payment terms while tracking their changes in the log.

#2 – Integration with State Track-and-Trace Systems

SilverLeaf integrates directly with state track-and-trace compliance systems such as Metrc. This eliminates re-entering data from your ERP system into your state system—thus reducing compliance administration time while also preventing input errors from occurring.

If you rely on a wholesale sales platform (such as LeafLink) to generate revenue, integration between SilverLeaf and state systems delivers another benefit. You can configure SilverLeaf to automatically download sales orders from your wholesale platform into the ERP for fulfillment. This is yet another way to reduce data entry time and eliminate input errors.

And should your state compliance board request an audit of your activities, SilverLeaf has you covered. You can quickly produce a log of all the changes you applied along with historical reporting of all your trace-and-track activities.

#3 – Flexible Workflows

Since each cannabis operator has its own unique way of running their business, SilverLeaf allows you to define, track, and adjust workflows. This ensures consistency in the way your internal teams complete tasks—an important facet of both compliance and operational efficiency. You can also adjust workflows quickly when needing to adapt to changes in your business requirements.

This capability is critical for cannabis growers and processors with operations in multiple states. Each state has unique requirements for when to test products and document the results. With SilverLeaf, you can adapt your testing controls according to each state’s requirements and adjust to any changes regulators make to ensure you’re always providing what each state requires in their track-and-trace systems.

#4 – Quality Controls

SilverLeaf allows you to record, track, and trace your product attributes for clear visibility into the quality and yield of your products. You can also set goals for where those numbers need to be in the future and track your progress in reaching your objectives.

In addition to tracking and storing lab results of tested products, SilverLeaf also notes any quarantined products that have not been tested yet. This helps you make sure you don’t sell products before they’re tested and achieve a passing grade. You can also track lab results to verify the characteristics of your medicinal products in comparison to recreational products.

#5 – Product Traceability

This feature solves a big headache for a lot of SilverLeaf customers—handling recalls efficiently rather than digging through spreadsheets and manual checklists. The technology tracks raw material usage by lot or tag number through to finished goods to determine any potential issues in your product quality. You can also trace finished goods back to their raw material components.

If you discover raw material that has been recalled, or if you’re concerned with product quality, you can track which of your finished goods contain that raw material. For example, a customer returns a vape cartridge because the oil is cloudy. You can trace that cartridge back to the oil and identify others using that same oil.

Learn More About Cannabis Compliance

Want to learn more? Sara Silver and Jennifer Phoenix present on this topic in our on-demand webinar—with a demonstration of how SilverLeaf technology ensures adherence to compliance requirements while also streamlining your operations and enhancing efficiency. Click here to check it out.

If you need help with compliance, contact SilverLeaf today. We will be glad to help!