Month: October 2018
post: The California Cannabis Authority Gains Momentum
In a small conference room in Yolo County last week, a number of County Supervisors, Treasurer Tax Collectors and Auditor-Controllers from around the state gathered together to talk pot. More specifically, they gathered together to talk about the numbers – cannabis permits, state cannabis licenses, tax proceeds, and how they are going to use this […]
post: Buzzwords & Bullsh!t: SEO
“You have a lot of strong feelings, don’t you?” This was something a professor said to me in grad school. To be honest, he’s right. There’s a lot of things that I think are super annoying. I cannot stand Los Angeles, I don’t like capers, I think that e-books hurt your eyes and I also […]
post: A half-banked industry — new cannabis businesses need access to financial service
If you ever open a cannabis business, you will have this meeting: Some really big guys will contact you about your cash problem. A cash problem only they could solve. It will require unmarked, bullet-proof vans, guns, more big guys, and some special relationships with government officials. At one point, when you ask how they […]
post: Buzzwords & Bullsh!t: Proformas
Not all of the “buzzwords” in this series are about technology. As a CFO, my most hated buzzwords are “proforma financials.” (I’ll tackle its less attractive but equally annoying cousin “budget” in another post.) Don’t get me wrong, they are valuable, but they are definitely not the end all be all in decision making. One […]
post: Buzzwords & Bullsh!t: KYC
Buzzwords. I heard them while I was a banker and I hear them now working in fintech. There are PLENTY of tech terms that make my skin crawl, but the one that I hear thrown around the most is infamous for anyone who has ever worked in a financial institution. It’s something that is engrained […]
post: Buzzwords & Bullsh!t: Big Data – Understanding the Myth
“Big data is like teenage sex: everyone talks about it, nobody really knows how to do it, everyone thinks everyone else is doing it, so everyone claims they are doing it.” This all-too-true analogy is attributed to Duke Professor Dan Ariely. Big Data, its connotations, and its often-incorrect implications, also are a pet-peeve of […]