GDPR Compliance: Moodle is the Best Tool
For learning organizations with students or users who are European residents, the potential burden of the European Union GDPR, which became enforceable just last week, will not materialize right away. For this reason, it is important to be cautious, especially true for those organizations just big enough to be subject to the Regulation (above 250 employees), but still lacking the resources for wide-reaching programs and legal counsel, let alone a full-time Data Protection Officer (DPO). This means that in some cases, I would bet most of them, employees must take matters into their own hands. Simple tools can help companies deal with the law, but above all, stay ahead of the game and save lots of headaches along the way. People in charge at organizations who use Moodle as their sole or main repository can immediately take advantage of the new features Moodle is offering. They also will benefit from the user-first mentality through which Moodle HQ is leading development efforts this year. Of course, an interface is only as the use it gets, here are some ways to kickstart your Moodle-based GDPR defense force:
As with many of the threats involving the protection of information in the digital world, the problem might look like ‘sand‘ constantly leaking through a sieve. But while the technology will always be subject of prey, investing in people-first compliance is always a good first line of defense.
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Workplace Drug Policy Updates: Just Say Yes
Moreover, in the past year, some state courts have held that employers can’t discipline workers based on their status as medical marijuana cardholders.
The conflict between federal and state legislation makes it difficult for employers to develop policies and procedure. It’s confusing for a lot of HR professionals to try and comply with federal as well as state requirements. Given the tight labor market, many HR professionals are not in a position to be turning away promising talent. That means company leaders – and HR – must balance their commitment to maintaining a safe workplace with the need to hire good employees. It is recommended that employers ask ‘Can we afford not to hire individuals who use marijuana off duty?‘
At the same time, rampant opioid addiction, which President Donald Trump declared a public health emergency last year, creates even more vexing dilemmas for which few companies seem prepared.
Indeed, 81 percent of employers lack a comprehensive drug-free workplace policy, according to the results of a 2017 National Safety Council survey. And only 19 percent feel ‘extremely prepared’ to handle prescription drug abuse in the workplace.
Unfortunately, neither marijuana nor opioid use is easy to detect on the job. The telltale odor of pot smoke can’t be relied on since today many people consume the substance through oils, edibles (such as cookies and lollipops) and other methods. And the symptoms of opioid overuse – such as mood swings, nausea, and anxiety – are common to many ailments.
While you can still opt for a zero-tolerance policy, think about whether that makes sense in light of your recruitment and retention goals as well as your ability to comply with state law. For example, Maine prohibits employers from firing workers for the first failed drug test; instead, employees must be given the chance to complete a rehab program.
And remember, there are other options besides termination. Just as many employers are giving applicants and employees with criminal records a second chance, you might consider doing the same for those with a history of drug or alcohol abuse. Consider becoming a ‘recovery-friendly workplace‘ with policies that focus on:
Regardless of the specific policy, be consistent when testing and disciplining employees. Remember that supervisors are your eyes and ears so train them to spot a problem, and make sure they know who to contact in an emergency. The issues are complicated, but you don’t have to handle them alone.
Let us know what you think.
Marijuana and Cannabinoids for Beauty & Skin Care
Recreational use of cannabis has continuously gained legal status, especially in the United States. This has brought in its wake the emergence of numerous companies creating pain-relief creams with cannabinoids as the main ingredient.
What Are Endocannabinoids?
These are naturally occurring body signals that facilitate maintenance of homeostasis by sensing moods, joy, hunger and other body responses. Cannabinoids increase the body’s pain by eradicating endocannabinoids thus reducing pain in the body or eliminating it.
For instance, when training, there are muscles that are strained or torn. Normally, the immune cells respond to this by producing inflammatory mediators that are responsible for eradicating pain and healing the muscles. On the other hand, cannabinoids facilitate pain relief by inhibiting the release of some pro-inflammatory signals and it is also responsible for a short-lived hyperactivity of pain receptors, thus a quick lowering of pain.
Also, cannabis has chemical compounds known as cannabinoids that interact with our endocannabinoid system, which helps in treating skin ailments such as allergic contact dermatitis, eczema, pruritus, acne, and psoriasis. This chemical also helps in reducing the pain patients suffering from such conditions experience, something that was previously hard to achieve.
Use of Cannabinoids in Beauty Products
Contrary to what many people believe, cannabis has been in use for thousands of years for pain-relieving medications, especially in the Fareast lands such as China, with magnificent outcomes all along. Hemp oil is very rich in omega fatty acids and has traces of cannabinoids, so this combination of ingredients makes perfect moisturizing oils for dry skins.
The emergence of cannabinoid-related pain eradication and beauty products have posed a direct threat to large pharmaceutical companies. This is mainly due to the ease of accessing marijuana and processing the same into finished, effective products. Numerous medium-sized companies are getting into production of such products and availing them to the public.
Also, many people who previously used products from ‘Big Pharma‘ is slowly switching to cannabis-related medications, meaning that profit margins for these moguls are slowly but surely diminishing, posing a direct threat to their future survival.
In an effort to protect their market dominance and profit margins, ‘Big Pharma‘ tried to block the general legalization of cannabis. However, every hurdle they put on the way has been overcome and cannabis activists who have worked relentlessly to convince relevant authorities to stick with the decision to make marijuana legal.
To counter this, ‘Big Pharma‘ has introduced synthetic cannabis to the general public, further demonstrating the threat they face from emerging producers of cannabinoid creams for pain. This trend is an indication that the world has shifted, and marijuana has finally been accepted by the society. Let us know what you think.
A recent study in the Journal of Organizational Behavior found that most workers at firms with managers younger than themselves reported having more negative emotions, such as anger and fear than those with older bosses.
The key to thriving under your Millennial dispensary manager is to understand and address the dynamics that the age difference creates. Follow these tips to cultivate a connection with a younger boss.
1. Address the Age Gap
When you’re working for a significantly younger boss, it’s impossible to ignore the age difference. Of course, broaching the topic with your dispensary boss can be awkward, but when done tactfully, it can strengthen the relationship.
For example, you could say to your boss, ‘I know there’s a stereotype that older workers like myself don’t want to learn new technology, but I’m the opposite. I’m always looking to learn new skills.‘
It’s also important to show your manager that you see yourself as a team member – not a rival. You can communicate that by saying, ‘I understand that there’s an age difference, and I want you to know that I’m here to support you, and I hope you’ll engage my expertise.’
2. Find Common Ground
Once that’s out of the way, you can focus on building a rapport, which is the foundation of any great business relationship. Rather than dwelling on generational differences, focus on what you have in common. You can pose nonwork-related questions to get a sense of your dispensary manager’s hobbies (‘Did you catch the Broncos game last night?’) and then connect over shared interests.
Cannabis is an ever-changing industry, things change rapidly, so you have to progress with it and learn how important it is to be flexible and to not be afraid to learn new things.
4. Tailor Your Communication Style
Some Millennial workers prefer to communicate via e-mail or text rather than talking things out in person – but don’t jump to any conclusions based solely on a person’s age. Find out what your dispensary manager’s favored method of communication is and then embrace it. You may have to learn how to use new tools, such as chat programs like Slack, but doing so will only enhance your knowledge, experience and career opportunities. You may also find it helpful to keep your discussions brief since the younger generation is used to having much faster, more pointed conversations.
5. Avoid Stereotypes
Just as there is a stigma associated with being an older worker, there are negative stereotypes of Millennials, including that they are entitled, easily distracted and narcissistic. However, these perceptions are often misguided. It’s human nature to make assumptions and judgments based on age, but being able to suspend those can make you a better employee.
6. Be a Collaborator – Not a Mentor
As someone with more experience, you may feel tempted to become an unofficial mentor to your boss. That can backfire. You can talk about your experience, but you have to use language that won’t come off as degrading or condescending.
Rather than offering unsolicited career advice, give your dispensary manager helpful historical information about your job and the organization. For instance, you can say, ‘In my experience, I’ve found XYZ to be particularly useful when communicating with our clients.‘ Offering to help your boss get settled in and acclimated to the team can also cement a good working relationship.
Many younger managers are already worried that they won’t be taken seriously, especially when it’s their first time supervising older workers, so choose your language carefully. To avoid coming across as a know-it-all (or, worse, a stick-in-the-mud), steer clear of these phrases:
7. Don’t Try Too Hard to Be ‘Cool’
Generally, it’s OK to befriend your boss; after all, research from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business found that managers tend to promote people they like. But that doesn’t mean you should adopt youthful mannerisms or catchphrases that you wouldn’t otherwise use.
Don’t worry if your personal responsibilities prevent you from socializing with your boss and co-workers after hours.
No matter how old you are, the coolest thing you can be is authentic. Let us know what you think.
Working as a Budtender in a Cannabis Dispensary
Budtenders Starting to Work in Dispensaries
But with that competition for a position, how can applicants help themselves stand out from the crowd? How can they show they have what it takes to be the best Budtender for the job?
You Want Smart Budtenders
The old adage is true, knowledge is power. The position of Budtender is a new one, meaning virtually no one actually has previous experience. So, candidates must try to earn the job with relevant work experience and knowledge of cannabis.
Valuable skills include customer service, inventory control, and sales. But a Budtender can’t help people without knowing about cannabis. From the standpoint of medical accuracy, safety, or simply the vast selection of strains and products, a Budtender has to know the cannabis plant and experience in and out.
Cannabis is more than just a recreational plant. Cannabis is a rich and complex medicine, with its own science, chemistry, and vocabulary. A Budtender acts as the front line in educating consumers on the nuances of cannabinoids, terpenes, tolerance, and effects. Without a sophisticated knowledge of the plant, a Budtender is little more than a cashier. So much misleading or inaccurate information has been spread over the years, the cannabis industry has to educate the public in order to ensure a pleasant experience.
Do Budtenders Really Need Training?
As cannabis recruiters and a cannabis training agency, this is one of our most frequently asked questions – do dispensary workers need training? The short answer to that question is 100% YES.
The long answer is multi-faceted. Budtenders, or medical marijuana dispensary agents, are not solely ‘salespeople‘; they’re also assisting people who are battling very serious medical conditions. On top of this, Budtenders are dealing with a federally prohibited substance that is highly susceptible to theft.
Did we mention they’re also the frontline of a business? Needless to say, Budtenders are vital to the success of any operation. Proper training is therefore crucial. A Budtender’s position is too important to be left to chance. This is why Budtender Training is so critical.
For example, a Budtender should be able to:
In fact, this is just a fraction of what a dispensary agent needs to know. This is a lot of information to cover. Training ensures that employees are prepared to meet patient needs and fulfill all expected job roles.
As the Industry Grows, so Does the Competition
The rapid growth of the cannabis industry is exciting. There are marijuana jobs here for the taking! However, it’s also important to understand that with the massive growth of these cannabis companies comes increased competition.
Which brands will survive in the long haul? It’s anyone’s best guess at this point. But dispensaries that operate in compliance, stay flexible and hire the right people will be at a big advantage.
Budtenders are the first, and sometimes the only person; someone may interact with at a dispensary. The quality of that interaction is invaluable. One of the defining factors for dispensaries in the future will be their level of customer/patient service.
Dispensaries who have friendly, professional, and knowledgeable employees will be a step above the rest. This is why Budtender Training is sought after by many managers hiring for cannabis jobs. Stay Ahead of Industry Trends
While employee training is not currently a requirement for most state dispensaries, this isn’t likely to be the case in the future. Dispensaries that prioritize training today will be one step ahead of the game.
Why wait until regulations force you to train your employees? The benefits far outweigh the risks. Let us know what you think.
GDPR & What is a Data Protection Officer?
Data Protection Officer
Eight percent are hiring a full-time data privacy officer, while 5 percent are hiring an outside privacy officer, and 5 percent are using an independent company. A data protection officer can’t be fired because of the decisions he or she makes in that role. That spooks some U.S. companies, which are used to employment at will, he noted. If a data protection officer is someone within an organization, he or she should be an expert on GDPR and data privacy and the person most likely to have the requisite expertise is a chief privacy officer.
However, a data protection officer must act independently of the company. Consequently, it’s tricky for an employee to be a chief privacy officer, who is constantly making decisions on behalf of the company, and a data protection officer. While the employer could not fire the chief privacy officer because of what he or she decides as a data protection officer, it could fire him or her for subpar performance in other job responsibilities.
Hiring a data protection officer internally in Europe has its advantages. Someone in Europe is more likely to have a greater familiarity with EU privacy law. In addition, it’s easier for someone in Europe to liaise with privacy regulators, he noted.
Breach Notification
The GDPR will require that notifications of data breaches are made within 72 hours of discovery. This requirement is much quicker than under U.S. state laws and states typically require breach notification generally without undue delay or in a reasonable time – 30 days is the quickest time period of any state. Florida has the 30-day requirement.
When asked in a survey if respondent companies had determined how they would meet the 72-hour notification requirement, 37 percent said no, while only 34 percent said yes. Large companies were more likely to know how to respond to this requirement than smaller ones.
Companies that are technically covered by GDPR but don’t have many contacts in Europe are struggling the most and aren’t sure why they have to comply, particularly when the law is so broad and its penalties are so onerous. ACC survey respondents said that the primary point of contact for a breach was the:
One in 10 respondents said that the company did not have a single point of contact, and 5 percent didn’t know who that person was. When asked whether they had cybersecurity insurance coverage, only 56 percent of respondents said they did.
Let us know what you think.
Moodle 3.5 Latest Release is Out!
Moodle 3.5 continues its focus on usability, and it is considered the second release in the current period of ‘User-First Development‘ at Moodle HQ. Moodle 3.5 also brings critical new features, most importantly for European users the ‘Privacy API‘ and tools that will help admins ensure GDPR compliance. The recently launched Data Privacy and Policies plugins are now built into Moodle 3.5.
Moodle is GDPR Compliant
Sites liable to the upcoming GDPR legislation are encouraged to upgrade before May 25, the implementation date. New user permissions in Moodle 3.5 now also allow sites to add a ‘Data Protection Officer‘ role who can ensure GDPR compliance and be responsible for user data management. These improvements now make Moodle capable of managing user data requests and their history of agreements to site policies on each of their previous version.
Check out the details of every GDPR-related feature here. Not all of Moodle 3.5’s goodies are about boring legal compliance. You will find increased capabilities in tagging, rich text editing, search, badges and more! Thanks to the efforts of the Moodle Users Association, in Moodle 3.5 it is possible to tag Question Bank elements and then build Moodle Quizzes at random.
Every detail of Moodle 3.5’s Expanded Question Bank Tagging and Management is here. The Atto text editor, one of the built-in options, will let users record audio and video directly-no plugin needed, starting on Moodle 3.5. Search is made simpler on Moodle 3.5 as well. ‘Simple global search’ does not need to set up an external engine to find Moodle users, courses and activities. By popular demand, Moodle 3.5 brings more features Badges, including the ability to awards ‘Super Badges‘ where previous badges earned, are now criteria. Another example of the several new criteria available to award Badges in Moodle 3.5 is cohorts. Cohorts, by the way, can have independent themes in Moodle 3.5, to better deliver on personalization
Training Platform User-Interface Improvements
Fonts have received some attention in Moodle 3.5. New fonts, some expanding the current emoji set, are now easy to choose across the site. Find all new UX improvement in Moodle 3.5 here. Smaller features coming in Moodle 3.5 that a few will love to involve LTI, messaging, bulk user editing, SCORM, Choice, and Feedback Activity and more.
The LTI Advantage protocol version 1.1, now in Moodle 3.5, unifies the many LTI specifications for a convergence towards LTI 1.3 Read more here. Messaging in Moodle 3.5 is set to be snappier thanks to some back-end database magic. Read all the technical details here. Moodle 3.5 also comes with a number of security enhancements which will be detailed at a later date. Due to the addition of the new Privacy API and other core APIs, plugin developers must test for Moodle 3.5 compatibility with the new ways data safely travel across applications. Download Moodle 3.5 now at download.moodle.org. Check out install or upgrade requirements, especially your PHP version and Database. Let us know what you think. |
authorLilly, the gardener. Archives
September 2019
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