5 Industry Shifts Every Cannabis Operator Should Be Aware of After Rescheduling

By Rachel Wright, CPA — Founder & CEO, Verdant Strategies

For more than a decade, this industry has waited on federal reform. So when the Justice Department moved medical marijuana to Schedule III this spring, the conversation went straight to the topics everyone expected: 280E, access to capital, institutional investment, and what fuller reform might unlock.

Those conversations matter, and they deserve the attention they're getting.

But after advising cannabis operators for more than a decade, I think they're crowding out another set of conversations that deserve just as much room.

Start with the obvious: the broad rescheduling question is still being argued, and its outcome and timing are far from certain. Meanwhile, I'm watching shifts that are already changing how businesses operate today — ripple effects reshaping financial strategy, ownership structures, and long-term planning, and they'll matter no matter how the scheduling question advances.

Some of them even surprised me. They're creating real opportunities for operators who are prepared, and exposing weaknesses in businesses still running on old assumptions.

Here are the five shifts I think every operator should be watching:

1. The IRS Is Getting More Active, Not Less

Of all the topics that come up with operators, the IRS comes up most. Many owners and stakeholders assumed that as cannabis moved toward federal acceptance, regulatory pressure would ease. Lately, I'm seeing quite the opposite.

The agency is more active than I've seen in years — running income tax audits, reviewing Form 8300 compliance, and looking closely at older tax years, when many businesses didn't have the systems or documentation they have now. Years like 2021 and 2022 are still drawing scrutiny, which is unsettling for operators who were still building their financial infrastructure back then.

The resulting anxiety is understandable. Most operators tense up at any letter from the IRS. But what worries me more than the audit is the instinct to wait until one begins before taking a hard look at the books.

Preparation is the strategy that drives that fear and anxiety away.

The operators who handle these situations best aren't necessarily the ones with flawless records — even the authorities understand the realities of operating in 2021, and why records from that period may fall short of perfect. The ones who fare best are those who understand their own financial story, keep organized documentation, and can stand behind the decisions they've made.

That discipline pays off well beyond tax season. The same reporting that lets you answer the IRS with confidence is what gives lenders comfort and helps investors clear due diligence quickly. So if you've been putting off a review of your historical records, I'd reconsider. Right now — before someone else requires it — is the best chance you'll have to strengthen your foundation.

2. Operators Are Rethinking How They're Structured

One of the biggest conversations I'm having right now is about business structure. Many cannabis companies were built fast because they had to focus on licenses, capital, hiring, and getting products to market. Entity structures formed around immediate needs, not long-term strategy. That made sense at the time, but it doesn't anymore.

I'm working with operators who are stepping back to ask harder questions. Does our structure still fit the business we've become? Are we positioned for outside investment? If we acquire or expand, will the current organization support that — or get in the way?

These are the right questions, because the company you launched five or ten years ago probably isn't the one you're running today. What encourages me is the mindset behind them: operators are planning further ahead than they have in years, positioning their companies for the next decade. That focus has never been as clear as it is now, with the window for a broader, more permissive legal framework beginning to open.

Done well, restructuring aligns your financial strategy with where you actually want to go — your entities, your ownership, your compensation. When those line up, the decisions that follow get easier.

3. Growth Is Becoming Strategic, Not Reflexive

If you’d asked me five years ago what growth looked like in cannabis, I'd have given you a very different answer. There was a stretch when the industry rewarded speed. I'm seeing far more discipline today, and it's one of the healthiest changes I've seen.

Instead of "Where else can we go, and how fast can we do it?", the better operators are asking "Should we go there at all?" That difference matters. I've watched companies build real value by concentrating on one market while competitors stretched themselves thin chasing every opening. Big can be unhealthy, and lean and focused can be highly profitable.

The strongest operators know exactly what drives profitability in their business. They know their margins and cash flow, they forecast realistically, and they know what success looks like before committing to the next investment.

Reform has renewed optimism across the industry, and it gives operators room for strategic growth — which should be intentional, not emotional.

4. Mergers and Acquisitions Are Picking Up

The pace of M&A is picking up. Some operators are looking to acquire complementary businesses; others are preparing to sell after years of building through one of the hardest environments in the country. I understand both. For some founders the next chapter is expansion; for others it's a well-earned exit. Neither is wrong.

What matters is whether the business is ready. The most common misconception I see is that you'll get your financials in order once a buyer appears. In reality, buyers expect clean statements, organized documentation, and reliable reporting already in place. Preparation doesn't start when someone expresses interest. More often, it's what creates the interest in the first place.

The operators investing in strong reporting today will have far more options tomorrow, whether they're raising capital, bringing on partners, or planning an eventual sale.

5. Outdated Agreements Are Becoming Liabilities

This may be the least-discussed shift on my list, and one of the most important. A lot of cannabis businesses were assembled in a hurry, when everyone was just trying to get operational. Agreements were signed quickly. Ownership shifted. Investors came and went. Years later, many of those documents no longer describe how the business actually runs — because businesses evolve faster than their paperwork does.

As a company becomes more valuable, expectations change with it. Partners want clarity. Investors want accountability. Leadership wants clearly defined authority. When those expectations fall out of alignment, disputes follow — and most of them, in my experience, are preventable. Reviewing your agreements, ownership structure, and governance before a problem surfaces is almost always cheaper, and far less painful, than untangling a dispute later.

Good governance isn't only about protecting the business. It's about protecting the people who built it.

The Future Is Bright — Take Advantage of It

If there's one lesson from more than a decade in this industry, it's that the strongest businesses rarely get blindsided by change — not because they can predict the future, but because they prepare for it.

Reform is creating real opportunity, and I believe cannabis is entering a promising new chapter. But the same forces creating those opportunities are raising the bar for operators. Financial reporting matters more now. So do strategic planning, organizational structure, and the quality of everyday decisions. That's why I keep urging operators to look past the headlines. Don't fixate on what rescheduling might eventually bring. Build a business that's ready for whatever comes next.

That's where the real opportunity lives.

If you're evaluating your financial strategy, preparing for growth, restructuring your organization, or simply want a clearer understanding of where your business stands today, I'd encourage you to explore Verdant Strategies' Cannabis Tax & Accounting Services and Fractional CFO & Advisory Services. Sometimes the most valuable conversation isn't about solving today's problem—it's about making sure you're prepared for tomorrow's opportunity.