retail sales associate

asset protection specialist

inventory specialist

production associate

retail assistant store manager

Insa, Inc.

What is the best part of working at the company?
I was recruited into this role from a higher compensated position based on expectations of growth and operational maturity.  In practice, systems and processes were significantly underdeveloped, requiring foundational work without clear authority or consistent leadership support.

After returning from a 3 month leave of absence, I was tasked in my first week with implementing a new expense module, including setup, training, and documentation, all due by the end of the week.  I was successfully able to complete this.  At the same time, I was being held accountable for lack of prior updates during my absence, while working in an environment where changes required leadership approval that was not consistently available.

Leadership direction and expectations were often inconsistent.  Despite over 20 years of payroll experience, there was limited recognition of subject matter expertise, making it difficult to operate with autonomy.  Communication was also a challenge, as detailed, work-related context was discouraged rather than supported.

I ultimately chose to leave during my first week back due to ongoing misalignment in expectations and communication.  Prior to my departure, I ensured a smooth transition by documenting processes and providing rollout guidance for the expense module.

There are strong individual contributors within the organization, but improvements in leadership consistency, communication, and structure would significantly enhance the work environment.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Underdeveloped systems; inconsistent leadership; limited autonomy; unclear expectations.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment is fast-paced but often reactive due to underdeveloped systems and inconsistent processes.  Leadership communication and expectations can shift, which makes prioritization and execution challenging.  There is noticeable emphasis on critique over collaboration, and autonomy can be limited despite role expectations.

That said, many individual contributors are supportive and genuinely committed to their work.  With more consistent leadership alignment, clearer communication, and stronger structure, the overall culture could improve significantly.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
A typical day can be unpredictable.  Priorities and expectations may shift, and there can be a strong focus on identifying issues, which can make the environment feel high pressure at times.  This can lead to a sense of needing to be very cautious in day-to-day work and communication.

While the pace can provide exposure to a variety of challenges, greater consistency in leadership approach and clearer expectations would help create a more stable and supportive work environment.

I spent one year with Insa Salem and my experiences ran the gamut from disorganized to ludicrous. Communication is non-existent at Insa. “What you need” from Upper Management will be countered with “find a creative solution.” The scope of work in any given role is completely nebulous, you’ll never be doing enough to stay on top of the job you were hired to perform. “Structure” as a concept does not exist. If you push for change, you’re off Upper Management’s good graces, “an issue” to be dealt with. The people at the top have their fingers in their ears and seem perfectly okay with cycling through employees, as long as the cash keeps flowing. It’s the definition of a meat-grinder.

Post-Quarantine, roughly 40% of the employees returned. Rather than adjust store hours and have a cautious, planned-out opening, the store ran its full 14-hour days, 7 days a week, and swiftly ground its employee morale to dust. The staff was/is being stretched as thin as possible to maintain an extremely aggressive flow of business. Advice from Upper Management? People can’t complain if they’re not working 10+ hours of overtime. Because of this, new employee training simply doesn’t exist. Managers don’t have time to help you because they have to cover multiple positions, typically skipping their own breaks. Your first day on register will consist of 150-200 transactions, unsupervised.

There’s a reason that within the first year of operation (11/19 - 11/20) all but one manager has quit. There’s a reason that HR doesn’t receive complaints. And there’s a reason that employees within their first month are looking to jump ship. All of the store’s issues stem from a level above the store. Upper Management has made it abundantly clear what they care about. How much longer will they continue to think they’re doing a good job?

The company’s only strength is in its dedicated store-level workers. I’ve had the pleasure of working along side smart and talented people who proactively try to create a better workplace culture for their peers. They truly are the heart and soul of the store, and most of why I left Insa was how often they were ignored and stepped on. As recently as this week, managers were being silenced for speaking out on behalf of their staff.

Insa is the burn-out express; hiring bright people, working them to the bone, ignoring their complaints and ideas, and showing them the door. Unless they unionize, don’t apply.

I recently concluded my tenure at INSA, and I feel compelled to share my experience with the company's management and HR practices. Throughout my time there, it was evident that both departments were consistently disorganized, often failing to align on crucial matters. This lack of cohesion created an environment where confusion and miscommunication were the norm.

The so-called team engagement days, designed to foster a positive atmosphere, seemed like a mere facade to mask an underlying cutthroat environment. Despite the attempts to portray a supportive workplace, my experience revealed a stark contrast. Employees faced unnecessary pressure and competition, with a palpable tension that was counterproductive to a healthy work atmosphere.

Perhaps the most concerning aspect was the leniency towards policy violations and frequent tardiness among some team members. This not only compromised the overall work ethic but also reflected a lack of accountability from both management and HR. It became apparent that addressing performance issues was avoided, creating a detrimental cycle of underperformance and frustration.

What was particularly disheartening was the reluctance to address a problematic employee, presumably due to fear of legal repercussions. This fear-driven decision-making only perpetuated a toxic work environment, where employees felt unsupported and demoralized.

Additionally, the support system within the company appeared to be more of a façade than a genuine resource for employees. The sense of security provided seemed false, as the organization struggled to address fundamental issues and failed to uphold a commitment to employee well-being.

In conclusion, my time at INSA was marred by inconsistent management, disorganized HR practices, and a pervasive atmosphere of competition disguised as team engagement. The failure to address policy violations, tardiness, and reluctance to deal with problematic employees raised serious concerns about the company's commitment to fostering a healthy work environment. It is my hope that these issues are addressed for the well-being of current and future employees.

I was beyond excited about this job when I was offered it. The first month I knew immediately that it was a train wreck of a company. None of management is on the same page. Some of them shouldn’t even be managers. You have one manager telling you this is the correct way to do something and then another manager will come up behind the first manager and tell you to do it another way. Management also tends to hide away unless they are called to the floor. They seem to only help when they have no choice.  They act as if they care about you as an employee but they’ll just stab you in the back. Shady things are going on within the company when it comes to employee relationships. You have management and associates having relationships even though it’s against their policies (a supervisor can not have a relationship with someone below them). It’s clear they will excuse some rules for those they like and punish the ones they don’t like or that are new to the company. In all honestly, there’s a lot of “suggestive” remarks and comments/jokes made between everyone. It seems as though HR ignores that only when it’s convenient for them to use to their advantage. From my time working there, it seemed as though the rules only apply when they wanted it to. You have dozen of employees breaking policies that others are getting fired for or written up for. All while the others that are breaking those policies, they get away with it. Favoritism is most definitely shown within this company. 

 The owners just seem to care more about profit. I mean we didn’t have proper cleaning equipment for months. After telling the upper management for weeks on end, what we needed, it still took them forever to finally get the things we needed. 

HR is a JOKE there as well. It’s definitely a shady company and it’s a shame. It has so much potential to be an amazing company and to represent the cannabis community for what it truly is. Instead, they’re focused on greed and shady practices. 

I started working at INSA INC. out of an interest and passion for the cannabis plant and supporting my local cannabis community. Through my experiences with the company, new hires with backgrounds in industrial manufacturing would have a smooth transition to INSA employee. The setting is already there. Growing, trimming, packaging, extraction, & sales all happen under the roof of a windowless factory relic of the industrial age of America. Cannabis is manufactured cheaply, processed as quickly as possible, and sold off to customers at the highest margins they can get. 

If you read between the lines of the "local" face of INSA INC., you find a drive and ambition, above all else, to satisfy shareholders and become one of the biggest names in Cannabis in the country. Management openly brags about their business model of getting big/rich quick and not worrying about fixing issues with the process or employee concerns until after they have expanded throughout the region. They promise they'll come back and put the fires out later....

If you've worked in difficult jobs before (harsh environments, poor air quality, sitting/standing/kneeling/bending for long periods of time, lack of task organization, infighting with leadership constantly), then this place has some perks such as a standard M-F 40 hr schedule with average PTO and benefits. However, do not expect your concerns about safety to be heard for months, you will pay a LOT for health insurance if you get it, and if you are a minority (gender/age/race) be prepared to deal with a host of unprofessional interactions with managers that misstep what is or is not appropriate. Hiring/firing/discipline is inconsistent and mainly driven by personality conflicts. Promotions are few and far between. The whole affair honestly gives me the taste of an abusive relationship that you don't want to get out of because the benefits down the road could be oh so sweet.....

I was lured to this job with the hope of starting in a new industry that cared about helping people. The retail team that I started with were great employees who cared a lot about cannabis and caring for others! The management was awful and cared only about the bottom line and meeting minimum state regulations so as to not lose money. They promised it would get better. It never got better. In fact, they opened another retail location while the current business was hemorrhaging. There was a huge communication issue and I was often being micro-managed by at least two different members of leadership at any time who would give contradicting direction. They fired people with no warning who were regularly working overtime without overtime pay. If you didn't protest and just did the job you were told to do then you were safe. If you did protest and said you were going to leave, they would remind you of the non-disclosure you signed so that you were scared into staying. The hours were scheduled as 10 hours but often went over just so you could complete your tasks, especially on the busier days. There was no human resources department to protect employees, no holiday pay, and sick time was the same as vacation time (which you could only take if you could find someone to cover your shift). The health insurance was the bare minimum and came with a pretty big deductible.  
This may have changed in the time since I have worked here, but I doubt it. Once these systems are in place it takes a long time to tear them down and rebuild them. I do not recommend working here.

Don’t work here unless you are desperate. Facility has major issues, management is inexperienced, pay scale is all over the place, turnover is constant. If you want to be overworked, underpaid, and not appreciated then this is a safe bet. Management is in it for themselves and company culture doesn’t exist. Pay is bad because they hope working in the industry will be enough motivation. The GM of retail constantly contradicts himself, and often causes problems for both locations, and beyond his department. The owners are from money and are unwilling to spend it where it matters. The first red flag was when they told employees that they “filed as agricultural” and forced retail employees to be there on holidays without holiday pay. The second was when they didn’t provide breaks at least once a week because no other managers were on duty. Lastly,  the third flag was when they merged sick time and PTO together, allowing those employees who had already called out and used ALL of the personal sick time 40 MORE hours for that year and not rewarding those who hadn’t used any, leaving them working hard and earning less. Breaks are non existent especially for leadership where you will be expected to be on call even during your PTO. The turnover rate is appalling, and often jumping the gun with no questions asked.

They are not competitive with pay compared to other dispensaries in the area. I was promised advancement. I was over-qualified for the position i started in, however, I took it under the impression that i would be moved up when it became available. That never happened. There was very little interest from management in training and sharing knowledge to help me gain any traction. It actually felt like it was a slap on the wrist to take initiative. Bottom line is advancement is not an option for employees that are retail. Once they hire you as retail, you stay retail. Upon starting and being promised an advanced position, 4 people were hired to fill said positions. Management has proven to be uninterested in building the team from within. Much less answer any questions you may have. Most of them don't even know if the things they preach to the customers is accurate or not. The atmosphere is very cut-throat. By that I mean retail associates, leads, and management are seemingly out to get each other instead of helping foster a cohesive team environment. On many occasions, i witnessed leads take credit for making changes that helped move the business forward, when actually it was retail associates that were making said suggestions. This seems to be the theme at INSA. Beware and make sure you keep records of EVERYTHING.

Working for Insa has been one of the best choices I have ever made, there is never a dull moment or day. There is always an opportunity for growth and skill building. If you love cannabis and have a passion for it this is the place for you. I love coming into work every day to the fresh smell of growing cannabis, it clears your mind and soothes you like no other. This industry is breathtaking, you can never get enough of it. Most days I don't want to leave because there is so much to see and learn everyday. Everyday is a refreshing start to open your eyes and see the difference you are making for patients and adult use patients as well. Cannabis is an amazing product and even more amazing to work with, if you want to be part of an amazing skill building team with a wonderful environment with people who love going to work everyday, this is a great place to be a part of. The owners are amazing people and have so much talent. The management crew is wonderful and hilarious, they treat people with respect and constantly give the employees recognition and positive reinforcement. The leads are amazing people who will always thrive to make sure employees are happy and keeping positive energy through out the day.  INSA is an amazing employer, they do so much for the workers, patients, and community.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The schedule is the best part of working. The half hour lunch break is automatically taken out .
If you don’t finish a job by the end of your shift , you can stay late to finish.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most stressful part of the job for me is that all the HVAC equipment is spread out over five floors. Meaning you have to cover a lot of ground. 10,000 steps a day easily. 15-20 flights of stairs. While carrying equipment. There is no working elevator.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Very hot, wearing tyvek suits over work clothes is mandatory. All of the compressors and evaporators are in the very warm grow room and suspended ten feet in the air. You will be on 8-10 foot ladders most days. The culture seems as though most employees are disgruntled and unhappy.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Sweaty, physically exhausting, a lot of the compressors are failing after 6-7 years of installation. Lots of brazing in tight spaces. Troubleshooting electrical. Lots of walking

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Retail sales associate 42 salaries reported	$18.85 per hour
Asset protection specialist 12 salaries reported	$16.75 per hour
Inventory specialist 9 salaries reported	$19.14 per hour
Production associate 6 salaries reported	$17.76 per hour
Retail assistant store manager 6 salaries reported	$24.32 per hour

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