ILLINOIS:  As Illinois’ fledgling marijuana industry slowly gets underway, some companies have begun hiring in anticipation of opening in the coming months, attracting a diverse set of candidates willing to take a chance on a business with an uncertain future so they can get in on the ground floor.

Take Rick Bower, 58, of downstate Dwight. After working for 31 years at commercial printing giant RR Donnelley, Bower has been hired as the inaugural director of warehousing at PharmaCann, where he will bring his expertise in workflow standardization and quality control to its Dwight and Hillcrest cultivation centers.

“I was looking, as people do at a certain age, for something with a little meaning,” Bower said of the career change. Bower, whose grandson’s 7-year-old cousin has a rare form of epilepsy helped by cannabis, said he tracked down the CEO to learn how he might get involved.