NAME: Chun Yee AGE: 55 JOB: Civilian forensic/ graphic artist, Honolulu Police Department START: Yee was born in Hong Kong, but grew up in Kahaluu and got his associates degree in commercial arts from Honolulu Community College. He has been with HPD for nearly…
When the doors open at Saks Fifth Avenue Hawaii on August 25 at the redesigned International Market Place, it will be a homecoming for vice president and general manager Shelley Tadaki Cramer. Cramer was born and raised in Honolulu, then…
Q: My boss and I have very different views, and I’ve discovered he’s monitoring my Facebook posts and tweets. He came to my cubicle yesterday and said, “You’d better watch that stuff you post online.” These are my personal views and my…
Eric Rose can’t forget the day a year and a half ago when a group of Japanese businessmen walked into Morning Glass, his trendy coffee house in Manoa, and suggested taking the concept to Japan. “They came in out of…
Name: Travis Grammer Age: 38 Job: Submarine Pilot (Official Title: Fire Control Technician Leading Chief Petty Officer), U.S. Navy, USS Hawaii (SSN 776) Start: Grammer was deeply moved by a Navy recruiting poster he saw during his senior year…
Google and other high-flying companies have reinvented the corporate cafeteria. The local cafeterias we visited are not that lavish, but they still cost plenty of money. It's all worth it, the companies say, because their investments pay back in many…
The Participants: Peter Ho, 51 Chairman, President and CEO, Bank of Hawaii. Melialani James, 38 President, Hawaii Venture Capital Association, and Head of New Ventures, Sultan Ventures. John Komeiji, 62 Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel, Hawaiian Telcom. Colbert Matsumoto,…
Since taking the helm in 2005, just as Hawaiian Airlines was coming out of bankruptcy, Dunkerley has presided over a period of unprecedented growth. With new routes to Japan, Korea, China, Australia and New Zealand, the airline has spent billions…
Q: It’s as if the different generations speak distinct languages at my company. How do I improve internal communications so everyone gets the message? A: Some of us look around our workplace and wonder who let in all those interns…
Last November, the Hale Mauliola Housing Navigation Service Center opened on Sand Island. It made national news for creating homeless shelters from retrofitted shipping containers. Some people were appalled, others applauded the frugality and portability of the design. In Nevada,…
Q: I was at a lecture in which Walter Dods said that, to succeed in business, you have to follow your passion. I have been thinking about that for weeks and the things I am passionate about are surfing, beer…
Name: Tom Moffatt Age: “Older than Elvis” Job: Concert promoter and president, A Tom Moffatt Production Start: Born in South Lyon, Michigan, Moffatt came to UH in the early ‘50s “because I wanted to go as far away from where…
H&W Foodservice & Palama Meat Kapolei Early each day, H&W Foodservice trucks are loaded at the Palama Meat packing plant with steaks, chops, ribs, ground beef and dozens of other products. The overnight shift of 14 uses brawn and forklifts to…
Q: Two-thirds of my staff are Baby Boomers and that terrifies me, because the last time one retired, I couldn’t find a replacement half as good. How do I keep these folks from leaving? A: Every industry is dealing with…
It doesn’t look like a homeless shelter – and that’s the point. Cheery paint and graphic shapes tie together the 22 bed areas, creating a hip, treehouse feel. Bathrooms are private and gender neutral, a recognition of the fact that 40…
You and I are part of Abilities Unlimited’s mission to empower individuals with disabilities. “We could have a really, really ready client, but, if the rest of the community – specifically employers – don’t buy into what we’re doing, then…
More men across Oahu are turning to upscale barbershops for an experience beyond the traditional in-and-out haircut, with two high-end shops recently opening in Honolulu and others expected to follow. Yes, you can still get a simple trim, but options…
Hawaii is ground zero for energy innovation, and the leading incubator for that innovation is the Energy Excelerator. Back in 2014, when Hawaii Business first reported on EEx, 50 startups applied to join its initial cohort. This year, there were…
Richard Kaipo Lum has had plenty of clients that you’ve heard of. To name a few: the European Commission, the city of Stockholm, the governments of Canada, the United Kingdom and Singapore, along with multinationals like PepsiCo, IBM and others…
Name: Makani McDonald Age: 47 Job: Shaper/designer, Town and Country Surfboards Responsibilities: “I mainly design and shape surfboards and, with that, comes a lot of R&D with riders and equipment. The personal R&D is riding new variations of boards that you’ve…
Q: In May, it will be four years and five jobs since I graduated from college and I’m still trying to map out a career. Is it better to be a specialist or a jack-of-all-trades? A: I posed this question…
Charlie Lorenz knows what it’s like to be homeless and hungry. As a teenager, he lived on the streets of Honolulu due to a family dispute. “With that experience, Charlie does know the hunger and lack of hope you experience…
Inspiration: Farmers told Vincent Kimura they needed an affordable way to protect their crops and increase their yields. Once he had an idea to address that problem, he teamed with Ryan Ozawa, Isar Mostafanezhad and Justin Hedani to create the…
Name: Hadley Andersen Job: Senior Science Educator, Bishop Museum Duties: Twice a day – at noon and 2:30 p.m. – Andersen dons a protective aluminized suit, enters a shielded “cage” and melts little pieces of volcanic rock, or cinder, in…