Ninety percent of a child’s brain is developed by age 5, so it’s critical that every child have access to high-quality child care and early learning programs, according to the nonprofit Hawaii Children’s Action Network. Of course, that’s not everything they need. “All children should have a safe place to sleep, food in their stomachs, access to care and a…
September and October are big months for parents with children in preschool. That’s when many embark on one of Hawaii’s most nerve-racking academic processes: applying to kindergarten. I am a graduate of the public school system in New York and the mother of a 4-year old, so this is new territory for me. As I take it all in, I…
“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” I love that quote of F. Scott Fitzgerald because I believe a real understanding of life and our world comes from accepting ambiguity and paradox, and rejecting absolute answers to common problems. I…
Q: Our company’s executives are planning now for 2017. What new laws and regulations will take effect? Hawaii companies should prepare for significant changes in employment law. Here are some highlights, along with advice on how to deal with the changes. Classifying Your Employees: How you classify your employees is more important than ever with new overtime rules under the…
It’s like a sickness. It’s very addictive,” says Sandra Kamiyama, giggling as she describes her frequent shopping visits to Mahiku Activewear in Haleiwa. “Their clothes are so comfortable, it’s like they’re made just for my body shape! I can wear them all day long – maybe even wearing a different set to bed!” The Waialua resident goes to the store…
In Hawaii, the business of hotel uniforms has traditionally been messy. A hotel would contract with a company to design and produce uniforms for its staff, but a different company would clean them. If the fabric shrank or threads came loose during washing, the cleaners often blamed the manufacturers for using faulty material, while the manufacturers would often blame the…
Three award-winning local architects talk about their roles in society, preserving historical buildings, and the ugliest and best-looking buildings in town. Glenn Mason and Bettina Mehnert were selected in April as fellows in the American Institute of Architecture, one of the most prestigious honors in the profession. Only about 3 percent of AIA members are fellows. Hawaii Business senior writer…
Q: I just interviewed for a job and was told the company has a strict policy against BYOD. I nodded sagely as though I understood, but what is that and why should I care? A: If you take the job, make sure your pockets are big enough for two phones, because you’re about to become one of those people. BYOD…
People who work with horses in Hawaii agree on two things: It’s a tough way to make a living and a great way to make a living. Tough, because the costs of importing and feeding horses are high and the financial returns are usually low, but great because you spend your day with animals you love. The most recent USDA…
On a typical day, there are more than 2,000 Oahu job listings on Craigslist. So why are there tens of thousands of people in Hawaii who want to work but donʻt even have a part-time job? Hereʻs why and what we can do to help them get back to work. Samson Akiona is a 36-year-old single father living in Waianae,…
Charletta Wilson was 18 months into a lucrative consulting contract when she realized the firm that had hired her was engaged in unethical accounting practices. She didn’t like it, but wasn’t sure what to do. Could she really walk away from such an important client? “You go through a rationalization process,” says Wilson, of Capeesh Consulting, based in Hawaii. “Ending…
Sheri Mann, Forester and Kauai Island district manager works with the State to conserve nature’s wonders. NAME: Sheri Mann AGE: 48 JOB: Forester and Kauai Island district manager, Division of Forestry and Wildlife, state Department of Land and Natural Resources START: Mann was born in South Carolina, but raised in Tennessee. She joined the Peace Corps when she was 23,…
ORIGINS: Husband and wife Andrew and Rita Fowers first met 11 years ago at Brigham Young University Hawaii in Laie, where their location inspired a company. “When I was a senior in college on the North Shore,” says Andrew Fowers, “I would see tour buses drive by. I would also see these tourists driving right past all the best beaches…
Here is Hawaii Business’ annual roundup of salaries for major league athletes who were born or grew up in Hawaii, or attended Hawaii schools. Our main source is Spotrac.com, a website that specializes in tracking pro athletes’ compensation. We have included both base salary and applicable bonuses because we feel it more accurately reflects a player’s overall compensation. These include…
Photo by David Croxford Before being hired by Damien this year, Porter was a law professor and ran the highly regarded Litigation Center at Golden Gate University School of Law. Prior to that, he spent a decade as a trial lawyer, much of that spent prosecuting major fraud cases as an assistant U.S. attorney and at the Securities and…
Even after six years at the helm of the state’s second largest bank, Ho is still a relatively young CEO, at age 50. However, he points out: “There are a lot of miles on the odometer.” We talk to him about Hawaii’s uncertain economic future and leading the bank through change. Q: At a recent Hawaii Business roundtable, you seemed…
Driver’s licenses have been a symbol of adulthood and freedom for generations of Hawaii teens. But today, a much smaller proportion of youths are getting their licenses. We examine why and what it means for Hawaii going forward. For decades, owning and driving a car has been part of the American dream. But, across the nation today, fewer people are…
Hawaii’s current building code does not require construction that could withstand a storm as powerful as Hurricane Iniki. In fact, some new local homes are built under the assumption that wind gusts won’t exceed 100 mph – much less than Iniki’s gusts of up to 175 mph. Even more worrisome is that many homes constructed under older codes are even…