The Careerist: Holiday Help
What bosses and employees should know about holiday gifts, parties and bonuses.
Business & Industry
Parting Shot: The Fabric of Giving
Tuesday, 10:52 AM The Salvation Army 322 Sumner St., Iwilei Mabel Kihamahana cuts and sews fabric to refurbish donated furniture at The Salvation Army in Honolulu. Each cushion takes her about 20 minutes to reupholster. Kihamahana’s 40th anniversary with…
Talk Story with John Chamness
The nonprofit spends about $37 million a year to help Hawaii’s poorest people. Many of its services solve immediate needs, like hunger, but the Salvation Army is setting its sight on a new long-term initiative to stem poverty at its…
Good Neighbors with Kevin Lockette: Support for Parkinson’s Patients
As a physical therapist and the co-owner of Ohana Pacific Rehabilitation Services in Kailua, Kevin Lockette has always been interested in people’s movement issues. He started one of the first fitness…
The Careerist: Going to Your Boss’s Boss
Is it ever appropriate to go to your boss’s boss to complain about your boss? Yes, no and maybe. Yes, if you have witnessed discrimination, sexual harassment, fraud, kickbacks, gross negligence, substance abuse or anything that would create a really…
Global Dealmakers
Think your commute is tough? Next time you’re sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic for an hour, spare a thought for Brad Smith. The founder of Kahala Capital Advisers, a private investment firm, and Kahala Aviation travels regularly to his offices in…
Staying Power
Hawaii’s oldest continuously operated companies and nonprofits include many familiar names and a few lesser-known ones. Here are 11 enduring ranches, churches, schools and other organizations, each with a history that stretches back at least 165 years. Mokuaikaua Church Mokuaikaua…
Ocean-Friendly Bioplastics Made from Industrial Waste
Final bioplastic product: The Miss Sissi lamp. More info: tinyur.com/hnei-bioplastic UH researcher got help from microorganisms to invent green product The Creator Jian Yu didn’t set out to find a way to re-use organic waste. When he first moved to…
Gay Business Leaders Welcome Hawaii's Nondiscriminatory Attitudes
“What I have been doing most of my adult life and professional life is being very open and honest,” says Daniel Chun, one of Hawaii’s openly gay business leaders. “If it’s weird to me, and if I make it weird,…
Ranking Hawaii's Charities
Charity Navigator has been using the same method to rate the nation’s nonprofits since 2002. In this issue, Hawaii Business looks at the 27 local charities on the list. But it’s worth remembering that any such rating system, though valuable,…
My Job: Sweet Spot
Jolanta Siwik is the regulatory and innovation manager at Hawaiian Host Job: Food scientist Experience: 15 years, two with Hawaiian Host Start: Jolanta Siwik majored in human nutrition in her native Poland, then got her master’s degree in food science…
5 Steps to Turn Conflict Into Cooperation
Conflict in the workplace is natural and normal, says mediator Catherine Lampton. In fact, she says, avoiding conflict costs money. Research shows almost all terminations are due to unresolved conflict, and leaders spend up to half of every day dealing with…
Follow the Money
Dozens of local charities work with homeless people. All have boards of directors and staff. Most have an office and equipment, like a bus or kitchen, to maintain. And almost all face the same need to raise funds and provide…
O‘ahu is in a Geological Sweet Spot for Fresh Water. Here’s Why
We looked into the story of the island’s freshwater, including where it comes from, how good it is and whether we’re taking care of it.
Parting Shot: Working Above Those Who Rest
Monday, 6:08 PM Oahu Cemetery, Nuuanu photo by Aaron K. Yoshino Danny Villarin is one of seven caretakers who maintain the grounds and buildings at Oahu Cemetery. There are no more interments at the…
5 Steps to Career Success on the Neighbor Islands
MANY PEOPLE CAN'T imagine leaving the intimate communities and beautiful aina of their favorite Neighbor Island, even though that may limit their career opportunities. Executive and personal coach Sydney Wiecking offers ways to reduce those limitations and turn your home into…
Good Neighbors with Christine Hanakawa: Empowering Youth Through 4-H
CHRISTINE HANAKAWA ENJOYS working with families and young people as a program coordinator for Parents and Children Together, but she also brings her caring spirit as a volunteer co-leader for two 4-H clubs: “Green Whales” and “Friendship Magic.” The youth…
Talk Story with Catherine Ngo: President and CEO, Central Pacific Financial Corporation
Ngo is one of only two women in the state heading a publically traded company. She shares career insights and discusses her vision for Central Pacific Bank. You were COO and became CEO on July 1. What was your first…
Working with a Bully
EXECUTIVE COACH KIM PAYTON recalls being asked to help with a case of workplace bullying. Just one problem: Who was bullying whom? “This guy is a mid-level manager,” Payton says. “He’s new to the organization, so he doesn’t understand a…
Ask The Expert: Should I Upgrade to Windows 10 or Wait?
QUESTION: Now that Windows 10 is out, I’m wondering: Should I upgrade or wait? Our company is small and doesn’t have a lot of resources or IT expertise. ANSWER: Since its release in July, there have been tens of millions of…
Winemaker’s Skills Are Always Growing
Every workday is different for Brett Miller (center right wearing a black shirt), though each day usually includes at least some time in the MauiWine vineyard in Kula, on the slope of Haleakala. Start: While majoring in biology and…
Got a Complex Problem? Map It Before Trying to Solve It
Overlaid on this picture is part of the Early Childhood Action Strategy systems map. TO TRANSFORM A system as complex as energy in Hawaii, dynamic thinking is needed, Dawn Lippert says. Systems maps and systems thinking help guide that dynamic thinking.…
The Careerist: Opening Up to Criticism
QUESTION: I feel like I take criticism badly. How can I learn to listen without getting offended or taking it so personally? ANSWER: A negative reaction to criticism – even when it’s mild or constructive – can get pretty severe,…
Business Samurai
IN HER NEW BOOK, “Why Smart Men Do the Same Dumb Things: A Warrior’s Manual for Change,” Rosalie K. Tatsuguchi explores the idea that an inflexible “samurai attitude” holds back men – and many women – from a rich life and traps…