The world has changed. Is Hawaii still stuck in the past? Or were we ahead of the times all along? Remember 2004? That year, a BlackBerry was the height of executive cool, while the first iPhone was still three years…
Payroll cards are an alternative to paying employees by cash, check or direct deposit, but a new state law will make them more costly for companies. Paycards have gained traction nationally and about 14,000 workers in Hawaii are already paid…
Thirteen years after he and his partner, Kaleo Taft, founded their fuel cell startup in a Waikiki apartment. Nine years after he put the company on NASDAQ in a $21 million IPO. Seven years after he and his colleagues gave…
Companies love social media because they can be inexpensive ways to reach lots of customers. But, companies worry about social media because they have little control over what others say about them. In fact, one of the biggest concerns companies…
Delaney launched HiHR in 2009 and the company has made the Hawaii Best Places to Work list in every year for which it was eligible – four straight now. In the same time, HiHR went from revenues of $6.1 million in 2009 to $123…
PHOTOS BY ELYSE AND MATT MALLAMS Back in the mid-1970s, when Abner Undan started working for a tree-trimming company, the standard method was to lop off branches randomly and use spikes to climb palm trees. “Those were the old…
For many people around the world, Hawaii is paradise. They have a vision of pristine beaches, glorious sunsets and friendly people. In other words, heaven on earth. But when it comes to commerce, the vision of Hawaii from the outside…
Danny Boren, founder of Maui-based Skyline Eco Adventures, understands that philanthropy is serious business. To date, Boren says, Skyline has donated more than $600,000 to Hawaii nonprofits and was the first zipline company in the world to join the “1%…
18 Insights from the BOSS survey of 401 local business leaders Plus 10 nuances we thought you should know about 1. Performance Plateau The Performance Index is at 113, virtually unchanged from October 2012. This index is the BOSS survey’s…
Many people were surprised when the 2010 Census revealed that 120,000 people in Hawaii identified themselves as having Hispanic heritage, about 9 percent of the state’s residents. In fact, the Hispanic population in the Islands had grown by 38 percent…
Some suggest an influential coalition based on Hawaiian values, not simply economic value, could help steer the Islands’ future The remnants of the Big Five, once the dominant companies in Hawaii, continued to shrink last year. The sale of…
Open any celebrity magazine and you’ll likely find photos of stars living it up in Hawaii: lounging behind oversize sunglasses, playing in the surf or sipping on an umbrella-adorned drink. But not every famous person who visits the Islands is…
Owning a franchise is always hard work, but here’s how to avoid the hellish pain and reap the heavenly rewards David and Carla Lehn were first-time franchisees who hoped that by purchasing the only Quiznos fast-food restaurant on Kauai, they…
Best "Green" Vehicle Sunetric retrofitted this Honda Element with three 230-watt Sunpower modules and 12 killowatt hours of battery storage. The mobile solar power station, named Watt Wheels, provides free electricity at community, charitable and educational events. Best Classic Delivery…
Before Bill Jarvis took the helm seven years ago at Mobi PCS, a Hawaii-based wireless phone company, he had spent two decades working for other, bigger national brands. So he knew what not to do. “We could really study the category…
Lyon Associates, Inc. is a Honolulu-based, father-and-son engineering firm with projects from Micronesia to Bahrain. Jim Lyon, 45, was born on Okinawa, when Frank, now 82, was working for another engineering company. After retirement, Frank realized there was more work and…
Some pet stores in Hawaii have stopped selling cats and dogs, and are instead partnering with animal shelters and rescue groups to offer adoptions of homeless animals. The unusual marketing strategy may be partly due to more pet-store owners’ concern…
When we went looking for Hawaii Business magazine's Best Dressed Executives and Professionals, we got more than a hundred nominations. It was a huge challenge – and a lot of fun – narrowing down that group of stylish people to…
Don Morrison Can readily list the equipment and vehicles his Kapolei company purchased in recent years. Morrison, CFO of Pacific AquaScapes Inc., says money was available for the acquisitions because of the company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan, which shields the company from federal…
OVERALL WINNER JON DUARTE DESIGN GROUP In creating work space for the Jon Duarte Design Group’s eight employees, the firm wanted a “collaborative environment” that was warm and welcoming, where designers could work together easily but also meet casually. Dark…
Travel by private jet – a leading economic indicator for lifestyles of the rich and famous – increased by double digits at key Hawaii airports last year, which was great news for dozens of local companies that fuel, feed and…
Where is THE meeting place? It used to be the Columbia Inn’s bar, but times – and people – have changed, and the “in-the-know” gathering places are now quieter and more sober. You used to be able to find one…
Sometimes there’s no better way to meet a new client or seal a deal than with your business card in one hand and a drink in the other. Whether it’s at a well-organized networking event or just standing at the…
Hawaiian electric industries has maintained the remarkable record of paying dividends to shareholders for more than 100 years. But, lately, there’s something else that people may find remarkable. For the past three-and-a-half years, HEI has paid more in dividends than…