BY SAM SLOM – Candidates On Your Mark. Yesterday at 4:30 pm was the filing deadline for all candidates for elective office in Hawaii 2012. Some beauty queens, media folk, attorneys and community activists are in. Several races are uncontested. More about this next Wednesday. U.S. Senate candidate Linda Lingle opened her campaign HQ in Kalihi last Friday night and several outside signs were stolen. Other candidate signs and banners vandalized on the Windward side. Ah yes, the campaign season is already in full swing. The Primary is Saturday, August 11.
Transit of Venus. Glad to report the transit of Venus went off without a hitch yesterday and did not cost Hawaii taxpayers billions as would the Transit of Carlisle.
HAL Flies to NYC. Hawaiian Airlines began its first daily Honolulu to JFK non-stop direct flight yesterday. Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue Airways also announced a deepening of their partnership to ease travel between the East Coast and Hawaii, highlighted by reciprocal mileage award benefits for members of their respective frequent flyer programs.
McDonald’s Partners With Army. McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii has partnered with the U.S. Army’s Partnership for Youth Success (PaYS) Program. PaYS is a program for soldiers and recruits who are looking for civilian jobs that will take advantage of skills they learned in the military once they have completed their term of service in the Army.
The PaYS Program offers soldiers opportunities with participating business partners – all of them established companies and public sector agencies with secure reputations and a minimum of 500 employees.
“McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii is committed to supporting the U.S. Army community and its veterans,” said Paulette Wage, human resources manager of McDonald’s Restaurants of Hawaii. “We welcome these soldiers, with their professionalism, pride and personal integrity to our team.”
The PaYS Program is also offered to ROTC participants who go directly into the Army Reserve or Army National Guard after graduation from college and commissioning, after which they may apply for a job with a selected PaYS partner. McDonald’s restaurants in Hawaii are the nation’s first McDonald’s restaurants participating in the PaYS Program. Soldiers interested in participating in the program are invited to visitwww.armypays.com.
Got Apps? Hawaii Apps, a local mobile applications company, opened here Monday. Punahou grad Melialani “Meli” Jamesand three other principals-Communications Pacific CEO Kitty Lagareta, Bonterra Renewable Energy & Solar Power principalAndrew Yani and technology consultant Steve Hochart– for the business launched this week. James also helped develop an interactive iPad book.
Hawaii Apps will focus on businesses, government, and community. For more information: HawaiiAppsInc.com.
AG Seeking Help for Distressed Homeowners. The Department of the Hawaii Attorney General is seeking applications from organizations that are interested in receiving funding to assist distressed homeowners in Hawaii. This funding is part of the historic multi-state mortgage foreclosure settlement between the State of Hawaii and Bank of America Corp., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Wells Fargo & Co., CitiGroup, Inc., and Ally Financial, Inc. (Ally is the parent of GMAC Mortgage) (the “Settlement”).
The Settlement includes approximately $7.9 million in direct funds to the State of Hawaii, which will be administered by the Department to create a Foreclosure Assistance Program.
It is the Attorney General’s intention to distribute the funds for, among other things: Housing and financial counseling; Public education; Mediation and dispute resolution; and Enforcement of laws and agreements protecting the rights of homeowners. Interested organizations are encouraged to submit an application to be part of this effort to help Hawaii homeowners, in coordination with the Department. Applicants may apply for funding in accordance with procedures set forth on the Department’s website. Go to www.hawaii.gov/ag and click on the link titled “Foreclosure Assistance Program.” All applications for funding must be received by July 13, 2012.
Biz Awards Announced. Element Media, Inc., Hawaii’s premier custom publishing firm, hosted the exclusive second annual Pacific Edge Magazine Business Achievement Awards Gala on Thursday, May 31, at The Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace. The red-carpet gala event, attended by approximately 350 people, honored the impressive achievements of Hawaii’s leading business professionals and companies while also celebrating Pacific Edge Magazine’s sixth anniversary.
Pacific Edge Magazine bestowed the special honor of a Lifetime Achievement award upon John Henry Felix, Chairman, President & CEO of HMAA, for his continued industry leadership, commitment to the local business community and his lifelong service to a number of charitable organizations.
New this year, a special honoree award was handed out to BAE Systems for Best Government Contractor for the services they have provided, above and beyond the call of duty.
The award winners were announced during the presentation ceremony. This year’s award winners are:
Young Professional of the Year
ED JUSTUS, OWNER, TALK STORY BOOKSTORE
Business Executive of the Year
ALEX TILLER, CEO, SUNETRIC
Educator of the Year
SAMNANG SEA, MATHEMATICS TEACHER, SAINT LOUIS SCHOOL
Commitment to Green
NATURAL INVESTMENTS
Corporate Social Responsibility:
HAGADONE PRINTING COMPANY
Best Social Media Campaign:
BARE FEET STUDIOS
Best Family-Run Business:
KANEMARU DENTAL
Best New Business:
MGA ARCHITECTURE
Biz Outlook Survey. Results of this year’s first BOSS – Business Outlook and Sentiment Survey – of 400 business leaders on all major Hawaiian Islands, finds that revenues and profits at Hawaii businesses are up strongly and optimism remains high, overall, for the local economy in the coming year. On the flip side, hiring remains slow. QMark Research, a division of the Anthology Marketing Group, does the BOSS twice a year for Hawaii Business magazine.
“The BOSS is Hawaii’s top survey of local business leaders and a vital measure of Hawaii’s economy – where it has been and where it is headed,” said Steve Petranik, editor of Hawaii Business. “This year’s survey points to an optimistic view of the year ahead, which is a good sign. If business leaders are optimistic, they are more likely to expand their businesses, hire more employees and give raises to existing employees. However, in the bad news category, hiring does remain slow, with a small percentage of companies planning to substantially increase spending in the coming year.”
Survey findings include:
- Revenues and profits at Hawaii businesses are up strongly. Forty-four percent of companies say revenue is up in the past year and 33 percent say profit is up.
- Optimism remains high for the Hawaii economy, overall, in the coming year, but that optimism has remained relatively steady for two-and-a-half years without increasing.
- Hiring remains low, with only 16 percent of companies surveyed saying that they have added staff in the past year.
- 13 percent of companies surveyed plan to substantially increase spending. Meanwhile, 24 percent of companies plan to continue cutting costs.
Saturday Leadership Luncheon. The FAMES 7th Annual Business Leadership Workshop is this Saturday, June 9th at Dave & Busters. Keynote Speaker: John Henry Felix
Speaker – Jane Sawyer Q & A Session – Bruce Coppa andVictor Lim
RSVP is required – RSVP at RSVP@FAMESHAWAII.COM or call Joni Redick-Yundt at 781-5905 or Raphael Ramos at 277-4341. Admission is FREE for FAMES Members and $30 for Non-Members ($25 Early Bird Special on or before June 7th) Includes open-networking sessions, speaker program and buffet lunch with soda, coffee or tea.
SMEI to Hear Lisa Dennis. Sales and Marketing Executives International (SMEI), Honolulu Chapter, presents Lisa Dennis,President and Founder of Knowledgence Associates, as guest speaker on Tuesday, June 19, from 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm at The Kahala Hotel & Resort. Dennis will share the five stages of business relationships and why they matter. She will explain the importance of understanding what drives each type of individual, prospects and customers, and how to leverage that knowledge to deepen a relationship that benefits both parties. Each stage of the relationship offers engagement options with marketing and sales strategies and tactics that can build and enhance the connection between sales professionals and their clients.
Dennis will also lead two sales seminars on Wednesday, June 20, 2012 at The Kahala Hotel and Resort. What You Don’t Know About Your Pipeline Can Kill You from 8:30 am – 12:00 pm will share a road map to scrub the sales pipeline, upgrade the stages with the missing pieces, and assure that what is in the pipeline belonged there in the first place. Hiring Real Sales Talent and Managing Performance Like a Pro from 1:30 pm – 5:00 pm will focus on how to: identify the right mix of skills and talents before interviewing potential hires, influence techniques that work better than directives, and assess skills sets to apply what is needed to each individual.
Jobs Fair. Kym Pine will co-sponsor the Leeward Job and Career Fair Tuesday, June 12, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at The Salvation Army Kroc Center Hawaii 91-3257 Kualaka’i Parkway, Ewa Beach. The event is Free and open to the public
Hawaii Reporter Partied! More than 120 people joined KHVH radio’s Richard David Hamada, Jr. III to honor and celebrateHawaii Reporter.com, on its 10th anniversary. Hawaii’s first electronic daily newspaper partied last Friday, June 1, at the Waialae Country Club. Pianist Don Conover entertained. There was good food, entertainment and surprise announcements about HR’s bright future. Go to www.HawaiiReporter.com for the real news. HR, founded by Malia Zimmerman, continues to break major investigative stories. Tune in to KHVH every week day now at 7:05 am to hear Malia’s report.
Randy Roth at SUNRISE. “Broken Trust” co-author, UH law school professor and rail opponent plaintiff, Randy Roth, will keynote the next SBH Sunrise Networking Breakfast in the Pineapple Room, Macy’s Ala Moana, Thursday, June 28. Call Darlyn at SBH for details and reservations (396-1724).
Become an SBH Member. Is YOUR business a member of SBH? No? Lots of benefits. Strong networking organization. Call Darlyn today (808-396-1724) or go online tosmartbusinesshawaii.com.
Want more local business information? Please visit the several SBH websites at: www.smartbusinesshawaii.com,www.educate808.com and www.sbhfoundation.org .
Celebrating a business milestone? Your business press releases are welcome in the weekly SBH News & Views E-News which reaches more than 10,000 business owners and government leaders in Hawaii.
What? Not receiving your copy? Send PR, additional requests and email address to mailto:SBH@lava.net or call Darlyn at 396-1724.
SBH can help you with YOUR business. Just starting a business? Call me personally for help at 396-1724 or email: mailto:SBH@lava.net. Smart Business Hawaii Means Business and we’re here to help you.
