Chaminade University of Honolulu

Business & Communication

Nonprofit Organizations Seminar

Everything from federal tax law changes for nonprofits to cybersecurity trends to the value of crowdfunding to raise supplemental operational funds were among the high-interest topics discussed at this year’s Nonprofit Organizations Seminar at Chaminade University of Honolulu.

The event, in its 18th year at Chaminade, attracted representatives from some 80 Hawaii nonprofits.

They came together Aug. 16 for a day of professional development and collaboration.

Shari Chang, CEO of Girl Scouts of Hawaii, delivered the lunchtime keynote speech. She’s a 35-year veteran of the hospitality marketing industry and is now using her strong business background to help oversee the expansion of her organization’s leadership development programs for girls.

Other speakers at the event included Spencer Lau, a two-time Chaminade University graduate and interim director of finance at the Honolulu Community Action Program, who talked about how more and more nonprofits are using crowdfunding to help cover institutional expenses or existing programs; and Trever Asam, a partner at the Cades Schutte law firm and an expert on tax law, whose presentation focused on important legislation and court rulings that effect tax-exempt organizations.

The nonprofit seminar is put on annually by Chaminade’s School of Business and Communication.

And the impressive slate of experts who made presentations at the event included several from the University’s own faculty and staff roster. Rylan Chong, co-director of Chaminade’s data science program, spoke about the risks of organizational identity theft and how nonprofits can protect themselves while three Chaminade accounting professors offered presentations on tax fraud prevention and auditing.

The day also included an engaging panel discussion, titled “To accept or not to accept, that is the question,” on the importance of gift acceptance policies that reflect the values and overall work of a successful fundraising charity or nonprofit. On the panel: Michael Coppes, senior executive director of estate and gift planning at the UH Foundation, and Hugh Jones, the foundation’s chief legal officer.

Students Learn the Business of Finance

A recent partnership between Chaminade University and Hawaii State Federal Credit Union (Hawaii State FCU) has proven to offer an invaluable real-world experience to students. Through the partnership, Chaminade business students participate in a 15-week internship at Hawaii State FCU.

Business students interning at HSFCU
Business students Mailani, Nikki and Cole

The internship program was the brainchild of Ismael Eustaquio, Chaminade alumnus and senior department manager of project development at Hawaii State FCU. As a Chaminade alum and Board of Regents member, Eustaquio thought an incredible way to give back to the community would be to pass on the knowledge and skills of Hawaii State FCU’s employees to emerging leaders at Chaminade.

“In our programs, we are always looking to help students integrate what they learn in their courses with actual industry practice,” said Dr. Schroeder. “Hawaii State Federal Credit Union thinks similarly and has blended classroom lessons and work experience into their internship program, providing a distinctive approach that aligns well with our aims at Chaminade.”

Business students interning at HSFCU
Business students Gabriel, Kai and Elijah

Throughout the program, Chaminade interns complete a curriculum that is divided between the classroom and the field. Program participants take 12 leadership courses, spend time rotating between the company’s 15 departments, meet regularly with a mentor and present a final group project to their mentors, Chaminade professors and the credit union’s executive board and CEO.

“My experience at Hawaii State FCU left such a remarkable impression on me and really impacted me in a way that I am able to carry on with me throughout my future endeavors,” said Mailani Faniel, recent business administration graduate. “It helped me understand people better, understand myself more clearly and learn how to do business with people from all walks of life.”

So far, two cohorts comprising three students each have completed the Hawaii State FCU internship program.

Business Students Win in Las Vegas

A team of Chaminade business students took home third place in the annual International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE) student case study competition in Las Vegas. Lady Luck may have been on the students’ side, but their win was well deserved after weeks of hard work and preparation.

Business students at IACBE competition

The IACBE competition is held during the organization’s annual conference and is open to students from all IACBE-member and non-member institutions worldwide. It’s split into two portions over the course of two days—the live business case competition and the ethical case competition. This year’s conference and competition was held on April 9–12 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

“This experience provides students with great opportunities for creativity, critical analysis and intellectual engagement, and can lead to a higher level of learning than mere knowledge absorption,” Dr. Guanlin Gao, assistant professor of economics and faculty mentor, said. “It also can help students acquire practical career-relevant competencies such as data analysis, writing and oral presentation skills, time management and the ability to give and receive constructive criticism.”

The first day of competition was the live business case. This year, competing teams were required to create a business plan for écree, a fast-growing writing support technology company based in North Carolina, which they then had to present to two panels of judges. The plan and executive summary submitted by Chaminade’s team included all the perspectives of growth strategy, sales and business development, marketing, research and development, reporting, financial planning and analysis. Teams received the parameters of this case a month prior to the competition.

Business students at IACBE competition

But the second-day case, otherwise known as the urgent ethical case, was released the same day as the competition, only four hours before. It was provided by the University of Arizona Eller Center for Leadership Ethics and asked students to make recommendations regarding the incorporation of artificial intelligence in law enforcement for a fictional company. This was also followed by two different presentations to two panels of judges.  

Thirty students from eight different institutions qualified for the finals and competed in this year’s competition. Chaminade’s team was comprised of four students including Savannah Lyn Delos Santos, Renee Leifi, Daniel Maximo and Kai Rivera.

The team began preparing for the IACBE competition in mid-January, spending five hours every Friday and Sunday learning how to approach a business case and conduct business research, listening to guest speakers and practicing with cases used in previous years.

The first case was released at the end of March so team members forfeited their spring break to prepare for the competition, clocking at least 70 hours during those eight days. In order to train for the same-day ethics case, the students practiced with a variety of scenarios so that they’d be prepared for anything.

But the hard work and dedication paid off, and Chaminade took home third place in a close competition. Chaminade’s team was only two points behind second place winner, Germany’s Cologne Business School, which was only one point behind first place winner, Lynn University in Florida.

“I think placing was really nice but it didn’t mean as much compared to the new friendships I had fostered with my teammates, coaches and students and faculty from the other institutions attending the conference,” Maximo said. “That in itself was the true win.”

Regardless of how Chaminade’s team placed in the competition, the students who participated agree that the experience challenged them to grow and learn outside of the traditional classroom setting.

“I learned to discern humbly that there is no one right way to do something,” Delos Santos, senior business marketing major, said. “Answers vary in business. We have to constantly be adapting to macro-environmental changes in business, and keep up with the trends and what methods are currently successful.”

Students Learn About the Banking Industry

Students from Dr. Hans Chun’s BU 308 business communications course were invited to visit the Bank of Hawaii Corporate Headquarters on Monday, April 29. The students took a tour of the remodeled upper floors and enjoyed a Q&A session with Senior Vice President Scott Yoshihara to learn about tips for career success, workplace trends and working in the banking industry.

“The students and I greatly appreciate the invitation from Senior Vice President Scott Yoshihara to provide a personal tour of the remodeled upper floors at the Corporate Headquarters of Bank of Hawaii for our students and provide his insights to help our students learn more about possibly working in the banking industry. Mr. Yoshihara has been gracious with his time to be a guest speaker for this course in past semesters.”

Bringing Economics Outside

Guanlin Gao Economics ClassProfessor Guanlin Gao’s environmental economics class recently headed outdoors to see their classroom learnings in action. On October 11, the class headed to the Waihe’e Water Tunnel operated by the Board of Water Supply to learn about the economics behind water recycling and conservation.

“The Waihe’e Tunnel and watershed tour not only offers an experience walking inside the 1,500-foot dike tunnel that provides water to Windward Oahu, but also allows us to actually see the water recycling process,” says Dr. Gao. “It will help students better understand water recycling and conservation, as well as the concept of a natural monopoly.”

Guanlin Gao Economics ClassChaminade is known for bringing education out of the classroom and into everyday surroundings. It’s not uncommon for students to snorkel on a coral reef, hike a nearby valley, visit a police investigation lab, intern at a hospital or volunteer in an elementary school classroom. After all, the best learning happens by doing.

“Besides learning economic models and theories, I also want my students to have the first-hand experience and know the real-world applications of the knowledge they have learned in the classroom,” says Dr. Gao. “I know that will help them understand the things we learn in class better and leave them with a long-lasting memory.”

Life Lessons from VP of Public Relations, Communications, and Brand Management at Kaiser Permanente Hawaii

It was an honor to hear from Mr. David Tumilowicz, Vice President of Public Relations, Communications, and Brand Management at Kaiser Permanente Hawaii.

Mr. Tumilowicz began his presentation with some personal stories and shared important lessons he learned throughout his career. He has a wide range of experience in different areas of business which includes working as an adjunct professor at Chaminade University and Hawaii Pacific University, and Vice President at PacificBasin Communications. Here are some lessons that stood out to me:

Kaleen Terayama and David Tumilowicz1. Work ethic—after working as an adjunct professor, Mr. Tumilowicz shifted careers and worked for Hawaii Designs by John Martin where he built boats. It is with this company where he learned the importance of work ethic. “The more boats he produces, the more money he makes.”

2. Team work—at some point, Mr. Tumilowicz worked as a Sales Manager/Marketing Director at Broadband Interactive Television. Here, he learned the value of teamwork. “Behind every successful company is a team that communicates and works together as one.”

3. Believe in your employees—during his time as a publisher for Hawaii Business and Hawaii magazines, Mr. Tumilowicz was faced with obstacles while dealing with limited staff to work with. He knew firing people wasn’t an option, so he took a different approach instead. He created an environment where people can express their true and absolute potential.

4. Trust—in his current position at Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Mr. Tumilowicz focuses on the word “trust.” Learn how to trust others because at a certain point, you are not the expert anymore. “Be best friends with the CFO!”
Mr. Tumilowicz ended his presentation with a talk on the greatest attribute of a good leader. He says, “All leaders are influencers, but it is how you choose to influence others that makes you a good leader. How do you influence in a positive way?”

Written by: Hogan Entrepreneurs Program student, Kaleen Terayama
Speaker Session with David Tumilowicz 3/21/18