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Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

2022 Nonprofit Business Plan Competition

April 29, 2022 by University Communications & Marketing

Hogan Entrepreneurial Program and American Savings Bank Nonprofit Business Plan Competition finalists

From vocational training to higher education mentorship and homelessness prevention, the services delivered by the winners of the 10th annual Hogan Entrepreneurial Program and American Savings Bank Nonprofit Business Plan Competition are as diverse as the clients they serve.

But what they all share is a commitment to building a better Hawaii for everyone.

And now they have some additional support to do just that.

Chaminade University was proud to host a special ceremony on April 27 at the Clarence T.C. Ching Conference Center to announce the winners of the annual competition—designed to support innovative proposals in the public good and celebrate the contributions that nonprofits make to the community.

In all, the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program and American Savings Bank awarded $35,000 to nine Hawaii nonprofit organizations who participated in the competition this year. The first-place winner, Ho’ākeolapono Trades Academy and Institute, walked away with the $12,000 prize.

“We are so incredibly impressed by all of the Hawaii nonprofits who submitted proposals for the 2022 Nonprofit Business Plan Competition. It is clear they are embracing innovation as they seek to maximize their positive impact and help our communities thrive,” said Chaminade President Lynn Babington, PhD.

“For 10 years, this competition has showcased the ingenuity of Hawaii nonprofits, celebrated entrepreneurs who are driving positive change, and offered critical support to projects that have helped thousands of Hawaii residents overcome challenges and seek out new opportunities.”

Dr. Roy Panzarella, director of the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program, said socially-motivated entrepreneurship is a powerful tool in addressing some of the biggest issues facing Hawaii families.

“The Nonprofit Business Plan Competition is about pushing the envelope, embracing change and rewarding Hawaii organizations and leaders who are meeting community needs in new ways,” he said. “It is also about recognizing that we can accomplish great things when we all work together.”

In addition to all the competition’s finalists, attendees at the event included Hogan Entrepreneurial Program leadership, Dr. Babington and American Savings Bank Senior Vice President and Director of Community Advancement Michelle Bartell.

Hoakeolapono Trades Academy receiving their award

In their application, first-place winner Ho’ākeolapono Trades Academy and Institute laid out an ambitious proposal for delivering cutting-edge vocational training across high-demand trades, with a special focus on problem-solving and lifelong learning. The nonprofit is geared toward career technical secondary students and has already partnered with several public schools to deliver its programs.

They’re also teaming up with the community on construction projects, involving their student participants in hands-on efforts to make renovations to classrooms and install staircases and ramps. Looking ahead, they’re working to build a training hub on Hawaii Island and they want to launch a “refurbishing thrift shop” that will feature high-need household items restored by students.

“Ho’ākeolapono Trades Academy and Institute was designed to increase employment and advancement opportunities by providing participants with crucial building and construction knowledge and multidisciplinary, 21st-century trade skills,” the nonprofit wrote, in its business plan.

Alii Mentoring receiving their award

The second-place prize of $10,000 went to A’ALI’I Mentoring, a nonprofit that was formed to help students from underrepresented populations to navigate, persist and succeed in higher education. The organization offers one-on-one mentoring, scholarships, career development, community service activities and monthly group workshops on topics ranging from finances to communication.

“Transitioning from high school to post-secondary education remains a daunting challenge for many students,” the nonprofit said. “The support of a mentor, who can serve as a guide as well as a listener, can be an effective intervention in addressing low persistence rates of post-secondary education.”

Family Promise Hawaii receiving their award at the Nonprofit Business Plan Competition

The third-place winner was Family Promise of Hawaii, which provides services to homeless and low-income families. The nonprofit received $5,000 to help support its ‘Ohana Navigation Center, an innovative space seen as a hub for services, a gathering place, and a resource for supplies.

The center will even serve as a shelter space to temporarily house families.

“The project’s proposed design will include a child-friendly campus where families can access various supportive services created with input from Family Promise beneficiaries, staff and community partners,” the nonprofit said. They hope to serve 290 families a year at the center.

Aina Momona receiving their award at the Nonprofit Business Plan Competition

The fourth-place award of $3,000 went to nonprofit Hui Aloha ʻĀina Momona’s Ku’i’ai Accelerator project to provide quality wood to families and organizations so they can make taro pounding boards that will become heirlooms for future generations. The organization offers educational programs focused on food sustainability, local agricultural and indigenous farming and lifestyle practices.

In past competitions, judges chose eight finalists to compete for the top prize. Because of the amount of excellent business plans submitted, nine finalists were chosen this year.

The Five other nonprofit finalists also received $1,000 awards:

  • Blue Ocean Warriors
  • Kualoa Heeia Ecumenical Youth Project’s Living Library
  • Kuilei Cliffs Restoration Project
  • Ocean Alliance Project
  • And Saferide Hawaii

Filed Under: Campus and Community, Featured Story, Hogan Entrepreneurial Program Tagged With: Honors and Awards

Student’s Business Makes Paw-sitive Impact

March 16, 2022 by University Communications & Marketing

Oliver Carson, Business Administration student, creator of Better Place Brands

By day, Oliver Carson is studying business. And by night, he’s running one.

The Chaminade University senior and Hogan Entrepreneurial Program student owns Better Place Brands, whose mission of giving back is baked right into the name. Carson started the business with his father in August 2020, launching a line of private-label coffee brands geared toward animal lovers.

“Customers not only want a great product, but they want the product to stand for something. That’s what this company is all about,” Carson said. “It also feels good to make those donations every quarter.”

Carson’s Better Place Brands has different “companies” named after pets.

There’s the Great Dane Coffee Company. The Golden Retriever Coffee Company. And most recently, Carson launched the Cat Rescue Coffee Company. In all, he has 13 private coffee labels. And each of them donates 20% of the proceeds to charities and rescue shelters located across the United States. Two are located right here in Hawaii—Cat People of Oahu and Lanai Cat Sanctuary.

In 2021, Carson’s companies gave $10,000 in cash and in-kind merchandise to organizations.

“We did better than expected,” he said, adding he hopes to donate even more this year.

‘A really perfect fit’
Oliver Carson with his two dogs

Carson grew up in a suburb outside of Cleveland and attended Villa Angela-St. Joseph High School, a Marianist school. As a child, he visited Hawaii several times with his family—and it became a dream to study in the islands. It turned out that dream was much more achievable than he realized.

A basketball coach who used to play at Chaminade chatted with him about the university.

He then learned about the Chaminade Scholars program, which offers up to 75% off tuition to students who are members of a Catholic parish or attend a Catholic or Marianist high school, demonstrate academic excellence, and participate in experiences of service and faith.

Of everything Chaminade had to offer, he was most excited about joining a vibrant community and learning more about Hawaii’s rich cultural traditions. “I grew up in a diverse environment and that has always been something that I’ve been attracted to,” Carson said. “It was a really perfect fit.”

At Chaminade, Carson also found the same values of family spirit, serving others and giving back that he’d embraced at his Marianist high school. “It really felt similar to that tradition I experienced,” he said.

In fact, Carson said he felt a special connection to Chaminade on his very first day in the residence halls. He attended Mass at the Mystical Rose Oratory and met Fr. Marty Solma, SM, who also grew up just outside of Cleveland and attended Villa Angela-St. Joseph High. “It was such a crazy moment,” Carson said.

From there, Carson jumped into life in the islands.

His roommates, who were from Hawaii, showed him the best beaches and taught him how to surf. He became the manager of the basketball team. And, he served as a peer mentor for CUH 100, a welcome course for incoming students.

At the beginning of his junior year, he joined the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program.

Carson said Hogan’s programs and networking opportunities continue to inspire him—and Hogan Program Director Dr. Roy Panzarella has given him the confidence to pursue his own business ventures. “We have been so lucky to hear from entrepreneurs from all over the world doing great things,” he said.

A business that gives back
Oliver Carson's Boxy Brown's Coffee Co pillow and boxer

Carson is busy enough as a student that it’s hard to imagine how he has time to run a business.

At Better Place Brands, he handles everything from customer service to social media. And he’s particularly proud of his business model: Selling a good product while supporting a good cause.

As a Business Administration student, he has been able to use his experience as a business owner for class projects, getting input—and no shortage of encouragement—from his professors and peers along the way. He has also thrived in the School of Business and Communication’s “business for good” approach and believes strongly that everyone has a role in making the world a better place.

After all, he does own a company called Better Place Brands.  

Carson is an animal lover himself and started his Great Dane Coffee Company first in honor of his family’s Great Dane. He then partnered with pet rescue organizations, which were able to promote what he was doing—and help him continue to grow and launch more companies along the way.

He said while he’s gearing up for graduate school—he plans to pursue an MBA degree—he’s also looking ahead to expand his business. “We want to continue to add more brands and to eventually grow beyond the dog rescue world,” Carson said. “Our ultimate goal is to do even more good out there—with the help of our customers and the causes they believe in.”

Filed Under: Business & Communication, Featured Story, Hogan Entrepreneurial Program, Students Tagged With: Business Administration, Chaminade Scholar

Welcome to MBA Alumnus and Kaiser Permanente COO’s World

March 11, 2022 by University Communications & Marketing

Andrew Giles, MBA '17, COO of Kaiser Permanente Hawaii

To say that Andrew Giles, MBA ’17, has been busy over the last few years is putting things mildly.

It’s more like he’s been running a marathon—at a sprinter’s pace.

Giles was recently selected to serve as the chief operating officer of Kaiser Permanente Hawaii’s Moanalua Medical Center. Previously, he was the assistant administrator of hospital operations and support services. And in early 2020, he was also tapped as Kaiser’s COVID incident commander.

It’s a role that required him to “live and breathe” epidemiology and virology while also working to understand ever-changing facility needs, secure needed supplies and expand to meet new demand.

Testing centers, hospitalization surges, mass vaccine clinics. Welcome to Giles’ world.

“It’s been a whirlwind,” Giles said, huffing a laugh. “Educating, testing, and from a leadership perspective, keeping the staff motivated and ensuring they have the appropriate equipment.”

And that’s not all Giles has been up to.

In December, Giles wrapped up a one-year term as president of the Hawaii chapter for the American College of Healthcare Executives, an organization that provides scholarships, networking, and continuing education opportunities. He’s also active in American Hospital Association and other industry groups.

All that hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed.

In 2021, Giles was honored as one of Pacific Business News’ “40 under 40” Hawaii professionals.

“On a day-to-day basis, my priority typically lies at the hospital, ensuring we’re providing safe and quality care to patients,” said Giles. “I really like to engage with staff and serve as a conduit to make sure they have the tools they need to be successful, including looking at our operational metrics and targets.”

Giles moved to the islands about a decade ago, after wrapping up an undergraduate degree in Organizational Management at Wilmington University and working in operations and environmental services. He worked at other Hawaii hospitals before finding a spot at Kaiser Permanente as director of support services, overseeing everything from hospital communications to patient transport.

It was around that time that Giles started to look at MBA programs.

He considered several different universities but ultimately decided on Chaminade’s MBA program after taking a tour of the campus. Giles said he wanted to take classes in person and liked the university’s strong Marianist mission, individualized approach to the degree and emphasis on hands-on learning.

“The mission and involvement in the community, it certainly resonated with my faith,” he said.

Giles added that the small class sizes also helped students create stronger relationships and bring the content to life. “I had a really diverse group of people in my classes,” said Giles. “There were folks earlier in their careers. There were later careerists in the military. I made some really good connections.”

Looking back, he said several projects he undertook as an MBA student still resonates with him.

In one, he explored the delivery of healthcare to medically-underserved communities, including the Waianae Coast, Wahiawa and the North Shore. He said he also appreciated the Hawaiian Studies course he took that helped him better understand culturally appropriate ways to serve patients.

And while at Chaminade, Giles also participated in the signature Hogan Entrepreneurial Program and described it as a highlight. “The Hogan program was an extremely valuable learning experience, hearing the inspirational stories from entrepreneurs and connecting with community leaders,” he said.

Shortly after graduating with his MBA degree, Giles was promoted to the assistant administrator role at Kaiser.

And he said he’s just as excited today about his work as he was when he started.

“I’m really thankful for what I do,” he said. “I just genuinely enjoy helping people.”

Filed Under: Alumni, Business & Communication, Featured Story, Hogan Entrepreneurial Program Tagged With: Master of Business Administration

Nonprofit Business Plan Competition 2022

January 12, 2022 by University Communications & Marketing

Chaminade University’s Hogan Entrepreneurial Program and American Savings Bank are currently seeking entries in its Nonprofit Business Plan Competition. The competition, held every other year, is open to Hawaii nonprofit organizations looking to start new ventures that will benefit society. Finalists and winning nonprofits will receive grants ranging from $1,000 to $12,000 to support their proposals.

“We’re pleased to continue this important program that aims to stimulate public interest and support in nonprofit organizations and encourages excellence and innovation in socially-motivated entrepreneurs,” said Dr. Roy Panzarella, director of the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program. “We are also grateful for American Savings Bank’s continued partnership.”

Applicants must submit a statement of intent by February 1, 2022, to participate in the competition. Among the competition’s requirements:

  • Applicants must be a new nonprofit organization (in operation less than 12 months prior to entry deadline), a new program of an existing nonprofit organization, or a new for-profit subsidiary of a nonprofit organization.
  • Applicants must be located in the state of Hawaii.
  • The proposed venture must be designed to benefit society, i.e., it must generate positive social outcomes.
  • Only one business plan may be submitted for review.

The deadline for business plans is March 8, 2022. Eight finalists will then be selected to give an in-person presentation on April 12, 2022.

Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony held at Chaminade University on April 27, 2022. Grants will be awarded to first place ($12,000), second place ($10,000) third place ($5,000) and fourth place ($3,000) winners. The remaining finalists will also receive $1,000 each.

For detailed information about the 2022 Nonprofit Business Plan Competition, click here to download the entry packet. The entry packet includes eligibility requirements, entry and review process, recognition and awards, evaluation criteria and FAQs, as well as a sample business plan outline.

# # #

Chaminade University’s Hogan Entrepreneurial Program is a one- or two-year certificate program. Students learn first-hand from experienced Hawaii business leaders and entrepreneurs about the business of getting a new idea up and running. This involves academic coursework, mentorships and internships with business leaders, weekly lectures, study trips, and programs like the nonprofit business plan competition. For more information, visit Chaminade.edu/hogan.

Filed Under: Campus and Community, Diversity and Inclusion, Featured Story, Hogan Entrepreneurial Program, Press Release

Leader at the Bottom of an Inverted Pyramid

March 5, 2021 by University Communications & Marketing

Nothing can quite prepare you for the kind of unparalleled economic crisis the world saw as the coronavirus shut down so many aspects of daily life, locking down cities, shuttering stores and bringing tourism to a standstill. But there’s no doubt Anthony Shipp, MBA ‘19 was more prepared than most.

Anthony Shipp, MBA '19 (President and CEO of M. Dyer Global)

Shipp is a Marine veteran who served three combat tours in the Middle East—so he knows a little something about overcoming adversity. During the Great Recession, he was a business owner who saw revenues plummet and the economy go topsy-turvy—so he knows about the importance of preparing for a rainy day, too. And going into the pandemic, as president and CEO of M. Dyer Global, Shipp also knew he’d be relying on his decades of experience in logistics, IT and managing through crisis.

That doesn’t mean 2020 was smooth sailing for Shipp or his logistics, freight forwarding and international relocation company, by any stretch. But he’s grateful to have ended the year in a strong position, even while the industry—and many of his competitors—suffered major losses.

Anthony Shipp, MBA '19 (President and CEO of M. Dyer Global) with his crew

And he attributes his successes to understanding the importance of acting quickly, taking a few calculated risks and staying true to his servant leadership style. He also takes lifelong learning seriously and says the mentor and peer relationships he built throughout his career, including as a graduate student at Chaminade, have helped him stay on top of—or in front of—market trends.

“Nobody would have been able to predict this—everything that’s happened,” Shipp said, in a recent interview with Chaminade Magazine, adding that remaining adaptable and nimble have proven essential to surviving as the economy only now starts a slow and painstaking recovery process.

“As a business leader, you need to be prepared for change at all times.”

In fact, when the pandemic first started, Shipp turned his office into a “war room,” gathering his senior leaders to prioritize top projects and prepare for the rocky days ahead. One lesson he learned during the Great Recession, which was solidified in Chaminade’s MBA program, was a seemingly simple one: “cash is king.” So in those early days of the pandemic, he did everything he could to free up cash in his company and prepare for the worst. It was the right move, his first of many amid the crisis.

Weathering the crisis

Shipp likes to say that he’s never really taken a direct route to anything before.

Not to logistics. Not to leadership. Not even to Hawai’i.

Straight out of high school, at just 17 years old, he enrolled in the Marines and later completed his undergraduate degree in computer science at Chapman University. After leaving active duty, he worked in IT then moved to operations and eventually worked his way up to management. But he had to put his career on hold several times to serve his country. While in the reserves, he got called to active duty three times, serving two combat tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan before leaving the service.

That was in 2006, the same year Shipp designed to open his own trucking and logistics business.

“I had big dreams and aspirations,” he said, and they were quickly tempered by the 2008 economic crash. Shipp said he nearly lost his business in the downturn, but was able to keep it afloat and then see it become profitable again as the economy improved. He ended up selling the business around 2010.

It was about that time that he took a well-deserved sabbatical to Hawai’i, getting his first taste of the islands and the aloha spirit. Two years later, he would move to the state permanently—and quickly start to learn about the unique logistical and regulatory challenges Hawai’i companies face.

He became first the chief technology officer and then the chief commercial officer at Hawai’i Transfer Company, Ltd., a family-owned transportation services business. He was also able to revolutionize their operations, bringing in new efficiencies and successfully wooing big national accounts.

Opportunity knocks

Shipp was happy where he was, but opportunity came knocking on his door. An executive search firm sought him out to see if he was interested in taking the helm at M. Dyer. It was an opportunity he couldn’t turn down. And so in August 2017, he took over as the company’s president and CEO.

Anthony Shipp, MBA '19 (President and CEO of M. Dyer Global) with his crew

About that same time, Shipp was just starting his Master of Business Administration program at Chaminade. “I was in my early 40s and I was coming into a program traditionally for students to learn and gain knowledge,” he said. “I was approaching it from a different student perspective.” And it was a perfect fit.

Shipp said Chaminade’s MBA allowed him to build on his foundation of knowledge and focus on academic areas where he wasn’t quite as strong, including finance. Shipp also found great value in the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program, hearing first-hand from Hawai’i executives about how they approach leadership, prepare for market ups and downs and set their companies up for successful futures.

Anthony Shipp, MBA 19 at his Chaminade University graduation

“I really loved it because I got to learn from them,” he said, adding he was able to build relationships with those entrepreneurs—along with professors in the program—that remain strong today. “I captured an enormous amount of knowledge and know-how from their perspective.”

That knowledge helped guide Shipp as he took his first steps as M. Dyer’s CEO, focusing first on learning everything he could about the business he now led and reshaping its culture from one in which employees worked in silos to one in which they felt like they were part of a team.

When 2020 started, Shipp was hitting his stride and preparing to craft a strategic vision for a quickly-evolving industry. And then, seemingly overnight, everything seemed to change. Relying on his experiences, Shipp knew two things: he had to prepare for the worst—and now.

So he gathered up his senior leaders to develop key strategies for weathering the crisis.

And in the weeks and months that followed, Shipp continued to remain out in front of the markets, doing everything he could to retain customers, attract new business and steel the company for more economic pain. One project that was put on a fast track: a plan to move to paperless transactions.

Before the pandemic, the company had a two-year timeline to become paperless to improve the customer experience and streamline the company’s processes. Because of the pandemic, with in-person transactions severely limited, the project was finished in months.

In business, Shipp said, “you have to be nimble. Be prepared that things are going to happen quickly.”

‘I’m here to serve everybody’

As a leader, Shipp imagines himself at the bottom of an inverted pyramid.

M.Dyer and Global company photo

It’s a servant leadership approach in which Shipp serves as a guide, a mentor, a motivator and a relationship builder. “I sit at the bottom and I’m here to serve everybody,” Shipp said, adding that in working with his leadership and broader team he hammers out a project target and a timeline and then asks, “What do you need from me? How can I support you? How can I encourage and motivate you?”

Approaching leadership this way, he says, helps bolster empowerment and accountability. Employees know they can make mistakes, as long as they learn from them, in pursuit of shared business goals. They also see themselves as subject matter experts, which means they’re more likely to bring new and innovative ideas to the table and look for efficiencies across departments and the company.

Shipp, who is a Hogan Entrepreneur, says he frequently offers three pieces of advice to the next generation of business professionals: while in school, develop lifelong mentor relationships because good counsel is never overrated; never stop learning; and know the one constant in life is change.

“You’ve definitely got to be a lifelong learner,” said Shipp. “Don’t just encapsulate what you learn at school and think that it stops there. It sets the foundation, but you should constantly have this thirst to learn.” After all, Shipp enrolled in post-graduate studies in supply chain management at MIT after graduating with his MBA from Chaminade. And in September 2020, he completed an executive education program in freight transportation and logistics from Northwestern University.

As for professional relationships, those also come in handy in hiring decisions.

Anthony Shipp, MBA 19 with his employees

Shipp said he first met his vice president of business administration, Jana Paz, when the two were in Chaminade’s MBA program. (She graduated in 2018.) Shipp likes to say the company has a “little nucleus of Chaminade alum”—plus more than a few parents who have sent their children to the university.

That’s linked to M. Dyer’s identity, Shipp said, as a local business with a global reach. Shipp said he’s sought to ensure the aloha spirit and Hawai’i’s community-oriented values are baked right into M. Dyer’s brand. “We have this element of a family within our company’s soul,” Shipp said.

As a servant leader—situated at the bottom of that inverted pyramid—Shipp doesn’t only expect his company to embody the aloha spirit. He holds himself to the same standard. “Here in Hawai’i, the bigger picture is at the community level. We have to have the highest level of integrity of trust,” he said.

And from his experience, the rest will follow.

Filed Under: Alumni, Business & Communication, Featured Story, Hogan Entrepreneurial Program Tagged With: Master of Business Administration

Challenges of 2020 Pave the Way for Entrepreneurship

October 20, 2020 by University Communications & Marketing

The Chaminade University Hogan Entrepreneurial Program officially kicked off its 2020-2021 school year on October 14, 2020.

The program held a virtual kickoff celebration for Chaminade leaders, faculty and staff; current Hogan students and alumni; and Hogan advisors, mentors and lecturers. As part of the celebration, the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program and American Savings Bank also announced the winners of their 2020 Nonprofit Business Plan Competition.

The Hogan Entrepreneurial Program at Chaminade University is a one- or two-year program for Chaminade students to learn successful entrepreneurial skills. Students participate in weekly lectures with guest speakers, network with Hawaii’s top business leaders and learn how to turn a business idea into a successful startup.

This year’s program seems incredibly timely as businesses across the state struggle with the economic impacts of COVID-19 restrictions. Some experts estimate that Hawaii’s economy will be one of the hardest hit. With the summer tourism season essentially canceled, Hawaii saw an unemployment rate of 23.5 percent—more than 10 percent higher than the national average. And while the islands are slowly beginning to reopen to visitors, one study recently named Hawaii as the worst state for unemployment recovery.

These struggles provided an opportunity for business leaders to pass down timely advice to this year’s Hogan participants.

Gary Hogan speaking at the virtual Hogan Entrepreneurial Program virtual kickoff event

“For the students out there: keep the faith,” said Gary Hogan, Chief Executive Officer of Hawaiian Hotels & Resorts and President of Royal Pacific Air Charters, Pleasant Aircraft Leasing LLC. “Things are going to get better. It’s going to take a while, but we will all get back together as a family again.”

Hogan continued by encouraging students to remain flexible because as this year has shown, you never know what is going to happen next.

“You can see things can change in an instance,” advised Hogan. “What you think is going to be successful and what you have planned may not be. Things change.”

Both Hogan and Dr. Lynn Babington, President of Chaminade University, pointed out that there will be a lot of good case studies for the students to learn from this year as businesses pivoted to adapt.

“We are in a time of opportunity to continue learning and creating new and interesting and dynamic changes as things move forward,” said Dr. Babington. “It’s a great time to be in the entrepreneurial space.”

Rich Wacker speaking at the virtual Hogan Entrepreneurial Program virtual kickoff event

Richard Wacker, the President and Chief Executive Officer of American Savings Bank, used the tourism industry struggles to highlight the importance of programs like Hogan, and to motivate the students to get creative and innovate.

“We know that our economy today is too dependent on the hospitality sector,” said Wacker. “It’s a wonderful business and it’s a great strength of Hawaii…but we have to be more than that. We have to be more diverse and resilient. The way we get there is through entrepreneurship and innovation.”

Wacker sees an opportunity for Hawaii to lead innovation in areas like clean energy, ocean studies, sustainable agriculture and digital media. But, he says, in order for businesses to succeed in Hawaii, we have to be all in.

“Doing business in Hawaii is not a spectator sport,” said Wacker. “We don’t have enough leadership, we don’t have enough businesses to have anybody on the sideline. Succeeding for the state, in our state, requires everyone to be in the game.”

The finalists of this year’s Nonprofit Business Plan Competition were a great example of Hawaii community members coming together to innovate and make Hawaii a stronger, more resilient community.

Forty organizations submitted proposals for new programs that would benefit society, eight were selected as finalists and presented their ideas to a panel of judges and four were announced as winners at the October 14 event.

IHS - winners of the 2020 Nonprofit Business Plan Competition

The first place prize of $12,000 went to the Institute for Human Services for a new program that will offer medically-monitored and clinically-managed high-intensity residential substance abuse detox services. It will be the first program of its kind in Hawaii.

The second place prize of $10,000 was presented to Family Hui Hawaii for their new pilot Hui in the Workplace program. The initiative offers corporations a 12-week peer-led program for employees that explore the joys and challenges of raising young children. The program has been proven to help enhance employee retention and productivity and support a culture of caring and wellness in the workplace.

Other winners included the Assistive Technology Resource Centers of Hawaii for their new program, The Music Club, that creates a safe space for individuals with disabilities to make music, and the Maui Nui Marine Resource Council for their pilot program that uses oysters to address sediment pollution on coral reefs.

“We learned so many things about the diligent efforts of quality entrepreneurs from all over our islands,” said Roy Panzarella, Director of the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program when introducing this year’s competition. “This competition, according to one of our judges, was one of the best to date.”

Filed Under: Campus and Community, Featured Story, Hogan Entrepreneurial Program

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