Chaminade University of Honolulu

Hogan Entrepreneurs Program

Chris Eldridge Teaches Hogan Students that Failing is Part of Success

Chris Eldridge and Jordan Caputy
Chris Eldridge (Koa Capital Partners) and Jordan Caputy (Hogan Entrepreneurs Program student)

It was a privilege to hear from Mr. Chris Eldridge, co-founder and Managing Operator of Koa Capital Partners, LLC. Koa Capital Partners invests in Hawaii companies with great potential and strives to create long-term value for shareholders, managers, employees and customers. Their goal with each investment is to help management grow revenue and earnings by expanding sales channels, improving operations, identifying and recruiting talent and providing hands-on, real-world strategic insights along with capital for add-on investments.

Mr. Eldridge is also an entrepreneur and has experience in start-up and management experience in Hawaii having founded and sold companies including America’s Mattress Hawaii, PortaBox Storage and FileMinders.

His story began in a souvenir company in Anchorage, Alaska where he discovered his love of selling and people. One striking similarity I found is Mr. Eldridge’s similar outlook on life as Sylvester Stallone’s character of Rocky Balboa: “if you get knocked down you get back up and you keep on going.”

Mr. Eldridge advised us to be careful of the naysayers and always surround ourselves with positive people who want us to succeed. He also stressed that it is okay to fail because it is a learning opportunity. Learn from your mistakes and do better the next time around. Lastly, he stressed the power of perseverance: as long as you persist, you will be successful.

“If you have the energy and the drive, you can make your mark” – Chris Eldridge.

Written by: Hogan Entrepreneurs Program student, Jordan Caputy
Speaker Session with Chris Eldridge 2/1/17

Hogan Students Discuss Today’s Politics & Economics with Chris McNally

The Hogan Entrepreneurs Program kicked off its first Wednesday Speakers Series for the Spring 2017 semester with guest speaker, Dr. Chris McNally. Dr. McNally is a Professor of Political Economy at Chaminade University and Adjunct Senior Fellow at the East-West Center in Honolulu. His presentation was titled Strategic Mega-Trends: Making Sense of Today’s Politics and Economics.

According to Dr. McNally, it took three generations to build up the first age of globalization, and a lot of accepted norms are probably going to become unhinged soon. He spoke about the rising flows of foreign direct investment, steady growth in major markets, relatively open trade, decline of transport costs, increased intra-industry trade, and the introduction and spread of information and technology. He added that climate change, inequalities and backlashes against globalization, disruptive technologies, and geopolitical and economic power shift are some major global challenges that are likely to persist.

There have been rapid increases of inequality within nation states, and these inequalities are amplified by lack of opportunity for advancement amongst many in the world. Technology, for example, is going to be the next big thing driving global economies. Combination of new emerging technologies promise to make an impact, specifically the three A’s: Artificial Intelligence, Additive Manufacturing, and Autonomous Machines. Jobs will be replaced and lost due to these new technologies, and much will depend on trends in development labor markets, government policies, and social attitudes.

State capitalism is a magnified role that does not use markets to maximize economic efficiency, but to maximize the powers and survival of the states because it believes in free and fair trade. Dr. McNally’s argument about the age of uncertainty is that global power relations are undergoing a power transition, with power shifting to the great Eurasian powers. He also stressed that we may all fall into some sort of anarchy.

Dr. McNally concluded his presentation with this piece of advice: “Brace yourself for the Age of Uncertainty, learn to hedge and be nimble, and be able adapt to change!”

Written by: Hogan Entrepreneurs Program student, Ferleen Mallarme 
Speaker Session with Chris McNally 1/25/17

Guest Speaker Touts Hawaii as Leader in Eldercare Solutions

Hawaii “has a unique and critical role to play” in achieving a comprehensive solution to America’s “elder boom,” according to Ai-Jen Poo, director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance and co-director of the Caring Across Generations Campaign.

The social activist, named one of Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” in 2012, spoke on campus Feb. 15 at a public policy forum presented by Chaminade University’s Hogan Entrepreneurs Program.

Every eight seconds, someone living in the United States turns 65, Poo pointed out. And this phenomenon is particularly striking in the rapidly graying Aloha State, where residents enjoy the longest lifespans in America.

Poo emphasized that this demographic trend is a blessing because seniors have more time to spend with their friends and loved ones. But the massive number of retiring Baby Boomers also poses a significant challenge, she cautioned, because America’s eldercare infrastructure is woefully inadequate.

Eldercare professionals typically earn just $13,000 annually, Poo said, thus forcing many to seek other employment. And because about 75 percent of American workers make less than $50,000 per year, they often struggle with the steep cost of caring for aging relatives.

Representing a bold step forward, according to Poo, are the “Kupuna Care” bills (SB534 and HB607) under consideration by the Hawaii State Legislature. These measures would provide up to $70 a day for the respite that family caregivers need to stay fully active in the workforce while caring for their kupuna at home.

If passed by the legislature and signed into law by the governor, the Kupuna Care Program could help pay for homemaking services, adult day care, transportation to doctor appointments, etc. This would allow seniors to continue “aging in place” at home, while postponing or avoiding the transition to far more expensive institutional settings.

Caring for one’s elders is “part of the DNA of this state and this culture,” Poo concluded. And that means Hawaii could serve as an outstanding model for the rest of the nation.

Additional information on the Kupuna Care Program is available at care4kupuna.com.

Hogan Entrepreneurs Discover Asian Business Sense

Adventures in China and India

Students in the Hogan Entrepreneurs program have been trekking off on business and cultural study missions to China since 2005 and to India since 2010. Their experiences are often life-changing. In 2016, the Hogan program did it again. Nearly a dozen Hogan students took the opportunity this past summer to learn more about the cultural and entrepreneurial aspects of these two emerging global giants.

China

Business professor, Caryn Callahan Ph.D., and eight students from the Hogan Entrepreneurs programs traveled through China from June 10-July 6 staying in Beijing for one week, in Shanghai for two weeks, and in Hong Kong for four days. They also took a day tour to Macau.

Beginning in Beijing, the group made several company visits and listened to presentations.  They visited the upscale wine company, Dragon Seal Winery, and learned about the booming Chinese wine industry.  They visited the Munich Reinsurance Company and learned about the challenges that a foreign-capitalized firm encounters when attempting to penetrate the Chinese financial service industry.

While still in Beijing, they visited important historical and cultural sites such as the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. The students toured a hutong (traditional neighborhood), visited a home and shared a meal at the kitchen table with the local family living there.

“It was awesome to sit in the family’s kitchen and to eat their traditional Chinese food,” wrote Alexa Shah, Chaminade senior and business major. “I really enjoyed this dinner because I got to see how an average family lives.  Their lives were so simple, but they seemed so happy.”

Students also visited Shanghai, as well as made weekend day trips to Wuzhen water town and the city of Hangzhou.

For Hogan students, Ana Acuna, Chantelle Aguilar, Ave Galeai, Brianna Georgia, Carlos Gutierrez, Judy Ng, Alexa Shah and Haelee Tallett, the business highlight of their China trip was participating in two-week internships with major entrepreneurial companies. The Hogan program had found these Beijing and Shanghai internships through its network of supporters in China and in Hawaii.

“The companies hosted the interns as an exercise in international goodwill, hoping to also expose their own employees to a more global environment by having the interns present for two weeks,” wrote Callahan.

India

After the China experience, students Acuna, Gutierrez, Ng and Tallet joined student Alilia Fataua in India.  The five students accompanied by and Ginger Miller, assistant to the Hogan director, traveled through India from July 6-22, visiting Bangalore, Mysore, New Delhi and Agra. They toured cultural sites and learned about India’s history and traditions. They visited business companies in each location as well.

The group received special presentations and tours from major corporations, traditional industrial businesses, silk fabric producers, a hotel and restaurant conglomerate, and small businesses.

“One lesson that I learned was that in India, anything can be a business,” wrote Judy Ng, a senior accounting major. “Wherever there is a problem or need, a business can be made to solve it.  Entrepreneurship is alive and well in India.”

The students visited nonprofit organizations as well as Karnataka Forensic Science Laboratories and the Bangalore Police Department. Gutierrez, a Hogan student who is also in Chaminade’s Forensic Sciences graduate program, was impressed by the educational level of their scientists but realized that they needed updated equipment.  “I was able to teach some of the new techniques and ideas to improve their lab procedures,” Gutierrez remarked. “My final words are for the Hogan Program. Thanks for this incredible opportunity.  I made new contacts and potentially new customers for my up and coming business.  I also learned how to help the nonprofit organizations that we visited.”

Miller considered the trip to be a successful learning experience for the students and herself. During their trip, they met with CEOs and managers from more than 13 Indian companies, as well as visited the various cultural sites of four major cities.  The India trip broadened the students’ views on entrepreneurial and business skills and stretched them beyond their comfort zones.