Jim Walters
CEO/President
Hawaii Building Maintenance

Mr. Walters joined Ogden Allied Services in 1990 and was responsible for developing the commercial market for facility services in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His success there, led him to be promoted by the company to President of HBM in 1994 and he remained so after UNICCO’s acquisition in 1996. Mr. Walters received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business from Southwestern State University in Oklahoma in 1971. His entrepreneurial spirit led him to excel in the insurance industry before going out on his own. As the eventual owner of one of Oklahoma’s largest executive search firms, he provided professional executive level services to oil & gas companies, Big 6 accounting firms, law firms & commercial real estate clientele. Always active in the community, Jim particularly enjoys dedicating his time and energy to volunteer work and has served on numerous boards and committees throughout his career. Jim is currently the Past President of Palama Settlement and has been a board member for the Boy Scouts of America, IFMA and BOMA where he has chaired and sponsored many community events.

Melissa Miyashiro
Managing Director of Strategy & Policy
Blue Planet Foundation

Melissa Miyashiro embodies commitment to green in all she does, both personally and professionally.  She is the Managing Director of Strategy & Policy at Blue Planet Foundation, a Hawaii-based nonprofit committed to clearing the path for 100% clean energy through bold advocacy, community action, and creative communications. As part of Blue Planet’s senior leadership team, Melissa heads the organization’s clean energy and climate policy efforts, strategic impact, and partnership development, and she also leads advocacy and government relations at the state legislature, county councils, and Public Utilities Commission. 

Tracy Lawson
President & Founder
Lawson & Associates, Inc.

Working for the last 30-years in the male-dominated construction industry, Tracy Lawson is a sought after speaker for her field-experience and technical expertise. Both the General Contractors Association and other large organizations have sought out her advice to provide insights and guidance on navigating today’s new and ever-changing conditions, and her free safety, leadership, and COVID webinars have reached over 1,000 professionals, elevating the role of safety across organizations and challenging existing mental models.

Khai Tran
Realtor Associate
Coldwell Banker Realty

Khai Tran skillfully curates content for his social media platforms to speak to his audience and followers in a way that will engage and interest them. He focuses on lifestyle posts while maintaining a high standard of professionalism. Social media has anchored his business in new development condominium projects, and he focuses 85% to 90% of his marketing on social media. Khai has grown his social media followers from 1,000 in 2014 to more than 12,000 in 2020. Building interest through his followers has enabled him to successfully convert prospects into contracted sales. In 2016, Khai closed $18.5 million in sales, of which $13 million came from new development, representing 70% of his total annual sales.

Blood Bank of Hawaii

During its nearly 80 years of service, Blood Bank of Hawaii has continuously evolved and innovated to what is today. In spring 2020, as COVID-19 surged through the country without cure, BBH not only revamped its ongoing operations, but initiated a new product and service—COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma or CCP. Since April, 200 local CCP recovered COVID-19 donors came forward and BBH distributed over 700 doses to treat over 600 patients.

Kira Hawaii

Sheri Kira, owner of Kira Hawaii, uses Instagram as her main source of marketing—taking eye-catching pictures, sharing humanizing quotes, and showcasing her personal life to let the audience get to know the people behind the brand. She has seen more direct results via her social media platforms than she ever did with traditional marketing strategies.

Shelley Wilson
President
Wilson Care Group and AlohaMask.com

In January 2020, hearing about PPE shortages on the mainland and around the world, Shelley Wilson began purchasing PPE for her 500+ nurses and caregivers, administrative staff, and fellow healthcare professionals. Soon after, she created two companies to help supply much needed PPE to the people of Hawai’i, as well as Mission First Responders, a charity initiative to donate PPE to front line first responders and medical professionals—assisting over 1000 businesses, organizations, and agencies throughout the state of Hawai’i.

Jim Braman
General Manager
The Cliffs at Princeville

&

Teri Orton
General Manager
Hawaii Convention Center

Jim Braman

As General Manager of The Cliffs at Princeville, Jim Braman has been a driving force for adherence to documented standards of excellence. This focus on quality and continuous improvement has allowed The Cliffs at Princeville to achieve premier resort status. Jim’s efforts have inspired others to put their best effort forward and created an environment where owners and guests view The Cliffs as their second home

Teri Orton

With over 25 years of hospitality experience, Teri Orton oversees the Hawai‘i Convention Center  as the General Manager. She is responsible for the overall management of the Center—including sales and marketing, operations, finance, food and beverage, and customer service. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Teri has been instrumental in guiding the Hawai‘i Convention Center through a particularly challenging time with no meetings and events. She helped develop a plan on how to best use the center as well as a detailed Reopening Plan, and she implemented a state-of-the-art health and safety program.

Monica Belz
President and CEO
Kauai Government Employees Federal Credit Union

As President and CEO of kauai‘iGovernment Employees Federal Credit Union, Monica Belz shapes a dynamic island vision for economic growth grounded in sustainability and social entrepreneurship. Her 20 years of experience in social impact community development complements a diverse portfolio of work that includes disaster relief, wilderness survival and first aid, documentary filmmaking, numerous humanitarian projects, and stints as an EMT Firefighter and PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer.

JPG Hawaii

With local roots and global reach, JPG Hawaii has been serving Hawai‘i businesses since 2000. Impacted heavily in the early days of the pandemic, the JPG Hawaii team shifted from fulfilling printing, design, advertising, media, and branding orders to focusing their business on meeting the new needs of their clients by providing PPE. Since March, JPG Hawaii has sold millions of units of PPE and hundreds of thousands of gallons of hand-sanitizer to their clients. JPG Hawaii has seen a 300% increase in revenue in 2020, as compared to 2019, and has plans to continue expanding as they meet new business needs associated with these unprecedented times.

Kokua Sun Care

Featuring seven Hawaii-grown antioxidant rich ingredients, Kōkua Sun Care offers an innovative smooth-application reef-safe zinc sunscreen that supports local farms and businesses. Professionally formulated, manufactured, tested, labeled, and registered in compliance with FDA sunscreen regulations, Kōkua provides a natural reef-safe option that is reliable and verified for quality assurance.

Hawaii Building Maintenance

Since Jarrett Walters joined his father, Jim Walters, in 2006, Hawaiian Building Maintenance has had success in merging family and business interests with high achieving results. The mid-western “church-going” values of humility, loyalty, hard-work, and commitment can be seen in their heartfelt treatment of their employees. The Hawaiian Building Maintenance team has passed on the family dynamics by providing team bonding and role playing through an in-house toastmasters club, yearly potluck and game day with the staff and their families, and a company basketball team.

Ethan West
CoFounder & President
Punahele Provisions

Ethan West is a young professional who has spent most of his career in marketing, branding, and channel management. After rediscovering his love for agriculture, he sought to bring his formal business education back to his farming roots, founding Punahele Provisions, a public benefit corporation that specializes in producing baby food using sustainable, Hawai‘i-grown ingredients with the mission of bringing the best foods for the world to the world.