Posted on: Tuesday, June 19, 2001

Manoa Innovation Center gets new manager

By John Duchemin
Advertiser Staff Writer

Manoa Innovation Center has a new manager, Michael Possedi, who starts today with a mandate to improve performance at the state-run high-technology business incubator.

Possedi, a technology specialist, brings to the job high-tech credentials that previous center managers have lacked.

Possedi has 10 years of experience in technology business development, and has worked for Lucent Technologies, Sun Microsystems and the National Security Agency.

He has a master's degree in business administration from the University of Illinois, and a bachelor of science in astrodynamics and engineering mechanics from the U.S. Air Force Academy.

Through the 1990s, the center, home to several dozen start-up technology businesses, has been run by a mix of state employees, many of whom had little experience in dealing with technology companies before taking the job.

The center has been targeted for reform by state officials and outside consultants, who say the incubator needs a fresher mix of tenants, an improved communications infrastructure and more experienced managers.

Possedi replaces Gloria Chong, who resigned Monday and plans to travel overseas. Chong was an HTDC employee for 10 years, running both the Manoa center and the state's first incubator, the Kaimuki Technology Enterprise Center, until it closed in the mid-1990s.