Businesses worry that workforce is sub-par
By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer
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"It's a real problem, on the bottom and for middle management," said Bev Harbin, small-business advocate for the Chamber of Commerce of Hawai'i. "And trying to bring people with real good work habits up to management is a real challenge for businesses."
The surveys are part of the chamber's Project JOBS, or Join Our Business Success, that are due by the end of the year.
Since May, about 45 business leaders from 38 companies have met with and interviewed company presidents and CEOs from small businesses and major corporations to discuss a 13-page questionnaire about how things can be better for Hawai'i businesses.
From more than 90 interviews so far, other common themes include the rising cost of pre-paid healthcare coverage and workers' compensation insurance and the inability to get liability insurance.
On the issue of a qualified workforce, companies expect shortages in everything from military housing construction to cruise ships to high-technology.
"There's a big concern that there are not enough workers skilled in the right areas," said Linda Wheeler, chamber spokeswoman.
The surveys also rank the performances of state agencies when it comes to businesses — from poor to excellent.
So far, Harbin said, the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs has gotten relatively high marks. The Judiciary has not.
The goal is to develop recommendations by February that can be delivered to the Legislature.
But along the way, business leaders also have discovered kindred spirits and developed mentoring relationships by meeting people from different-sized companies in different industries.
Robin Tjioe is president, CEO and the only employee of Cyberlink Pacifica — an Internet and strategic planning company. Tjioe agreed to interview three company presidents and CEOs — from a small farming business to a medium-sized tourism company to a major food distribution corporation.
(Chamber officials declined to reveal the names of companies that were interviewed because confidentiality was promised in the survey.)
Tjioe admits that she was a little intimidated talking to the CEO of the food distribution company.
"But after meeting them and talking to them, it was a bit of a mentoring experience," Tjioe said. "And you realize that everybody's got some of the same concerns. You really realize how interlinked we all are, medium and small and very large businesses."
Project JOBS is run primarily through a network of volunteers, although the chamber did hire a staff coordinator.
Through its work so far, chamber officials realize that some of the problems can be overwhelming, such as workers' compensation insurance. But others can be overcome, said Wheeler.
About 35 volunteer problem solvers — the chamber calls them service providers — have gotten potholes repaired and graffiti removed.
One business said its biggest problem was a one-way sign that was pointed in the wrong direction, cutting down on traffic.
"Some of the things are manini and easy to fix," Wheeler said. "Others have no easy fix."
But the chamber is compiling a database of all of the issues and keeping track of some of the business horror stories.
"When it's time to talk to the Legislature or the administration or the City Council or whoever, we want to go in there armed with some real on-the-ground information, from those who really have to deal with the problems," Wheeler said.
Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8085.
