The Mentors' Mentor - Warren

The very first story that came to her mind, was getting together with Warren Doi, who she referred to as the Ambassador of OED in the business community. He became my way of transitioning to the outside, because of his unique connection to the department.

He is a permanent resident of the business world, having built and sold several companies along the way. In his own words, this gives him “ the skill set to be a bridge to that world for OED”

Warren’s  family goes back generations to the plantation days. His dad is from the Big Island and his mom is from Maui. His dad is the youngest of 10. His oldest brother was in the military and actually saw the Japanese planes flying overhead to bomb Pearl Harbor. Another brother was in the 442 Regiment, consisting of Japanese Americans, the most decorated in history.

His perspective goes from that early time of the plantation days to today’s tourism and beyond. He refers to the present as an inflection point we are facing now, where tourism is no longer simply the only answer for our future. “This economy has priced out many locals, who were forced to leave. There are now more Native Hawaiians living outside the islands than here, for the first time.”

The economic disparity is something he wants to impact. Economic development is critical at this juncture. He wants people to imagine a better future than the one they are presently facing, making it work for local families. Doing something about housing and jobs and the cost of living is his “north star”, creating a better future, economically, for the local community. The fallout from the pandemic opened a lot of people’s eye’s to the fact that things need to change.

Right now, there is so much uncertainty about the future and economic survival, none of it lost on Warren. He believes that AI will change our future and it is not all that far off. Tourism and government are the major economic drivers on the island and they need to be challenged in order to enhance our future. He believes strongly that we have to take control of our own destiny and be less vulnerable to economic cycles.

We talked about how Covid cast a light on our internal, economic  weakness and lack of self-reliance. Tourism will always be a major factor, but his goal is to diversify the economy and build other sectors here and provide a better future, so we can stand strong. The pandemic added some clarity to the idea that things need to change in order for the island to embrace that future.

Throughout our conversation, Warren continually voiced his concern about where we are as a community versus his personal story. I completely respect his passion in this regard. We bumped heads a couple of times, because he sees his story about what he is doing right now and why he is doing it. At the same time, I want you to also know how he came to be doing the incredible things he’s doing.  I believe it is part of his story. By his own admission, telling his story is a complicated undertaking. When I first got a chance to listen to our recorded interview, I started smiling, because I could feel a story coming to life.

Warren comes from a fairly conservative Japanese family. It was about limiting risk. His Dad had pretty much the same job his entire life and security was of paramount importance. He knew early on that his path would be a different one. At the same time, respect for family was important to him. Warren went to college at Cal Poly Tech in San Luis Obispo, CA. Not wanting to wait, he  and his roommate started a business while in school.

Warren had tested his wings and he was ready to fly. As I’ve already mentioned, the wishes of his family truly mattered. They wanted him to have a career to fall back on, a safety net, while he walked the high wire of entrepreneurship. He started working for a management consulting firm. The first project took him to London for a few years. It was eye opening on many levels, learning about business in different environments, along with the impacts of culture. Ultimately, he became the project manager and at that point, felt he had satisfied his parent’s concern regarding future endeavors.

He got down to business, starting a number of companies in Silicon Valley. The sale of two of them afforded him the opportunity to move back to Kauai. He and his wife had two children, while in California and upon their return here, both kids went to Hanalei School, from start to finish. They are now in college on the mainland.

He talked about the benefit and curse of being an entrepreneur, being wired differently than most.  His chosen path is unique and kind of counter cultural, all about “risk tolerance, an open mindset, and the ability to go against the tide.” The island way is based upon harmony, collaboration and tranquility. Someone like him is the screeching sound of chalk on the blackboard, challenging the status quo, part of the entrepreneurial way. It is about making an impact, doing what hasn’t been done before, seeing what could be.

“In order to create a more prosperous future for our island, it has to embrace risk.” When he worked in the Bay Area, “failure was a badge of courage”. In a small business community, failure is like a scarlet letter ruining a reputation and future prospects.” To him, it is an inherent challenge that he is working to overcome.

We talked about Hawaii being one of the most difficult places to do business. The GET is one of the impediments to improving our status. The present tax structure penalizes those with less and benefits those with more. Warren is feeling encouraged that on a State level, infrastructure will be improved to support entrepreneurship.

At some point, well into our conversation, the idea of mental health and wellness kind of exploded into our dialogue and it is clearly extremely important to Warren. Our younger generation has grown up surrounded by all sorts of technology and there are negative aspects in terms of impacting feelings of isolation, anxiety, coupled with screen addiction. Covid served to exacerbate these issues. The relatively recent epidemic in teenage suicides here dramatically added to his concern.

The reality of the crisis facing our youth has really motivated Warren into working on creating a sector in our economy that serves this endangered community. He strongly believes that OED and others are working to create a better future.

Along  with everything else he is doing here, he volunteers his time for a start-up camp, called Nalukai, located on the Big Island. High school students come from all over the State, for a ten day intensive. There are always guest speakers and Warren recounted the story of a high ranking military officer, who spoke at the camp and toward the end of his talk, he broke down in tears. He told the young people that it is going to be their job to clean up the mess we are leaving for them. Again, citing this incident brought Warren back to the genuine concern for the well bring of our young people and the challenges that lay ahead for them.

There is a shortage of mental health professionals on island, with terrifying consequences. He shared stories of how it can take weeks or months to get a young person at risk even evaluated. Parents of suicidal children are at a complete loss in terms of finding local resources to address this worsening crisis. While it is by no means a cure, creating decent paying jobs and a promising future is one of the ways to make a difference for our youth.

He was part of an island-wide study of adolescents and their feelings. The majority of these high school students didn’t think they would be able to afford living here. This alone can contribute to feelings of hopelessness, dramatically impacting any sense of optimism in their lives, none of it lost on Warren.

While listening to him, I got the image of a circular effort on his part. The work he is doing today to help create a strong, local economy directly ties into providing an environment for our young people, filled with promise and opportunity. He was very careful to point out that his efforts incorporate documented research, not merely the opinions of one guy. Once again, he was quick to say he is not the story, it is about the work that needs to be done. At the same time, he wants his own path to be an example of what is possible.

“Imagine a future that is beyond what is in front of us? Entrepreneurship is part of that future. Creating the ability for us to take care of ourselves, making it our destiny, by building, developing and launching businesses.” This is one of the driving forces that has Warren focused on our youth and their wellbeing, his personal mission.

Warren helps in mentoring business owners. He spent a good deal of timing introducing Nate Prescott, until recently the Business Specialist at OED, to the business community. In Nate’s story, he talked about meeting over 400 businesses, as part of his responsibilities. Warren is from the private sector, respected for his business acumen and desire to be of service.   

In a way, all his professional experience has been kind of an incubator, molding him into the person he is, committed to creating a better future for Kauai. He hopes his story and the work he is doing can provide some relevance to the community and hope for the future.

 I sincerely appreciate Warren’s modesty about the work he does for local businesses. He sometimes serves in the role of mentor for people, who either want to expand their businesses or start a new one, which often involves “the leap of faith” he talked about.

He shared a video on behalf of the Hawai’i Technology Development Corporation, where he worked in that capacity. I want to pass along some of the comments people shared about working with him:

“He understands Kauai and the business challenges here and to navigate through those. It’s taking his knowledge and spring boarding off it. He is a connector and has been phenomenal.”

‘I can honestly say if I hadn’t met Warren, I’d be in the same position I was a year ago, worried I’d not be able to find something new that fits me well on Kauai.’

“He is best in class. He not only understands business, he understands doing it on Kauai, which is different than any place else.”

“There is something very special about what Warren does. It is much more than facts and numbers. He is extremely passionate about seeing the people he mentors succeed. I can 100% say that without the help of Warren, I wouldn’t be in the position I am today.”

Continually, throughout our conversation, his concern for the mental health and well being of the next generation was never more than a breath away. I have a feeling this is how he would want me to close his story. It was sincerely fascinating to speak with Warren. Boring would not be a world that applies to him. He cares very deeply about the work he is doing on behalf of all Kauai, especially young people.