Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 27, Number 6, 1 June 2010 — Veterans' business is grounded in Hawaiian values [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Veterans' business is grounded in Hawaiian values

By Howard Dashefsky

He has met with President and Mrs. Ohama, and held face-to-face talks with some of the most powerful players in Washington. But Kalani High School graduate Raymond Jardine is perfectly content to be in the background. The President and CEO of Native Hawaiian Veterans LLC (NHV) would rather let his valued employees carry out his

company's mission. His management style is simple. Empower his employees and remain true to core Hawaiian values. "When most people start up a business the primary objective is to make money," said Jardine. "Of course we needed to develop a strategic plan and make money to survive as a business. But from the beginning, and still today, we have been driven by our values and doing the right thing, and that has led to hnaneial success." Jardine, who served 33 years in

N AT I V E H A W A 1 1 A N S AT KŪLIA I K A NU'U

the U.S. Army, formed the eompany with two other army veterans. Chief Operations Offieer Puni Akana, who was Jardine's first eommander in Vietnam. And Exeeutive Viee President Mike Jones, who also served in Vietnam. All three men suffered disabling injuries and deeided to go forward with their plans after President George W. Bush signed an executive order in 1999. It states that three percent of all federal contracts must be awarded to disabled veterans companies. "We jumped on it in 2005 and started this company as a disabled veterans company" said Jardine. "Most of our work is with the Department of Defense and the rest is with the State Department. We also do some work for the State of Hawai'i and for the City and County." Together, Jardine and his partners

draw on their combined 100 years of experience in critical areas such as intelligence, homeland security and emergency preparedness. But before the three Kuli'ou'ou neighbors and partners conducted their first meeting or signed their first contract, they implemented the blueprint that guides them. In addition to being disabled veterans, all three men are Native Hawaiian. And they formed their company with five Native Hawaiian values in mind. "We began with 'Ohana," said Jardine. "The circle of those who are family. Next is Alaka'i. Leading with initiative and setting a good example. Kīnā'ole. Doing the right thing, the first time. Lōkahi. Working together to achieve more. And finally Ho'okipa. Sharing with our 'ohana and our community." With their core values set, Native Hawaiian Veterans opened up shop five years ago with four employ-

eesand totalrevenues of just over $63,000. Today NHV is a global company that conducts business in 20 countries and 19 U.S. states. And according to Jardine, 2010 projections forecast

revenues between $12 million and $28 million, with upward of 250 employees around the globe. All of them, he says, have embraced the company's Native Hawaiian values.

"It's very gratifying," said Jardine. "To have people on the mainland or in other countries who know little or nothing about Hawai'i or Hawaiian culture buying into what we believe in. But they love it, and we are blessed to have such great people who are committed to delivering our product in a way that exceeds the customers' expectations." And thanks to NHV's success, it recently launched the Kīnā'ole Loundation to provide scholarships to ROTC cadets. Part of the company's core value of Ho'okipa, sharing with the community. ■ Howard Dashefsky is a eontributing writerfor Ka Wai OI a. A 25-year veteran in broadcast news, he teaches journalism atthe University ofHawai 'i-Mānoa and produces showsfor OC 16.

THE T 0 P 0F T H E I R GAME S T R I V E T 0 REACH THE SUMMIT

Raymond Jardine stands with then-presidential candidate Barack Ohama and wife Miehelle at a fundraiser in Kāhala in 2008. In his professional capacity, Jardine is CE0 of the multimillion dollar Native Hawaiian Veterans LLC. - Photo: Courtesy of Raymond Jardine