Who We Are

The Family Business Center of Hawaiʻi is a partnership between Hawaiʻi’s family business community and the University of Hawaiʻi Shidler College of Business.

Established in 1995, the mission of the Family Business Center is “equipping, educating, and celebrating families in business.” The Center provides opportunities for families to address many of the challenges they face by providing educational seminars and a forum for the exchange of information—so that family businesses can survive and thrive through future generations.

As a member, your firm gains access to nationally recognized authorities, a peer network of Hawaiʻi’s leading family businesses, and a growing body of research tailored specifically to the unique circumstances of family enterprise.

A sunflower
Est. 1995 Family Business Center of Hawaiʻi

What We Cover

Family firms gather for seminars and forums created specifically to meet the member families’ needs. Programs are led by nationally recognized experts and cover a wide range of issues unique to family enterprise.

Succession & Leadership

  • Succession planning
  • Training the next generation
  • Sibling and cousin dynamics
  • Unexpected leadership transitions

Financial & Legal

  • Estate and tax planning
  • Family wealth management
  • Valuation issues and IRS rulings
  • Handling illiquid real estate positions
  • Low basis assets and insurance planning

Family & Communication

  • Communication and conflict resolution
  • Compensation strategies
  • Intergenerational relations
  • Spouses working together

Governance & Growth

  • Using outside boards and advisors
  • Hiring and managing non-family managers
  • Investments and trust structures
  • Choosing professional services

Our Team

Marjan Houshmand

Marjan Houshmand

Faculty Director - University of Hawaiʻi, Shidler College of Business

Marjan Houshmand is an Assistant Professor of Management at Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawaii. She is the Associate Faculty Director of the Family Business Center of Hawaii. Her studies target to better understand how the interactions between entrepreneurship and family affects family members professionally, psychologically, and financially. Her research has been published in leading journals such as Human Relations, Research in the Sociology of Work, and Family Business Review.

Cara Sawai

Cara Sawai

Program Manager

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