Hawaii Youth Rugby Tournament and Awards Banquet

Hawaii Youth Rugby State Championship Tournament this Friday and Saturday at Kapiolani Park on Oahu.

Friday, May 1st - 10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Saturday, May 2nd - 9:00 am - 4:30 pm

Sponsored by the Hawaii Army National Guard.


Awards Banquet:

7:00 pm Trophy Award Presentations and the announcement of the HAWAII YOUTH ALL STAR TEAM, RUGBY HAWAII REP SIDE and the WOMAN'S REP SIDE.

Location: 891 Valkenberg Street at the FLEET RESERVE ASSOCIATION BUILDING (off Nimitz Highway Ewa end, fire station and a small church is in the vicinity.)

ADMISSION: $10.00 Adults $5.00 Youth.......pupus and pizzas.

Tickets to be sold at the park or check with your coaches for your team allotment. DONATIONS FOR THE STATE TEAM going to the National All Star tournament at the end of May is also accepted.

Put me in coach

The team I helped coach for the UH Business Plan Competition didn't make to the finals. They did pretty good though. I think they might have had a shot if they prepared their presentation a little more. I'm happy though because they actually did listen to my co-coach and I.

I'm curious to see the final presentations next week. One of the teams that made it to the finals did a presentation to the Hawaii Venture Capital Association last week and was very impressive. The other two teams that presented at the HVCA meeting were very impressive too, but they didn't make the finals. So I'm curious to see the teams that did make it. They must be very good.

The moral of the story is that a good business plan takes several elements. A good idea and passion are a must, but that has to be backed up with a realistic and well thought out plan that includes research and analysis of the market and internal operations. I've seen too many good ideas go nowhere because the business side was sorely lacking. If you're planning on starting a business, get the help you need with the "boring" day-to-day business stuff so that your good idea doesn't go to waste.

Energy Entrepreneurship Blog

I found this blog while I was searching for something for my last post.

The blog is Darren T Kimura - Energy Entrepreneurship. It looks like a lot of P.R. stuff, but it might be worth following. I interviewed Darren for my upcoming book and he's someone worth listening to. I don't really follow the tech side, but his thoughts on running the business are wonderful. Check out his bio on the blog site.

Not to try to sell you anything, but when the book is released (shooting for a Fall release) it will include highlights from the interview.

Dunces

From Figuratively Speaking by John McIntyre:

Percentage of U.S. companies that viewed their middle managers as unqualified to be promoted to the next level: 33

Percentage that rated their middle managers as "very qualified": 6


This tells me one of two things; either 1) all the middle mangers are dunces, or 2) all the top managers are dunces. I would have to go with #2, all the top managers are dunces. My first question to the companies that do not think their middle managers are qualified is - what are you doing about it? Are you providing training, mentoring, or coaching to you management staff? Why not? Do you expect them to spontaneously sprout excellence out of their ... ears?

Perhaps it's top managements fault for not providing clear direction in terms of responsibility, learning, and growth, then providing the opportunities for it. Wasn't it Deming who said that 85% of problems are caused by management? That includes top management.

Of course it is possible that many middle managers are dunces...

I may have worked for one or two...

I may have been one.

Who's Bigger

Sorry for the poor blogging recently. Busy, busy, busy. But I couldn't pass this up.

So - What country is the biggest producer of manufactured goods?? Huh?

Drum roll please....

The United States!!! Ding! Ding! Ding!

Yes, the U.S. is still the largest manufacturer in the world. You'd never know by reading the news for the past five or seven years. Sure, Asia, especially China has been growing, but they still have a ways to go to catch up (although it will probably be soon).

Most people don't think of the U.S. as a top manufacturer anymore, but it hasn't all left. Mass produced consumer products and labor intensive goods have moved offshore, but that's only natural. The U.S. is still heavily involved in other products. Chemicals, including pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, Transportation Equipment, Food products, and Computers and Electronics are just some of the major industries.

Read more at http://www.parade.com/news/intelligence-report/archive/whats-made-in-the-usa.html

D1 Ranking

Islanders Rugby (Oahu, Hawaii) have been ranked 14th in Division I by eRugbyMagazine. Since they have been pretty much unbeatable lately, that's fitting. Congratulations guys!

Week 9 Results

Hawaii Rugby Week 9 Results:


Islanders 43 Tries - Marciano, Afa, Tiki, Jake, Tofi, Ray, Toa / Con - 4 Lofi
Harlequins 7 Try - Agamagi / Con - Setu

UH won against Kahuku by Default

Raiders had a bye

As previously mentioned, Tama Sulu Ie hasn't been playing since early in the season (I don't know why). And it seems some of the teams have been having trouble fielding enough players, so the past few weeks there's only been one game played.

But Hawaii Rugby is going strong. The youth and the Hawaii Youth Rugby organization have been going great. And the adult games, and especially the management of the Union, have been great. Looking good.