Passionately Unified With Kalani Kaleiopu
Kalani Kaleiopu
Director, Building/Facilities Maintenance
Kapalua Golf & Tennis, Maui Hawaii
Q: Who or what got you first interested in working in the golf and hospitality business?
A: I was in the tourism industry early on in my career – I started off in the transportation business, a bus company that transported tour groups and visitors across the island. I started off painting vehicles, I went to school as a professional painter and then got into mechanic work. The company early on noted that I was pretty good at managing people and processes, so they invested in me with additional training, including management and accounting, and I was able to work my way into a manager role early on.
Q: What has been your career progression with the Kapalua?
A: I took a job at Kapalua as the Golf Cart Supervisor as I needed to be able to stay close to home once I started my family (prior job, I was needing to travel more). Kapalua took note of my credentials and managerial skills – automotive certifications, state mechanic license, accounting and manager skills, etc. One year later I was promoted to Equipment Maintenance Superintendent over all three courses at the time, and then about two years after that became the Assistant Director of Resort Management, reporting directly to the VP of Finance. I oversaw the teams that worked on all the buildings including the Kapalua Villas, the common area in the resort, the water company and our sewer division. Troon took over Kapalua Golf & Tennis in spring of 2011 when the golf courses were sold and they asked me to join the team as the Director, Building/Facilities Maintenance which I have been at now for more than 13 years.
Q: What do you do in your daily job or life to inspire others to get them interested in the business of golf/hospitality as a career?
A: I always tell people it is a mix of education and willingness (to be successful). I do what I think is right – my career was based on ladders, and I was able to learn more and take on more challenges and help climb the ladder and I explain that to others that are interested in learning or challenging themselves. Sometimes I try to work with the underdog and help them, push them to do better. One example was a guy who was a technician at the villas on my staff and I encouraged him to learn more, he then went on to work at one of the resort hotels as a chief engineer and now he owns his own successful company.
Q: What is one project that you have worked on over the years at Kapalua that you’re most proud of or would like to share with us?
A: I think one project that I’m proud of is the creation and implementation of the Facility Maintenance Department and its systems. The property was sold in 2011 and we started from scratch with really no place to work and limited tools. Since I’m a numbers guy, when Alex Nakajima (current General Manager) came on board, he is a numbers guy too, I put together a plan and budget and was able to justify the spend in needed work space, equipment, tools, etc. in order to do our jobs effectively and be more efficient. Now today, we have all our inventory electronically tracked for usage and location and are so much more efficient in our jobs. We can tell when we’re running low on any supplies and order in advance. When you live on an island (literally), this is so important for us to do our jobs every day. Editor’s note: This process and system is QUITE impressive, we got to see it firsthand!
Q: What is one thing about being from Hawaii that you want to share?
A: Being born and raised in Hawaii gave me the ability to understand different ethnic groups and cultures, it really helped me in my career – how you socialize, how you understand other’s needs and they understand yours and work together. I’m all about teamwork, all of us working hard hand in hand to lead our teams, not afraid to do anything alongside our teams. We do it out of respect for them and what they do every day, not to get recognition from helping them. Our team is only as good as everyone in it so if we are all helping out, then we all succeed and the facility succeeds.
Recently the ownership group has been able to support our teams after the fires tremendously, in many ways, not only through the temporary housing project but in other ways as we all struggle through during this time (after the Maui fires).
Learn more about Troon’s DE&I Initiatives, Associates and Stories.
Follow #GolfForEveryone
For more stories on Troon’s DE&I initiative and associates