Business Leaders On The Move In Hawaii

February 11, 2009
By Alana Folen

Jay Higa has been appointed director of business development for Oahu Publications Inc., publisher of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and MidWeek. Prior to accepting his new position, Higa most recently served as classified and retail advertising director for The Honolulu Advertiser.

Susie Graeb has been promoted to supervisor for Simply Organized LLC. Graeb is one of the store’s original employees. She comes from an extensive retail and service-oriented background.

Andrew Balmores has been named partner of Honolulu General Office of New York Life Insurance Company. Balmores’ responsibilities include recruiting new agents, training and developing agents, achieving satisfactory retention levels and assisting in overall operation of the office.

Lita Thomas has been appointed supervisor for Simply Organized LLC, which opened its doors last year. Thomas has experience in retail and volunteering.

Daniel Cheung has been named partner of Honolulu General Office of New York Life Insurance Company. He’s been with the company for two and a half years, previously as an agent and financial services professional. Cheung’s current duties include recruiting new agents, training and developing agents, achieving satisfactory retention levels, among others.

Dr. Aytun Ozturk has been appointed dean of the Hawaii Pacific University College of Business Administration. Ozturk first joined HPU as an assistant professor in 2003 and was named assistant dean of the College of Business Administration in 2006.

Stromberg Gaditano has been hired as purchaser for natural stone company Bella Pietra. In this new position, Gaditano will work to streamline the purchasing and ordering of needed materials, among other duties.