Chenoa Farnsworth
Managing Partner at Blues Startups
Farnsworth is the managing partner of Blue Startups, a top 20 U.S. Accelerator (Techcrunch), located in Honolulu, Hawaii. To date, Blue Startups has invested in 82 companies which have gone one to raise $120 million in venture capital. She also manages the Hawaii Angels investment network, which has invested over $60 million in over 100 startup companies. In 2010 she founded Hi Impact, a Hawaii-based impact investment organization which led to the establishment of the Impact HUB Honolulu in 2012, a co-working space dedicated to social entrepreneurs. In 2006, she co-founded Kolohala Ventures, a Hawai‘i-based venture capital firm that invested $50 million into Hawai‘i-based technology start-ups. Prior to that she provided strategy development and business planning consultation for start-up companies and high-growth businesses through her company Farnsworth Consulting. Farnsworth has served the community as chair of the Women’s Fund of Hawai‘i, director of the Hawaii Venture Capital Association, director of the Entrepreneurs Foundation of Hawaii, director of the Impact HUB Honolulu, and judge for the University of Hawai‘i business plan competition. Farnsworth earned a BA in political science from the University of California at Santa Cruz and an executive MBA from the University of Hawai‘i.
Len Higashi
Acting Executive Director at
Hawaii Technology Development Corporation
Len Higashi is the acting executive director for the Hawaii Technology Development Corporation. Len has a diverse background including various technical roles in startups and large corporations. Prior to joining HTDC, Len was the VP of Engineering at Nanopoint, a Hawaii based biotech company.
Peter Dames
Executive Vice President at Servco Pacific Inc
Peter Dames is the Executive Vice President for Servco Pacific Inc. (Servco) responsible for overseeing the company’s Automotive Distribution, Technology, Digital Strategy, and Marketing areas. In his role, Peter drives Servco’s expansion from a transactional, product-focused company to a services-based mobility business. Since joining the team in 2018, he stood up a new Digital Strategy function and added competencies in agile project management and data analytics. He also oversees Servco’s marketing function giving him a unique opportunity to merge technology and marketing best practices to drive new online and in-store customer experiences. In particular, the teams have set up a more robust customer data platform to offer more personalized customer experience and have launched an omnichannel sales platform for Servco’s automotive brands. Most recently, Peter’s responsibilities expanded to include managing Servco’s exclusive Toyota, Lexus, and Subaru distributorships in Hawaii. He also sits on the company’s Executive Committee and is a Director for Servco Australia and the Servco Foundation.
Peter joined Servco in 2018 after serving as a board member for the company from 2016-2018. Prior to Servco, Peter spent 18 years at PACCAR, where he helped establish the company as a technology and market leader. At PACCAR, Peter served around the world in various senior leadership roles in technology, financial services, and sales.
Susan Utsugi
Senior Vice President and Business Banking Division Manager at Central Pacific Bank
Susan Utsugi is Senior Vice President & Division Manager for Business Banking at Central Pacific Bank. Susan has been with Central Pacific Bank for 20 years and has over 30 years of banking experience. Susan holds a bachelor’s degree of Business Administration in Finance from Seattle University and is a graduate of Pacific Coast Banking School. Susan has worked with small businesses for most of her career and enjoys helping business owners achieve their dreams. She serves as Second Vice-Chair of the Board for Hale Kipa, Chair of the Advisory Board for Patsy T. Mink Center for Business and Leadership, and Secretary of the Board for Ho’ola Na Pua. She was a 2017 PBN Women Who Mean Business - Women to Watch and the 2008 Small Business Administration Small Business Advocate of the Year for City & County of Honolulu.
Tiffany Huynh
Director of External Affairs, Hawaiʻi at Elemental Excelerator
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In her position as Director of External Affairs at Elemental Excelerator, Tiffany works to weave together a network of mission aligned partners who share our vision of a clean, vibrant, equitable Hawaii. This includes the corporate and philanthropic partnership program, and Career Pathways, an educational initiative to help develop our future workforce. In collaboration with Hawaii's corporate, education, and startup communities, Tiffany is helping to guide and develop the next phase of external affairs for Elemental. Prior to Elemental, Tiffany led the marketing at REHAB Hospital of the Pacific & Foundation in Honolulu and for the Financial Services Institute of Australasia (FINSIA) in Sydney, Australia. Most recently, she worked at Anthology Marketing Group, managing client relationships across all major sectors in Hawaii.
Tiffany is an active member of several educational boards, including Hoala School, Hoala Foundation for Education, and HawaiiKidsCAN. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree with a concentration in operations and technology management from Boston University in Massachusetts.