A conference this month aims to offer local insights on workforce trends, provide updates on Hawai‘i's economic future and recognize people driving innovation across the Islands.
Future of Work 2026: County Voices, Statewide Vision will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24, at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i, 2454 S. Beretania St. in Honolulu.
It's a partnership between the Hawai‘i Workforce Development Council, Chamber of Commerce Hawai‘i and AE Consulting. Tickets for the third annual Future of Work conference are still available and registration is open until Monday, Sept. 22. Cost for general admission is $125 and includes a light breakfast, buffet lunch and parking. Get tickets here.
"The aim of the conference is really to think about the fact that Hawai‘i's workforce is in a pivotal moment," Vanessa Rogers, vice president of workforce development for the chamber, told Aloha State Daily. "We know that across sectors, folks are facing talent shortages, there's challenges around rising cost of living, and a big challenge is the brain drain and making sure that we're keeping kama‘āina here at home.
"The conference, its impetus, was really to provide a shared space for employers, educators, policy makers, community leaders, to all come together and to lift up the challenges, lift up the successes and then align on solutions," she continued. "The goal is really to move beyond just discussion and to create a space where we can identify some collective action that will strengthen the local talent pipelines and create more resilient future-facing job opportunities."
Rogers says that each year, the conference has had a different focus.
The inaugural conference looked at the top seven employment sectors and brought in a leader from each to present on trends, challenges and opportunities in those areas, and featured an economic overview from economist Paul Brewbaker, she noted. The second conference focused on private-public partnerships and the pathway from education to career, spotlighting the chamber's sector partnerships.
This year, Rogers says the focus will be county-by-county insights.
"We're bringing county leaders to talk about some of their unique challenges and solutions that will lead up to the overall statewide vision," she says, noting that the chamber's role in the event "is really helping to craft the agenda, identify some of those key speakers, plan the logistics of the event and heavily promote it through our networks."
The agenda this year includes a keynote on Hawai‘i's economic future from Chief State Economist Seth Colby and Oceanit CEO Patrick Sullivan, county presentations and Voices of the Future student panel.
"As we continue to evolve, we want to make sure that we are including a wide range of audiences, and also to note that there are key differences in workforce challenges across the counties," Rogers says of this year's focus. "The challenges that rise up on Oʻahu are not the same ones as on the Big Island or on Maui. We wanted an opportunity to really uplift what all of those unique challenges were and learn best practices around how to address some of those challenges from what's happening and what's going well in some of the counties. Then really having that larger focus on what's the statewide vision, what are the similarities and differences in the approaches that we take per county in order to fulfill the overall vision for the state around workforce."
The Hawai‘i Workforce Development Council also will recognize recipients of the third annual Workforce Development Hero Awards at the conference. The awards honor "key contributors to workforce excellence across the Islands, acknowledging their dedication and innovation in advancing employment opportunities and skill development in Hawaiʻi," the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations said in an announcement of the recipients last week.
The 2025 winners are:
Dan Doerger, executive director, Pacific Center for Advanced Technology Training, and Julie Morikawa, founder and president, ClimbHI, on O‘ahu; Katie Taladay, director of workforce development, Maui Economic Development Board, on Maui; Jackie Kaina, executive director, Kauaʻi Economic Development Board on Kaua‘i; Clinton Mercado, executive director, Hawaiʻi Workforce Development Board on Hawai‘i Island; and recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award, Daniel Iaela with Hawaiian Council (formerly the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement).
“Each of this year’s Workforce Development Heroes has gone above and beyond in creating pathways to opportunity,” Workforce Development Council Executive Director Bennette Misalucha said in thar announcement. “Their efforts have empowered individuals, strengthened communities and contributed to the overall resilience and competitiveness of Hawaiʻi’s workforce.”
Finalists will also be recognized.
If you go
Future of Work 2026: County Voices, Statewide Vision
When: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24
Where: Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i, 2454 S. Beretania St. in Honolulu. Registration is open until Monday, Sept. 22. Cost is $125. Get tickets here.
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Stephanie Salmons can be reached at stephanie@alohastatedaily.com.
