Despite his initial conceptions about computers being used only for playing video games and his embarrassment of learning the existence of the “shut down” feature versus pressing the power button to turn off a computer, he quickly found a passion in his new career. After working a little over 10 years for LavaNet and rising through the ranks, from customer service rep to vice president to president, Ka’aihue went on to purchase the company in May 2006. Afterall, no one knew the brand and the employees like he did.

Today, Lavanet is one of the premiere local and independent ISPs that specializes in web design and consultation, as well as network consulting; recently adding on to their list of services, High Speed Broadband Wireless in partnership with Clearwire, a newly established wireless broadband ISP in Hawaii. So what makes LavaNet stand out from other local ISP companies?

"We have the ability to change marketing strategies, company focus, and sales efforts on a dime - says Ka’aihue. We’re not locked into any type of set service or product, allowing for flexibility and scalable solutions, ranging from a single email account, to creating secure private networks across fifteen remote offices. And lastly, we’ve tried to focus on partnering with other tech establishments in Honolulu, including some of our competitors."

Ka’aihue believes that his company’s reputation has been their biggest selling point. Their tagline, “everything, online…” sums up their multi-faceted repertoire of services that has been built for continuous improvement and technological advancement since 1994. “Our experience as an access provider throughout the years has given us an added edge on all other flavors on Internet related services,” says Ka’aihue. Their reputation, coupled with their value-added services, customer service, and technical ability has continued to keep LavaNet on top of the game and competitive with the big time providers, an accomplishment beyond Ka’aihue’s imagination.

Accomplishments have been plentiful since his change in careers, yet they have come with their share of challenges. A typical day for Ka’aihue starts with a morning email check to address issues that need immediate attention.  Then he moves on to read various news websites to get caught up on current issues here in Hawaii and abroad. Next, he tries to set up all his vendor and client meetings for when he gets to the office in the morning. You read that right, all of this is done before he even gets to his office every morning. Once in the office, he checks in on his crew and with his Vice President, Matt Freeman, and progresses through the work day with a long list of phone calls and meetings with current and potential clients.