Jim Kelly
Vice president, government & community relations & corporate communications
Hawaiian Electric
Jim Kelly is a Mentor Hawaii Cohort 11 mentor. Learn more about the program here.
About Jim
Jim Kelly is responsible for overseeing the company’s relationships with state and local government and its community engagement and customer education activities. He also oversees internal and external communications, including advertising and customer research, and digital communications.
Before joining Hawaiian Electric in 2016, Kelly worked as manager of member services and communications for Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative, responsible for business and residential customer account management, payment and call center operations, external communications and community engagement.
Kelly joined the energy industry after a career as a reporter and editor at newspapers in Massachusetts, Minnesota, California and Hawai‘i. He worked as editor of Pacific Business News in Honolulu and as managing editor of The Honolulu Advertiser.
A native of Minnesota, Kelly holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. He has also taken graduate-level courses in historic preservation at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.
He is a member of the board of directors of the American Red Cross, Hawai‘i State Chapter, the Chamber of Commerce of Hawai‘i, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and serves as president of Historic Hawai‘i Foundation.
Question and Answer with Jim
What is your preferred communication style when mentoring (in-person, video conference, phone, informal check-ins, structured meetings, etc.)?
In-Person, Video Conference, Email, Phone Call.
Why do you want to become a mentor in this program?
It took me a long time to figure things out in the professional world – a mentor would have helped, someone I could learn from as a positive guide. I hope I can be that for someone.
What specific skills, knowledge or experience can you share with your mentee?
Writing, public speaking and effective communication to different audiences is my main skill set, along with many experiences supervising different kinds of people.
What are your expectations for a mentor-mentee relationship?
That we learn from each other and have fun.
How do you approach problem-solving and conflict resolution?
With much trepidation. I wish I was a more logical problem solver than an emotional one. Conflict is usually about power and trying to resolve the imbalance, trying to figure out a win for the other person while you get what you need.
How do you envision success for your mentee, and how will you measure it during the program?
If the mentee comes out of this with one useful truth that sticks with them beyond the next week then it will have been time well spent.