Kelly Banks Hoen ’75, General Manager of The Royal Hawaiian, has been named Pacific Business News 2012 Businesswoman of the Year in the for-profit category. She received the honor at the 2012 Women Who Mean Business event on April 13.

Hoen was recognized for her work in stewarding the iconic property through an $80 million renovation at the height of the economic downturn. She manages more than 400 employees and annual revenues exceeding $70 million.

Hoen came to The Royal four years ago following stints as general manager at the Princeville Resort on Kaua‘i and Kapalua Bay Hotel on Maui. After graduating from La Pietra in 1975, she earned a bachelor’s of fine arts in English and Theatre from Stephens College in Columbia, MO.

She is a member of La Pietra’s Board of Trustees and has served as co-chair of HOOPLA (alongside classmate Deb Weil-Manuma) for the past two years, helping to raise more than $500,000 for the school’s financial aid program. HOOPLA 2012 was the most successful event in the school’s history.

In a Pacific Business News feature, Hoen gives advice to this year’s high school graduates:

“Always be hungry to learn and maintain a positive outlook and positive attitude. People gravitate to people who have positive ways of looking at things.”

Kelly Banks Hoen '75