[ IN APPRECIATION ]
He helped shape
modern HawaiiIn an age of interchangeable CEOs, Robert J. "Bobby" Pfeiffer was one of the last great captains of industry, an "old sea dog" at the helm of Hawaii's shipping industry for half a century. Although he was chairman of both Matson Navigation and later Alexander & Baldwin, Pfeiffer never forgot his roots, beginning at age 12 as a deck hand on tugs and steamers on the Honolulu waterfront.
A citizen of the Pacific, Pfeiffer was born in Suva, Fiji -- descending from eight generations of seamen -- and he died Friday at age 83 in Orinda, Calif. Most of his life, however, was spent in Hawaii. "Bobby was a kamaaina in every sense of the word," remembered First Hawaiian chairman, A&B board member and friend Walter Dods. "He had a great love for Hawaii and it showed in everything he did."
Robert J. Pfeiffer: In 1954, before joining Matson
Pfeiffer's personal motto was the Hawaiian word imua, to "go forward." He learned to speak Hawaiian while growing up on the Big Island, and also learned to dance hula. His family moved to Honolulu in 1929 and by age 15 he had earned a license to skipper harbor tugs. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and after the war married naval officer Mary Elizabeth Worts at Koloa Union Church on Kauai.
Pfeiffer joined Matson in 1956 and rose quickly through management ranks, earning fame for hammering out the Mechanization and Modernization Agreement, which established union procedures for loading containerized cargo. This one step alone helped bring Hawaii's harbors into the modern age.
Under his leadership, A&B made the transition from sugar production to development and nearly tripled its revenue and assets during the 1980s. Pfeiffer had many charitable interests, including preserving the Hawaii Theatre and creating the Hawaii Maritime Center. Late in life, he learned to fly and helped create the Pacific Aerospace Museum.
Tomorrow's captains of industry and community leaders should look back on Pfeiffer's life and career for inspiration.
