A day in the life of ITC’s Account Manager – Ceri Jenkins

Ceri Jenkins has been with ITC since August 2007. Ceri is responsible for managing the relationship between ITC and industry and the many schools we work with. Ceri has a wealth of experience in the New Zealand tourism industry and had worked in the Industry for 9 years before starting at ITC.

1 April 2011
April is typically quiet in the industry in Auckland, and businesses are usually looking to downsize for the winter season. But with the Rugby World Cup coming up, employers are aware they need to recruit and train new staff now and hold onto their existing staff to ensure they have the skills and expertise to deal with a busy September and October. So Ceri has a full day of meetings lined up.

First up is a meeting with Alyson Hill, the Auckland retail sales manager of Explore NZ. Explore NZ offers a range of tours and cruises in Auckland and the Bay of Islands. Ceri has met Alyson before when she was working with Tourism Auckland at the i-SITE office, but this is the first time ITC has worked with Explore NZ. Ceri is keen to discuss work experience and entry position opportunities for our students. It’s a great meeting, and Alyson says Explore NZ has been impressed with the students they have met so far from ITC. She’s particularly impressed with their enthusiasm, the depth of their training and their desire to get into the industry. One of our students already has an interview lined up with Explore NZ. Very positive!

Next, Ceri has a meeting with a contact he has known for years: Lynne Butler at Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development Ltd. This is the tourism unit of Tourism Auckland and is responsible for encouraging international and domestic visitors to come to Auckland. Lynne manages the infrastructure of i-SITE, including recruitment. Ceri invites her to become a member of the ITC Advisory Board, as she has wealth of industry knowledge and experience. They also have further discussions on the volunteer programme for the Rugby World Cup, in which ITC students will be involved. Ceri wants to know how the programme is going to work in terms of timescales, recruiting, and logistics. They also discuss how the new recruitment process will work, as this is now run through the Auckland Council.

Ceri’s next meeting is with is Shireen Bosch. Shireen is the manager of the Auckland i-Site Visitor Centre – Princes Wharf. Ceri is here to discuss the ITC work experience programme and site visits for ITC and high school students. These visits help students gain an understanding the functions of an i-SITE office and give them a taste of some of the career paths available to them once they have graduated. Many students don’t realise the range of skills needed to work in this area, or the opportunities it can give them. Ceri’s role is pivotal in helping students see the link between further study and their career paths.

Ceri’s final meeting for the day is with Joanne Dunabie, the HR Manager at the Heritage Hotel. This is an introductory meeting to help Ceri assess their recruitment needs and work experience programme, so that we can see what mutual opportunities there are for ITC’s students and the hotel. Another great meeting and Joanne says she will send her vacancies to be listed with ITC.

Then it’s back to the office to check emails and discover that there have been a number of industry-related April Fool’s jokes circulating in the media, including one about InterCity’s new “green initiative” to fuel its buses on sheep manure! Time for a quick laugh, and then it’s off to help with the preparations for the school group visiting on Monday 4th April.