10 great years at ITC

Two of ITC’s staff members recently reached their 10-year anniversary with the college. Both Justine Glackin and Steve Burke received a certificate and a trip to the value of $10,000 to thank them for their hard work and dedication to ITC.

Justine initially worked in ITC’s student services when she returned to New Zealand after six years of overseas travel. After two years at the college she took some time off for maternity leave.

“When I wanted to return to work part time in April 2006, Karen [then ITC’s Managing Director] was kind enough to offer me about 16 hours a week working from home helping with the accounts,” says Justine. “I went on maternity leave again in 2007 and came back in 2008 – once again working from home.”  

Justine says that flexibility has been “one of the amazing things about working for ITC; and even though I don’t go into the office all that often I still feel part of the team.”

Justine is now in charge of the college’s accounts. She has a great eye for detail and a motivated, positive attitude, says Managing Director Kerry Priestley.

“Justine has a fantastic sense of humour; she’s a good team player and is just great to work with.”

For her part Justine says she is extremely grateful that the college has allowed her role to change and develop over time with the changes in her life.

“I feel really lucky and privileged to be able to do this, as not only have I been able to keep my foot in the door work-wise, but I have also been able to be a stay-at-home mum. Not a bad deal I think!”

ITC Travel Tutor, Steve Burke, worked with Kerry Priestley in the travel industry (“Many years ago!” says Kerry). His background is mainly in airlines and his experience makes him extremely knowledgeable about airlines and airfares.

But his area of specialty is IATA – the International Air Transport Association’s certification programmes. ITC is an IATA Authorized Training Center (ATC), which allows it to teach the IATA Travel and Tourism and Aviation training programmes.

“It is because of Steve’s commitment and his knowledge of IATA that we have twice had students awarded IATA student of the year and the college was named an IATA 2011 Asia Pacific Top 10 Authorized Training Center,” says Kerry.

 And Steve’s commitment to the college goes above and beyond the call of duty.

“He is always willing to get involved in events, get dressed up and make a fool of himself,” laughs Kerry. “His next costume will be the Easter Bunny and I believe he will be distributing eggs around the college.”

“He really represents the college’s belief that learning should be fun and that this is a really fun industry to be in. You work hard and you live it 24/7, but if you get involved 100 per cent like Steve does the rewards are fantastic.”

What has kept Steve at the college for the past 10 years, he says, “is the great friendly atmosphere that is evident throughout the staff and students. The tutorial staff works well together, and are always willing to help out.”

Steve says that the generous travel package to celebrate his ten years with the college was a huge surprise.

 “I am still trying to figure out my dream trip!”

ITC Wins Again!!

The International Travel College of New Zealand (ITC) has won two categories awards at the prestigious Westpac Manukau Business Excellence Awards. ITC won in the Excellence in Service Delivery and Excellence in Tourism and Hospitality  categories.

The awards ceremony was held at the TelstraClear Pacific Event Centre on Friday 17 September. Director Karen Houston was at the awards with a number of ITC’s staff.

“What a fantastic night,” says Karen. “We are just so thrilled to win at these awards again. They are a very meaningful reflection of our success in the city of Manukau. And to win the two awards is such an honour for the college.”

ITC has been a premium supplier of full-time and part-time training programmes for the airline, travel and tourism industries since 1997. The ITC Botany campus opened in 2005 and is now training over 300 students from Manukau and the surrounding area.

“We have always believed in what our college, our staff and our students can achieve together,” says Karen, “but to have this recognised from outside the college tells us we are getting it right.”

ITC has excellent placement rates for its graduates, which Karen says is a direct reflection of the college’s constant striving to better the facilities, training and outcomes for their students.

“We’re incredibly proud of our facilities; they are pretty special, and our staff is so involved and committed to helping our students realise their dreams. We have such a great community at the college.”

ITC’s strong links with industry also contribute to the college’s success. “Our industry contacts consistently comment on how well our graduates are prepared for work in their businesses. And our industry contacts regularly provide our students with valuable opportunities for onsite training, so it’s a win/win situation.”
 
It was certainly a win/win situation for ITC on Friday night.

“We’re just so grateful to everyone who works together to make ITC the place to be for training in the travel and tourism industries. And a very big thank you to the Westpac Manukau Business Awards for recognising our success in this way.”

ITC Showcases Career Potential

On 31 August the International Travel College of New Zealand (ITC) invited teachers from 25 Auckland schools to show them what it offers students whose dream is to work in the travel and tourism industries.

Teachers were in for an exciting day with ITC staff determined to show them first hand what a great industry it is. The teachers had a tour of the college, then travelled on a Stray Backpacker Bus to Auckland’s Langham Hotel and the Auckland Bridge Climb and Bungy.

They also heard stories and experiences from a range of people involved in the industry including Andy Hoey and ITC graduate Mark Aso from Nomad, Katie Hamill and Kathryn Murnane from Avis and Budget Rentals, and Robyn Deuchar from Menzies Aviation. The speakers shared information about their sector and their own businesses.

“This was a really valuable part of the day,” says ITC Sales Executive Ceri Jenkins. “Many of the teachers commented on the value they gained from hearing what businesses in the industry look for in new recruits and when making internal promotions.”

Maree Galvin, business relationship manager at the North Shore Secondary Schools Gateway Consortium says the day was particularly valuable for “refreshing my knowledge of the variety of jobs available and learning about new ones.” She is also impressed with “the strong links with industry that ITC has and the work that goes into maintaining them.”

“That’s a huge part of what makes ITC successful,” says Ceri. “It directly benefits our students through our excellent job placement rates and also the hands-on experience they gain at numerous industry events.”

The teachers were grateful for the effort that went into planning the day: “A huge thanks and thumbs up for a very interesting, stimulating, enjoyable day,” says Lorraine Jackson from Onehunga High School, “It was a wonderful day that went so smoothly it totally belied the hours that went into running this event.”

 “The teachers were fantastic,” says Ceri. “They were really open to the experiences we had planned for them –one teacher even completed the bridge climb despite being afraid of heights! We’d like to thank all of them for joining us and also say a big thank you to the speakers and businesses who made the day such a success.”