Who got that job?

By LIANE VOISEY

Were you one of the 45 people who applied for this job and wondered who got it?

Job title: Manager ITC facilities, Auckland City Council

Darren Baker knows that IT people tend to be seen as propeller heads in the back room, but he is firmly focused on people. The challenge in his new role in IT and communications at Auckland City Council will be to bring a customer-focus to it, he says.

Ultimately, he says, it will be about "giving the customers what they want through the use of technology and helping them come to grips with new technologies".

Baker, 38, was attracted to the role because it would give him the ability to influence how the organisation operates and make a difference.

"The accountability and responsibility of the role itself was quite wide," he says. At 16 Baker began his career working as a switching engineer for Telecom New Zealand, before moving to an IT-focused role as support engineer for Reuters.

Previously he was with Vodaphone for more than two years, first as production services manager and then as network management centre manager. His responsibilities centred around dealing with the challenges of the telecommunications technology and ensuring that services met customer expectations.

While at Vodaphone, Baker completed a New Zealand Institute of Management diploma in management and the company's leadership programme.

He is looking forward to using the leadership skills he gained to develop others at Auckland City Council, "keeping my people motivated and challenged, allowing them to lead a balanced life, pursuing their interests to fulfil their purpose in life".

The Telecom IT industry has gone through something of a transition in recent times, says Baker.

Challenges such as the Y2K dilemma have been and gone, and with more companies offering a high-availability IT system, Baker says telecommunications is now more about "establishing measures that reflect and capture customer experience".

He hopes his experience will bring a fresh perspective to the Auckland City Council.