A man who has made chocolates fit for the Queen is now head of WITT’s hospitality
department.
Joachim Ogden, who has spent 14 years in the hospitality industry, is “amped” about his new role.
“I’m really excited and just want to get stuck in and learn.”
He takes over from Glen West, who is nowhead of the technology faculty, which includes hospitality.
Joachim, a chocolatier, counts one of his career highlights as making a chocolate display for the Queen. At the time he was working at the Commonwealth Club in London.
“That was brilliant because I learnt skills I still use and teach today.”
He began his own chef training at the AucklandTechnical Institute, which has now become AUT University.
Then Joachim went on to work in various restaurants and hotels in Auckland, moved to hotels and resorts in Australia and then went further afield to London, where he broadened his culinary skills even more.
In July 2009, he joined WITT, partly attracted to Taranaki by his love of surfing.
While leading the hospitality team, Joachim’s own skills will still be in demand. He will continue teaching on the Diploma of Professional Cookery course, where his speciality is patisserie and working with chocolate.
Not surprisingly, his favourite food is highquality chocolate and, more precisely, Callebaut from Belgium.
He is also one of WITT’s In Season feature chefs, who appear in the Taranaki Daily News each fortnight.
His new role involves motivating staff, team building, customer service and the day-to-day operation of the department.
“My goal is to do the job and do it well,” he says.
“The students are the focus as well as the team. We need their success, completion and retention. On the way, part of that journey, especially with the international students, includes pastoral care.”
Joachim says his team is extremely aware of how difficult it can be for students from a different country and culture to study in a country as foreign as New Zealand.
“It’s about identifying students who are needing extra support and simply talking and listening to them to see how to help them to succeed.”
Last year, many of the hospitality tutors, including Joachim, completed the Level 5 National Certificate in Adult Literacy and Numeracy Education (Vocational/ Workplace).
“I’m really excited about stepping up student based literacy and numeracy activities for all the tutors to use so all the students are getting the same experience,” he says.
“That’s one of the things I really want to do – give the tutors support from the bottom up and see if there’s anything I can do to make it easier for them. If I spend that time with them, I can do things to make their job easier.”
He could always make them chocolates.