Japanese (Asia) Tour Manager & Systems Administrator
We are an emerging business located in the serene surroundings of Lake Tekapo looking for the right candidate to support the General Manager in continuing to develop and uphold outstanding research and educational programs at Mt. John Observatory, Cowan's Hill Observatory, and other associated locations in the Mackenzie Region. The role focuses primarily on engaging, catering to, and diversifying services for the increasingly important Asian market through effective, dynamic tours and the management of pertinent computer systems. Core responsibilities will include the successful management of Japanese tours, reservations, Japanese business missives, and the Japanese language version of Earth and Sky's website. This member of the team will be expected to minimize our management costs and outages while maximizing overall performance using a VBA based tour booking system and a data analysis program.
The ideal applicant must have more than two years of work related experience as a systems engineer or administrator. He/she must be fully competent regarding Microsoft desktop operating systems and core applications, VBA, HTML, and Java. Also, one’s credentials must include at least two years of experience in tourism as either a tour manager or tour guide specifically for Asian clients. As our venture caters heavily to the Asian sector, particularly the discerning Japanese traveller, and one of our company’s founders is a Japanese national, the successful candidate needs to show he/she has extensive experience serving and working alongside Japanese — i.e. he/she can clearly demonstrate in Japanese that he/she can embrace Japanese staff and patrons, feels comfortable negotiating language differences and subtle language nuances, and can confidently and skilfully compose business documents.
A valid, current p-endorsement and class 2 license is preferable. Interest in residing in a rural community for an extended period of time is paramount. Astronomical awareness and knowledge is highly beneficial.
For further information, please contact Margaret Munro either by ‘phone, e-mail or in writing at the address below.
Listed: 1st Nov. 2011
Natural Science Manager and Chief Astronomy Guide
We are an emerging business located in the serene surroundings of Lake Tekapo, and we are looking for the right candidate to support the General Manager in continuing to develop and uphold outstanding research and educational programs at Mt. John Observatory, Cowan’s Hill Observatory, and other associated locations in the Mackenzie Region. The role focuses heavily on the effective delivery of guided science tours (primarily astronomical) and an entertaining and informative interpretation of the Southern Hemisphere’s night sky. This is a hands-on managerial position: in addition to daytime administrative duties you will be an active participant in nightly tours. The selected candidate will be passionate about educating and exciting visitors (especially youth) through guided tours and the designing of new educational platforms.
The ideal applicant must have past experience in supervising and developing tours (structural design, maximizing full potential, etc.); drafting and managing rosters; training and instructing guides; organizing and compiling historical records; liaising with multiple parties; and mediating and coordinating between folks of different cultural backgrounds. As our venture caters heavily to the Asian sector, particularly the discerning Japanese traveller, and one of our company’s founders is a Japanese national, the successful candidate needs to show he/she has extensive experience serving and working alongside Japanese – i.e. he/she can clearly demonstrate that he/she can embrace Japanese staff and patrons in Japanese and feels comfortable negotiating language differences and subtle language nuances in Japanese.
Applicants for this position should have at least two years of astronomical outreach experience, a valid p-endorsement on their driver’s license, interest in residing in a rural community for an extended period of time, about two years teaching experience at the primary or secondary level (as we are steadily catering to more and more school groups), and ideally possess knowledge about the Mackenzie Region.
For further information, please contact Margaret Munro either by ‘phone, e-mail or in writing at the address below.
Astronomy Guide
We are an eco-tourism operation running astronomy tours at Mount John Observatory in Lake Tekapo. Located three hours outside of Christchurch on the way to Queenstown, the region offers numerous activities including skiing, hiking, hot pools, horse trekking, scenic flights, kayaking, fishing and mountain biking.
Lake Tekapo is a fast-growing tourist destination, and we are at the forefront of the region’s tourism industry. Our tours of Mount John Observatory combine astronomy education with stargazing through professional telescopes. We have received international acclaim for the quality of our tours and the memorable experience our guides provide.
Guides are personable, knowledgeable, and highly motivated characters who educate, entertain, and inspire all those who visit. During the day we offer tours of Mount John Observatory explaining its history, detailing the on-going research, and exploring the giant telescopes. At night we introduce everyone to the gems of the southern night sky with the aid of powerful green laser pointers before providing awe-inspiring views of planets, galaxies, and stars through powerful telescopes.
We are seeking a motivated, team-oriented, positive, out-going individual who is not afraid of public speaking. A tertiary level science background is necessary. Extensive training will be provided.
For further information, please contact Margaret Munro either by ‘phone, e-mail or in writing at the address below.
Earth & Sky Ltd., P.O. Box 112, Lake Tekapo 7945, New Zealand.
E-mail: info@earthandsky.co.nz
Phone: +64 (0)3 6806960 Fax: +64 (0)3 6806950
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