The Muka Tangata Workforce Development Council has appointed Jeremy Baker as its Chief Executive.
Jeremy is currently Chief Insight Officer at Beef + Lamb New Zealand and has held senior leadership roles in industry, government, and the education and training sector.
Workforce Development Councils are being established through the Reform of Vocational Education and come into effect on 4 October 2021. They will set standards, develop qualifications and shape the curriculum of vocational education to ensure it meets their industries’ needs.
Industries represented by Muka Tangata include dairy, sheep and beef, other livestock, arable, horticulture, fishing, aquaculture, equine, winemaking, silviculture and harvesting, and sports turf management.
Muka Tangata Council Chair Erin Simpson says Jeremy is the ideal person to lead the organisation.
“His skills and experience are exactly what’s required. Across our industries we have massive challenges in terms of skills capability and workforce supply,” Erin says.
“Jeremy has been living and breathing the primary sector for many years, and he has been actively involved in education and training policy. He comes to us with strong mana, great relationships and a track record of working with partners to make change happen. It is a privilege to have Jeremy on board.”
Jeremy says for most of his career he has worked at the boundary between education, training and industry.
“I am committed to using this incredible opportunity to support the success of learners, industry and Māori within the food and fibre sector. Building partnerships with industry, iwi/Māori, and education and training providers will be central to the work of Muka Tangata, and that is where I plan to start.”
Jeremy has held senior leadership roles in industry, government, and the education and training sector including Chief Insight Officer at Beef + Lamb New Zealand, Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Lincoln University, and Executive Director of the Industry Training Federation. He has a professional background in labour market economics, and in education and training policy, research, and quality assurance.
He was Chair of the Ministerial Review of the NCEA, and has been a member of the steering group for He Waka Eke Noa – the Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership. He chairs the Food & Fibre Capability Leadership Group. He has recently been appointed to the NZQA Board.