NZICC teams up with IAPCO for new leadership programme

From left: NZICC’s Prue Daly; The Conference Company’s Jan Tonkin; and IAPCO’s Sarah Markey-Hamm

The New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) has partnered with the International Association for Professional Congress Organisers (IAPCO) to develop a multi-year leadership programme.

The Next Generation Leaders Programme will be designed specifically for IAPCO Members in the Asia-Pacific region, and delivered through a series of online education workshops organised by NZICC and the IAPCO Training Academy.

From left: NZICC’s Prue Daly; The Conference Company’s Jan Tonkin; and IAPCO’s Sarah Markey-Hamm

Applications for the Next Generation Leaders Programme will open in late May, with the NZICC planning to run the first workshop in July 2023.

One participant each year will also secure a coveted scholarship, named after former IAPCO President, The Conference Company founder and New Zealand industry stalwart Jan Tonkin, to attend IAPCO’s Annual Meeting and General Assembly alongside senior leaders within the global business events community.

Sarah Markey-Hamm, IAPCO’s president, said: “Without Jan’s involvement with IAPCO our association would not be in the place that it is in today. She lives and breathes the business event sector and has been instrumental in developing the IAPCO education programmes over the last 15 years. Her wisdom and counsel are cherished and freely given when asked. Even though her formal involvement with IAPCO Council has concluded she remains a strong contributor to the educational content across IAPCO’s products whilst serving on Faculty. It’s an honour that she has agreed to lend her name to the scholarship programme in our region.

“We’re anticipating strong interest from our Asia Pacific members. The online format of the workshops has opened up this opportunity to a vast audience. I’m excited to see the impact of this programme and the benefits it will bring to the participants involved and to the wider business and professional events industry in New Zealand and beyond.”

NZICC, in the heart of Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city, has already secured a number of large international conferences. The World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education has been confirmed as one of the first to use NZICC facilities in November 2025. The conference will see 3,000 international visitors welcomed to the city, delivering an estimated economic impact of more than NZ$6 million (US$3.6 million).

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