IAPCO Emerging Leaders Programme – APAC 2025

Four 1.25-hour seminars will be held fortnightly during August and September. The start time is 18:00 NZST for each seminar. The exact dates will be confirmed following the application process. All seminars will be recorded so even if participants can’t make all seminars, they can be viewed afterwards. Topics in 2025 include:

• Defining your leadership style: Explore the evolving role of leadership in the events industry and identify your unique leadership approach.
• Leading through change and complexity: Build the skills and mindset needed to lead confidently in changing environments.
• Influencing through leadership: Develop the confidence to initiate change, generate value, and influence others.
• Leading with integrity and purpose: Foster a leadership mindset grounded in resilience, ethics, and long-term impact.

The Jan Tonkin Scholarship
Following the programme, attendees can apply for this coveted scholarship, named after former IAPCO President, Jan Tonkin, to attend IAPCO’s Annual Meeting and General Assembly in 2026 alongside senior leaders within the global business events community. The scholarship covers return economy travel, registration and accommodation.

Application Process
Participants need to be employed by an IAPCO member in the Asia Pacific region and have at least 2–3 years’ experience in the business events industry. The programme is designed for emerging leaders in your company, and member companies can nominate multiple people.

The 2024 programme consisted of 5 online sessions taught by inspiring business leaders and moderated by Stephen Noble, Chair of IAPCO Training Academy. 

Participants who took part in all 5 sessions were eligible to apply for the inaugural Jan Tonkin Scholarship to attend the IAPCO Annual Meeting 2025 in Taipei. 

The judges interviewed three finalists and unanimously chose Pooja Menon from IA Meetings, India as the winner of the scholarship. “Your enthusiasm to continue with your career in business events was very apparent. You were also very clear about how you are incorporating a number of learnings from the leadership programme into your day-to-day work.   

We could see that you would commit to making the very most of the opportunity to get to know others in the IAPCO community at the Taipei conference as well as picking up new ideas from the sessions. “  

Pooja Menon was joined onstage by Jan Tonkin, The Conference Company, New Zealand and Alana Bicknell, NZICC. 

Jan Tonkin Scholarship recipient, Pooja Menon, shares how the experience accelerated her leadership journey and broadened her global perspective. She also reflects on how IAPCO membership enhances trust, excellence, and confidence among clients.