2026 IAPCO & NZICC Emerging Leaders Programme – APAC and the Jan Tonkin Scholarship
Now in its third consecutive year, the programme, delivered in partnership with the New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC), an IAPCO Partner, continues to develop the next generation of leaders within the meetings and business events industry across the Asia-Pacific region.
Applications close on 15 July 2026.
Exclusively available to employees of IAPCO Member companies registered in the Asia-Pacific region, this unique online leadership programme equips emerging leaders with the leadership capabilities, confidence and global perspective needed to thrive in an increasingly complex and evolving industry.
The programme culminates in the prestigious Jan Tonkin Scholarship, with one outstanding participant receiving complimentary registration, accommodation and return economy flights to attend the IAPCO Annual Meeting & General Assembly 2027 in Mumbai, India, joining global business events leaders from around the world.
Programme Information
The Jan Tonkin Scholarship
Following completion of the programme, participants may apply for the Jan Tonkin Scholarship, recognising one outstanding participant each year for their leadership potential, commitment to professional development and active participation throughout the programme.
Named in honour of Jan Tonkin, former IAPCO President and Chair of the IAPCO Training Academy, the scholarship celebrates one of the meetings industry's most respected leaders. Jan was recently appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for her outstanding services to the business events sector, recognising her significant contribution to the industry in New Zealand and internationally.
The scholarship recipient will receive complimentary registration, accommodation and return economy flights to attend the IAPCO Annual Meeting & General Assembly 2027 in Mumbai, India, providing unparalleled access to IAPCO's global community, world-class education, networking opportunities and industry leaders from around the world.
The Faculty
The IAPCO & NZICC Emerging Leaders Programme – APAC brings together an outstanding faculty of industry leaders from across the Asia-Pacific region.
Representing leading Professional Congress Organisers, destinations and business events organisations, our moderators and faculty have been selected for their leadership experience, industry expertise and commitment to developing the next generation of meetings professionals.
Built around the theme Leadership Starts Where You Are, the programme explores the leadership capabilities required to succeed in today's rapidly evolving business events landscape. Through six interactive online sessions, participants will strengthen their ability to lead themselves, build meaningful relationships, influence others, navigate uncertainty and lead with confidence.
Combining regional perspectives with global best practice, the programme creates a collaborative learning environment that empowers emerging leaders to grow professionally while building lasting connections across the IAPCO community.
Faculty speakers to be announced.
Programme Moderators
One of the defining strengths of the IAPCO & NZICC Emerging Leaders Programme – APAC is its commitment to developing future leaders beyond the programme itself.
Both Programme Moderators are previous Jan Tonkin Scholarship recipients who have returned to support the next generation of emerging leaders—demonstrating the programme's lasting impact and its role in creating an ongoing leadership pathway within the IAPCO community.
By remaining actively engaged as mentors and moderators, they exemplify how the programme is far more than a one-off educational initiative. It is a platform that nurtures talent, develops future industry leaders and encourages participants to remain connected to the global IAPCO community throughout their careers.
Programme Moderator
Pooja Menon
Senior Manager – International Sales, IA Meetings
2025 IAPCO & NZICC Jan Tonkin Scholarship Recipient
Programme Moderator
Shimal Jaykant
Conference & Events Manager, Medical Conference Partners
2026 IAPCO & NZICC Jan Tonkin Scholarship Recipient
2025 Jan Tonkin Scholarship Recipient
Awarded in recognition of her reflective, values-driven leadership approach and forward-thinking vision for congress delivery across the Asia-Pacific region, Shimal stood out among an exceptional group of emerging leaders who completed the IAPCO Emerging Leaders Programme – APAC.
The scholarship was presented by IAPCO Training Academy Chair Stephen Noble in recognition of Shimal’s outstanding achievement and leadership potential.
As the 2026 scholarship recipient, Shimal is attending the IAPCO Annual Meeting & General Assembly in Athens, where she is engaging with global industry leaders and further advancing her leadership journey on the international stage.
A heartfelt thank you to our valued partner, New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC), for their continued commitment to nurturing future talent and leadership across the global meetings industry.
Congratulations, Shimal, on this well-deserved recognition and the exciting journey ahead. 👏
Five years into her career and already a PCMA '20 in their Twenties' honoree, Shimal Jaykant, Conference and Events Manager at Medican Conference Partners, is precisely the kind of emerging talent the Jan Tonkin Scholarship was created for.
Named after former IAPCO President and former IAPCO Training Academy Chair Jan Tonkin and supported by the New Zealand International Conference Centre (NZICC), the IAPCO & NZICC 2026 Jan Tonkin Scholarship is presented annually at the IAPCO Annual Meeting and General Assembly to recognise exceptional leadership promise. This year's presentation – the second edition – took place in Athens, where Shimal received her certificate on stage from IAPCO President Sissi Lignou and Stephen Noble, Chair of the Training Academy, before addressing delegates with a gracious word of thanks.
Her application stood out for its intellectual honesty as much as its ambition. Having completed the IAPCO Emerging Leaders Programme, she described a shift from leading through effort – ‘doing, fixing, pushing projects forward’ – to leading with intention: shaping team culture through trust, clear ownership and feedback that raises standards without eroding dignity. In her day-to-day work managing peers of a similar age, she reframed decisions in terms of shared outcomes rather than personal opinion. The result, she noted, was a team that ‘stays aligned even under pressure.’
‘I want the learning to travel further than me.’
Her vision for the APAC region is equally compelling. She anticipates a high-tech, high-touch future in which AI manages logistics quietly in the background, whilst the true differentiator remains face-to-face connection – ‘especially in a region as culturally varied as ours.’ She aims to design medical and association congresses that feel genuinely human and locally attuned, and to mentor the next generation of APAC talent.
Shimal arrived in Athens not as a passive attendee but with a structured plan: identify capability gaps, seek targeted conversations with senior IAPCO members and return home with a concrete action list for her team and local network. It is an approach that reflects the ethos she expressed so plainly in her application: ‘I care about doing this work with excellence and with integrity, even when no one is watching.’ In an industry built on trust, IAPCO has found a worthy recipient for 2026.
Previous Scholarship Recipients
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.
Apply Now
Applications for the 2026 IAPCO & NZICC Emerging Leaders Programme – APAC and the Jan Tonkin Scholarship are now open.
IAPCO Members from the region are invited to join the third cohort of the IAPCO & NZICC Emerging Leaders Programme – APAC and become part of a growing community of future leaders shaping the meetings and business events industry across the Asia-Pacific region.
