Join the celebration of the annual PRINZ Awards at the Hilton in Auckland.

This prestigious event will celebrate the achievements and excellence of our members in the field of public relations and communications. The awards gala dinner will be held on Thursday, 4 June 2026 at the Hilton and tables will seat groups of 10.

The evening will feature the presentation of the PRINZ Awards, announcing the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners of 14 main categories as well as PR Consultancy of the Year, PR In-House Team of the Year and the coveted PRINZ Supreme Award.

Join the PRINZ Awards finalists, APR graduates, the PRINZ Board and members of the PRINZ College of Fellows and catch up with your peers, learn from the best, and have a fabulous time!

The Tauranga sub-committee invites you to shake off winter and connect with the comms community at our Winter Mix & Mingle. This relaxed, friendly event brings together public relations, communications, marketing and journalism professionals from across the Bay of Plenty. On the night, you’ll take part in a low‑stress speed networking round, designed to help you make meaningful connections without the awkwardness. Don’t worry – we’ll do the leg work to make it easy. You just need to show up!

Did we mention there is also a top shelf gin and vodka prize pack worth $140 up for grabs thanks to award-winning Clarity Distilling Company - who are based right here in Tauranga? Join us at Picnicka on Thursday 11th June, from 4.30pm, with networking fun kicking off at 5.30pm. Free fries provided.

Effective public relations practice requires more than strong messaging in NZ. Many cases call for cultural understanding, integrity, and a genuine commitment to Tiriti-based principles. This dynamic, practice-focused workshop is designed to equip PR professionals with the tools and confidence to work responsibly and respectfully within an Aotearoa context.

If you’re lost in the maze of AI - you can’t afford to stay lost any longer. Hands on AI is your escape route, sharing with you the best ways to use AI in daily practice. It is a session designed to equip you with practical, actionable techniques so you can find your way.

AI is embedded in our daily activity and we’re now moving in to the realm of agentic AI, where the technology becomes your active collaborator, capable of automating tasks, interpreting complex data and supporting strategic decision-making in ways not possible just a few months ago.

This workshop has been designed to enhance the key stakeholder engagement of public relations professionals. Key stakeholders are those individuals who have the most influence on a project or programme of work. From prioritising stakeholders to the psychology of influence and skills of active listening and the behavioural drivers of trust, this workshop includes completing a live stakeholder engagement plan and will equip you to immediately lift your key stakeholder engagement.

On the 15th July, 12–1pm, PRINZ is partnering with Belong Aotearoa for a member webinar exploring one of the most important questions facing communications professionals right now: how do we help ethnically diverse communities get heard? Belong Aotearoa is a national organisation working to strengthen belonging and social cohesion across Aotearoa New Zealand. Their flagship storytelling initiative, PassTheMic, amplifies the voices of migrant and refugee-background communities — and they need our help to shape its next chapter. At a time when anti-migrant sentiment is becoming more visible in our public discourse, this is a chance to put your communications expertise to work on something that matters.

Led by professional director and PRINZ Life Member Tracey Bridges, this short course answers all your questions about how to work well with Boards, and – for those who are interested – how to move into a governance career. It will touch on key aspects of Governance practice. It will comprise a presentation and plenty of time for questions, answers and discussion.

A successful speech can change the world, but it starts with a blank page.

This workshop empowers speechwriters to assemble their ideas, find their voice, and earn their audience’s attention. It demystifies the speechwriting process, including the crucial planning phase when writing speeches for others, and encourages purposeful, effective storytelling.

This workshop has been designed for professionals from all sectors who seek to be more effective communicators and storytellers, and incorporates writing and editing exercises.

Dust off those random facts and join the local Taranaki PRINZ subcommittee for a night of trivia, laughs, and a bit of healthy competition!

In a world where everyone’s clamouring for “data-driven” insights, this course goes beyond the numbers. It’s about learning to think critically, interpret evidence wisely, and make sound, ethical decisions in your PR practice.

You’ll explore how to balance data with judgement, recognise cognitive bias (in yourself and others), and turn information from multiple sources into meaningful, defensible insights. We’ll cover practical tools for interpreting results, testing assumptions, and reporting outcomes (without losing sight of people, context, or purpose).

Podcasting is booming, with recent data showing that one in three New Zealanders listens to podcasts regularly.

Join renowned New Zealand broadcaster Mike Puru, co-host of The Breeze Drive and The House of Wellness Podcast, at a breakfast event exploring the rapid growth of podcasting, and how PR professionals can use the medium to build trust, connect with highly engaged audiences and strengthen stakeholder relationships and sentiment.

Wednesday 5th August 2026 @ 9:30am - 12:00pm OverviewFinance is one of the key languages of business, and communications professionals are increasingly expected to speak…