From Newsletter Readers to International Award Winners
The value of reading the PRINZ newsletter was driven home for CentrePort’s Comms team recently, after a call for award nominations in the newsletter resulted in the team winning three international awards.
CentrePort Communications and Engagement Manager Andree Kai Fong and her tiny, but mighty, team of Dominic Taffs and Rachel Laurenson recently heard the surprise news that they had won three awards at the Davos Communications Summit, announced on 23 April.
“I saw the item (for submissions) in the PRINZ newsletter and thought why not submit some entries for the work the team has been doing. It was a shot in the dark, which hit its target better than expected.”
Andree entered the team into the three categories: Inhouse Team of the Year, Most Innovative Use of Visual Storytelling, and made a personal entry into the PR Silver Star, which recognises career long contributions to the PR and Communications field.
Andree says she entered the awards with no expectations of success, and was blown away by the team’s results, being recognised in all three categories.
“We took Bronze for Team of the Year, Gold for Visual Storytelling, and I was humbled and proud to win Gold for the PR Silver Star,” she says.
“It showed me that comms and PR practitioners in New Zealand can compete with the best internationally, so I’d encourage others to consider entering.”
The win Andree said the team was most excited about was for Visual Storytelling, which is international recognition of the work done inhouse by Creative Designer Rachel Laurenson and Marine Planner Hayley O’Callaghan, to create a new port plaque. The plaque tells the story of how Wellington harbour was formed through the Māori myth of Taniwha Ngake and Whataitai, alongside providing information about CentrePort itself. The Plaque is a ceremonial gift given to ships making inaugural visits to Wellington and is also used as a taonga for CentrePort staff.
“The win was particularly special for Hayley and Rachel given all their hard work on the project, from concept to design, and delivery.”
After this, the team received further good news by earning both an IABC Gold Quill Bronze award (again for the plaque) and a follow-on Silver Quill awarded by the IABC APAC region.
“It’s been a fabulous acknowledgement of the port’s comms team and demonstrates that you don’t have to have big budgets or teams to do impactful and powerful work,” Andree says.
Photo: PRINZ members Andree Kai Fong, Dominic Taffs and Rachel Laurenson
