Tabcorp has won the Public Relations Institute of Australia Golden Target Award for the 2018 National Public Relations Campaign of the Year at the PRIA Awards presentation dinner held in Sydney on 30 October. Tabcorp also won the Award for the best Internal or Change Management Campaign.

You can see the full list of winners at the bottom of this article.

The award was for the communication campaign conducted by Tabcorp to inform business stakeholders and employees who were affected by the merger of Tabcorp and Tatts to create one of the world’s largest gambling entertainment groups.

Titled ‘Surround sound in the first 100 days of a merger’ the campaign addressed the confusion and disaffection caused by a very long takeover process complicated by legal challenges and a rival bid that made employees cynical about the merger.

The campaign strategy was to use a wide variety of different forms of both internal and external communication to consistently and positively deliver the same open and honest messages for 100 days after the merger was completed to enable employees to fully understand the reasons for, and the nature of the change, and become more positive about their future.

The Public Relations Institute of Australia has run the Golden Target Awards for excellence on public relations practice for 42 years. PRIA National President Sylvia Bell said, “The Awards are now open to both PRIA members and non-members making them truly national awards for outstanding best practice in PR. They are judged by panels of public relations leaders and industry sector experts and awards are made at both the state and national levels.”

Awards are offered in various categories representing the depth and diversity of modern public relations practice. The full list of the 2018 Golden Target Award winners in the different categories attached illustrates this diversity.

In addition to the Golden Target Awards Thomas Parkes FPRIA, chair of the PRIA College of Fellows received the PRIA National President’s Award for outstanding service to the PRIA.

In presenting the Award, PRIA national president Sylvia Bell said, “This award acknowledges Thomas Parkes’ wise counsel and advice, and his dedication to the PRIA College of Fellows.”

AWARD WINNERS IN THE 2018 GOLDEN TARGET AWARDS

NATIONAL CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR AWARD Surround sound in the first 100 days of a merger – Tabcorp (VIC)

NATIONAL PRESIDENT’S AWARD Thomas Parkes LFPRIA (ACT)

ADVOCACY AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS CAMPAIGN 2018 Liverpool Hospital Funding Campaign – Liverpool Innovation Precinct (NSW)

COMMUNITY RELATIONS CAMPAIGN Lighting up Bowen after Cyclone Debbie – Cole Lawson Communications (QLD)

CRISIS MANAGEMENT CAMPAIGN #mindthefacts: Protecting youth mental health in the marriage equality debate. Provocate (QLD)

GOVERNMENT SPONSORED CAMPAIGN Scarborough Foreshore Redevelopment – Mills Wilson (WA)

INTERNAL OR CHANGE MANAGEMENT CAMPAIGN Surround sound in the first 100 days of a merger – Tabcorp (VIC)

ISSUES MANAGEMENT CAMPAIGN Preventing TasWater Takeover – Bright Company (TAS)

SMALL BUDGET CAMPAIGN Girl Guides Biscuit Drive Campaign 2018 – LBPR (NSW)

BUSINESS 2 BUSINESS CAMPAIGN EY University of the Future – Sefiani and EY (NSW)

CONSUMER CAMPAIGN The Great Backyard Dunny Search – Queensland Urban Utilities (QLD)

DIGITAL AND SOCIAL CAMPAIGN Buy West Eat Best – June Dining Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (WA)

EXPERIENTIAL CAMPAIGN Celsius – A wine Temperature Experience Taylor Wines and Klick Communications (NSW)

HEALTH CAMPAIGN St John Ambulance – Shocking AUS – Red Agency (QLD)

INTEGRATED MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION CAMPAIGN MyMACS campaign shifts the way people think about aged care Chatterbox Marketing (VIC)

PRO BONO CAMPAIGN Dancing CEOs – P4 Group (QLD)

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP CAMPAIGN Unspeakable: Understanding Sexual Crime – Victoria Police (VIC)

EXCELLENCE IN MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION The Great Backyard Dunny Search – Queensland Urban Utilities (QLD)

CORPORATE IN-HOUSE TEAM AWARD Holden Australia – Holden Australia (VIC)

NOT FOR PROFIT IN-HOUSE TEAM AWARD Credible Clickbait: Outshouting fake news and supplying factual entertaining science. Australian Academy of Science (ACT)

LARGE CONSULTANCY AWARD Herd MSL (NSW)

MEDIUM CONSULTANCY AWARD Honner (NSW)

SMALL CONSULTANCY AWARD Elevate Communication (QLD)

FUTURE LEADERS – Joint Winners Andrea Phillips – Red Agency (NSW) Olivia Van Dalsen – Elevate Communication (QLD)

PUBLIC RELATIONS EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR Dr Katharina Wolf FPRIA, Curtin University (WA)