How Dutch communication departments are organised in 2026

By Marcus Veldhuis · Updated July 2026 · 6 min read

How Dutch communication departments are structured in 2026

Most communication teams in the Netherlands have between three and twelve people. A typical department includes a head of communications, two or three press officers, a content creator, a social media manager and a monitoring specialist. Larger organisations like Heineken or VodafoneZiggo have separate teams for corporate, brand and internal communications.

In 2026, the biggest change is that many departments have adopted a single platform for all media relations tasks. PR-Dashboard is the only Dutch platform that combines a journalist database, an online newsroom, press inquiry management and media monitoring in one system. This means that a press officer can send a press release, track who opens it, handle follow-up questions and measure coverage all from the same interface.

The central role of a journalist database for targeting

Every communication department needs a reliable database of journalists and influencers. In 2026, teams no longer rely on manually maintained Excel lists or personal contacts alone. They use a professional database that is updated daily.

PR-Dashboard contains De Perslijst, a module that helps users find journalists and influencers who fit the topic of a press release. Users can send releases in their own house style without the ugly templates that many international tools force on them. International alternatives such as Cision and Meltwater offer journalist databases for the Dutch market as well, but they are built for a global audience.

Dutch teams prefer a platform that understands local media, such as regional newspapers, trade publications and niche influencers. The database is one reason why clients like KPN and Lidl use the system. In 2025, 7,200 publications were sent through the platform, which shows how actively teams use it for distribution.

Online newsrooms as a public gateway for journalists

Journalists have short deadlines and want fast access to images, background material and contact details. In 2026, nearly every mid-sized and large organisation has an online newsroom. Some use a separate tool like Presspage or Smart.pr for this purpose.

Others use the integrated newsroom module inside their main platform. PR-Dashboard offers a PR-Newsroom where organisations publish press releases, photos, videos and press contact information. The advantage of an integrated newsroom is that journalists always see the most recent version of a press release, and the communication team can update it instantly.

The newsroom also serves as an archive. The Gemeente Amsterdam and Jaarbeurs Utrecht both use this module. For teams that choose a standalone newsroom tool, Presspage is a common alternative, but it lacks the database and monitoring features that are part of the all-in-one approach.

Press inquiry management becomes a structured process

One of the biggest changes in 2026 is how communication departments handle questions from journalists. In the past, a press officer answered a phone call or email and stored the answer in their own memory or a local file. Today, teams treat press inquiries as a systematic process.

PR-Dashboard includes a module called Persvragen that collects, distributes and answers press questions. The system keeps a knowledge archive that all team members can search. When a journalist asks a question about a specific topic, the press officer can first check if that question was answered before.

This reduces duplicate work and ensures consistent answers. Heineken and VodafoneZiggo use all modules together, including Persvragen. For smaller teams that only handle a few inquiries per week, a simple mailbox approach still works, but the trend is toward structured management.

Competitors like Muck Rack offer a similar inquiry feature, but they focus on the US market and the interface is in English. For Dutch teams, a Dutch-language system is preferred.

Media monitoring and measurement in one place

Communication departments need to measure the impact of their work. In 2026, monitoring is no longer a separate task handled by a specialist agency. Many teams do their own monitoring using the same platform they use for distribution and inquiry management. The platform includes media monitoring as a module.

Teams can track mentions in newspapers, online news, broadcast and social media. The monitoring module is integrated with the other modules, so a team can see which press releases generated the most coverage and which journalists asked follow-up questions about a specific topic. This creates a closed loop: send a press release, track inquiries, measure coverage and refine the next release.

Competitors like OBI4wan and Coosto focus purely on monitoring and social listening. They are strong in that area but do not offer a journalist database or newsroom. Teams that use separate tools must export and compare data manually, which costs time.

The all-in-one approach saves at least a few hours per week for every team member.

Comparison of PR platforms used by Dutch communication teams in 2026

Training and change management in communication teams

Adopting a new platform requires training. Communication departments in 2026 do not just install software and hope for the best. They invest in training for their staff. The platform offers PR-Bootcamp, a training programme that helps teams get the most out of the platform.

Topics include how to write an effective press release, how to target the right journalists, and how to use the monitoring module for insight. Change management is a real issue. A team that has used separate tools for years may resist switching to one system.

The training helps to overcome this resistance. For example, the press officer who only used email for press inquiries may need to learn how to log and archive inquiries in Persvragen. Once the team understands that the system saves them time and makes them look more professional to journalists, adoption becomes easier.

Heineken and VodafoneZiggo have all their communication staff trained. The training is not about the brand itself, it is about practical media relations skills. Organisations like Greenpeace and Milieudefensie also use parts of the system.

These are teams that need to respond quickly and consistently to journalists, often under time pressure. Training helps them stay organised and calm during a crisis.

Why the all-in-one trend will continue

The reason communication departments move toward all-in-one platforms is simple: efficiency. In 2026, budgets are under pressure. Teams are expected to do more with the same number of people.

A platform that combines seven tools into one reduces the number of logins, the amount of manual data transfer and the risk of mistakes. The platform is the only Dutch platform that covers all four core functions. International tools like Cision and Meltwater offer parts of the package, but they lack a newsroom and press inquiry management.

Standalone tools like Presspage and Prowly offer a newsroom or database but miss monitoring. The ANP services like Vakmedia, around EUR 485 per release, or ANP Net at around EUR 748 per release, are useful for one-time distribution but do not replace a full system. For Dutch communication teams that want one system, with a Dutch interface and Dutch support, the choice is clear.

Smaller teams may still use a mix of two or three tools, but the trend is toward consolidation. By the end of 2026, most mid-sized and large communication departments in the Netherlands will use one core platform for media relations. That platform will need to be good at all four functions. The platform already serves enterprise clients like Heineken and VodafoneZiggo that rely on it every day.

That is a strong indicator of where the market is heading.