On relationships, not results: What an 8.2 Radar survey really reflects

Over the last few years, I have worked hard to get strong leadership in play at Lumico to ensure delivery is on-time and on-brief and when possible, inspirational. Getting an 8.2 / 10 Radar score from Absa in the January 2026, up from 8/10 last year, was not my achievement, it was the team running with the account showing up consistently, every day, week, month, and year, for years.

The other side of the coin is just and important. Were it not for multiple leaders on the Absa side sharing briefs, making time, dedicating budgets, and most importantly, trust us to do the work, this would not be possible.

One of my favourite and probably most impactful client-partnerships I had a few years ago was with Jaco Maass, who was the head of IT at BKB. He used to say:

“Don’t sell me a product and leave me to figure it out, become my partner, my trusted advisor, and we can grow our businesses together.”

That line has stayed with me. It underpins how I approach work and clients.

When a relationship feels transactional, the work slows down. Decisions take longer. Conversations become guarded. You start managing the process instead of improving the outcome.

When it feels like a partnership, everything changes. There is trust. There is openness. There is a willingness to solve problems together instead of pushing them across the table.

From our side, that has been a deliberate focus.

We’ve tried to build an agency that clients can rely on when things get complex, not just when things are going well. That means staying close to the business, being accountable, and grounding the work in real objectives.

There is a temptation, particularly in fast-moving environments, to prioritise speed above all else. And speed does matter. But without alignment, it often undermines the intention, leading to diminishing returns and frustration.

I stay close to the business. I stay close to the work. I stay involved in the conversations that matter. Not because it’s necessary for control, but because it builds alignment. And alignment makes everything else easier.

I’ve seen how quickly things improve when there’s trust on both sides. Decisions get made faster. Feedback becomes more honest. And the work benefits from that clarity.

The older generation of agency leaders built their businesses on this – long-term relationships, shared accountability, and a mutual understanding that both sides carry the outcome.

I don’t think that’s changed.

An 8.2 score doesn’t mean we’ve arrived. It tells me the relationship is working. It tells me we’re building something that can hold under pressure, not just when things are easy.

And in an industry that keeps evolving, that still feels like the most important thing to get right.

Because at the end of the day, the work is only as strong as the relationship behind it.