South Africa, May 7 -- One of the most significant shifts has been the rise of technology and automation. Programmatic buying, AI-driven optimisations, and performance dashboards have streamlined media operations, but often at the expense of human connection. While these tools have made media more efficient and measurable, they've also created a culture where numbers dominate, and softer, people-centric values - like creativity, empathy, and relationship-building - get sidelined. Human insight still matters deeply, but it's increasingly buried under layers of data.

Internally, media agencies have also struggled to maintain a people-first culture. Talent burnout is rampant in many shops, especially among junior teams handling high volumes...