The world changed for many when the pandemic struck. It was the same thing for Laureana Gladys Basinillo, CEO and founder of Intersections Communications Inc., but for a greater value—Intersections Communications, Inc., happened.
Right at the height of a global concern where the whole industry became unstable, Gladys became the company’s lead, specialising in creative media works, content, and influencer marketing, amongst others. In an industry that demands creativity, putting something new on the table is a must—even to those who admitted that leading an independent agency could be a double-edged sword.
In this Agency Leadership Decoded piece, MARKETECH APAC spoke with Gladys, aiming to understand her early legacy, philosophy, and how, amidst the vast network, she found an absolute way to meet people and intersect.
From start-up to scale-up
During the time the industry collapsed and corporate jobs no longer offered stability, Gladys found a path that led to a possibility. During this early stage, Gladys admitted to being equipped with three things: courage, agility, and ingenuity—this, according to her, was how they ‘pivoted’.
“We launched online streaming events, concerts, and seminars for clients, striking fast partnerships with tech providers, platforms, and music labels. What began as a single online concert snowballed into multiple projects, then into year-long digital programs and hybrid activations,” she added.
From here on, continuous innovation became their primary motivator; this, according to Gladys, was how they kept their momentum in the business to grow back. However, as a then start-up business, scale in manpower is what Gladys pointed out as another necessity.
“Early on, we lost a pitch we had worked hard for, simply because the client said we were ‘too small’. At the time, we were only two years old, with about 20 people, independent, with no international network or financial back-up. It stung, but instead of chasing size for its own sake, we focused on deliberate, quality growth. We hired slowly and mindfully, ensuring both expertise and cultural fit,” she narrated.
Learning this, investing in technology and innovation became their goal. Proving that their size as a start-up company can be countered not just by survival, but by reinvention.
“We embraced GenAI to speed up creative work and free our teams to focus on strategy. We built a proprietary AI dashboard that consolidates real-time reporting across digital platforms, allowing clients instant access to insights while our teams spend less time on manual work and more on optimisation,” she added.
Hard-earned and against the odds
For Intersections, growth has always started with its people. As Gladys puts it, “At Intersections, our culture begins and ends with people. An agency, after all, is only as strong as its talent; and when our people are inspired, supported, and growing, the work follows naturally.”
She added that growth for the agency is ‘non-negotiable’ and, upon this realisation, Gladys revealed that they heavily invest in professional development.
“We send our team to both local and global trainings, immersing them in the industry’s biggest stages. It keeps us ahead of the curve, while fueling their own hunger to learn and innovate.” Gladys shared.
Amidst all the growth they have pondered in recent years, Gladys insisted that leading an independent agency meant ‘confronting challenges head-on’.
“When I look back at our first five years, what stands out is growth—hard-earned and against the odds. From a small team working out of a condo-turned-office, to co-working spaces, to finally building a home of our own—we’ve grown not just in size, but in strength and conviction,” Gladys shared.
From here on, positive outcomes followed one another: gross profit tripled in percentage terms, partnership expansions occurred, and they even secured two out of three accounts, ultimately strengthening their client portfolio.
All of these early triumphs were rooted in one thing—by viewing ‘independence as an advantage’
“It enabled us to anticipate client needs and expand beyond media into performance-driven content, events, influencer marketing, and media-integrated PR with the launch of PraXis, our experiential marketing arm,” she expounded.
Alongside this, Intersections also triumphed in closing technological gaps via developing their own suite of real-time dashboards, discovering KOL-to-KOC discovery tools, and refining social intelligence systems that aided in connecting data streams into ‘actionable insights’.
Amidst all these successes, Gladys highlighted that their ‘most meaningful milestone’ is still their people, “Today, we are a 40-strong team, many of whom grew with us from entry-level roles to senior leadership. We’ve built a culture of empowerment and growth that has resulted in a retention rate higher than industry standards—a true testament to the commitment and spirit of our people.”
Embracing independence and constant intersections
Running the independent agency, Gladys noted three important principles: Staying people-first, not chasing size, but value, and prioritising innovation with purpose.
“An agency is not its name or its logo—it is its people. Invest in their growth, listen to their ideas, and build a culture that empowers them to lead. When your people thrive, your agency thrives…Second, don’t chase size—chase value. Clients won’t remember how big your office is, but they will remember how fast, agile, and imaginative you are in solving their problems. Quality, not quantity, is what builds lasting trust.”
In innovating with purpose, she underscores the importance of ‘constantly intersecting’, “Technology, creativity, data, and culture are constantly intersecting. Your role is to connect those dots into solutions that matter. Keep experimenting, keep learning, and keep moving forward.”
This coincides with her given advice to future agency leaders: to embrace the courage to be different.
“Embrace the courage to be different. Independence is both a privilege and a responsibility. It gives you freedom from rigid structures, but it also requires you to build your own path with clarity, conviction, and resilience,” she shared.
For Gladys, leading the agency is to stand at the ‘intersections of risk and reward’, a proof that in all steps taken, challenges were met with an optimistic lens, “Don’t fear the challenges. When we started Intersections in the middle of a pandemic, there was no playbook. What carried us through was courage, partnerships, and the belief that every obstacle can be reframed as an opportunity.”
The ‘Intersection’ philosophy
At Intersections, the name says it all. Built on the belief that true value lies where different worlds meet, “Our very name reflects our philosophy. We exist at the pivotal points where worlds meet: data and creativity, client needs and bespoke solutions, innovation and culture. By standing at these intersections, we have the freedom to connect the dots and choose what truly delivers value, whether for our clients, our people, or our business.”
This philosophy influenced every move they made, every step they took, and all the connections that intersected: “If you can navigate that space with integrity, vision, and a relentless pursuit of excellence, you’ll not only build an agency, you’ll build a legacy.”
What fueled Intersections, accompanied by this philosophy, is their belief in ‘partnerships over competition’. This is what they named, ‘The Intersections way’: “To stay at the centre of change as we deliver on our mission to transform the agency model into a progressive, inclusive, technology-driven, and future-facing solutions provider.”
While the vast network grows continually, Gladys shared that what kept all these milestones, victories, and philosophies intact was their ‘relentless pursuit of learning and excellence’, “Because at every intersection lies not just a choice, but a chance to grow.”
******
For Gladys and Intersections Communications Inc., navigating the extensive industry can be met by acknowledging its variety, wide reach, and complexity with one thing: welcoming its vastness as an opportunity to intersect.
