As an agency focused on the intersection of data, media, and technology to improve brand messaging for clients, Monks has established itself as an agency that utilises the best of media and data solutions combined with culture-driven initiatives to make a difference in an ever-changing world. With these offerings, it’s worth noting that leading Monks–especially in a fastly-changing region like Southeast Asia–needs to be able to adapt quickly according to market trends all while exuding unique creativity.
For our latest Agency Leadership Decoded series, MARKETECH APAC recently caught up exclusively with Munas van Boonstra, managing director for Southeast Asia at Monks to better understand her leadership style, and what advice she imparts to other agency leaders amidst an ever-changing industry landscape.
‘Powered by transformations’
For Munas, her motto for the last 10 years has been ‘Powered By Your Transformations’, adding that she truly believes in transformational leadership, whereby she is driven to inspire and motivate other teams to achieve outcomes. For this, the team’s personal and professional growth goes first, followed by organisational growth.
“I love empowering my teams to go over and beyond by setting the future vision and goals. Working with them and energising them to work towards these goals with passion, with the main goal being that they grow in the process first and foremost,” she said.
She also added, “I encourage challenging assumptions, inspire creativity and promote problem-solving by fostering a culture of continuous improvement and learning.”
Focusing on organisational commitment for growth
Munas also highlighted that Monks have great platforms that showcase their projects and recognise the people involved in them. These events in their weekly ‘Happy Monday’ sessions and their monthly ‘Show & Tell’ events, which feature implementing personalised learning and development plans that will offer tailored learning opportunities based on individual career goals, strengths and interests.
“Providing personalised development shows the organisations’ commitment to long-term success and aligns their personal goals with the organisational objectives. When an individual grows, they benefit first and foremost, which naturally the team, the clients and the organisation benefit from too,” she stated.
When asked about what good results or observations have they seen upon having this approach to agency leadership, she stated, “We are working more effectively and efficiently which benefits our teams and clients, however, everything should be about continuous improvement.”
Addressing industry challenges
One of the first challenges Munas noted addresses talent management and retention, which by all means is about attracting and retaining top talent in a competitive market is tough, especially data, digital, media and creative skills.
“It’s important to create a strong agency culture, offer professional growth and continuous learning opportunities and flexible work arrangements. Here at Monks, we practise hybrid and flexible work arrangements,” she said.
Another industry challenge Munas highlighted refers to maintaining creativity and innovation. For this matter, she says that for the clients’ benefit and to stay competitive, they need to ensure they stay ahead of creative trends whilst balancing clients needs and business objectives.
“We pride ourselves in being at the forefront of innovation and disrupting the advertising industry with AI. We invest in upskilling our current teams on our proprietary tools, other AI tools and platforms. As a data and culturally-driven agency, we are constantly upskilling our teams on analytics and creative performance metrics to optimise campaigns,”
Lastly, there is also the challenge amongst brand and marketing teams that are under constant pressure to achieve faster results with tighter budget, whilst delivering high quality campaigns that meet ever-evolving consumer demands.
“To meet this demand, we have developed our proprietary Monks.Flow that leverages automation and AI-driven tools including our proprietary tools for efficiency, streamlining processes and optimising collaboration between briefing, creative, [and] production,” she said.
Munas refers to their professional managed service that gives brand marketers the ability to talk to their data. During its launch, the agency stated that this service addresses a unique need within enterprise AI workflows by converting owned customer data into dynamic consumer personas. This then allows marketers to interact in real-time, significantly augmenting their speed to market.
Leadership inspires trust and respect
When asked for advice regarding agency leadership, Munas stressed the importance of leading by example–meaningleaders that set the standard for behaviour, work ethic, and values through their actions.
“Rather than relying on authority or verbal instructions alone, I believe that by demonstrating the qualities leaders expect from their team, it inspires trust and respect. When leaders exhibit the desired behaviours such as accountability, commitment, and integrity, team members are more likely to mirror those actions, creating a positive and productive work culture. This approach fosters loyalty and motivates employees to perform at their best, as they see the leader actively contributing alongside them,” she explained.
She also highlighted that by showing rather than telling, leaders can earn the respect of their team and establish a clear, consistent standard.
“[This] also creates a sense of shared responsibility, where leaders are seen as part of the team, contributing to the collective success, rather than distant authority figures. This approach can lead to improved morale, higher levels of trust, and a more engaged workforce. So, walk the walk, talk the talk,” she concluded.