Connect has been named the number two media agency to work for in South Africa, according to Scopen’s highly anticipated Best Agency to Work For South Africa 2025/26 report. Based on comprehensive interviews with more than 230 agency professionals across the country, this ranking cements the reputation of Connect – the Attention Agency in The Up&Up Group of creative companies – as a premier destination for top industry talent.
The Scopen study reveals that respect, pride, and credibility are the main drivers of agency attractiveness. Placing second highlights Connect's success in fostering a dynamic and rewarding internal culture while delivering groundbreaking, attention-driven work for their clients.
“We are proud to have been acknowledged, and the accolade is testament to something we actively work on building in the agency: Connect is a place with a personal touch. We try to create the spirit of a family. There is fun and laughter, and our monthly wellness excursions are creative activities we all enjoy. This is only possible because we have built a mature environment where we treat everyone like adults – we focus on outputs not hours,” says Martin MacGregor, chief executive officer at Connect.
MacGregor says that the agency has been on a sharp growth path, evolving from a small boutique partner into a large agency. “Along this journey it has been a priority for us to retain our close-family feel as we grow. It is important to us that everyone in the agency sees, respects and cares for their colleagues.”
Referencing the rapid growth while keeping the human touch, MacGregor says that by positioning itself as the attention agency, Connect has proactively moved beyond legacy metrics in favour of securing genuine human attention in an increasingly distracted world. This progressive approach is executed at an impressive scale, with Connect currently deploying R800m in client media spend to attract and secure attention for some of the continent's biggest brands.
“We threw out the rulebook, rebuilt our tech stack, redefined our offering, and onboarded some of the continent’s biggest and most prestigious accounts, in a short amount of time. None of this would have been possible without every single member of the Connect family,” says MacGregor.
