B&T's Agency Scorecard: This Is Flow

This Is Flow

KEY PLAYERS

This Is Flow

MEDIA AGENCY

Owned By

Independent

Team Captain

Jimmy Hyett, CEO & Founder

Leadership Team

Catherine Rushton

chief strategy officer

Straford Rodrigues

chief data officer

Jeffery Ewing

chief financial officer

Sue Cant

head of investment

STATS

headcount

40

client wins

8

client Retentions

All retained

THREE LARGEST CLIENTS

Carnival Australia

The A2 Milk Company

Care Pharmaceuticals

TROPHY CABINET

MFA Awards 2023

Best Talent and Culture (agency with less than 100 people)

Great Place To Work’s Australia's Best Workplaces

#1 for a small-sized business

CEO Magazine Awards

Media Executive of the Year (Jimmy Hyett)

This Is Flow experienced remarkable growth and success in 2023.

The agency told B&T that its media billings surged by 60 per cent from $50 million in 2022 to $80 million in 2023, driven by a wave of new business wins, including A2 Milk, Air Asia and briefs for Unilever hairdressing brand Toni&Guy and beauty brand Impulse. Flow also said that its revenue climbed by 173 per cent with a strong net profit margin of 30 per cent. It also posted organic revenue growth of 12 per cent, which is no mean feat in a challenging economic climate.

The agency’s growth was not limited to its billings, however. This Is Flow more than doubled the size of its team from 12 to 40 staff members. Despite this rapid expansion, This Is Flow maintained an industry-leading employee retention rate, a testament to its strong culture and innovative retention initiatives. The agency’s commitment to its people was recognised through multiple awards, including Best Talent and Culture at the MFA Awards and being named the Best Place to Work in Australia for small-sized companies. The agency scored other local industry awards and CEO Jimmy Hyett picked up a prestigious CEO Magazine Award.

The proof is often found in the pudding; Flow has implemented several initiatives to drive attraction and retention in the industry, including the Flow Profit Share, Flow Miles (an internal currency driving loyalty and engagement) and events including family feasts and passion days. The agency had a churn rate of 2 per cent in 2023 and claims it has only ever had five leavers since its founding.

Flow says it is dedicated to supporting gender equality with a 65 per cent female workforce and the implementation of several initiatives, including flexible working policies that allow staff to work from home on Mondays and Fridays, and an industry-first nine-day fortnight. This Is Flow also has a gender pay gap that favours women by one per cent. 

It has been a transformative year for the indie, to say the least.

This Is Flow's Analysis of 2023

“Flow transformed what agency growth looks like in 2023. With a major increase in clients driving performance, and a major increase in staff driving culture. 

Flow stood out from the pack and led the way on people and culture initiatives. This drove an industry-leading retention rate, multiple people and culture awards and was highlighted by Flow being named the #1 Best Place to Work in Australia — not just against our industry — but across ALL industries in the country. Growth wasn’t just experienced by new clients, existing client spend increased organically by 12 per cent in challenging economic conditions meaning the work we were producing was driving growth for our clients. The year was capped off with Flow being recognised by winning several industry awards.”

Matt Papasavva

MVP: Matt Papasavva, MD in 2023, promoted to CCO in 2024

Agency Score

9

COACH'S COMMENT:

This Is Flow has made enormous strides in creating an inclusive and thriving team environment. A run of client wins and silverware rounded out an impressive performance by the indie.