The latest edition of the qualitative media agency evaluation from RECMA has been released. The report is published every six months and the latest covers all new 2022 business through to September.

In Canada, UM has the highest “quali-score” of 23 – making it the only agency with a “dominant” profile.

RECMA’s “quali-scores” are based on points awarded for strength in 19 qualitative measures in two categories: vitality and structure. The “vitality” category highlights the dynamism of agencies through areas such as new business and competitiveness in pitches.

The structure category focuses on the agencies’ staff resources, diversification and client portfolios. The three main metrics used to evaluate the level of digitalization and diversification of an agency are expert staff, group specialized resources and share of non-traditional media fields.

A score between eight and 11 is considered “good” and 12 to 19 is considered “high.” A score of 20 or above is considered “dominant.”

The remaining top five agencies have been assigned “high” profile status. OMD comes in as number two with a score of 18, followed by Cossette Media and Touche, both with 15 points. Initiative and PHD round out the top five with “quali-scores” of 14 points each. Three of the top five agencies are part of Omnicom Media Group: OMD, Touche and PHD.

While UM has the highest score in the “vitality” category (14), OMD has the highest “structure” score (12). Mediacom, although not in the top six agencies, has the highest new business balance between June 2021 and September 2022. The new business balance discloses the monetary balance of wins and losses and measures the monetary impact of new business in the agency’s client portfolio.