---
id: "quote-problem-is-relational"
type: "quote"
source_timestamps: ["§ The Research"]
tags: ["root-cause", "relationships"]
related: ["claim-rmn-failure-is-relational"]
speaker: "Authors"
speakers: ["Remko Van Hoek", "Stephanie Thomas", "Rodney Thomas"]
quote: "In practice, the problem is not technical or strategic. It is relational. The dynamics between retailers and suppliers are being tested by new incentives, mismatched expectations, and a lack of trust."
source_url: "https://hbr.org/2025/09/the-importance-of-trust-and-transparency-in-retail-media-networks"
source_title: "The Importance of Trust and Transparency in Retail Media Networks"
sources: ["attention"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-attention"
originDay: 4
articleStem: "hbr-foci-71-retail-media-networks-trust"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2025/09/the-importance-of-trust-and-transparency-in-retail-media-networks"
sourceTitle: "The Importance of Trust and Transparency in Retail Media Networks"
---
# The root problem of RMNs is relational

> In practice, the problem is not technical or strategic. It is relational. The dynamics between retailers and suppliers are being tested by new incentives, mismatched expectations, and a lack of trust.

— The authors, § The Research. This is the thesis in miniature; it directly voices [[claim-rmn-failure-is-relational]] and the contrarian framing [[contrarian-rmn-failure-is-relational]].