17134: Cravings, Cronies, Cultures, Castles.

 

Advertising Age reported White Castle hired a new White advertising agency—GSD&M.

 

Creative and media duties slide from Merkley+Partners to GSD&M, both within Omnicom Group—pointing to probable Corporate Cultural Collusion that the White holding company has mastered so well.

 

According to Ad Age, the account review featured a “cultural scan” that matched client and agency based on 54 attributes, determining potential “chemistry” between all parties. A cultural scan of GSD&M leadership, incidentally, displays common corporate Caucasian dominance.

 

No word on multicultural marketing possibilities. GSD&M likely feels qualified to handle such matters, of course, as they are those wonderful folks who gave you Annie the Chicken Queen.

 

Behind GSD&M’s White Castle win—creative and media accounts slide over to the Omnicom agency

 

By Brian Bonilla

 

White Castle, the 104-year-old family-owned slider chain, has named GSD&M as its new creative and media agency of record. The assignment follows a competitive review handled by Rojek Consulting Group.

 

Omincom Group’s Merkley+Partners previously handled creative and Crossmedia handled media. While Merkley+Partner’s remit has concluded, Crossmedia will stay on until potentially sometime in August, White Castle Chief Marketing Officer Lynn Blashford said. Blue Chip will remain as its shopper marketing agency of record.

 

Lynn Blashford said the change was driven by a desire for “some fresh perspectives” and to bring creative, strategy, and media back under one roof. “It helps for better planning and … it’s much more efficient for our team,” she said.

 

Omnicom’s GSD&M will now oversee creative, strategy, media, experiential and social duties for the brand, with its first work expected in early 2026.

 

White Castle, which operates 340 restaurants across 14 states, ranked 87th in Technomic’s Top 500 Chain Restaurant Report, down from 82nd in 2024. Its sales fell to $651 million in 2024 from $684 million in 2023, according to Technomic data cited by Restaurant Business.

 

Building chemistry

 

The review began with a “cultural scan” that is part of Rojek’s offering. The scan is a survey that matches client and agency based on 54 attributes, measuring values such as “team oriented, results driven, [and] taking bold risks.” Blashford noted that collaboration, innovation and risk-taking were key qualities that emerged as top priorities for White Castle.

 

“It’s important for us to start with an agency that is going to match our beliefs and our values and how we work, because we think that’s going to end up with a more powerful and long-term relationship,” she said.

 

Chemistry within the agency played an especially significant role in the process. “You could tell from the very first call that they all got along together,” Blashford said of GSD&M. “That’s very telling when you’re watching how they interact with each other, as well as how they’re interacting with us as the client team.”

 

GSD&M distinguished itself from the outset in a few ways. Most notably, the agency welcomed the client by serving sliders and building a White Castle facade in its lobby.

 

The White Castle team returned the favor by hiring someone to play a “Town Crier” to announce the win to the agency.

 

The agency showcased parent Omnicom Group’s media tools during the pitch, including a live demo. GSD&M CEO Lee Newman said this is something the agency has been doing more of in the past six months as it purposefully continues to target integrated accounts.

 

Refreshing its marketing approach

 

For White Castle, the next phase is about refreshing its marketing and appealing to younger consumers while leveraging its legacy and cultural relevance. This includes both White Castle’s restaurants and its frozen food in grocery stores.

 

“We’re looking to grow the next generation of ‘Cravers,’” Blashford said, while acknowledging budget realities: “Our budgets are smaller … the ability to be resonant with a new and younger audience is important for both our CPG business as well as our restaurant business.”

 

Blashford acknowledged that broader economic pressures are impacting the category. “Economy is top of mind for consumers everywhere. [Quick-service restaurant] traffic is flat. The frozen food aisle is flat,” she said, noting that smaller chains such as White Castle face added challenges breaking through with limited budgets.

 

The brand sees an opportunity to stay relevant by balancing nostalgia with bold ideas that appeal to younger consumers.

 

Last year, White Castle spent $5 million on U.S. measured media, according to data by MediaRadar. Blashford declined to comment on White Castle’s ad spend, but said there will be a slight uptick in ad spend next year.

 

Given its smaller size compared to the larger QSR chains, White Castle has been investing in different marketing tactics. Already a third of White Castle’s media budget is in social, Blashford said. The brand also benefits from organic celebrity affinity, such as a partnership it solidified with rapper Fat Joe a few years ago.

 

White Castle is also known for quirky marketing moments that generate earned media, such as its longstanding Valentine’s Day dinner reservations. This year’s Valentine’s Day program garnered $35 million worth of organic earned media, Blashford confirmed.

 

“When your budget for media is not as big as some of our competitors, doing some of these very unique, memorable things that are a little unexpected … helps to keep White Castle unique and sort of the ‘unc­orporate’ chain doing these fun things,” Blashford said.

 

White Castle is also looking for unexpected collaborations to drive awareness. It recently partnered with Garage Beer, owned by Travis and Jason Kelce, on a retail sweepstakes that included a freezer full of sliders and a refrigerator full of beer as prizes. The brand also continues to have cultural cachet thanks to the 2004 cult classic “Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle.”

 

“We talk about Harold and Kumar being the gift that keeps on giving for us,” Blashford said, noting that every time the film’s stars Kal Penn or John Cho are mentioned in entertainment coverage, White Castle earns organic impressions. “Every generation kind of gets their Harold and Kumar moment,” she said, noting that customers still visit the restaurants and tag their own “Harold and Kumar moment” on social media as a rite of passage.

 

Blashford said she will look to GSD&M to help create more broad appeal for the brand while continuing its localized approach in specific markets. This includes tackling certain misconceptions about White Castle.

 

“If there’s any misconception, it might be the people who don’t come to us, who think of us only as a late-night kind of place,” Blashford said. “That is something we need to have a broader appeal for just business purposes alone.

 

She highlighted the chain’s breakfast sliders, a menu strength that many customers may overlook. The company also controls its own supply chain, operating its own bakeries and meat plants to produce buns and patties in-house, ensuring consistency across all its restaurants.

 

White Castle has also been innovating at its restaurants. One example is its use of voice-activated ordering technology, with an AI assistant known as Julia handling nearly 90% of orders across its drive-thru lanes at more than 30 restaurants where it is deployed. It’s named after Julia Joyce, a brand ambassador from the 1940s who helped convince mothers to serve White Castle at home, Blashford said.

 

“She’s been getting a little smarter, a little better,” Blashford said, noting that the system has learned regional accents and slang such as “give me a castle” to improve order accuracy.

 

Customers can opt out of speaking with Julia at any time to connect directly with a team member. “She does a great job of suggesting, selling, and she never calls off sick,” Blashford joked.

 

The win builds on momentum for GSD&M, which earlier this year added Pacific Life to its client roster. Its other major clients include Corona, Capital One, Dodge and Southwest Airlines. Its prior restaurant clients included Pizza Hut and Popeyes.

16891: Stellantis Stalling & Stale.

 

Advertising Age reported the Stellantis shootout for new White advertising agencies resulted in the automaker sticking with incumbent White advertising agencies—Doner and GSD&M—both of which rolled away with additional vehicle accounts.

 

So, Doner might be able to hire more Detroit-based talent adversely affected by General Motors’ decision to shift its business to White advertising agencies outside of the Motor City.

 

Also open for work are staffers at McCann Detroit, as that faltering shop likely vied for Stellantis revenue opportunities too.

 

Stellantis Keeps Doner And GSD&M After Creative Agency Review

 

The struggling automaker is still evaluating agencies for digital creative

 

By E.J. Schultz

 

Stellantis, which earlier this year began a U.S. creative agency review for several brands, will keep Doner and GSD&M on its roster. Stagwell’s Doner won lead agency status for Ram, while Omnicom’s GSD&M will keep Dodge and add Chrysler, a spokesperson confirmed to Ad Age. GSD&M was also assigned Alfa Romeo and Fiat.

 

The digital creative portion of the review is still ongoing. The incumbent on that business is Huge, the experience design and technology shop that Interpublic recently sold to private equity firm AEA Investors. 

 

Stellantis is conducting the review in-house under the leadership of U.S. Chief Marketing Officer Raj Register, who joined the automaker in June. She had served as CMO at Sysco Corp. and before that had a long career at Ford.

 

Jeep, Stellantis’ largest-spending brand, was not part of the review. Highdive is Jeep’s lead agency, but the automaker has yet to confirm which agency will handle the brand’s 2025 Super Bowl ad.

 

Detroit-based Doner has been a longtime Stellantis agency handling various assignments. It was among the shops that picked up more work for Ram after Stellantis in January cut ties with TRG, formerly known as The Richards Group, which had been with the automaker for 15 years. 

 

After Jeep, Stellantis spends the most U.S. measured media on Ram, which received $184 million in the first nine months of 2024, followed by Dodge ($44 million), Chrysler ($10 million), Fiat ($5 million) and Alfa Romeo ($2 million), according to MediaRadar.

 

The agency review comes during a difficult year for Stellantis. Carlos Tavares abruptly resigned the CEO job earlier this month amid a sales slump. Stellantis Chairman John Elkann is leading the company until a new CEO is hired.

 

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new information on Alfa Romero and Fiat agency assignments.

16785: Stellantis Revs Reviews & Revolting Revulsion.

 

MediaPost reported Stellantis is ready to ride with new White creative advertising agencies for its Dodge, Ram, Chrysler, Alfa Romeo, and Fiat brands in the U.S. Stellantis is now competing with General Motors for worst automaker advertiser, reducing ad people to crash test dummies.

 

The impending car wreck will include incumbents GSD&M and Doner—which means Doner might have to terminate anyone they hired after the recent GM fiasco.

 

Look for Omnicom to stage a massive pileup with its creative consolidation, whereby Jeff Goodby and Rich Silverstein are in the same class as Jordan Zimmerman.

 

Meanwhile, vehicle shoppers are taking the late Lee Iacocca up on his iconic declaration: “If you can find a better car, buy it.”

 

Stellantis Reviewing U.S. Creative Assignments For Major Brands

 

By Steve McClellan

 

Stellantis today confirmed that it is reviewing creative agency assignments for its Dodge, Ram, Chrysler, Alfa Romeo and Fiat brands in the U.S. 

 

Incumbents include Omnicom’s GSD&M and Stagwell’s Doner.  

 

Rajoielle (Raj) Register, who joined Stellantis earlier this year as U.S. CMO, issued a statement: “As a matter of standard procedure, we put our agencies through reviews when timing dictates. As a general rule, we also are not beholden to the ‘one agency fits all’ model, instead choosing to give interested agencies the opportunity to bid on creative opportunities across our U.S. brands.”

 

Incumbents include Omnicom’s GSD&M and Stagwell’s Doner.  

 

Register is responsible for the company’s North American marketing, media and analytics efforts.  Her appointment in June was aligned with a department restructuring that combined marketing, social and digital media, website, analytics and paid media operations, “allowing for centralized decision-making in support of a results-driven culture,” the company stated at the time.  

 

That restructuring came as the company is introducing a host of electric vehicles to its U.S. lineup. Register joined from Sysco Corporations and previously served at Ford in a senior marketing role.  

 

Agency assignments for Jeep are not being reviewed at this time.

16762: Omnicom Puts The Con In Consolidation.

 

Campaign reported Omnicom—like other White holding companies—consolidated creative White advertising agencies under a single banner: in this case, Omnicom Advertising Group. Gee, there’s a name that screams creativity.

 

The maneuver is not surprising, as Omnicom has coordinated the consolidation and commoditization of creative services for decades. The White holding company mastered Corporate Cultural Collusion, serving a buffet of White advertising agencies to clients, often avoiding a competitive pitch. Why, Goodby Silverstein & Partners was once presented as interchangeable with Fathom Communications. The fact that Zimmerman Advertising is part of the mashup says it all.

 

In recent years, Omnicom even proceeded to consolidate office spaces.

 

Finally, Pioneer of Diversity John Wren tapped former TBWA Worldwide CEO Troy Ruhanen to serve as OAG CEO, completing the Caucasian cronyism consolidation.

 

Omnicom consolidates creative agencies globally under Omnicom Advertising Group

 

EXCLUSIVE: Led by former TBWA Worldwide CEO Troy Ruhanen, OAG aims to scale innovation and knowledge sharing across the holding company’s creative networks.

 

Omnicom on Tuesday (27 August) unveiled the Omnicom Advertising Group (OAG), a new structure that aligns its creative agencies globally under one leadership team.

 

Troy Ruhanen, formerly CEO of TBWA Worldwide, will lead OAG as CEO. Deepthi Prakash, international president and chief product officer of TBWA Worldwide, is promoted to COO of OAG, and Denis Streiff, CFO of TBWA Worldwide, is promoted to global CFO OAG.

 

OAG will oversee Omnicom creative networks including BBDO, TBWA, DDB and The Collective, which includes Goodby Silverstein & Partners, GSD&M, Merkley & Partners and Zimmerman.

 

In addition to TBWA US CEO Erin Riley, who is promoted to fill Ruhanen’s post as TBWA Worldwide CEO, Omnicom global creative agency leaders will report to OAG leadership.

 

This includes BBDO’s recently-promoted global CEO Nancy Reyes, DDB global CEO Alex Lubar and The Collective CEO James Fenton.

 

The new structure will take effect on January 1.

 

According to Ruhanen, OAG aims to bolster Omnicom’s agency brands while scaling access to tools, technology and talent that sits around the network globally.

 

“We know that certain talent are attracted to certain agency cultures, and our clients prefer to have lots of choices rather than just the one solution on offer. So, it’s really important that the agency brands are strong,” he said. “But we have the ability to use scale to our advantage.”

 

With the new structure, OAG leadership will be able to more easily identify and scale existing solutions, platforms or investments across its creative agencies and clients globally. For instance, if a team in Finland or South Africa has developed a cutting-edge platform or way of working, OAG can bring that to clients and teams around the world.

 

“There are a lot of innovations that bubble up in markets that you wouldn’t expect,” Ruhanen said. “It’s a matter of being able to identify those innovations and say, ‘OK, we really think that this is something that’s quite cutting-edge. Let’s move that around the world. Let’s start to educate people about this way of working.’”

 

OAG is a response to AI and digital transformation that has reshaped the creative industry and competitive landscape. Particularly for creative agencies, scaled access to investments in generative AI, data and other technologies is becoming a competitive advantage.

 

“It’s probably more relevant than ever to be able to benefit from our scale,” Ruhanen said.

 

Additionally, as clients seek more integrated and tailored solutions from agencies, OAG will help facilitate access to talent and teams across the network, while simultaneously providing talent with mobility across different agencies and client teams.

 

“In the past, a lot of us tended to hold on to the [talent] that we have because we were fighting for our personal brand success,” Ruhanen said. “How do we really look at getting the best talent for our clients, the best solution and collaborating together?” He pointed to his nearly nine years at BBDO and Reyes’ recent move from TBWA to BBDO as examples of Omnicom’s track record with talent mobility.

 

Omnicom does not plan to merge or sunset any agencies as part of the new structure, and will pitch solutions as OAG or as individual agencies, depending on the client’s needs. “We have far greater flexibility to be able to meet the needs of the client,” Ruhanen said.

 

The model follows a structure Omnicom has implemented in other disciplines, including Omnicom Media Group, Omnicom PR Group and Omnicom Health Group.

 

“The [creative] agency world really is—I wouldn’t say it’s the last area—but it’s close to being that,” Ruhanen said, adding that Omnicom’s creative agencies have already started to work this way behind the scenes.

 

While OAG will add leaders in specialist areas in the months to come, the intention is not to build a “holding company within a holding company,” Ruhanen said.

 

He added that he will judge his own and the group’s success by each of the individual agencies' success, and that as competitors merge agency brands and allow them to fade to the background, maintaining strong brands and cultures is a competitive advantage.

 

“This doesn’t come at the sacrifice of the agency brands,” he said. “It’s there to help them.”

16597: GSD&M DEIBA+ PR & BS.

 

Advertising Age reported GSD&M launched its latest heat shield: a DE&I advisory committee to support diverse-owned vendors.

 

David Ogilvy was wont to saying, “Search the parks in all your cities, you’ll find no statues of committees.”

 

Yet Adland is wont to creating committees to address DEIBA+ initiatives, delegating responsibility to others versus taking direct accountability, responsibility, and action.

 

So, the GSD&M stunt feels like performative PR for a heat shield delegating diversity to Human Heat Shields and ERGs. Quite a maneuver from those wonderful folks who brought you Annie the Chicken Queen.

 

GSD&M launches DE&I advisory committee to help diverse-owned vendors

 

Business owners, leaders and supplier diversity advocates will be at the helm of the committee

 

By Arvelisse Bonilla Ramos

 

Omnicom Group’s GSD&M is launching an advisory committee to help drive change for diverse-owned vendors who say they continue to face little progress within the ad industry.

 

The Vendor Advisory Committee will consist of six members, including diverse business owners, leaders from various production areas and regions and advocates for supplier diversity within the industry.

 

The founding members include Qadree “Q” Holmes, founder and executive producer of Quriosity Productions; Yvette Cobarrubias, co-founder and managing partner of video editing company Cosmo Street; Pamala Buzick Kim, founder and executive director of Free The Work; Max Rutherford, VP of vendor partner diversity at GSD&M; and Keisha Townsend-Taitt, chief inclusion officer at the agency.

 

“Committees like this matter. I have found that many of the diversity, equity, and inclusion champions find themselves talking in a room full of people that look like themselves,” Holmes said in a statement. “If we aren’t speaking to leadership, then these efforts become ineffective. Leadership commitments make these committees very real.” 

 

Holmes hopes the committee will help address the “broken promises” faced by diverse directors, editors and crews.

 

“We are hoping that people take notice and realize the impact they can actually have,” said Holmes. “We will always stand out as the first group that actually implemented a real program where the checks are being cut to change the systematic issues that exist in all sectors of business.”

 

The committee’s main responsibilities include consulting and collaborating with the GSD&M leadership team and providing guidance on supplier diversity issues, organizational matters, as well as strategies for sustainable development and growth of small and diverse businesses. It will also serve as a sounding board on supplier diversity matters.

 

“We reached a point where we cannot internally make any changes other than what we’ve [already] made. We need that external voice to come in and help us present the right story that will engage our agency folks, as well as our clients and the industry in general,” said GSD&M’s Rutherford. “We’re needing their expertise because they live this life. They live the life of trying to get through the gatekeepers.”

 

The committee’s launch comes two years after GSD&M conducted its first survey of diverse partners in the advertising industry. The results of the 2023 survey of 2,000 diverse-owned vendors mirrored the 2022 survey of just over 1,000 vendors.

 

In the survey conducted last November, about 79% of vendors said they received little to no feedback when not awarded a project, essentially the same amount as in 2022. About 78% of vendors said they believe agencies prefer working with established partners, overlooking new companies, also flat year over year.

 

The survey found that 48.7% of respondents think they don’t have enough connections or partnerships with agencies, which rose from 46% in 2022.

 

“Momentum overall is plateauing for DE&I, and all of that eagerness we saw in June of 2020, these commitments and these statements, have stalled,” said Townsend Taitt.

 

The slowed progress is evident in overall media spend: Investment in diverse media grew much slower in 2023 than in 2022, according to recent research from the ANA’s Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing. (Some agency executives, however, believe that the slowed growth was expected given the 2022 surge.)

 

Taitt said there are “really simple things” agencies can do to improve relations with diverse vendors, such as providing feedback.

 

“That’s going to help them. Make sure the budget and the parameters of a bid are well defined before you’re making calls so that you’re not wasting people’s resources because we know that’s a heavier burden on small and minority-owned businesses,” she said.

 

Taitt noted that quick responses are crucial for minority-owned agencies. With fewer employees and resources, every response costs money because time is money for these smaller, more diverse companies.

 

The advisory committee will also be part of the agency’s annual Diverse Partner Summit. The summit, last held in December, featured in-person and virtual programming aimed at connecting diverse partners with agency decision-makers. Some 126 people attended.

 

As part of the summit, anyone in the industry can register to meet diverse vendors in pre-scheduled 15-minute virtual meetings. There were 251 virtual meeting registrations in 2023, compared to 126 for the same event in 2022. The number of meetings increased to 150, up from 75 in 2022.

10672: Delayed WTF 54—TRG 2.0 2023.

 

MultiCultClassics is often occupied with real work. As a result, a handful of events occur without the expected blog commentary. This limited series—Delayed WTF—seeks to make belated amends for the absence of malice.

 

A recent social media post from TRG celebrated the White advertising agency winning an AAF District 10 2023 Mosaic Award. What’s more, the honor saluted Workforce Inclusion.

 

Wow, it looks like the erasure of Stan Richards continues. The place has even moved into a different office space and embraced a fresh kumbaya spirit. And now there’s a shiny new trophy for the awards case. Forget that the workforce inclusion was fueled by the founder’s forceful exclusion.

 

A “stan richards” Google search identifies the old man as an author, so the information technology platform is purging and revising his history too.

 

BTW, would Richards think a Mosaic Award was too Black?

 

To keep things in perspective, simply review the “competition” in AAF District 10. Lots of honors went to GSD&M—those wonderful folks who gave you Annie the Chicken Queen. Nuff said. Other victors included Texas Christian University and Southern Methodist University, institutions that probably edged out the Stan Richards School of Advertising & Public Relations. Better luck next year.

 

16049: GSD&M DE&I BS.

 

Advertising Age reported on a new study by Omnicom-owned GSD&M that shows diverse-owned vendors are pissed to be dissed by White advertising agencies like GSD&M and the overwhelming majority of Omnicom properties—as well as all White shops across the globe. The complaints include limited opportunities to create relationships with agencies and rigorous/rigged RFP processes.

 

Why did GSD&M need a study to uncover such painfully obvious common knowledge? Again, the Austin-based shop might be a typical perpetrator preventing diverse-owned vendors from succeeding. And Omnicom has historically engaged in Corporate Cultural Collusion to avoid fair and equitable pitching. There are also consistent accusations that many White advertising agencies routinely steer diversity-vendor dollars to White-woman-owned enterprises, awarding assignments to friendly and familiar females.

 

In brief, diverse-owned vendors face a diversity of deceptive and devilish designs from Adland. No one needs the no-duh details from those wonderful folks who gave you Annie The Chicken Queen.

 

Diverse-Owned Vendors Frustrated By Lack Of Agency Relationships, Survey Finds

 

According to a new study by Omnicom's GSD&M, 46% of respondents report their company does not have enough relationships with agencies

 

By Aleda Stam

 

Diverse-owned vendors are frustrated by their lack of relationships with ad agencies, who they say often work with companies they have an existing relationship with, making it harder for diverse-owned vendors to win business.

 

According to a new study by Omnicom’s GSD&M, nearly three-quarters of diverse-owned vendors say this is the situation they regularly find themselves, with 46% of respondents also reporting their company does not have enough relationships with agencies.

 

Among the key complaints are being hired only to handle African American communication, feeling the time and energy of the RFP process wasn’t worth it, advertising turnover making nurturing relationships tricky, and frustrations with the “triple bid” process—in which three or more agencies compete for a particular job or contract.

 

There’s been a push by the industry to help brands work with diverse suppliers. This summer, advertising trade groups released guidelines for suppliers. Created by the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4As) and the Association of National Advertisers along with its Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM), the guidelines were “designed to help buyers and sellers see the landscape through a more focused lens, advance engagement, and promote greater investment in the diverse supplier community,” ANA CEO Bob Liodice said when they were released. The previous guidelines targeted at marketers were released in May.

 

The study was sent to more than 1,187 diverse-owned vendors in Omnicom’s agency vendor database at the end of October.

 

Of those surveyed, 79% said their company received little or no feedback when they were not awarded a project and 62% said the intent or scope of a project would change during bidding, requiring companies to send out multiple rounds of proposals.

 

“What we heard from the open-ended questions is that the door is not even being open to [diverse vendors],” said GSD&M chief inclusion officer Keisha Townsend Taitt. “People aren’t responding to their emails; there’s just no relationship.” Townsend Taitt was named GSD&M chief inclusion officer earlier this year, rounding out the agency’s nine employee-led resource and affinity groups and the agency’s Vendor Diversity Program.

 

To help build those relationships, the Austin, Texas-based agency is incorporating a matchmaking event to connect diverse-owned vendors with agencies as part of its annual Diverse Partner Summit taking place next month. Agencies will have an opportunity to schedule 15-minute virtual meetings with diverse companies across the country that match the type of work they are looking for.

 

“We want to remove the box that small and diverse partners have been in,” said Townsend Taitt. “They’re more than a box to check when it’s a mandate for the agency or a client. They’re more than just producing work for the communities that they’re a part of, and they’re not any less than any other vendor.”

 

GSD&M is striving to increase the number of diverse vendors used by its clients. During the bidding process ahead of the summit, GSD&M asks all vendors crewing for production to ensure representation equity within the crew by meeting the goal of at least 40% minority talent. So far in 2022, 15.5% of the agency’s total vendor spend was awarded to 45 certified woman- and minority-owned businesses.

 

But in order to see true progress, Max Rutherford, GSD&M’s VP of vendor partner diversity, is calling for other agencies to recognize the importance of including and utilizing diverse suppliers.