Donlin Works Out GM Unit Plan

GM Planworks, the media planning unit created by the Starcom MediaVest Group to decide where General Motors should spend its $2.6 billion ad budget, is set to open Dec. 1, staffed largely by executives plucked from GM roster shops.

But employees from outside the GM realm have also been added in an effort to get some fresh thinking, said Dennis Donlin, who was named president of the entity when the Bcom3 media units won the business in July.

“We’ve laid in a core of talent for continuity, but we’ll also be mixing in Starcom people as well as people from outside the system,” Donlin said.