Ernie Simon is getting ready to jump a pay grade and not within his agency, Mindshare. Simon is moving to OMD where he will be named the Chief Strategy Officer. According to the agency, Simon will begin in April.

“As OMD evolves its product and services to meet the needs of a difficult economy and complicated media landscape, it has become apparent that this new role is an essential addition to our outstanding management team,” said Alan Cohen, U.S. CEO, OMD.

Simon has been with Mindshare since it’s founding in 1999. He made the leap to what Mindshare calls, Office of the President, in 2005 when he was named President of Strategic Planning. Simon replaced Ray Simko who took early retirement from the WPP owned agency and was involved in the trial of the infamous Shona Seifert who was found guilty of falsifying time sheets on the White House’s anti-drug media campaign run by the federal Office of National Drug Control Policy. Simko was eventually brought up on related charges, and pleaded guilty before the trial was over. Beejesus. Those were the days.

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