Richmond Bernard Hodes Group Office Shares Advertising Awards with Virginia Partnership for Nursing
Creative Work Receives National and Local Recognition

(RICHMOND, VA) - May 9, 2003 - The Richmond office of Bernard Hodes Group, a leading provider of recruitment communications and staffing solutions, has won national and local recognition for their creative work for the Virginia Partnership for Nursing (VPN). Created in 1998 VPN, is a coalition of statewide funders from private and public health care systems, educational institutions, government agencies and professional organizations working to staunch the looming statewide nursing shortage.

Nationally, Bernard Hodes Group and VPN shared a best of category creative excellence award for a poster titled, "Laughing Hysterically." The poster was submitted to the Employment Management Association's (EMA) annual employment recruitment advertising competition. Locally, VPN's Web site www.nurseschangelives.com won a bronze award in the interactive category of the Richmond Ad Club's annual competition, known as the Addys.

"We are pleased our partnership with Bernard Hodes Group received kudos for our campaign and its message targeting K-12 students to consider nursing as a career," said Shirley Tate Gibson, VPN co-director.

The EMA winners were announced April 23 at the annual EMA conference in Las Vegas. The awards acknowledge outstanding creativity and strategy in recruitment advertising for clients in a wide range of industries and professions and in a variety of media, from online, outdoor or job fairs to traditional print or television advertising. Winners were selected from among more than 900 entries and earn a trophy and a certificate.

"This is a great experience for Bernard Hodes Group as well as VPN," said Karen Grimes, Richmond Branch Manager. "We're so happy to have worked with the Coalition to win these awards. It's our partnerships with our clients that we believe give us the winning edge."

The Richmond office wins were part of a sweep of the EMA awards by Bernard Hodes Group, with 27 wins overall - 10 "Best of Category" and 17 "Merit" awards Ð more than any other participating agency including JWT, TMP, and other recruitment advertising industry heavyweights.

Overall, Bernard Hodes Group earned EMA awards for such prestigious clients as: Amazon.com, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Burger King, the Citibank, Rolls-Royce and Lilly to name a few. They demonstrated creative solutions using a variety of media in General Recruitment Communication, Employee Communications (for employee referral and employee retention) and college communications campaigns, among others.

About EMA
Founded in 1969, EMA is the nation's leading association for employment and staffing professionals. EMA is the largest professional emphasis group of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the world's largest human resource management association. Judges chosen from the nation's major professional and creative organizations determine award winners. Entries are judged on the basis of effectiveness of communication, visual impact and creativity. This year's winners were selected from more than 900 entries. The Awards will be presented at the annual EMA awards dinner on April 23 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

About Richmond Show
The Richmond Show is an annual event organized by the Richmond Ad Club to showcase and honor exceptional creative work in the region, as well as recognize individuals and agencies for work that truly lives up to the highest national standards. A dynamic organization of advertising professionals, the Richmond Ad Club dedicates itself to the betterment of the advertising industry in Richmond and the Southeast region, and the celebration of advertising creativity.

About Bernard Hodes Group
As a fully integrated recruitment communications and staffing solutions provider, Bernard Hodes Group (http://www.hodes.com) offers solutions which often combine multiple service offerings from the company's core competency areas: Recruitment Marketing; Sourcing/Response Management; Hiring Process Re-engineering; and Staffing Technology (see http://www.hodesiQ.com). All solutions are developed and measured within the company's 360 degree process methodology. The company's Health care Division is staffed by RNs with clinical, managerial and recruiting experience. In addition, Bernard Hodes Group has health care strategists in many of its offices nationwide. The company is headquartered in New York, with over 80 offices and affiliates around the globe. Bernard Hodes Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of Omnicom Group, Inc., (NYSE - OMC), one of the world's leading marketing communications companies. Bernard Hodes Group serves thousands of clients in virtually every industry, helping them to attract and retain talented workers in every skill set.