I build teams the same way others build products; with precision, speed, and a clear vision for the future. For over a decade, I have worked alongside founders and executives to turn hiring into a core driver of growth, not just a support function. My focus is simple: find exceptional people, put them in the right roles, and remove friction so they can do their best work. I connect companies with proven leaders and help shape teams that can actually execute, not just plan. I hold, with some conviction, that the right person arriving at the right moment can change the whole story.
I am Brian Rife, a Talent Acquisition and Talent Strategy leader with 12+ years of experience building high-performing teams and scaling organizations across technology, media, advertising, and product-driven companies. I specialize in transforming recruiting operations into strategic growth engines; partnering with founders and executives to design hiring systems that accelerate scale, elevate leadership, and strengthen culture.
Over the course of my career, I’ve helped companies navigate some of their fastest periods of expansion. At VideoAmp, I served as Senior Director of Talent Acquisition and built a top-performing recruiting organization that helped scale the company from 150 to 550 employees. During this period, Engineering & Product hiring grew 140% in just 12 months, time-to-hire dropped 40%, and strengthened employer brand efforts contributed to multiple Best Places to Work awards. Prior recruitment and HR roles at Yahoo, CA Technologies, and HGST (Western Digital) further solidified my expertise in large-scale technical hiring, post-acquisition integration, and developing early-career talent programs. I’ve also advised startups on talent and organizational design, including one that secured funding following a Shark Tank appearance.
Today, I lead two complementary practices that allow me to support companies at every stage of growth:
At Go Fractional, I act as a strategic matchmaker between high-growth companies and our community of experienced fractional executives. Go Fractional operates as both a marketplace and a professional ecosystem—connecting organizations with proven leaders who deliver impact without the overhead of full-time hiring. I partner directly with clients to understand their goals, identify gaps, and place fractional talent that accelerates progress.
As the founder and president of The High Agency Company, I help technology, media, and advertising startups build world-class leadership teams tailored to their stage of growth. Whether scaling from 50 to 200 employees or expanding revenue from $20M to $100M+, I place the leaders capable of navigating complexity, driving innovation, and creating durable operational foundations. Current and past clients include OpenX, Teads, Outbrain, Sabio/AppScience, VideoAmp, DataFuelX, Forward Studio, and Loophole.io.
My approach blends operational rigor, data-driven decision making, and relationship-first partnership. I believe that hiring exceptional talent is one of the most powerful catalysts for growth—and that the right leader at the right time can change the trajectory of a company.
Outside of work, I’m passionate about fitness, love golfing, and spend as much time as possible outdoors—whether fishing, surfing, or traveling to new places. Staying active, exploring, and being around the ocean are what keep me energized and grounded.
I worked with Brian on the TA team for 4 years. He was a consummate professional and always provided qualified candidates in a timely manner for his hiring managers. Additionally, he was able to coach up new managers and educate them on market trends, allowing for more flexibility on hiring. He delivered both quality an quantity when needed and always had great feedback from his hiring managers.
TS
Tony SergeDirector of Talent Acquisition, VideoAmp
I worked closely with Brian at VideoAmp for several years. Brian was the primary recruiter and helped me build out a product and engineering team of over 30+ FTEs. Brian was extremely proactive and helpful during the process. He is very detailed oriented; professional; easy to work with and knows how to get things done. I would not have had a top tier team without him.
JW
Joseph WinerothVP of Product, VideoAmp
In his role Brian defined and organized the recruiting process. He created a system get a clear understanding of the hiring needs and then walked the hiring managers through defining the roles. He organized fun recruitment events that allowed us to meet with a high volume of candidates quickly. He created a flexible interview panel structure where we quickly evaluated the top candidates and moved them along the interview process.
Brian is kind, fun, engaging and so great to work with.
BR
Brian RiefVP of Engineering, VideoAmp
Brian excels in tech recruitment. He analyzes skills & finds perfect fits for your team. His memory & organization are top-notch, ensuring a smooth hiring process. Need a detail-oriented recruiter with a talent for finding the best? Brian's your choice.
At Go Fractional, I act as a strategic matchmaker between high-growth companies and our community of experienced fractional executives. Go Fractional operates as both a marketplace and a professional ecosystem—connecting organizations with proven leaders who deliver impact without the overhead of full-time hiring. I partner directly with clients to understand their goals, identify gaps, and place fractional talent that accelerates progress.
Feb 2024 — Present
The High Agency Company
President / Head of Talent / Lead Recruiter
Current & Past Clients: Teads, VideoAmp, Forward Studio, Yahoo, Playshake.io, & Stealth startup (name coming soon!)
The High Agency Company is your go-to partner for building exceptional leadership teams in the Technology, Media, and Advertising startup space.
Available for: Retained Exec / Leadership Search; Consulting; Fractional Head of Talent roles; Talent Strategy; Developing Interview Frameworks & Processes; Engineering and Sales retained search
We specialize in handcrafting high-performing teams that drive growth, innovation, and success.
We understand the unique challenges startups face when it comes to scaling, and our tailored solutions ensure that you have the right leaders in place to navigate the ever-evolving landscape.
We know the right leaders that will get you from 50 employees to 200 employees or from 20 million in revenue to 100 million in revenue, todays market requires a specific type of leader for each phase of your company.
Mar 2023 — Jan 2024
VideoAmp
Senior Director, Talent Acquisition
Measurement and Optimization for Data-Driven Advertising.
Over a 3-year period, increased total company headcount from 175 to 550 employees through focused hiring, team coaching, and strategy development.
Grew VideoAmp’s Engineering & Product headcount by 140% in 12 months.
Created a new hiring process for Engineering that resulted in a 40% decrease in Time to Hire (from 39 days to 23.5 days). During that quarter, hired 28 engineers and 14 hires in December.
Hired the Machine Learning team of 11 engineers in less than 60 days.
First non-sales person to win ‘Closer of the Year’ at VideoAmp.
Revamped Employer Branding & Career Page resulting in an increase in 20% more inbound applicants in 2023. Won multiple Best Places to Work Awards including AdAge #10 Best Place to Work & BuiltIn’s #1 Startup in 2021.
Led Talent Acquisition across all business units. Coached & managed a team of 6 recruiters. Sourced and Closed levels ranging from Intern to VP to Executive Officer and everything in between.
May 2014 — Jul 2017
Yahoo
Senior Technical Recruiter + other roles
Amplifying what matters the most to you. Yahoo is a global media and tech company connecting people to their passions. Yahoo reaches almost a billion people worldwide, bringing them closer to what they want.
High success rate closing top candidates -- closed 40+ engineers a year at Yahoo with interview to offer rate of 50%.
Chosen to join the top performers program within the Yahoo People Team.
Lead full-cycle tech recruiter for Advertising and Search Products and Communications (Yahoo Email).
Recruited 40+ engineers a year and shepherded them through Yahoo’s onboarding and training process.
Led the talent integration of Brightroll ($640 million acquisition) engineering teams with Yahoo’s talent strategy.
Developed and implemented a program management dashboard none had created to streamline recruiting.
Apr 2014 — Aug 2014
Ca Technologies
Technical Recruiter
Global technology leader that designs, develops and supplies a broad range of semiconductor, enterprise software and security solutions.
Full-cycle recruiting for SaaS, DevOps, Security, Cloud Management, Mainframe, Nimsoft and Product Marketing.
Aug 2012 — Apr 2014
Hgst, A Western Digital Brand
Technical Recruiter
(Hitachi Global Storage Technologies) was a manufacturer of hard disk drives, solid-state drives, and external storage products and services before being acquired by Western Digital.
Full-cycle recruiting and sourcing of top candidates from 25 target academic institutions.
Filled 60+ requisitions a year.
Redesigned the university recruiting program for schools across the globe.
Explore top interview questions for Chief Human Resources Officers (CHROs), how to prepare for a CHRO interview, and tips for how to hire a fractional CHRO.
