Jeff Rust

President & Founder

Jeff is the founder and visionary behind Elevate Recruiting Group.  He brings over a decade of success building and managing recruiting teams in the technology, healthcare and digital media fields.  His passion and enthusiasm incorporates a can do approach to the overall day to day operations of Elevate Recruiting Group.

Before starting Elevate in 2007, he launched multi million dollar divisions within the recruiting industry.  Jeff started his career in 1999 as the first Sales/Marketing recruiter for Stafftopia. With his leadership and passion for recruiting, he quickly built the division to the top producing group within a year.  In 2004, he spearheaded Stafftopia’s Healthcare Division and successfully established a nation-wide presence in the placement of healthcare professionals throughout the country.

Jeff resides in Sun Valley, ID, with his wife Amy, and two daughters Anabelle and Morgan. When he is not busy in the office, you can find him snowboarding in the winter and golfing in the summer. Jeff holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Law and Society from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Contact Information:
jeff@elevaterg.com
Office: 866-550-7661
Mobile: 208-450-9196

Dirk Zondag, Jr.

SVP, Technical Recruitment

Dirk Zondag, Jr., born and raised in Princeton, NJ, is an Eagle Scout and holds a BS from James Madison University. He came to Sun Valley after selling Colonial Landscaping, a business he built from scratch and ran for 3 years. Since coming to the Sun Valley, he has excelled in understanding, evaluating, and addressing the technical hiring needs of his clients.

Dirk is known for successfully finding the right people in a streamlined and enthusiastic manner. He loves coming to work each day because he gets to learn about new technologies, his passion, and can help strengthen the tech market, one client at a time. Also, developing long term relationships with candidates and assisting their career search is something he holds priceless. His move to Senior Vice President, Technical Recruitment within Elevate Recruiting Group elevates the industry standard for software recruiting. When he is not giving his all to his team and clients you can find him skiing hard, spending endless hours fly fishing, camping in the wilderness, or flipping his kayak, his newest activity.

Contact Information:
dirk@elevaterg.com
Office: 866 550 7661
Mobile: 609 223 1422
     

As the VP of Recruiting for Elevate's Sales and Marketing Division, Dan spearheads the custom placement of sales and marketing professionals in cutting edge digital media and technology companies across the country.  Dan has a successful track record placing millions of dollars in executive compensation for venture funded and publicly traded companies alike.  Having started his career as a Paleontologist, Dan then obtained an MBA and worked as a business consultant for small, emerging companies needing to perfect and implement their early-stage ideas.  At Elevate, Dan can pursue his passion for helping novel and disruptive businesses and technologies find the missing pieces they need to achieve success.   

When not in the office, Dan can be found telemark or cross-country skiing, mountain biking, playing guitar, or planning his next adventure.  Dan holds a bachelor's degree in Geology from the University of Colorado at Boulder and an MBA from the University of Oregon and hails from Northern Virginia.

Contact Information:
dan@elevaterg.com
Office: 866 550 7661
Mobile: 541 915 6341

  Travis Thelen

Director of Recruiting,  Digital Media 

Travis comes to Elevate from MavenSource where he built a successful recruiting business focused on the online, interactive, and mobile spaces.  With Elevate’s strong reputation within the social and digital media spaces,  as well as within emerging technologies, the move was a natural progression.  Capitalizing on over 13 years in a management role in multiple arenas, he is now in a position as a player/coach where he can focus on getting the right people into the strongest positions with cutting edge companies.

When not in the office, Travis enjoys spending time with his 4 kids and wife, either on the ski hill in the winter or riding the bikes in the summer. 

Contact Information:
travis@elevaterg.com
Office: 866 550 7661
Mobile: 208 721 1300

Cooper Minnis

Director of Recruiting,  Digital Media 

Cooper specializes in the recruitment of digital media sales and marketing executives across the US.  His passion lies in cutting edge digital media, and he credits his success to establishing unparalleled relationships.  Cooper has consistently been a top producer at Elevate and has been a pivotal part of the Digital Media Divisions growth.

Cooper was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia.  He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, where he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and the Silver Spurs.  Prior to joining Elevate, Cooper spent 2 years in Washington D.C. working in the White House and the US Department of Education.  He spent another 3 years in Austin, Texas working in commercial real estate finance before moving to Sun Valley. 

When he’s not in the office, you can find him traveling the country to visit friends and family, on the golf course, in the kitchen, or enjoying the numerous outdoor activities Sun Valley has to offer.   

Contact Information:
cooper@elevaterg.com
Office: 866 550 7661
Mobile: 512-914-2568