Rain the Growth Agency Strengthens Leadership with Executive Promotions, New Hires

Jane Crisan Promoted to CEO, Rylan Malerbi Joins as CFO, Michelle Cardinal Transitions to Chairwoman

Rain the Growth Agency, the leading independent, fully integrated DTC advertising agency, has announced the promotion of Jane Crisan to Chief Executive Officer and named Rylan Malerbi its Chief Financial Officer.

“I’m thrilled to announce the promotion of Jane Crisan to the position of CEO. Her leadership over the last decade as President and COO has propelled our agency to new heights under her expert guidance. Jane’s deep experience in branding, digital marketing and analytics makes her the perfect person to take the agency into the next decade,” said Cardinal. “It’s rare a founder can hand over the reins to someone they trust and admire through hard-won teamwork together. I will sleep soundly knowing Jane is at the helm.”

Crisan came to Rain the Growth Agency in 2013 with a 25-year career at several leading global network ad agencies including JWT, WPP and Wunderman Worldwide, where she was instrumental in developing the industry’s first digital practices. During her career, Crisan helped develop major brands such as Ford, Chase, Chrysler, Humana and General Motors. Before joining Rain the Growth Agency, she oversaw the creation and management of Garage Team Mazda in Southern California.

During her tenure at Rain the Growth Agency, Crisan has driven the expansion of the digital marketing practice and content creation, advanced measurement capabilities and operational efficiencies leading to exponential growth. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, she drove a quick pivot to a “flexible-first” work environment allowing employees to choose how and where they work and enabling the hiring of top talent nationwide. Crisan has passionately promoted workplace equity, championing the formation of an internal Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. She has also pushed for the expansion of employee benefits and resources, resulting in increased employee retention rates well above industry average.

Rain the Growth Agency also welcomes Rylan Malerbi as Chief Financial Officer based near the agency’s newly renovated headquarters campus in Portland, Oregon. Malerbi comes from Tag Worldwide, a global media production company, where he served as the Americas CFO. He brings over 23 years of finance experience in B2B professional and marketing services organizations. Prior to Tag, Malerbi was with Williams Lea, a business process outsourcing firm.

“Rylan is a top operator and understands the intricacies of running a creative and media shop efficiently. He has already brought many best practices to our firm in just a few weeks, and we are thrilled to have him on the team,” said Crisan.

Michelle Cardinal, the agency’s co-founder, has transitioned from CEO to Chairwoman of the board of directors, where she will continue to work on strategic initiatives and support client engagements and media partner relationships. Cardinal and Tim O’Leary started the agency in 1998, pioneering a new approach to marketing coined “Transactional Brand Building” which aggressively drives both sales and brand growth, delivering ROI unequivocally for clients. This approach has catapulted Rain the Growth Agency, working with numerous fast-growth clients who have defined DTC zeitgeist in the last two decades. Some then startups like Wayfair, Chewy, Peloton, SimpliSafe, 23andMe, OOFOS and Headspace began their marketing journeys with the agency. The Transactional Brand Building approach has been honed over the decades working with many leading direct marketing companies including Humana, Bissell, Lending Tree and USAA.

About Rain the Growth Agency

Rain the Growth Agency is an independent, women-led, fully integrated and performance-minded advertising agency. We link brand strategy, creative and production with audience targeting, dynamic cross-channel media investment and advanced analytics to achieve sales and branding goals simultaneously, without compromise. Our holistic Transactional Brand Building approach produces transformational growth for our clients ranging from DTC fast companies and category disruptors to established brands. Current clients include Humana, Lending Tree, CenterWell, 1-800 Flowers, Rothy’s, Headspace, 1-800 Contacts and BISSELL. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, and founded in 1998 by Michelle Cardinal and Tim O’Leary, our agency has 300 employees nationwide.

Media Contact Information:
Beatrice Livioco
Director of Marketing
Beatrice.livioco@rainforgrowth.com