Rocket Game Talent is a fractional talent operations agency built for indie studios, startups and game development teams who need senior-level game talent expertise — without the cost of a full-time hire.
We bring expert hiring strategy, talent operations and employer branding to studios of every size. You're building something special, and Rocket Game Talent helps you build the team to make it happen.
Rocket Game Talent provides fractional talent operations services for small game development teams. We know that smaller studios face the same fierce competition for top talent as the biggest publishers in the world — but without the recruiting infrastructure, employer brand or HR resources to compete on equal footing.
We embed directly into your team, working as your on-demand talent partner to deliver the strategy, systems and results that get the right people through your door.
Indie and startup studios deserve world-class talent operations. Whether you need to make one critical hire, build your first hiring process from scratch, or establish an employer brand that attracts passionate game developers to your vision, Rocket Game Talent brings world-class expertise to your scale, your budget and your timeline. Great games start with great teams.
Partial list of past and current clients
Studios & Publishers
Indie Game Community
We build and optimize the talent operations infrastructure your studio needs — from ATS configuration and workflow design to hiring process, recruiting metrics and sustainable systems that work if you're a 10-person team or preparing to scale to 100+.
From sourcing and screening to offer negotiation and onboarding, we deliver full-cycle talent identification and placement for the specialized contract and fulltime roles that define game development — with strategies that work for both bootstrapped budgets and competitive offers.
We design and execute effective talent engagement programs that keep your studio top of mind with the best game talent in the industry — through community partnerships, marketing campaigns, industry events and inclusive hiring initiatives.
We help game studios of all sizes define and amplify their employer brand — developing employee value propositions, social media strategies, career site content and creative campaigns that help studios compete for talent against the big names in gaming.
Fiona Cherbak has spent over 20 years building teams behind gaming's biggest hits. She staffed God of War, shipped BioShock: Infinite and built teams for Halo, Call of Duty, Gears of War and Age of Empires, plus hired for numerous mobile and indie teams.
As worldwide talent acquisition lead at Sony PlayStation, she sourced and hired 100’s of contract and full-time game developers to deliver multiple Game of the Year titles. At Xbox Game Studios, she led talent operations for 23 first-party studios globally and pioneered diversity initiatives that changed industry hiring.
She co-founded Women in Games International, created the Boston Festival of Indie Games, co-produced Fantastic Arcade and was invited to President Obama's White House to guide a national women in games initiative and served as IndieCade advisor.
Now she's bringing that expertise to ambitious studios through Rocket Game Talent.
What our game industry clients say
Turn 10 Studios
"Without her expert advice, knowledge of the industry, assertiveness and professionalism, I would not have found such an ideal candidate. As a hiring manager for well over 15 years, I've worked with dozens of recruiters, but Fiona is in a class of her own."
— Chan Sarinyamas, Principal Tech Art Director, Turn 10 Studios
Santa Monica Studio
"Fiona was instrumental to the success of God of War, helping the Design team to efficiently scale and source key talent. Patient, organized, and fastidious - I couldn't have asked for a better recruiting lead."
— Rob Davis, Campaign Director, Sucker Punch Productions
Sony PlayStation Ex Dev
"From the moment that Fiona joined our studio, great candidates came pouring in. What I admire most is her initiative and drive to find the best people for the job. She doesn't back away from challenges."
— Michael Morishita, Executive Producer, Meta
Certain Affinity
"Fiona's ability to quickly identify top talent and match them with the right opportunities is unmatched. Her industry knowledge and network are second to none."
— Dave Prout, Director of Product Management, Electronic Arts
USC Games
"Fiona cares deeply about this industry and about opening doors for the next generation of talent. Any organization fortunate enough to have Fiona involved gains not just a brilliant strategist and mentor, but a partner who leads with purpose, empathy and relentless drive."
— Eric T Elder, Team Lead Manager, Los Angeles City College
Santa Monica Studio
“Fiona exhaustively works to bring together the great game devs through IGDA and Women in Games. She understands that community is what makes our industry so great."
— Melissa Smith, Environment Art Director, The Believer Company