Exploring Life & Business with Scott Kaufmann of Highnoon

Today we’d like to introduce you to Scott Kaufmann. 

Hi Scott, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I grew up building things. I build RC cars with a motor on each wheel, which were amazingly fast, much like the 4 motor electic cars of today, but mine always crashed. I built stereo systems (the old kind of with giant, awesome, standing speakers), and perhaps more importantly, computers. Before having a drivers’ license, freedom was limited to where I could get on my bike, until computers. When Bulletin Board Systems (BBS’s) came around, as a dial-up precursor to the modern World Wide Web, I was hooked. There was something about the idea of freedom of exploration and idea exchange that was really interesting, and I liked building things, so I started learning code. But of course, I did this more or less in secret, up in my parents’ attic, because it wasn’t exactly cool to be into computers back then, and I still needed a prom date eventually. At the same time, I loved advertising and used to collect the classic, and brilliant, Absolute Vodka ads; cutting them out and putting them on my bedroom wall. At the time, it seemed like a random set of interests, but looking back now, it almost seems predestined that I’d end up working in the industry I do. 

Fast forward to college graduation and I had degrees in Finance and Marketing. My first full-time job out of college was working at a firm that would become a well-respected agency. I owe everything to them because the owners there were encouraging and supportive of my wild entrepreneurial ideas and taught me how to run a happy and healthy business – focused on delighting customers and putting focus on the happiness and success of the team. After that, I did some consulting work while pursuing a Master’s degree and got my first agency, Lucid Agency, started. It was a classic start-from-nothing entrepreneurial story. My partner and I self-funded the company and grew it to about 40 employees. 

In 2019, however, I looked at the industry and realized there was a shift happening. I shared my thoughts about where the industry might be going with my business partner Ken, and another agency owner and fellow entrepreneur, Joe, and we all agreed. It was time for a change. Ken, Joe, and I worked with the leadership teams of both of our former agencies to ideate what the most successful and impactful agency would look like 10 years from now. We then worked backwards to design that agency – the brand, the structure, the processes, the positioning, etc. 

Ken, Joe, and I then shut down our previous agencies and launched Highnoon…. just…before…COVID took hold of the US. Our team tackled COVID head-on. We pivoted the work model to a remote work approach (although now we’re in a hybrid remote and in-person approach) and managed to deliver amazing work for our clients, all while keeping positive spirits. I could not have been more thankful and appreciative and impressed by our team and our clients. 

Fast forward to today – Highnoon is one of the fastest-growing agencies in the southwest. We’ve signed on incredible brands and doubled our headcount since the summer of 2020. We serve enterprise clients who have bold visions for the future of marketing, technology, and customer experience, all across the United States. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Oh, there was nothing easy about this “road”, that’s for sure. We designed an agency from scratch. And it’s not easy to build and launch a new business. But when you do that and launch it just before COVID-19 changes business (and the world), it becomes a whole different level of challenge. Like all businesses, we had to carefully navigate our employee health and safety in a very unknown environment, and a handful of clients were acutely impacted financially, and thus they paused their work with us, which of course was challenging financially for a period of time. Our team also faced the unique challenges that any new company launching just before COVID-19 faced. We had to build team comradery with all the new team members and launch dozens of internal processes, all while working remote and do it in an uncertain business environment. But we worked remote, kept positive and on-mission, and delivered award-winning work to our fantastic clients. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Highnoon is a full-service agency designed to work with organizations that have a bold vision of future-focused transformation. Lots of great info here: https://highnoon.co/ about that illuminates who Highnoon really is. Highnoon does everything from performance marketing, analytics, creative, video, design, and media buying, to strategy and research. All of our services are listed here: https://highnoon.co/services 

There are three things that really set us apart: 

1. We’re focused on the full picture. We work to create incredible customer experiences for the customers of our clients, across every touchpoint – online to offline.

2. We work with clients that have a bold vision. We’re in this for the challenge and excitement and we want to work with organizations who aren’t willing to settle for the status quo of today. 

3. Our team is incredible. Weprovidesome of the best benefits in the industry, and while it’s not the easiest place to work, we’ve been ranked as a top employer in Phoenix for a reason – because we focus on the whole person, hire talented people that are passionate about the industry and then provide thoughtful and strategic structure for our team, and our clients, to thrive. 

Can you share something surprising about yourself?
We have a piano in the office and sometimes there are spontaneous jam sessions with different team members singing and playing acoustic instruments. It’s amazing and I’m blown away by the talent of our team members – both at work as well as their other interests. 

Contact Info:

• Email: info@highnoon.co
• Website: https://highnoon.co
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meethighnoon/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meethighnoon/
• Other: https://vimeo.com/meethighnoon 

a Story: VoyagePhoenix is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.