For the Trident Search team, culture forms a huge part of what we do and who we are. We’re passionate about driving a better workplace environment and changing the negative perception people have of recruitment. In our London HQ office, we have created an environment for thought leaders where innovation and collaboration are at the forefront of our success. With an unrivalled onboarding plan, and weekly training to support professional development, we pride ourselves on helping each of our consultants to grow throughout their Trident journey.
To see how well we’re doing on that, we’ve caught up with one of our latest hires, Cody Murphy, on life at Trident and what it takes to succeed here. Having moved from Ireland to London to take up the job, he’s just passed his three-month probation and is already making waves in the company. It’s been a crazy few months, encompassing moving to a new city, finding his feet and honing a passion for cybersecurity.
Cody, thanks for talking with us today. I’m interested to know what drew you to Trident and why you wanted to work here?
I’ve been in the recruitment game for a while now, most recently in Ireland but I started my career in Prague in the cyber security market. As such, I’d heard about Trident a few years before I started looking into the company and was always impressed with its good reputation. You hear about recruitment agencies in the business that are known for high turnover and a toxic culture, but everything I was seeing about Trident was really positive.
There were rumours rippling through the cyber market that Trident was forging a new centre of excellence, and they were certainly a tough competitor to be up against! When I did start to research the company seriously, I was impressed with the culture Josh and Charlee had created – there was a strong emphasis on work/life balance and training and development, both of which are important to me. And who doesn’t want to be offered unlimited annual leave! Ultimately, once I was ready to make a change and move on from my old role, it was a no brainer to go to Trident Search.
I’m glad it’s meeting your expectations! What were your first impressions when you joined the company?
I knew from my first interview that the ethos of the company was going to resonate with me. Across the organisation the drive for success and culture of high performance, balanced by the desire for personal development really interested me, and I knew this was going to be an environment where I could succeed. From the off, Trident matched all my expectations – I’ve really enjoyed throwing myself into the workplace culture here and embracing the social side of the organisation. To take this job I moved from my hometown of Wexford to London, so I love that my colleagues have already become good mates and the longer I’m here the more going into work starts to feel like just hanging out with friends.
Really, Trident Search’s cohesiveness is unmatched; it’s like a family, and everyone is given the freedom to be themselves, which ultimately drives morale and sales! There is a lot of team-building and whole-company events, whether those are incentives, training on new cyber developments or even just having a few drinks after a successful week.
You’ve got off to a great start here, with three deals under your belt already. What do you think it takes to succeed in this role and how have you applied that at Trident?
The key to recruitment is being a problem solver – you’ve got to really get to grips with who the client is and exactly what they need, otherwise you’ll never be able to find the right candidates. In cyber security specifically, this goes further as it’s crucial to have a full understanding of the market you are working, whether that be cyber sales, DevSecOps or Threat Intelligence. I’ve personally specialised into FinTech and emerging currencies. It’s something I find genuinely interesting, so it’s been great to get more involved. For several years I’ve been avidly playing the stock market and future currencies are obviously getting a lot of traction there, so it’s been good to combine my personal interests with my work in that regard.
Within cyber, the technology itself can be confusing as change happens at such a rapid pace in this industry. Even job titles can be misleading in this sector as one person’s SOC Analyst can be doing a completely different job to another’s! I’ve found the best way to get around this is to really engross myself in the world of cyber security. By keeping on top of the latest trends, threats and software, I’ve been able to get under the skin of what client’s want from candidates, which is half the battle of filling the vacancy.
When it comes to dealing with candidates, I find it best to just be myself: friendly open and honest – most people just want to know you’re on their side.
Quality AND quantity are need in recruitment; it’s a highly competitive market so you need to stand out, which is easy if you focus on being personable. A lot of recruiters forget that this isn’t a hardcore sales role and candidates won’t want to work with you if you aren’t actively supporting them.
You took quite a risk moving to London for this job. Do you have any advice for other people in the same situation?
It was exciting! I hadn’t even been to London before coming to visit the office, as all my interviews had been virtual before that point, so it was a lot to take in. Last year I was based out in Prague, so moving away from Ireland was nothing new, but it’s always a little scary. I’ve been so lucky with Trident that my manager and team have been so supportive. As I said, we’re like a family, and I know they’re looking out for me – even if that means explaining the London Underground system a fair few times!
If anyone is looking to move abroad, I’d highly advice it. Experiencing new places, people and cultures is amazing – but it’s normal to be a little worried at the beginning. Once you land and get a few weeks under your belt you’ll become a local in no time, wherever you are.
How have the first three months been for you?
I can’t believe how quickly the first few weeks at Trident have gone! Settling in here has been fantastic and I really feel like I’ve embraced the company and culture. Thankfully, it seems my bosses are agreed on that, as they passed my probation last week!
A real highlight was getting to go to Birmingham for the National Cyber Security Show in April. It was great to learn about some of the newest developments in the sector and catch up with our clients, some of whom I hadn’t had the opportunity to meet with in person before.
I’ve always been a bit of an extrovert, so love those kinds of situations where you’ve got to throw yourself into it. I think that’s helped me to reach out to new clients and grow my network as well. Business Development is one of the parts of the job where you’re either going to love it or hate it, but I’ve been able to onboard a few new clients whilst being here and I really enjoy meeting new people in the cyber sector.
That’s not to say it’s been all plain sailing. Building my cyber security knowledge and developing an understanding of all the roles and niches the team are working on has been a challenge, and with the market growing every day it’s always going to be tricky to keep up with developments. Yet the team here have been so good at providing support and everyone is happy to share their knowledge and experience. Whenever I needed anything, whether it was a quick insight on different markets, training on processes or chats about my personal circumstances and moving to London, help was always just a phone call away. Now I get to help onboarding new colleagues, with Mack being my first “buddy” – it’s great to be able to pass on all the skills I’ve learnt and everything I’ve picked up so far at Trident. I guess the only real challenge left is getting everyone to understand my Irish accent!
That’s great, you’ve made such an impact here! Something I’d be keen to know is what you think makes Trident different from other recruitment agencies? The sector often gets a bad rep, so as a new hire I’m interested to hear what you think is special about what Trident are doing to drive a new industry standard?
Ooh that’s a tough one, there’s so many elements I could bring out! I think, ultimately, I’d boil it down to the three things that make Trident so different from all our competitors in the recruitment industry: culture, training and management.
Culture – When I moved roles, one of my main drivers was to go somewhere with a great culture; I didn’t want to be part of a massive corporation with no ability to make a difference. You spend so many hours at work, it’s important to enjoy the job you do. I can honestly say I like coming into the office, and the people here are a huge part of that. Right from the off I’ve felt welcomed and included, whether we’re grabbing a drink after work or going on some of Jake’s crazy incentives (Thorpe Park anyone?).
Training – Training and development for both personal and career goals is a big part of life at Trident. It was great to have a thorough onboarding process when I joined to learn all the processes and systems we use here, and this has made training Mack so much easier. There’s also a lot of knowledge sharing throughout the organisation, and I’ve received a guidance on roles across the cyber industry, the trends we are seeing in the market and how the C-Suite of cyber organisations operate so that we can better understand their pain points.
Management – Throughout my time here it’s been incredible to be able to collaborate so closely with company leadership. We’re given transparent insights into how the business is performing and can provide feedback on what we could be doing better. Knowing my opinion is valued really motivates me to work harder. Something I’ve loved seeing is that leaders here don’t just talk the talk, they walk the walk, and hold themselves to the same standards and targets as the rest of us. What’s great is that I know my manager cares about my personal and professional development and wants me to be the best I can be; I think having someone in your corner makes you a better recruiter, as you’re more likely to make bold decisions and go for deals.
Thanks so much Cody, it’s fascinating to hear your views on what makes it a good place to work. To finish up, what is your goal whilst working here, and where do you want to be in a few years’ time?
My ultimate goal is to make recruitment “less stress and more success”. I want to become the go-to person in the market, and I know Trident Search will help me to get there!
