What were those first couple of weeks at Caspian One like?

Yeah, intense.

I had no recruitment experience, and I hadn't done anything with regards to investment banking or IT either, so it was a massive learning curve. I was quite fortunate to be one of five people on the newly introduced training hub. I think that made life easier; going through training and learning the basics that you would need before then getting onto a desk. Before that, I think the environment was very different. I think I was quite fortunate. I joined at a time when people were very supportive, and I found that when I got on a desk, the team continued that level of support.

Would you say that the company still encourages collaboration now?

Definitely. I think we hire slightly differently now. We've just had someone start on their own rather than in a group, but there's still lots of training and people on the desk will be very helpful to aid him. It's a really good, collaborative environment.

A lot of people do have their barriers up. Typically most people will have maybe two or three contacts that they'll use; that's the best way to do it. So it's trying to make sure you're part of that two or three which is vital... but it can be quite challenging to get get in.

I think Caspian One has a good name. That helps make it much easier, saying you're from Caspian one, which I always do. I get the impression that takes away some of the barriers.

We've got a strong reputation, but also - a good reputation. There are some agencies out there people will entirely refuse to deal with. Other agencies, people may consider working with - but they still know they have to be more selective and cautious.

The Caspian One name has kudos to it, but even then some people still prefer to go direct, so it's just breaking down those barriers. I remember dealing with a candidate that I've since placed, who used to put the phone down on me all the time. I persevered, and finally, after a few calls, we had a conversation.

"No, not interested."

"Okay - what would you be interested in?"

We spoke, and I found out what he would be looking for, which started to form that relationship. A couple of months later I believed I'd found something that would be right for him... and then I managed to place him.

So yeah, it's perseverance and breaking down some of the barriers and remaining professional, because when you speak to these guys, you realise they're getting 15 - 20 calls a day when they're looking.

Good ones are getting 15-20 per day, regardless of whether they're looking or not. You've got to appreciate their side of the fence as well.

In that timeframe, you also became a Team Lead - and more recently, Co-Head of UK FinTech. Was this due to specific events or achievements, or was it a more natural progression?

Timing was everything. At that stage, there were three divisional managers - Adam, Dan Hammond Smith, and then Lucy. Lucy took an opportunity to work in North America, and off the back of an unbelievable year in terms of sales and billings I took her position, with a promotion to team lead.

Within the space of about four or five months, I went from being a recruitment consultant to principal consultant, to a team lead. Dedication to the role has since seen me take on the senior role of Co-Head - shared with my long-term colleague and friend, Ben Rutter.

How do you balance recruiting and efficiently managing people at the same time?

I'd never really been in a position where I was directly managing people, and also managing accounts. It was almost like going from just managing my own desk, to managing three people's desks while also managing accounts... and it was a lot to take in.

Initially, my personal sales took a hit because of it, as I put too much time on the guys and not enough time on myself and my accounts. After about a year it became apparent that it may be too much. We stripped it back a little bit, and I shared some of my accounts with others in the team, retaining those that were smaller, easier to manage.

I focused my time more on doing personal deals and got myself back on track. As a direct result, the team could see me doing well, putting me in a better position to manage my team. Since then, I've been going from strength to strength.

I started to bring on more accounts and be more involved with account management, so now I'm doing all facets of the job. What was a big learning curve initially (maybe too much too soon) has helped, as now I'm doing the account management, team lead, and still billing myself as well.