Background
Chief Operating Officer
Brandon Murphy is the Chief Operating Officer of The Well. He joined in March 2024, and in his own words he is responsible for optimizing the firm's systems, processes, people and performance. When a search runs on schedule, an agreement goes out the same day and a new team member is productive in the first week, Brandon built the system behind it.
He came to recruiting from engineering. Brandon earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, with a minor in Spanish, from the University of Minnesota, where he was vice president of the men's rowing team. He then spent nearly 15 years at Raytheon Technologies, starting as a manufacturing engineer and moving up through operations manager, project lead engineer and production program manager to program manager. That work spanned ethics and compliance, contract management, project management and program management, with domestic and international teams. Brandon’s final role before leaving to start his own firm involved the oversight of all engineering activities, manufacturing and quality performance, and contracting for the Airbus single aisle and long-range video and sensors suites.
In 2021 he co-founded Rize MSP and served as its COO until the company was acquired by Engiven, a fintech that helps nonprofits accept gifts of cryptocurrency and stock. He stayed on as Engiven's Chief Operating Officer until early 2024, leading the operationalization of the business from the ground up. Along the way he obtained his Series 65 license.
Rowing on a team, then nearly 15 years in program management, shaped how he runs a business: a team performs when every person knows their part and the process behind them holds. That shows in the handoffs a search depends on, from a Managing Director's first consultation with a firm leader, to the kickoff with a dedicated recruiter, to the offer and the first week on the job.
At The Well, Brandon runs operations, compliance, contracts, HR and the systems the recruiting team uses every day. He designs how work moves from a first client conversation to a signed search to a placement. He is relentless about The Well’s pursuit of optimization and improved client experience.
That is the standard he holds: systems that work as designed, processes anyone on the team can run, and nothing falling through the cracks. Brandon brings an engineer's precision to a business built on relationships, so the recruiters can spend their time on people instead of paperwork.
Away from work, Brandon spends his time with his girls. He likes camping and trail running, and his personal motto is simple: you've got to live while you're living.