How does flat-fee recruiting work?

Flat-fee placement is a fixed-cost model where you pay one set fee per hire regardless of salary. It works best for high-volume hiring or budget-conscious teams that still need quality candidates fast.

What is retained search and when should I use it?

Retained search is an exclusive engagement where Hire Up Resources dedicates focused capacity to your search from day one. It is ideal for senior, hard-to-fill, or confidential roles where speed and discretion matter.

What is embedded talent acquisition?

Embedded TA means a dedicated recruiter works inside your company on a contract basis — handling sourcing, screening, and coordination as if they were a full-time team member, without the overhead of a permanent hire.

What does a fractional TA leader do?

A fractional TA leader provides senior recruiting leadership — strategy, process design, team management, and executive alignment — on a part-time or interim basis. It gives scaling companies access to experienced talent leadership before they are ready to hire a full-time VP of TA.

How is Hire Up Resources pricing structured?

Hire Up Resources offers transparent, flexible pricing across retained search, flat-fee placement, embedded TA, fractional TA leadership, and advisory services. Pricing is tailored to the scope and complexity of each engagement. Book a discovery call to discuss what fits your needs.

How much does fractional recruiting cost?

Fractional recruiting retainers at Hire Up Resources start at $5,500/month for one active role (Starter), $9,500/month for up to three concurrent roles (Core), and $14,000/month for up to five roles (Growth). Individual flat-fee searches start at $5,000 per role. All pricing is fixed and transparent before the engagement begins — no agency markup, no mystery fees.

What does a flat fee recruiting search include?

Flat fee searches include full-cycle recruiting — sourcing, screening, interview coordination, and offer support. Entry and coordinator-level roles start at $5,000. Senior individual contributors start at $8,500. Management roles start at $10,500. Niche technical and cleared roles start at $13,500. A candidate is identified within 15 business days. Payment is 100% upfront.

How much does executive or retained search cost?

Executive and retained search is priced at 18–22% of first-year base salary for Director through C-Suite roles, with a minimum fee of $9,000. Payment is split in thirds: one-third at engagement start, one-third at shortlist delivery, one-third at signed offer. Cleared and niche technical executive searches use this model.

Is there a minimum engagement term?

All embedded retainer and advisory engagements have a 2-month minimum. Growth retainer and Fractional TA Leader engagements have a 90-day minimum with a 4–6 month recommended commitment. After the minimum term, retainers continue month-to-month with 30 days notice to adjust scope.

How does fractional recruiting pricing compare to a staffing agency?

A staffing agency charges 18–25% of first-year base salary per placement as a contingency fee. For three hires at $150K average salary, that totals $90,000 — and you own nothing at the end. A 3-month Core retainer at $9,500/month covering those same three hires costs $28,500 and leaves you with an ATS, a process, and a pipeline that makes every future search faster.

What does the Fractional TA Advisor plan include?

The Fractional TA Advisor plan starts at $3,500/month and includes monthly TA strategy sessions, hiring manager coaching, recruiting vendor oversight, interview process and scorecard reviews, monthly pipeline reporting, compliance and people policy guidance, and job description reviews. Active candidate sourcing is not included — that requires an embedded retainer track.

Engagement Models & Pricing

Find the engagement that fits what you actually need.

Three tracks. Each starts with a price anchor. A few questions about your situation determine where you land. Use the finder below or jump to the track that fits.

Click the scenario closest to your situation.

Track 01 & Placement

I need specific roles filled.

I know the roles — I just need them sourced and closed.

I want transparent, predictable cost per hire.

I may have a batch to fill, or one senior search to close.

Best fit: 1 to 10 defined open roles, or an executive, director, or niche search.

Track 02 — Embedded Partnership

I need an ongoing recruiting partner.

Hiring never fully stops — I need consistent capacity.

I want someone embedded who knows my team and process.

I may need advisory, full-cycle recruiting, or both.

Best fit: ongoing hiring needs, a growing team, or a function that needs strategic ownership.

Track 03 — Build & Optimize

I need support everywhere — recruiting and operations.

No real process, no reliable system, no accountability.

We need recruiting support and the function rebuilt at the same time.

I need the machine fixed and roles filled through it.

Best fit: companies where both active recruiting and infrastructure are broken and need to run in parallel.

Track 01 — Search & Placement is your likely fit. Flat Fee Search starts at $5,000 per role. Executive and Retained Search starts at 18% of first-year base salary with a $9,000 minimum. Batch Hiring starts at $17,500 for 3 roles.

Hiring me as your Fractional Advisor reduces recruiting fees.

Track 02 — Embedded Partnership is your likely fit. Advisory starts at $3,500/month. Active recruiting retainers start at $5,500/month. Scope and number of concurrent roles determine the rate.

Hiring me as your Fractional Advisor reduces recruiting fees.

Track 03 — Build & Optimize is your likely fit. Starts with a 6-month Fractional Advisor commitment at $3,500/month plus a Talent Acquisition Audit. Select from advisory, recruiting, and infrastructure services based on audit findings.

Hiring me as your Fractional Advisor reduces recruiting fees.

Track 01

Search & Placement

Transparent, predictable cost per hire. Three models — what you need and how many roles determine the path.

What best describes your search need?

1 to 3 specific roles to fill

4 to 10 roles in a hiring push

An executive, director, or niche search

Not sure? All three models are shown below.

Model 01

Flat Fee Search

Starting at $5,000 per role

1 to 3 open roles · 100% upfront

Entry/coordinator-level from $5,000 · Senior ICs from $8,500 · Management from $10,500 · Niche technical from $13,500
Volume discount applied when filling 2 or more similar roles
Full-cycle: sourcing, screening, interview coordination, and offer support
Cleared and technical role sourcing included at standard levels

Executive, niche-specialized, and Board searches are handled through the retained model.

Inquire about a flat fee search →

Model 02

Executive & Retained Search

18% to 22% of first-year base salary

Director through C-Suite and Board · Fully retained · Minimum $9,000 · Payment in thirds

Director through C-Suite on a sliding scale from 18% to 22%
Board and Advisor placements at a flat fee — inquire for range
Payment: 1/3 at start · 1/3 at shortlist · 1/3 at signed offer
Cleared and niche technical searches handled through this model
Dedicated search, exclusive focus, no competing placements

Discuss a retained search →

Model 03

Batch Hiring

Starting at $17,500 for 3 roles

3 to 10 roles · Best for hiring pushes and contract ramp-ups

3 roles (same level or department): $17,500**
5 roles (mix of levels, same department): $27,500**
10 roles (full team buildout): $49,500**
Weekly pipeline review and consolidated reporting across all roles
Hiring manager alignment session per role included

GovCon post-award and contract ramp-up staffing is well-suited for batch pricing.

** Starting price based on role level. GovCon contract ramp-up pricing based on level and clearance requirement.

Inquire about batch pricing →

Track 02

Embedded Talent Acquisition Partnership

Ongoing recruiting capacity embedded in your team. Scope and role complexity determine the rate. All models carry a 2-month minimum.

What type of support do you need?

Strategic advisory and coaching — no active sourcing

An active recruiting partner sourcing and closing roles

Strategic Talent Acquisition leadership and team oversight

How many roles are typically open at once?

Usually 1 role at a time

2 to 3 roles concurrently

4 to 5 roles concurrently

Select an option to highlight the model that fits. All models are shown below.

Advisory & Strategic

Maintenance Plan

Fractional Advisor

Starting at $3,500/month

Strategic advisory only · 2 to 3 core focus areas · 6-month commitment recommended

Monthly TA strategy and planning sessions
Hiring manager coaching and assessment guidance
Recruiting vendor and agency oversight
Interview process and scorecard reviews
Monthly pipeline and metrics reporting
Compliance and people policy guidance
Job description reviews and edits

Minimum: 2 months · 6-month commitment recommended

Leadership

Fractional Talent Acquisition Leader

Starts at $10,000/month

Up to 3 active requisitions · Strategic ownership of the full TA function

Owns TA strategy, process optimization, and reporting
Manages any in-house TA team or recruiting coordinators
ATS administration and metrics dashboards
Employer brand and candidate experience ownership
Executive team-facing updates and hiring forecasting

Minimum: 90 days · 4 to 6 month engagement recommended

Active Recruiting — Embedded Retainer

Starter

Embedded Retainer

Starts at $5,500/month

1 active requisition at a time

Full-cycle recruiting for 1 open role at a time
Sourcing, screening, and interview coordination
Weekly status updates
ATS management

Minimum: 2 months · Month-to-month after sprint

Build & Optimize

Your hiring function is broken somewhere between strategy and execution. We audit it, fix what's broken, build what's missing, and recruit through it. Check what applies below — scope and build timeline determine the price.

How This Track Works

Start with the base. Build from the audit.

The Fractional TA Advisor commitment provides the strategic foundation. A TA Audit maps what needs to be built and in what order. Services you select are layered on, priced by scope and estimated build timeline. Nothing in Tier C starts without the audit — the audit prevents you from spending money in the wrong sequence.

Base Starting Point

$3,500

/month advisor base
+ audit + selected services
each scoped individually

Select what applies to your situation

Check what you think you need. This is not a commitment — it's your starting list for the discovery call.

Tier A — Advisory & Strategy Included in the Fractional Advisor base

Monthly TA strategy and planning sessions

TA roadmap and hiring forecast development

Recruiting vendor and agency management

Interview process audit and structured review

Scorecard and structured interview framework reviews

Hiring manager coaching on candidate assessment

Monthly pipeline and metrics reporting

People policy and HR compliance guidance

Onboarding process review and optimization

Job description reviews, strategic edits, and rewrites

Compensation benchmarking guidance

Job posting strategy and platform selection

Tier B — Active Recruiting Layered onto the advisor base — adds active sourcing and full-cycle execution

Full-cycle recruiting — sourcing through signed offer

Active candidate sourcing and pipeline development

Cleared and technical talent sourcing

Candidate screening and coordination

Interview scheduling and logistics management

Offer strategy, negotiation, and candidate closing

Candidate experience and communication management

Hiring manager alignment sessions per role

Weekly and bi-weekly pipeline reporting

In-house recruiter team oversight and coaching

Executive and niche retained search

GovCon proposal and post-award staffing

Tier C — Build & Transform Infrastructure, systems, training, and brand — scoped from audit findings

TA audit and full assessment (required entry point)

Hiring process documentation and full redesign

Structured interview framework and scorecard builds

SLA framework: TTF, TTH, TTO targets

ATS selection and recommendation support

Basic ATS implementation (JazzHR, Breezy, Zoho, Loxo)

Mid to enterprise ATS build (Greenhouse, iCIMS, Lever, Workday)

CRM setup and configuration (HubSpot, Loxo, iCIMS CRM)

Sourcing tool implementation and configuration

Screening and engagement automation

Workflow automation builds

Scheduling integrations (Calendly, Google, Outlook)

Job board integrations (LinkedIn, Indeed, ZipRecruiter)

HRIS connections (Checkr, Gusto, TriNet, Rippling)

Metrics dashboards and TA reporting infrastructure

Hiring manager training program

Executive interview coaching sessions

Job description overhaul — up to 10 roles

Employer Value Proposition development

Careers page content audit and full rewrite

Full Employer Brand Foundation Kit

OFCCP and AAP federal compliance infrastructure

Advisory

Recruiting

Build

Selections update here as you check items.

Scope note: All retainer and advisory engagements define the agreed scope at engagement start. Work outside that scope is quoted and agreed before it begins. Track 03 pricing is finalized at the discovery call based on selections, combinations, and the estimated build timeline identified during the Talent Acquisition Audit.