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Comparison Guide

HR Consultant vs
HR Director

Which fractional HR role do you need? A complete comparison to help you make the right choice.

30/mo

Monthly Searches

£700-£950

Consultant Rate

£900-£1,100

Director Rate

Quick Answer

The Key Difference

Fractional HR Consultants deliver specific projects and expertise. Fractional HR Directors take ownership of your HR function. Consultants are "do this for me"—Directors are "be my HR leader."

Side-by-Side Comparison

Factor	Fractional HR Consultant	Fractional HR Director
Primary Role	Specialist expertise, project delivery	Strategic leadership, owns HR function
Day Rate	£700-£950	£900-£1,100
Engagement Type	Project-based, defined scope	Ongoing, open-ended
Duration	Weeks to months	6-18+ months
Accountability	Deliverables	Outcomes & results
Team Integration	External advisor	Leadership team member
Decision Making	Recommends	Decides & implements
Best For	Specific projects, specialist skills	Ongoing leadership, building HR

Decision Guide

When to Hire Each

Hire an HR Consultant When...

✓You have a specific project with clear scope and timeline
✓You need specialist expertise you don't have (e.g., compensation, DE&I)
✓You already have internal HR but need expert support
✓You want recommendations and implementation help
✓Budget is limited and you need targeted intervention

Example projects:

• HRIS implementation (£10k-£25k)
• Employee handbook (£5k-£10k)
• Compensation benchmarking (£8k-£15k)
• DE&I strategy (£10k-£20k)
• Performance framework (£8k-£15k)

Hire an HR Director When...

✓You need someone to own your HR function
✓You want an embedded member of leadership team
✓You're building HR from scratch
✓You have ongoing complex ER issues
✓You need someone accountable for people outcomes

Typical scope:

• Own people strategy
• Attend leadership meetings
• Manage complex ER
• Lead senior hiring
• Build HR infrastructure
• Report to CEO/board

Real-World Examples

Consultant Example: HRIS Implementation

"We're 60 employees using spreadsheets for HR. We need someone to select and implement an HRIS (HiBob, Personio, etc.), migrate our data, and train the team. 3-month project."

→ Hire HR Consultant. Clear project, specialist skill, defined end.

Director Example: Building HR Function

"We're 45 employees with no HR. Founders are drowning in people issues. We need someone to build everything—contracts, policies, processes—and be our ongoing HR leader."

→ Hire HR Director. Need ownership, ongoing leadership, embedded partner.

Consultant Example: Compensation Review

"We have an HR team but need specialist help to benchmark our salaries against market, redesign our bands, and create a new compensation philosophy."

→ Hire HR Consultant. Specialist expertise, defined deliverable, internal HR continues.

Director Example: Complex ER & Restructure

"We're facing potential tribunal claims, need to restructure the team, and have ongoing performance issues. We need experienced leadership to navigate this over the next 12 months."

→ Hire HR Director. Complex ongoing issues, need accountability, leadership presence.

Costs

Cost Comparison

Fractional HR Consultant

Day Rate: £700-£950
Project fees: £5,000-£25,000
Typical engagement: £15,000-£50,000
Duration: 1-6 months

Fractional HR Director

Day Rate: £900-£1,100
Monthly (2 days/week): £7,800-£9,500
Annual (2 days/week): £94,000-£114,000
Duration: 6-18+ months

When to Use Both

Companies with 100+ employees often have a Fractional HR Director for ongoing leadership while bringing in HR Consultants for specialist projects. For example: HR Director handles day-to-day leadership while a Compensation Consultant runs a salary benchmarking project, or an HRIS Consultant implements new HR technology.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Fractional HR Consultants provide specialist expertise on specific HR projects or problems—HRIS implementation, compensation benchmarking, policy development, DE&I strategy, or tribunal preparation. They advise and implement but typically don't take ongoing leadership responsibility for your HR function.

Fractional HR Consultants in the UK typically charge £700-£950 per day, or offer project-based pricing (e.g., £5,000-£15,000 for handbook development, £10,000-£25,000 for HRIS implementation). This is lower than HR Directors (£900-£1,100/day) because they focus on specific deliverables rather than ongoing leadership.

Hire an HR Consultant for: specific projects with clear scope, specialist expertise you lack internally, one-off initiatives. Hire an HR Director for: ongoing strategic leadership, building your HR function, complex ER requiring continuous involvement, being embedded in leadership team.

Yes, some engagements start as consulting (specific project) and evolve into ongoing fractional HR Director roles once value is proven. However, many HR Consultants prefer project-based work and may not want ongoing leadership responsibility.

Sometimes. A Fractional HR Director handles ongoing leadership while bringing in HR Consultants for specialist projects (compensation review, HRIS selection, M&A HR integration). This is common for companies with 100+ employees.

Find the Right HR Support

Whether you need project-based consulting or ongoing leadership, find experienced HR professionals.

Browse HR Professionals HR Director Guide

HR Cluster

Complete HR Guide HR Jobs UK HR Director All HR Roles Cost Guide Fractional CHRO

Factor

Fractional HR Consultant

Fractional HR Director

Primary Role

Specialist expertise, project delivery

Strategic leadership, owns HR function

Day Rate

£700-£950

£900-£1,100

Engagement Type

Project-based, defined scope

Ongoing, open-ended

Duration

Weeks to months

6-18+ months

Accountability

Deliverables

Outcomes & results

Team Integration

External advisor

Leadership team member

Decision Making

Recommends

Decides & implements

Best For

Specific projects, specialist skills

Ongoing leadership, building HR

Hire an HR Consultant When...

✓You have a specific project with clear scope and timeline
✓You need specialist expertise you don't have (e.g., compensation, DE&I)
✓You already have internal HR but need expert support
✓You want recommendations and implementation help
✓Budget is limited and you need targeted intervention

Example projects:

• HRIS implementation (£10k-£25k)
• Employee handbook (£5k-£10k)
• Compensation benchmarking (£8k-£15k)
• DE&I strategy (£10k-£20k)
• Performance framework (£8k-£15k)

Hire an HR Director When...

✓You need someone to own your HR function
✓You want an embedded member of leadership team
✓You're building HR from scratch
✓You have ongoing complex ER issues
✓You need someone accountable for people outcomes

Typical scope:

• Own people strategy
• Attend leadership meetings
• Manage complex ER
• Lead senior hiring
• Build HR infrastructure
• Report to CEO/board

Real-World Examples

Consultant Example: HRIS Implementation

"We're 60 employees using spreadsheets for HR. We need someone to select and implement an HRIS (HiBob, Personio, etc.), migrate our data, and train the team. 3-month project."

→ Hire HR Consultant. Clear project, specialist skill, defined end.

Director Example: Building HR Function

"We're 45 employees with no HR. Founders are drowning in people issues. We need someone to build everything—contracts, policies, processes—and be our ongoing HR leader."

→ Hire HR Director. Need ownership, ongoing leadership, embedded partner.

Consultant Example: Compensation Review

"We have an HR team but need specialist help to benchmark our salaries against market, redesign our bands, and create a new compensation philosophy."

→ Hire HR Consultant. Specialist expertise, defined deliverable, internal HR continues.

Director Example: Complex ER & Restructure

"We're facing potential tribunal claims, need to restructure the team, and have ongoing performance issues. We need experienced leadership to navigate this over the next 12 months."

→ Hire HR Director. Complex ongoing issues, need accountability, leadership presence.

HR Consultant vsHR Director

The Key Difference

Side-by-Side Comparison

When to Hire Each

Hire an HR Consultant When...

Hire an HR Director When...

Real-World Examples

Consultant Example: HRIS Implementation

Director Example: Building HR Function

Consultant Example: Compensation Review

Director Example: Complex ER & Restructure

Cost Comparison

Fractional HR Consultant

Fractional HR Director

When to Use Both

Frequently Asked Questions

Find the Right HR Support

HR Consultant vsHR Director

The Key Difference

Side-by-Side Comparison

When to Hire Each

Hire an HR Consultant When...

Hire an HR Director When...

Real-World Examples

Consultant Example: HRIS Implementation

Director Example: Building HR Function

Consultant Example: Compensation Review

Director Example: Complex ER & Restructure

Cost Comparison

Fractional HR Consultant

Fractional HR Director

When to Use Both

Frequently Asked Questions

Find the Right HR Support

HR Consultant vs
HR Director

HR Consultant vs
HR Director