Fractional recruiters · Internal recruiter, part of the week · Or a recruiter for fractional executives

Fractional recruiters · two meanings, and which one you need

A fractional recruiter is one of two things.

Inside a company, it is a recruiter or talent partner who works in your business for part of the week and runs your hiring, often called a fractional internal recruiter.

It can also mean a recruiter or agency that finds fractional executives for you.

The first fills a run of roles from the inside; the second finds one leader from outside.

To bring in the first, hire a fractional recruiter.

For the second, see how a fractional recruitment agency works.

We are an executive search firm, so we do the second.

We recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent executives, and non-executive directors.

Brief us on a leadership hire →See the roles

How a brief runswhat we undertake

01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief

Shortlist3–5

3–5

Shortlist · with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 set out

Vetting · stages before a candidate reaches you

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire a fractional recruiter

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with recruiter candidates, their day rates and availability.

0115 minutes, video or phone
02We scope the role and the days a week
03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs

Prefer email? Use the booking page →

Pick a day that suits · live availability

Open the booking calendar →

On the board · last 3 months

People leadership jobs on the board

1 on the board · 1 confirmed open

FractionalSyndicated
Performance & Development Lead (Fractional)
Unity Advisory · London
Rate not stated3 d/wk

Browse every role on the board →

Live people leadership roles

Fractional recruitment works differently from a permanent search — shorter, scoped by days a week, and priced on the engagement. Send a recruiter brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.

01/ the role

What is a fractional recruiter?

“Fractional” means part of the week, ongoing.

Attached to “recruiter”, it describes either where the recruiter works or whom they recruit.

Meaning one: a recruiter inside your business

A recruiter or talent partner joins your team on agreed days.

They use your systems, speak for your company to candidates and work through your hiring plan.

They are paid for their time, not per hire.

What they leave behind is your own process and your own candidate data.

Meaning two: a recruiter for fractional executives

A recruiter, agency or search firm finds part-time leaders for you: a CFO for two days a week, a CMO for a launch.

They work from outside your business, against a brief.

This is what we do.

We do not supply embedded recruiters; for that seat, the fractional recruiter jobs hub sets out the role and how to fill it.

02/ scope

What a fractional recruiter does

Inside your business

Agrees each role with the hiring manager, writes the advert, sources and screens candidates, runs interviews to one process and closes offers.

Keeps the applicant tracking system clean as they go.

The CIPD’s introduction to recruitment frames the aim: a workforce with the skills the organisation needs now and in future.

A good internal recruiter plans from that, not from the next vacancy alone.

Finding fractional executives

Takes a brief for one senior seat, searches the market, tests candidates and introduces a shortlist.

The client makes the hire and agrees the engagement with the executive.

For senior people leadership, rather than recruiting, hire a fractional CHRO.

For a talent leader who designs the whole hiring function, see fractional talent acquisition jobs.

03/ comparison

The two meanings side by side

Same phrase, different seats. Choose by what you need filled and where the work should sit.

Internal recruiter, part of the weekRecruiter for fractional executives

WorksInside your team, on agreed daysOutside your business, against a brief

FillsA run of roles across the hiring planOne senior or leadership seat at a time

Speaks forYour company, to every candidateIts own firm, on your behalf

RulesEmployment and data protection law, as your own hiringThe Conduct Regulations 2003, plus the same employment and data law

Leaves behindYour process, your data, your employer brandThe leader it found

04/ vetting

How we vet fractional recruiters

What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.

01
Qualification screen
Verify recruiter tenure, sector context and stage fit.
SOURCING
02
Mandate fit
Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.
MATCHING
03
Reference deep-dive
We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.
VERIFY
04
Shortlist
Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
SHORTLIST OF 3–5

05/ fractional internal recruiter

Fractional internal recruiter · your own recruiter, part of the week

A fractional internal recruiter is meaning one, said plainly.

They work as part of your team for a day or more a week, not as a supplier to it.

It suits a company with a hiring plan too big for managers alone but not big enough for a full-time recruiter.

It also suits a people team that needs extra hiring capacity for a busy period.

Because they recruit as you, your rules apply to them.

There is no process set by law, but employers must follow a fair one, with discrimination and data protection law throughout (Acas).

They may be employed on a part-time contract or work through their own company.

Employment status sets their rights and your duties, and tax status can differ from it (GOV.UK).

To find one, the fractional recruiter jobs hub sets out the scope, the steps and the questions to ask.

06/ executive hires

Fractional recruiters for executive hires · the agency meaning

Here the recruiter finds a part-time leader rather than joining your team.

The firm might be a recruitment agency, an executive search firm or an independent recruiter.

In law, all of them can be employment agencies.

GOV.UK’s guidance says the rules apply to a wide range of agencies, including online platforms and executive search consultants.

Before introducing anyone, an agency must get enough from you to select a suitable candidate, including the role, the hours and the start date (regulation 18).

A good brief answers those questions before the search starts.

For how this works with us, see fractional recruitment agency.

For full-time cover over a fixed term, see interim executive search.

07/ best platform

What is the best fractional recruiter platform? · what to compare

No neutral ranking of fractional recruiter platforms exists, and we do not rank ourselves or name rivals.

The best one is the one that fits the meaning you need.

For an internal recruiter, compare people, not platforms: roles they filled somewhere similar, a process they built, and references you take yourself.

Ask how they will handle candidates’ data.

The ICO’s recruitment guidance covers that data from advert to deletion.

It applies to employers and to agencies, head-hunters and consultancies that recruit for them.

For executive hires, ask what comes back on a shortlist, who vets candidates and how, and who owns the IR35 position.

Ask whether the firm is a member of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation.

Our guide to fractional executive search firms sets out how to compare firms.

Put the same questions to every firm, us included.

08/ routing

Which one you need · three quick tests

A run of hires below the leadership team?

You need a recruiter inside the business, so go to the recruiter hub.

One senior seat, part of the week?

You need a recruiter for fractional executives, so brief an agency or search firm.

Both?

They sit side by side: a people leader sets the plan, an internal recruiter works it, and a search firm fills the top seats.

Looking for work as a recruiter?

Senior people roles are on the board below; recruiter posts below head level are not listed here.

09/ rules

The rules recruiters work under · whichever meaning

Agencies work under the Employment Agencies Act 1973 and the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003.

Since 7 April 2026 the Fair Work Agency has been their state regulator in England, Scotland and Wales (GOV.UK).

An internal recruiter engaged directly by you does your own hiring, so your duties as an employer apply.

Equality, data protection and right to work checks stay with you.

If either works through their own company, the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply.

Status depends on how the engagement runs, and a medium or large client makes the determination.

Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.

10/ hiring

How to hire one · and what it costs

For an internal recruiter, start from the hiring plan: the roles, their seniority and what is failing today.

Then set the days a week, the systems they use and who signs off offers.

For an executive hire, write the brief: the outcome, the days, the reporting line and the start date.

Test candidates on work like yours, and settle IR35 before the start.

Cost is the day rate times the days worked.

No source we trust publishes a fractional recruiter day rate, so we do not quote one.

For leadership hires, we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

Every candidate passes our five-stage vetting first.

11/ questions

Fractional recruiters FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in a fractional recruiter.

Either a recruiter or talent partner who works inside your business for part of the week and runs your hiring, or a recruiter or agency that finds fractional executives for you. The first fills a run of roles from the inside; the second finds one leader from outside.

A recruiter who joins your team on agreed days, uses your systems and speaks for your company to candidates. They are paid for their time, and your own employment and data protection duties apply to their work.

The second meaning: a recruiter, agency or search firm that finds part-time leaders against your brief. That is what we do; see fractional recruitment agency.

No neutral ranking exists, and we do not rank ourselves or name rivals. Compare track record and references for an internal recruiter; for executive hires, compare what comes back on a shortlist, who vets, who owns IR35 and whether the firm is an REC member.

No. We are an executive search firm and recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent executives, and non-executive directors.

For an internal recruiter, start from the hiring plan, set the days and test candidates on roles they filled somewhere similar; the fractional recruiter jobs hub has the steps. For a leadership hire, send us the brief and we send a shortlist of 3–5.

The day rate times the days worked. No source we trust publishes a fractional recruiter day rate, so we set out the day rate on every shortlist, with availability and IR35 position.

It depends on how the engagement runs in practice, not on its label. In most cases a medium or large client decides the status; for a small client outside the public sector, the worker’s own company decides (HMRC).

Book 15 minutes · shortlist of 3–5

Bring the brief. We architect the team.

A shortlist of 3–5 with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.

Book a call →Submit a brief