HR Director Services | Fractional, Interim & Part-Time

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire a HR director

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with HR Director Services 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

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Pick a day that suits · live availability

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01/ the role

What HR director services cover

The HR director runs the HR function: policy, employee relations, recruitment, development and compliance with employment law.

In scope: HR policy, contracts and handbook; employee relations, disciplinaries and grievances; recruitment, onboarding and development; pay, performance and benefits administration; employment law compliance and HR systems.

Board-level people strategy may sit with a CHRO.

Specialist legal advice on tribunal claims comes from employment lawyers.

What the seat does day to day is set out in the HR director role explained.

02/ scope

Four ways to buy the HR director seat

Fractional HR Director services

A fractional HR director holds the HR director seat on a standing weekly commitment, usually alongside a small number of other clients, and owns outcomes rather than hours.

A fractional HR director gives an SME a senior HR lead on a standing weekly commitment: policy, case management and manager coaching.

Fractional HR director services sets out the scope, the rates and how we shortlist.

Interim HR Director services

An interim HR director works full-time for a fixed term to cover a gap, lead a change or see a transaction through, then hands over.

Interim executives are hired for immediate impact: they expect to take decisions from the first week.

Interim HR director services sets out the scope, the rates and how we shortlist.

Part-Time HR Director services

A part-time HR director works set days each week for one organisation.

A part-time HR director works fixed days each week on a pro-rata contract, suited to a business of a size where HR is steady but not a full-time director load.

Part-Time HR director services sets out the scope, the rates and how we shortlist.

Permanent HR Director

A permanent HR director is right once headcount and casework need daily senior attention.

Our permanent HR director search page covers the process.

Outsourced HR services

Sold as virtual HR director: a provider or a named individual off your payroll.

See outsourced HR services.

03/ the route

Fractional, interim or permanent?

Four taps. The answer names the route for the seat and the page that covers it.

How much of the week does the work fill?

Is there a fixed end or a programme?

Does the seat sit on the board for years?

Is the need now, or can it wait for a search?

The route · Fractional

A fractional HR director services.

The work fills part of the week, so buy the days it needs.

A fractional HR director services holds the seat on agreed days for as long as the seat is needed, and works for other clients on the rest.

The fractional HR director services route Talk it through

04/ comparison

Four ways to buy an HR director fractional, interim, part-time or permanent

The same HR director seat can be filled four ways. The difference is commitment, contract and how long you need it.

FractionalInterimPart-timePermanent

CommitmentDays a week, ongoingFull-time, fixed termSet days each weekFull-time, open-ended

Usual contractContract for services, often via the executive’s companyDay-rate contract for the mandateOften pro-rata employment; sometimes a contractorEmployment contract

Clients at onceA small portfolioOneOneOne

Best whenYou need HR director judgement every week, not every dayYou need full-time cover or a change led nowYou want the same person on the same days for the long termThe seat is full-time work for years

ExitNotice period, or convert to permanentHand-over at the end of the mandateEmployment noticeResignation or redundancy

05/ timing

Which shape fits your situation

Match the shape to the work, not the title.

Scenario 01

Weekly judgement

Fractional

You need a HR director to own decisions every week, but the work does not fill five days.

A growing team with no HR lead, managers handling difficult cases alone, out-of-date contracts, or employment law changes to put into practice.

Scenario 02

Now, full-time

Interim

An interim HR director keeps casework, recruitment and policy moving.

Scenario 03

Long term

Part-time or permanent

A part-time HR director works fixed days each week on a pro-rata contract, suited to a business of a size where HR is steady but not a full-time director load.

A permanent HR director is right once headcount and casework need daily senior attention.

06/ vetting

How we vet the shortlist

Five stages: qualification, mandate fit, reference deep-dive, shortlist and analysis, kick-off.

01
Qualification screen
Verify HR Director Services 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

07/ before you brief

Before you buy HR director services what to decide first

The decisions.

Write down the three decisions the HR director will own in the next ninety days.

That list decides the shape: weekly decisions point to fractional, a time-bound programme to interim, a steady load to part-time.

The neighbours.

The HR director runs the function; the CHRO owns the people strategy at board level.

The checks.

Free, impartial guidance on UK employment law and practice: see Acas.

For a contractor engagement, agree how it will run in practice, because that decides IR35 status; HMRC’s guidance for clients sets out who makes the determination.

08/ questions

HR Director services FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in a HR director.

Ways of filling the HR director seat without, or before, a permanent hire: fractional (days a week, ongoing), interim (full-time, fixed term) and part-time (set days, one employer), alongside a permanent search. The HR director runs the HR function: policy, employee relations, recruitment, development and compliance with employment law.

Fractional when you need HR director judgement every week but not every day; interim when you need full-time cover or a change led now; part-time when the load is steady and you want the same person long term; permanent when the seat is full-time work for years.

Rates depend on scope, sector and days, and no source we can verify publishes a band for this seat. Each candidate on our shortlist states their own rate, so you compare like with like.

Board-level people strategy may sit with a CHRO. Specialist legal advice on tribunal claims comes from employment lawyers.

You brief us on scope, shape and start date. We come back with a shortlist of 3–5, each with rate, availability and IR35 position set out, assessed through our five-stage vetting.

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

09/ related

Keep exploring

Adjacent roles and reading.

/fractional-hr-director-servicesFractional HR Director Services

An ongoing weekly commitment.

/interim-hr-director-servicesInterim HR Director Services

Full-time for a fixed term.

/part-time-hr-director-servicesPart-Time HR Director Services

Set days each week.

/what-does-an-hr-director-doThe HR director role explained

What the seat does day to day.

/vettingHow we vet

The five-stage process behind every shortlist.

Executive servicesHR Director services hubThe HR director seat, fractionalThe HR director seat, interimIR35 guide

HR Director Services · fractional, interim, part-time and permanent