If you’re a 20–80 person firm, hiring usually breaks in predictable ways.
You post a job. You get a few unqualified applicants. Maybe one decent one. Then nothing.
At that point, you’re left with two options:
- Pay a recruiter 20–30% of salary
- Try to justify hiring someone internally
Most firms don’t love either option. That’s where this model fits.
Hierarchy Search is an on-demand recruiting partner.
Think of it as: a recruiter when you need one, not there when you don’t, embedded in your process — not working around it.
No placement fees. No long-term contracts.
How It Works
Week 1
- Define role and positioning
- Launch job postings under your brand
- Begin outbound sourcing
Weeks 2–3
- Candidate flow starts
- Screening and qualification
- Interview coordination
Ongoing
- Pipeline builds
- Process gets refined
- Hiring becomes consistent instead of reactive
Why Firms Use This Instead of Recruiters
Agencies break down at your size
- Expensive — 20–30% fees
- Not embedded in your process
- Incentivized for speed, not alignment
Hiring internally doesn’t make sense yet
- $80K–$150K+ salary cost
- Idle during slow periods
- Hard to justify for inconsistent hiring
This fills the gap
- Flexible — pause anytime
- Cost-efficient — flat weekly rate
- Built around how your firm actually operates
- Candidates belong to you — no future fees
Real Example
One client used this model and hired approximately $755,000 in total salaries at a total recruiting cost of $28,000.
That is an effective cost of roughly 3.7% — compared to 20–30% through a traditional agency.
More importantly: consistent candidate flow, better team alignment, and no dependency on external recruiters going forward.
3.7%
effective recruiting cost
vs. 20–30%
traditional agency fee
When This Works Best
- You have one or more open roles right now
- Hiring has become inconsistent or reactive
- You are handling recruiting yourself
- Job postings are not producing results
- You need one critical hire or multiple simultaneous searches
When It’s Probably Not a Fit
- You want contingency-only recruiting (pay only on hire)
- You prefer a fully hands-off third party
- You are hiring very infrequently — one role every year or two
- You are not willing to be involved in the hiring process
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I use a staffing agency, hire an internal recruiter, or use fractional recruiting?
A staffing agency charges 20–30% per placement and is incentivized to fill fast, not right. An internal recruiter costs $80,000–$150,000 per year — difficult to justify if hiring is inconsistent. On-demand recruiting fills the gap: you get an embedded recruiting partner at a flat weekly rate, with no long-term commitment and no placement fees. For most 10–100 person AEC firms, this is the most efficient model.
What are alternatives to paying a 20% recruiting fee?
On-demand recruiting — also called fractional talent acquisition — is the most cost-effective alternative for small and mid-size architecture, engineering, and construction firms. Instead of paying a per-hire placement fee, you engage a recruiter at a flat weekly rate for the duration of your search. One client hired approximately $755,000 in total salaries at an effective cost of around 3.7% — versus the 20–30% they would have paid an agency.
What is on-demand recruiting for architecture firms?
On-demand recruiting means you get a dedicated recruiting professional embedded in your hiring process — posting jobs under your brand, sourcing candidates, running screens, managing the pipeline — without hiring them full-time. You pay for the time you need. You can pause or stop anytime. This is not outsourced recruiting. It is embedded recruiting without the full-time cost.
How is this different from a staffing agency?
A staffing agency earns a percentage of every hire they place, which creates an incentive to fill roles fast rather than fill them right. Hierarchy Search works on a flat weekly rate — incentivized to find the right person, not close fast and collect a check. Candidates belong to you after placement. No future fees, no restrictions.
What does it cost?
Active search engagements run approximately $1,750 per week — flat fee, no placement costs, no long-term contract. During slower hiring periods, a maintenance mode is available at approximately $2,500 per month to keep pipelines active and job postings running. You can pause anytime.
What industries do you specialize in?
Our core focus is architecture, engineering, and construction — AEC. We have deep networks across the AEC talent market and understand the roles, the firms, and the candidate pool. We do not need you to explain your org chart.
Do you work with firms outside major cities?
Yes. Our team is fully remote with networks across major AEC markets nationwide — from San Francisco and Chicago to mid-size markets that traditional agencies overlook.
Can this work for a single hire?
Yes. You do not need high hiring volume to work with us. Hierarchy Search is effective for a single critical search or multiple simultaneous roles. Clients use us for one important hire, pause, and return when hiring picks up again.
What is fractional talent acquisition?
Fractional talent acquisition is a recruiting model where a firm engages a dedicated recruiter on a flexible, part-time basis — embedded in their process, working under their brand — instead of paying agency placement fees or hiring a full-time internal recruiter. It is an alternative to staffing agencies specifically designed for firms that hire inconsistently or do not have enough volume to justify a full-time hire.
Most firms don’t realize there’s a middle option.
They go from “we’ll handle it ourselves” straight to “we need to hire a recruiter or pay an agency.” There’s a better way to handle hiring in between.
If you want a quick gut check on your hiring setup, we are happy to take a look. No pitch — just perspective.
Recruiting is our Passion.
Connect with us today, let’s see how we can help achieve your staffing needs