Services & Fees
Finding the right person takes time, care and a clear understanding of your business. I work alongside you to understand what you need, reach suitable people and help you make informed hiring decisions.
Whether you need support with one important vacancy, an ongoing recruitment partner or advice before taking the next step, we’ll agree the scope, fee and what you’ll receive before any work begins.
Which service do you need?
Virtual Talent is not currently VAT registered. No VAT is charged.
Where advertising, paid recruitment tools or travel are needed, any additional costs will be explained and agreed with you before they are incurred.
Strategic Talent Search
For an important vacancy that needs a focused search, I take time to understand your business and what the role requires. I research the market, approach suitable people directly and assess their experience and motivations against your agreed priorities.
Every search receives the same care and attention. The level reflects the complexity of the role and the research, candidate engagement and time needed. We’ll agree the scope of support, including interviews and offers, before work begins.
Level 1: Focused
Fee: £3,000
Search period: Approximately 30 calendar days
Typically suits: Roles where relevant skills are found across a range of businesses or sectors, giving us a broader pool of potential candidates.
What this involves: Focused research into relevant employers, direct approaches to suitable people and assessment against your agreed requirements.
Level 2: Targeted
Fee: £4,500
Search period: Approximately 30 calendar days
Typically suits: Roles requiring a specialist qualification or sector experience, where suitable people may not be actively looking for a new opportunity.
What this involves: Targeted research across relevant employers, competitors and related sectors, with direct approaches and assessment against your agreed requirements.
Level 3: Complex
Fee: £6,000
Search period: Approximately 30 calendar days
Typically suits: Roles combining several specialist requirements, a limited pool of suitable candidates, or location and package considerations that need a more focused approach.
What this involves: Deeper research across a wider range of organisations and related sectors, targeted candidate engagement and detailed market feedback to help you assess your options.
Level 4: Specialist
Fee: £7,500
Search period: Around 45–60 days
Typically suits: Roles requiring rare expertise, a search across a broad geographical area, or a senior or confidential appointment requiring a particularly careful approach.
What this involves: Research carried out in stages, in-depth market insight and sustained engagement with potential candidates, allowing time to explore their suitability and interest.
Level 5: Executive & Niche
Fee: From £10,000
Search period: Agreed individually
Typically suits: Executive and board appointments, international or multi-country searches, and roles where suitable expertise is held by a very small or hard-to-reach group of people.
What this involves: An individually designed search plan, with research, candidate engagement and assessment tailored to the demands of the appointment. We’ll agree the scope, timeframe and fixed fee before work begins.
Included in every search
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A detailed briefing to understand your business, the role, essential requirements and package
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A search strategy tailored to your vacancy
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Research to identify relevant employers and potential candidates
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Direct approaches to suitable people, including those who aren’t actively looking
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Screening and assessment against your agreed requirements
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A written summary of each candidate introduced, explaining their relevant experience and motivations
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Regular written progress updates and agreed review points
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Market insight on salary, candidate availability and competition, with practical recommendations
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A final report bringing together the search findings and recommended next steps
Interview coordination and offer support are included where agreed in your proposal.
You keep the reports, market findings and recommendations, whether or not you make a hire from the search.
How your level is set
Payment and terms
During our briefing, we’ll explore five factors that shape the search:
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The skills, qualifications and sector experience you need
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The availability of suitable candidates
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How the salary and package compare with the market
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Location, travel and working arrangements
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Seniority, confidentiality and any additional requirements
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50% of the agreed fee is payable before the search begins, with the remaining 50% due at the end of the agreed search period.
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The fee covers the agreed research, candidate engagement, assessment and reporting. It is payable whether or not an appointment is made.
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Each search covers one appointment. Any fee for additional appointments from the same search will be stated in your proposal before work begins.
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If you would like to extend the search, we’ll agree the scope and cost together before any further work starts.
You’ll receive the full Terms of Business before work begins.
I use this assessment to recommend the appropriate search level and explain why it fits your brief. You’ll receive the scope and fixed fee in writing before any work begins.
If your requirements change significantly during the search, we’ll discuss the implications and agree any changes to scope or fee before additional work starts.
Embedded Talent Partnership
An ongoing recruitment partnership that gives you experienced, practical support and time back to focus on your business.
With dedicated hours each month, I work alongside you on your hiring priorities, from finding and engaging candidates to keeping recruitment moving. We’ll agree where my time will make the most difference and review those priorities together each month.
Resourcing
Hours each month: 8
Fee: £795 per month
Typically suits: Businesses with an existing recruiter or HR team who need practical support with candidate sourcing and recruitment administration.
What you get: Candidate research, sourcing and outreach, pipeline updates and administration in your applicant tracking system. Your team leads interviews, offers and hiring strategy.
As a guide: Focused sourcing and outreach support for one priority vacancy, with activity agreed to fit the available hours.
Flexible
Hours each month: 15
Fee: £1,495 per month
Typically suits: Businesses hiring occasionally who want an experienced recruitment partner to support their team.
What you get: Everything in Resourcing, plus candidate screening, communication throughout the recruitment process, recruitment administration and practical advice for hiring managers.
As a guide: Support across one or two vacancies where advertising is the main route to candidates, with priorities and activity agreed to fit the available hours.
Growth
Hours each month: 25
Fee: £2,495 per month
Typically suits: Businesses recruiting regularly who need hands-on support to keep hiring organised and moving forward.
What you get: Everything in Flexible, plus interview coordination, communication with the people involved in hiring and market reporting to support informed decisions.
As a guide: Support across two or three vacancies where advertising is the main route to candidates, with priorities and activity agreed to fit the available hours.
Integrated
Hours each month: 40
Fee: £3,995 per month
Typically suits: Businesses with several vacancies who need a recruitment partner to take a more active role in managing their hiring.
What you get: Everything in Growth, plus management of agreed recruitment activity across multiple vacancies, closer collaboration with hiring managers and practical improvements to your recruitment process.
As a guide: A focused direct search for one priority vacancy, or a mix of targeted sourcing and support for advertised roles, with priorities and activity agreed to fit the available hours.
Need more than 40 hours a month? We can discuss a larger partnership around your hiring needs.
How the hours work
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We’ll agree your hiring priorities and plan how to use your hours where they can make the most difference.
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Your hours cover all recruitment work carried out for you, including meetings, candidate communication, updates and reporting.
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You’ll receive a short mid-month update and an end-of-month summary showing how your hours were used.
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If a vacancy needs more work than anticipated, we’ll review priorities together and agree how best to use the remaining time. A Strategic Talent Search may be more suitable where one complex vacancy needs dedicated attention.
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Each package reserves time for your business, rather than a set number of candidates or hires. Unused hours do not carry forward to the following month.
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Partnerships begin with a three-month initial term, paid monthly in advance. After this, your partnership continues on a rolling monthly basis, with the notice period agreed in your Statement of Work before we begin.
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You can increase your package from the following month. After the initial term, you can also reduce your package.
Need a few extra hours?
If your priorities need more time in a particular month, you can add extra hours to your partnership, subject to availability. We’ll agree the additional work before you purchase.
5 hours
£500
10 hours
£1,000
20 hours
£2,000
Extra hours are paid for in advance and must be used within 30 days of purchase.
Strategic Hiring Advisory
Sometimes you need an experienced sounding board before deciding what to do next. I help you explore your options, test your assumptions and make informed decisions about hiring and your team.
Advisory can help with:
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Hiring strategy and recruitment planning
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Team structure and workforce planning
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Reviewing and improving your recruitment process
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Salary benchmarking
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Understanding candidate availability and the talent market
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Defining a role and assessing what it will take to attract suitable people
Pricing
From £125 per hour. Defined projects from £495.
We’ll agree the question you need answered, the scope of support, what you’ll receive and the fee before work begins.
Payment is due within seven calendar days of the invoice date and must be received in full before advisory work begins.
Your hiring priorities.
My commitment.
I’m committed to understanding your business, representing it thoughtfully and helping you make informed hiring decisions. You can expect thorough research, careful candidate assessment, clear progress updates and practical advice throughout our work together.
Our shared aim is to find the right person for your business. While an appointment can’t be guaranteed, I’ll keep you informed about the response from candidates, discuss any challenges early and help you decide the best next steps.
FAQs
How do I know which service is right for me?
If you have one important vacancy that needs a focused approach, a Strategic Talent Search may be the best fit. If you need ongoing support across your hiring priorities, an Embedded Talent Partnership gives you dedicated time each month. If you’d like advice before deciding your next step, Strategic Hiring Advisory can help.
We can talk through your needs on a discovery call and work out which option would be most useful for your business.
Should I choose a search or a monthly partnership?
A Strategic Talent Search provides focused support for one defined vacancy, with an agreed scope, search period and fee. An Embedded Talent Partnership gives you dedicated hours each month to use across your hiring priorities.
If one complex vacancy is likely to need most of your monthly hours, I may recommend a dedicated search. We’ll discuss the work involved and which approach makes the best use of your budget before you commit.
How do you decide which search level my role is?
During our briefing, I assess the skills and experience required, candidate availability, salary and package, location and working arrangements, and the seniority or confidentiality of the appointment.
I’ll explain which level I recommend and why, then confirm the scope and fixed fee in writing before any work begins.
Do I still pay if I don't make a hire?
Yes. The agreed search fee pays for the research, candidate approaches, assessment, reporting and advice delivered throughout the search, whether or not an appointment is made.
You’ll receive regular updates so you understand how the search is progressing. If challenges arise, we’ll discuss them early and explore your options together. You retain the reports, market findings and recommendations for use within your business.
What happens if a hire doesn't work out?
My search service focuses on identifying, engaging and assessing candidates against your agreed requirements, helping you make an informed hiring decision. Once someone joins, their performance and decision to stay depend on factors beyond the scope of that service.
Fees cover the search work delivered and do not include a replacement search. If you need help recruiting again, we can discuss a new search, with the scope and fee agreed before work begins.
Is there a minimum commitment?
Embedded Talent Partnerships begin with a three-month initial term, paid monthly in advance. After this, the partnership continues on a rolling monthly basis, with the notice period agreed in your Statement of Work before we begin.
Strategic Talent Searches and Advisory projects are individual engagements with an agreed scope and no ongoing subscription.
Why fixed fees rather than a percentage of salary?
Your search fee reflects the work involved in delivering the agreed brief, rather than a percentage of the person’s salary. You’ll know the fee before work begins, making it easier to plan your budget.
It also means my advice on salary and candidate suitability is independent of the salary someone accepts.
Where are you based, and do you work outside the South West?
I’m based in Bristol and work with businesses across the South West and throughout the UK. Most support can be delivered remotely, with time on site agreed where it would benefit our work together.
Not sure where to start?
Let’s talk through what your business needs. During a 30-minute discovery call, we’ll explore your hiring priorities, answer your questions and consider which support would be most useful.
You’ll leave with a clearer sense of your options and an honest recommendation on the best next step for your business.