Budget for external recruiting support by listing the costs and internal work needed to run the search. The provider’s headline fee is only one part of the plan.
Use the actual proposal and written terms. This guide provides cost categories and ownership questions, not market pricing or financial advice.
Build the cost worksheet
| Category | What to confirm |
|---|---|
| Provider fees | Services included, fee basis, and payment triggers |
| Additional services | Any separately approved sourcing, assessment, or coordination work |
| Internal effort | Hiring-manager reviews, interviews, and decision time |
| Candidate assessment | Approved tools, interview expenses, or paid work samples |
| Travel or logistics | What the company has agreed to cover |
| Search changes | How a pause, revised scope, or additional role affects the arrangement |
| Administration | Who approves, records, and pays each cost |
Do not insert an assumed industry rate where a quote is needed.
Match the budget to the mandate
A narrow search with a prepared hiring team differs from an engagement that also requires role definition, process design, or extensive coordination.
Clarify what the provider will do and what the company must still supply. A low fee can be difficult to interpret when the service boundaries differ.
Plan for decision capacity
Manager time is not merely a calendar issue. If the team cannot review profiles or interview candidates, paid sourcing can accumulate work that nobody can act on.
Check that the approved search has the internal capacity needed to use the support effectively.
Review scenarios without inventing terms
Ask how costs change if the role is paused, requirements change, or a candidate does not start. Record the provider’s written answers and route them through the appropriate review.
Do not assume a replacement arrangement eliminates every additional cost.
Keep budget approval connected to changes
Name who must approve an expanded search or added service. Update the budget when the scope changes rather than discovering the difference through an invoice.
At the review point, consider both spend and the useful work produced. Avoid judging a partnership solely by profile volume or a small, incomplete outcome sample.
Use the agreement questions and recruiting channel review. Discuss a focused search with Refery.
Published fee structures from eight providers, to put against this budget, are in what a startup recruiter costs.