Commercial explainer

Startup Staffing, explained on one page.

Written to be forwarded. If you need to bring a co-founder, board member, investor, finance lead or people lead up to speed on how SUS works commercially, send them here.

Model your hiring costs Read the full FAQ

Startup StaffingSUS

Startup Staffing (SUS): the commercial model

What SUS is

Startup Staffing (SUS) is a permanent recruitment service for startups and scaleups, operated by Humand Talent Solutions Limited. Rather than a single placement fee at the point of hire, the recruitment fee is paid as an agreed percentage of the employee’s gross monthly salary each month while they remain employed by the client.

How recruitment works

Humand’s recruitment consultants take the brief, run the search, assess candidates and make introductions. The client interviews and decides. The successful candidate is employed directly by the client on the client’s own employment contract. Humand Talent Solutions Limited is not the employer and does not supply the person on a contract, secondment or umbrella basis.

How payment works

Monthly invoicing begins from the employee’s start date, in arrears, at the agreed percentage of gross monthly salary, exclusive of VAT and payable within 14 days under the standard terms. Billing continues while the employee remains employed, unless a buy-out is agreed.

Worked example (illustrative)

Annual salary	£60,000
Illustrative traditional fee	20% of salary — £12,000, invoiced once
Illustrative SUS monthly fee	17.5% of gross monthly salary — £875 per month
Cumulative SUS after 6 months	£5,250
Cumulative SUS after 12 months	£10,500
Crossover with the traditional fee	approximately month 14

Several hires

Each placement is treated separately, with its own monthly amount based on that employee’s salary, and stops when that employment ends. Three hires means three monthly amounts, not one combined commitment. Multi-role plans can be modelled at startup-staffing.com/get-a-rate.

If a hire leaves

Billing stops from the employee’s final date of employment, whether they resign, are dismissed, are made redundant or leave by mutual agreement. Payments already made are not refunded.

Buy-out

A buy-out value is agreed in writing up front. Paying it ends all future monthly billing for that placement. Under the standard terms it is payable in addition to the monthly payments already made, not offset against them.

Where SUS differs from traditional recruitment

	Traditional	SUS
When the fee is paid	Once, shortly after the hire starts	Monthly, while the hire stays
Basis of the fee	Percentage of annual salary	Percentage of gross monthly salary
If the hire leaves	Rebate terms may apply	Future billing stops
Total cost over a long tenure	Fixed	Can exceed a one-off fee; buy-out available

Important commercial notes

All percentages shown here are illustrative examples used to explain the mechanics. They are not standard SUS pricing. Each client’s percentage, buy-out value and commercial terms are agreed individually and confirmed in writing before any work begins. SUS is a recruitment fee payment model; it is not lending, credit or a financial product, and it does not guarantee that recruitment will cost less overall.

Who operates Startup Staffing

Startup Staffing (SUS) is operated by Humand Talent Solutions Limited (company number 12379847), 1 Abbey Street, Eynsham, OX29 4TB, United Kingdom.

joseph@humand.co.uk · 01865 657 000 · startup-staffing.com

Download the one pager (PDF)

Both contain the same illustrative example used across this site.

What SUS is

Startup Staffing (SUS) is a permanent recruitment service for startups and scaleups, operated by Humand Talent Solutions Limited (company number 12379847). The recruitment work is what you would expect from an established agency. What differs is how the fee is paid.

Instead of a single placement fee at the point of hire, you pay an agreed percentage of the employee's gross monthly salary each month while they remain employed by you. SUS is a recruitment fee payment model — it is not lending, credit or a financial product.

How recruitment works

01You brief us on the role, the team around it and where the business is heading.
02Humand's consultants source and assess candidates and make introductions.
03You interview and decide. Nothing about the process is unusual.
04The successful candidate is employed directly by you, on your own employment contract and your terms.
05Monthly invoicing begins from their start date.

How payment works

Invoices are issued monthly in arrears at the agreed percentage of the employee's gross monthly salary, from their start date. Fees are exclusive of VAT and, under the standard terms, payable within 14 days. Billing continues while the employee remains employed by you, unless you agree a buy-out.

Worked example

Illustrative only. A £60,000 salary, a 20% traditional fee and a 17.5% monthly fee on gross monthly salary. These are not standard SUS rates.

Illustrative comparison of a traditional fee and the SUS monthly fee
Measure	Figure
Traditional fee, invoiced once	£12,000
SUS fee per month	£875
Cumulative SUS after 6 months	£5,250
Cumulative SUS after 12 months	£10,500
Crossover with the traditional fee	approximately month 14

Several hires

Each placement is treated separately, with its own monthly amount based on that employee's salary, and it stops when that employment ends. Three hires means three independent monthly amounts rather than one combined commitment.

Model a multi-role hiring plan

If a hire leaves, and the buy-out

Billing stops from the employee's final date of employment, however the employment ends. Payments already made are not refunded. Separately, a buy-out value is agreed with you in writing up front: paying it ends all future monthly billing for that placement, and under the standard terms it is payable in addition to the monthly payments already made rather than offset against them.

Where SUS differs from traditional recruitment

The recruitment service is comparable. The commercial shape is not.

Traditional recruitment compared with SUS
	Traditional	SUS
When the fee is paid	Once, shortly after the hire starts	Monthly, while the hire stays
Basis of the fee	Percentage of annual salary	Percentage of gross monthly salary
If the hire leaves	Rebate terms may apply	Future billing stops
Total cost over a long tenure	Fixed at the point of hire	Can exceed a one-off fee; buy-out available
Who employs the person	The client	The client

Important commercial notes

Being clear about the boundaries of the model saves everyone time.

SUS is

A permanent recruitment service for international technology startups and scaleups.
A different way of paying recruitment fees: monthly, while the hire stays.
Delivered and contracted by Humand Talent Solutions Limited.
Built around commercial terms agreed with you individually in writing.

SUS isn't

A loan, credit facility or financial product.
An employment, secondment or umbrella arrangement — you employ the person.
A guarantee that recruitment will always cost less than a one-off fee.
A subscription that entitles you to unlimited hiring.

Who operates Startup Staffing

Startup Staffing (SUS) is operated by Humand Talent Solutions Limited (company number 12379847), 1 Abbey Street, Eynsham, OX29 4TB, United Kingdom. Humand is the recruitment business that carries out the work and the company you contract with; Startup Staffing is the brand and the commercial model.

joseph@humand.co.uk

01865 657 000

humand.co.uk

Keep reading

Questions about the model?

If you are reviewing SUS on behalf of a founder, a board or a finance function, ask us anything about how the commercial model works in practice.

A specific live vacancy you are trying to fill
Hiring you are planning over the next few months
Several future hires and how they would work together
Whether SUS is the right fit for your business at all

Prefer to talk? 01865 657 000

Prefer email? joseph@humand.co.uk