Technology recruitment
A startup recruitment agency that spreads the fee monthly
If you are looking for a recruitment agency for a technology startup, this is one. We recruit permanent hires for startups and scaleups, and the search work is delivered by Humand Talent Solutions' consultants in the ordinary way. What Startup Staffing changes is the bill: instead of one large percentage of salary at the point of hire, you pay an agreed monthly percentage of the hire's gross monthly salary for as long as they stay.
Where we recruit
Three overlapping areas, each with its own hiring reality. Pick the one closest to your business.
What these hires have in common
Different technologies, the same three pressures.
The people you need are not applying
For these roles we treat hiring as a search problem rather than an advertising one. The strongest candidates are employed, busy and only move for the right reason.
Hiring and cash pressure arrive together
Roles usually open right after a raise, a contract win or a programme milestone — the same moment capital is committed elsewhere.
A wrong hire costs more than the fee
In small technical teams a mis-hire sets back a roadmap. Alignment on retention matters more than the headline percentage.
How the recruitment itself runs
Conventional specialist search, carried out by named consultants you can speak to.
- 01
Understand
A proper briefing on the role, the team around it, the technical bar and what the business is trying to build. If the brief is unrealistic for the market or the budget, we say so at this point.
- 02
Search
Candidates are approached directly rather than waiting on job-board applications. Humand's network and long-standing candidate community do most of the work here.
- 03
Assess
Screening and structured conversations before anything reaches you, covering technical fit, motivation, notice period and salary expectations — so a shortlist is genuinely a shortlist.
- 04
Introduce
You receive a small number of relevant candidates with context on each. Interviews, feedback and offer stages are coordinated so nobody is left waiting, and you hire directly onto your own contract.
The short version
SUS in 60 seconds
Everything that matters about the Startup Staffing model, in six answers.
- What is it?
- Permanent recruitment for international technology startups and scaleups, delivered by Humand Talent Limited under the Startup Staffing (SUS) model.
- How do I pay?
- An agreed monthly percentage of the employee's gross monthly salary, invoiced monthly in arrears from their start date, instead of one large fee at the point of hire.
- Who employs the person?
- You do, directly, on your own employment contract. We are not the employer and this is not a contract or umbrella arrangement.
- What if they leave?
- Billing stops from their final date of employment. Payments already made are not refunded.
- Can I buy out?
- Yes. The buy-out value, or the basis for calculating it, is agreed with you in writing in your commercial terms at the outset, for each hire. You can exercise that pre-agreed option later under those terms, without a fresh commercial negotiation. Once it is paid, future monthly billing for that hire stops. Other hires are unaffected. Monthly fees already paid are not deducted, credited or refunded against the buy-out by default; they cover the months already elapsed.
- What do I do next?
- Model your hiring in the calculator and send it to us, or just tell us what you are planning. Your percentage and buy-out value are agreed in writing before any work begins.
Percentages and buy-out values are agreed with each business individually in writing. Any figures shown elsewhere on this site are illustrative examples, not standard pricing.
Keep reading
- Software & SaaS startupsEngineering, platform, data and product hires.
- Deep tech & scienceQuantum, photonics, applied AI and scientific software.
- Engineering & complex systemsRobotics, embedded, hardware and systems engineering.
- How SUS worksThe five steps from brief to monthly billing.
- Who delivers the recruitmentThe Humand team behind Startup Staffing.
- Get a rateSingle role or a staged team plan, with a shareable link.
- Hiring plan after a Series ASequencing, cost and runway when the round has just closed.
Related reading
Guides from the resource hub that cover the thinking behind this page. Each one is written by us and reviewed before publication.
- Hiring strategy
A founder's checklist for choosing a technical recruitment partner
What to test before instructing a recruiter for a technical role: briefing depth, market honesty, process, candidate experience and commercial terms.8 min read · Reviewed 15 August 2026 - Technical & deep-tech hiring
Writing a technical hiring brief that gets results
What a recruiter actually needs to run a technical search: the problem, the stack, the bar, the constraints and the trade-offs you are willing to make.7 min read · Reviewed 15 August 2026 - Team planning
A first-ten-hires planning framework for technology startups
A practical framework for planning the first ten hires in a technology startup: constraint mapping, sequencing, interview capacity and cash shape.10 min read · Reviewed 19 September 2026
Tell us what you are hiring for.
A rough outline of the role is enough. If it sits outside our technical territory, we will tell you rather than take the brief.
- 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