Fractional Recruiting vs. Retained Search vs. Talent Mapping
I offer three distinct ways to help growth-stage companies hire, and they solve different problems. Which service fits what you need right now? Here's how to tell.
Fractional recruiting to hire across the team on an ongoing basis, talent mapping to research the landscape, and retained search when one critical hire must land right. This page lays out the differences so you can tell which one (or which combination) fits where you are.
Three Different Kinds of Help: These are not three flavors of the same service. They solve different hiring problems at different stages:
· Fractional Recruiting is execution. You have ongoing recruiting and need someone embedded in the business to own and run hiring.
· Talent Mapping is candidate market intelligence. You need to understand who is in the marketonal provides to identify and secure the right talent.
In short: Fractional Recruiting is best when you have ongoing hiring needs cross functionally, across , where they sit, competitor data, how the market is structured, and how hard the talent will be to attract.
· Retained Search is high touch end to end candidate search and selection. You have one mission-critical role to hire that requires the commitment, focused dedication, and mutual partnership a retained search professiyour team. Talent Mapping is research data that tells you where the talent is. Retained Search lands the one critical hire you can't afford to get wrong.
Which One Do You Need? Most people recognize their own situation in one of these
You may need Fractional Recruiting if…
● You're hiring several roles at once, not just one.
● Your internal team needs additional recruiting capacity.
● You need someone to own the recruiting process end to end.
You may need Talent Mapping if…
● You need market intelligence before launching a candidate search.
● You need to identify competitor talent pools.
● You're entering a new market or planning future hiring.
You may need Retained Search if…
● You're hiring for one mission-critical position.
● The candidate pool is limited or highly competitive.
● The role requires targeted, confidential outreach.
Learn More About Each Service:
• Fractional Recruiting: /fractional-recruiting
• Retained Search: /retained-search
• Talent Mapping: /talent-mapping
Still Not Sure?
Tell me what you're hiring for and where you're stuck. I'll tell you honestly which service fits, even if the answer is a service I don't offer, or whether you don't need me yet. I respond personally within 24 hours.
Primary CTA: Book a 20-Minute Talent Strategy Call