What is Fractional HR (And Does Your Business Need It)?
You’re running your small business, and HR isn’t your thing. You’ve been handling it yourself, or it’s landed on your office manager’s plate alongside everything else they’re already juggling. It mostly works, right? Until it doesn’t…
Maybe you just navigated a termination and realized afterward that you weren’t sure you did it right. Maybe your handbook is years out of date. Maybe you’ve had turnover you don’t fully understand. Whatever brought you here, you’re wondering: do I need an HR person?
Before you post a full-time job opening, it’s worth knowing about another option, one that a lot of small businesses are finding works better at this stage.
What is Fractional HR?
Think of it like a contracted bookkeeper or an attorney on retainer. You don’t have a lawyer on staff, but you have access to one when you need them and they know your business. It’s different from a staffing agency just placing workers. It’s different from a PEO, co-employing your workforce and handling the administrative backend. And it’s more than a one-off consultant. A fractional partner shows up consistently and gets to know your business. Here’s the simplified comparison:
So, What Does a Fractional HR Partner Actually Do?
The short answer is: most of what a full-time HR hire would handle, scaled to what you need right now:
Recruiting and hiring process design
Employee handbook creation and updates
Compliance audits and risk assessment
Performance management and documentation
Employee relations (complaints, conflicts, difficult conversations)
Manager coaching and termination guidance
What it’s not: payroll processing, legal counsel, or a temporary staffing solution. Think of it as the strategic HR guidance that keeps you and your leadership team in control without having to handle the daily headaches.
Signs You Might Need This
If 2 or more of the below points feel familiar, it’s time to have a conversation.
You’ve handled a termination or complaint and weren’t confident you did it correctly
Your employee handbook hasn’t been updated in more than 2 years (or doesn’t exist)
You’re approaching 50 employees, where FMLA and other federal requirements become more pressing
Your managers are making inconsistent HR decisions and you know it’s creating risk
You’ve had turnover you don’t understand
You’re spending a third (or more) of your time on HR instead of focusing on growing your business
What About the Cost?
A full-time HR Generalist in the Asheville area would run you anywhere between $55,000-$75,000 in base salary (closer to $80,000-$95,000 all-in with benefits and taxes). Fractional HR is going to be goin exactly what it sounds like…a fraction of that. I start at $2,700/month.
There are also less obvious costs associated with not having reliable HR support. For example a single mishandled termination or discrimination complaint can easily cost more than a year of fractional HR support, even it it settles quickly.
Is It Right for Your Business?
Fractional HR tends to be the right fit if you have 15-100 employees, no dedicated HR person, and you’re feeling the growing pains. It is especially well-suited to WNC businesses that are seasonal or owner-operated, where HR needs fluctuate and a full-time hire might be overkill. The perk of going fractional is that you can think ahead and just bring me on board for a season when you’ll need the most support.
If your HR needs are genuinely full-time and daily, a full-time hire makes more sense (and I can help you hire someone). If you just need to get through a growth period, busy season, or feel like a few months of support would get you on track, fractional is for you. If you just need one specific deliverable, a project engagement would be all you need right now, and I can do that too!
The honest answer is that it depends on your situation. The best first step is a 30 minute introductory call with me to figure our what kind of HR support actually makes sense with your business. Maybe it is something I can offer, but if not, I can point you in the right direction.