Hire or bring in an external profile? How to decide
When your team needs someone new, the first instinct is usually to open a vacancy. Sometimes that is the right call and sometimes it is not. These questions help you decide with good judgement.
Four questions before you decide
1. Does the work have an end date?
If the need is tied to a project, a campaign or a specific absence, you know in advance that it will end at some point. A permanent role, on the other hand, is meant to last. When the work has an expiry date, an external profile usually fits better.
2. Is it an ongoing need or a peak?
A temporary rise in work is not the same as sustained growth. If you have carried a heavier load for months and everything suggests it will continue, it is probably time to hire. If volume rises and falls with the season or with projects, adding headcount can leave you with more structure than you need in quieter months.
3. Does your team master that specialism?
Some work is simply outside what your team knows, such as a technical migration, a complex financial closing or coordinating a building project. Training someone from scratch takes time. Bringing in a person who has done it before speeds up the result and leaves knowledge in the team along the way.
4. How long can you wait?
A full recruitment process, with the job posting, interviews, the chosen candidate's notice period and their onboarding, takes weeks or months. If the project starts now, that margin is not always there.
When hiring makes sense
Permanent hiring is the best option when the role is stable and central to the business, when you want to build knowledge inside the company over the long term and when the workload justifies the role all year round. In those cases an external profile can bridge the gap while you complete the hire, but not as a permanent solution.
When an external profile makes sense
An external profile fits when the work has a beginning and an end, when you need a specialism the team does not have or when time is short. The most common cases are peaks in workload, absences of key people and new projects that may or may not become a stable line of business.
The cost that does not show on the payslip
When comparing the two options it is easy to look only at salary. But a permanent role brings other costs worth keeping in mind.
- The employer social security contributions that come with every salary.
- The time and resources a recruitment process takes.
- The weeks of onboarding until the person is fully up to speed.
- Training, when the specialism is new to the company.
- And above all, the fixed cost that remains when the workload drops.
With an external profile by project, the cost lasts as long as the need does. It is not always cheaper day to day, but it is more flexible, because it disappears when the project ends.
A quick way to compare
| Situation | Permanent hire | External profile by project |
|---|---|---|
| The work has an end date | A weaker fit, the role stays after the work ends | A good fit, the engagement ends with the project |
| The workload is steady all year | A good fit | Useful as a bridge while you hire |
| You need a new specialism | Needs recruitment and often training | You start with someone who has done this work |
| The project starts in a few weeks | Hard to make it with a full process | The search starts from a network of vetted professionals |
| You need to cover an absence | A temporary contract with its own process | A specialised professional for the length of the absence |
Our recommendation
There is no single answer. If after these questions it is clear the need is stable, hire. If the work has an end date, you need a specific specialism or you cannot wait, an external profile gives you room without weighing down your structure.
And if in doubt, tell us about the case. We will tell you honestly which option we think fits best, even if it is not ours.