Pay per qualified candidate. Not per hope.
We do not run contingent. We do not hide pricing. Two tiers, both designed around the unit of work we actually deliver: the Interview Qualified Candidate.
IQC Delivery
We deliver Interview Qualified Candidates to a scorecard we co-author with you. You run interviews, construct offers, close.
Per-role setup fee
$4,000
Covers calibration: brief, scorecard, target map, comp benchmark, search plan. Refundable in full if no IQC delivered by week 6.
Per-IQC fee, by comp band
| Senior IC ($150–250K base) | $3,500 |
| Staff / Principal ($250–400K) | $5,500 |
| Director / VP / CTO-track ($400K+) | $8,500 |
Cap of 6 IQCs per role. No success fee. No replacement guarantee.
Full-Cycle Search
We own the candidate journey end-to-end through offer accept and the first 90 days post-start. For confidential or board-level searches and senior leaders requiring sustained relationship work.
Monthly retainer
$10,000–$15,000
3-month minimum, scaled by role count and seniority.
Success fee on placement
10–12%
Of first-year cash comp. Smaller than industry norms because the retainer covers the work; the fee aligns us on outcome.
What's included
- All Tier A deliverables
- Interview scheduling and process coordination
- Offer construction and active negotiation
- Resignation support through start date
- 30, 60, and 90-day post-placement check-ins
- 90-day replacement guarantee
For $300K+ base or confidential mandates, full retained at 30% in milestone thirds.
What is an Interview Qualified Candidate?
A candidate is an IQC when all six of these are true:
- We have spoken to them directly, not just sourced them from a database.
- Their verified skills meet every must-have on the agreed role scorecard.
- They have expressed specific interest in this role at this company.
- Their base-comp expectation falls within the band you provided at calibration.
- They have confirmed availability and willingness to commit to your interview process.
- We have completed a light pre-screen: one reference signal or basis-of-employment verification.
The scorecard is co-authored with your hiring manager during calibration. Once signed off, both sides operate from that document. We do not retroactively adjust the IQC bar mid-search.
Want to compare against the alternatives?
The recruiter cost calculator runs the math on contingent, retained, in-house, and our model side by side. Adjust your hire count, time horizon, and comp band.
Open the calculatorStart with the Calibration Sprint
Two weeks, $2,500. You get the scorecard, target map, comp benchmark, and search difficulty assessment. Applies as a credit toward the per-role setup fee if you continue.
Book the Calibration Sprint