The CEO Question: Is It Time for Senior HR Leadership?
You reach a point where people issues take too much of your time.
Recruitment.
Culture.
Performance.
It starts to pull you away from growth.
You feel the gap.
A full-time HR Director still feels early.
Many CEOs stay in this stage longer than they need to.
You might be in the same place.
You need senior HR input.
You don’t need a full-time post.
Why a Full-Time Hire Might Not Fit Yet
You may notice signs like:
• Growth is picking up, but the senior HR workload isn’t enough to justify a full-time role.
• The basics are solid, but direction is missing.
• You’re entering change and want someone who has done it before.
• Culture, reward, or performance systems need a reset.
• You want senior thinking without committing to a high-cost permanent hire.
This is when a flexible route makes sense.
If You Already Have an HR Team
You may have an HR Manager or a small team covering day-to-day work.
The concern is often the same.
Will senior support overshadow them?
The right interim or fractional leader won’t.
They don’t sideline, they elevate!
They can:
• Coach your team so they grow with the business.
• Bring structure to your next stage.
• Lead complex or sensitive work and pass knowledge back.
• Build the base for a future senior hire.
Your team grows.
You get strategic support.
The business moves.
A Practical Way Forward
Interim and fractional HR leaders give you senior support on a flexible model.
You choose the level you bring in.
You keep control of cost.
They can:
• Shape people strategy.
• Support your leadership group.
• Run priority projects.
• Help you judge when the time is right for a full-time hire.
• Define what that future role should look like.
You get clarity now while you build for the next stage.
Senior HR Leaders – Available Now!
- CPO / Senior HR Consultant – UK/EU – c£800-1000 per day
- HR Director – Reading – c130k
- HR Director – Cambridge – £750 per day
- Global TA Leader – London – c£150k
- Senior HR Director – London – c£150k
- Senior HR Director – Midlands/London – c£175k
- Head of HR – London – c85k
- L&D Consultant – South East – c95k
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