Everything you want to know about working with HR people who actually get business.
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly is Fractional HR, and why would my business need it?
Think of Fractional HR as having a seasoned HR team on your side without the full-time overhead. Instead of hiring a full-time HR director (which can cost $80,000+ annually), you get access to experienced HR professionals who understand your industry and work with you on the schedule that makes sense for your business.
Maybe you need us 10 hours a month to handle the essentials, or maybe you’re scaling fast and need 20+ hours weekly for a few months. We adapt to your needs and your budget. You get strategic thinking, hands-on problem-solving, and someone who actually knows your team, not just another consultant who drops off a template and disappears.
What's included in your Fractional HR services?
Our Fractional HR service is designed to be your complete people strategy partner. Here’s what that typically looks like:
The Foundation: Employee handbooks, policy development, compliance audits, and making sure you’re protected legally.
The Growth Stuff: Recruiting and hiring systems, onboarding that actually works, performance management that helps people grow, and compensation strategies that help you compete for talent.
The Real-World Support: Handling tricky employee situations, workplace investigations when needed, managing terminations professionally, and coaching your managers to be better leaders.
The Strategic Partnership: Regular check-ins about your team, planning for growth, culture development, and helping you make people decisions that support your business goals.
We customize everything based on what your business needs most.
How does pricing work for Fractional HR services?
We structure our partnerships based on what makes sense for your business size and needs. Most of our Fractional HR clients fall into one of these arrangements:
Monthly Retainer: A set number of hours each month at a predictable cost, perfect for ongoing support and strategic partnership.
Project-Based: Fixed pricing for specific initiatives like handbook development, hiring process overhauls, or culture assessments.
Hybrid Approach: A small monthly retainer for basic support plus project work as needs arise.
We’re always upfront about costs and work within your budget. During our initial conversation, we’ll discuss what approach makes the most sense for where your business is now and where you want to go.
Do I need a full-time HR person to work with you?
Nope. Many of our clients don’t have a dedicated HR team at all. We can be your HR team, or we can back up the one you already have. You get as much or as little support as you need, whether that’s one tricky issue, ongoing advice, or building better systems for the long run.
How do I know if my business is ready for professional HR support?
Here are some signs it might be time to bring in HR help:
- You’re spending more time dealing with people issues than growing your business
- You have employees asking questions you’re not sure how to answer
- You’re worried about making a costly mistake with employment laws
- Your team is growing and the informal systems that worked at 15 people are breaking down at 35
- You want to compete for better talent but aren’t sure how to structure compensation or benefits
- You’re losing good people and you’re not sure why
If any of these sound familiar, we should talk. Even if you’re not ready for ongoing support, a conversation can help you identify what to prioritize.
What industries do you work with?
We love working with businesses that are passionate about what they do. Our sweet spot includes manufacturing companies, healthcare practices, restaurants and hospitality groups, professional services firms, nonprofits, and growing tech companies.
What matters most isn’t your industry,it’s that you care about building a great workplace and growing sustainably. We take time to understand your specific challenges, whether that’s healthcare compliance, restaurant labor laws, manufacturing safety requirements, or nonprofit budget constraints.
Can you help us find and hire better employees?
Yes, this is one of our favorite areas to work on. Good hiring is one of the highest-impact investments you can make in your business.
We help with everything from writing job descriptions that attract the right candidates to designing interview processes that actually predict success. We can also help you develop compelling compensation packages, streamline your decision-making process, and onboard new hires so they stick around.
We’re not a recruiting agency. We’re building your internal hiring capacity so you can consistently attract and select great people.
Do you work with remote teams?
Absolutely. Whether your team is fully remote, fully in-person, or somewhere in between, we can help you build systems that work for your reality.
Remote work creates unique challenges around onboarding, culture, performance management, and employee engagement. We’ll help you navigate everything from state-specific employment laws to building connection across time zones.
Do you write employee handbooks, and how long does that take?
We do write custom employee handbooks, and we approach them very differently than most HR firms.
Instead of handing you a generic template, we take time to understand your culture, industry requirements, and specific challenges. Your handbook should sound like your company, not like every other employee handbook out there.
The timeline is usually 4-6 weeks from start to finish, including time for your review and input. We handle all the legal compliance pieces while making sure the policies actually work for how you operate.
Can you help with difficult employee terminations?
When workplace issues arise—harassment complaints, discrimination concerns, or other serious policy violations—they need to be handled promptly and professionally. We conduct thorough, impartial investigations that protect all parties involved and help you determine the appropriate next steps.
We follow established investigation protocols, document everything properly, and provide you with clear recommendations for resolution. Our goal is to address problems effectively while minimizing legal risk and maintaining workplace trust.
What's your approach to employee performance management?
We believe performance management should help people grow, not just document problems. Most traditional performance review systems are broken: they happen too infrequently, focus on the wrong things, and don’t actually improve performance.
We help you build ongoing feedback systems, set clear expectations, and create development plans that benefit both the employee and your business. When performance issues do arise, we help you address them quickly and fairly before they become bigger problems.
The goal is to help your good employees become great and deal professionally with those who aren’t the right fit.
How do you handle confidential employee issues?
Confidentiality is fundamental to what we do. We maintain strict professional standards and only share information with people who need to know to resolve a situation effectively.
When we’re investigating workplace issues or handling sensitive employee matters, we follow established protocols that protect everyone involved while ensuring problems actually get resolved. We’ll always be transparent with you about our process and who needs to be involved.
How is working with Anchored HR different from other HR firms?
The best way to find out is to have a conversation. We offer initial consultations where we can learn about your business challenges and you can get a sense of our approach.
Generally, we work best with business leaders who care about their people and want to build something sustainable. If you’re looking for the cheapest option or someone to just handle paperwork, we’re probably not the right fit.
But if you want a true partner who will help you build a stronger team and grow with confidence, we should definitely talk.
How do we know if we're a good fit to work together?
Yes, we regularly help businesses navigate terminations professionally and legally. Whether it’s a performance issue that isn’t improving, a policy violation, or a layoff situation, we’ll help you handle it correctly.
We’ll review the documentation, ensure you’re following proper procedures, help you plan the conversation, and make sure you’re protected legally. Our goal is to treat everyone with dignity while protecting your business.
Sometimes we can also help save good employees who are struggling by identifying the real issues and creating improvement plans that actually work.
How quickly can you start working with us?
For most situations, we can begin working together within a week of our agreement. If you have an urgent issue like a workplace investigation or a key employee departure, we can often start even sooner.
Our goal is to provide immediate value while building the longer-term systems your business needs. We’ll prioritize the most critical issues first and then work on the strategic initiatives that will help you grow.
What if we decide we need more or less support than we originally planned?
Business needs change and we get that. Our arrangements are designed to flex with your reality.
If you’re scaling fast and need more support, we can increase our involvement. If things slow down or you build internal capacity, we can adjust accordingly. We’ll check in regularly to make sure our partnership is still working for you.
How do we measure success in our HR partnership?
Success looks different for every business, but here are some common indicators we track with our clients:
- Time you’re spending on HR issues decreases
- Quality of job candidates improves
- Employee retention rates increase
- Workplace conflicts get resolved faster and more effectively
- You feel more confident making people decisions
- Your team tells you they appreciate the improved clarity and systems
We’ll work with you to define what success looks like for your specific situation and check in regularly on progress.
Ready to Learn More?
Let’s have a conversation about your team challenges and how we might help.
No pressure, no generic sales pitch, just a genuine discussion about your business and what would make the biggest difference for you.