For growing businesses, recruitment can flip overnight from manageable to overwhelming. A few hires a year through referrals or the odd agency search suddenly turns into a dozen or more roles that need to be filled within a couple months.

This is usually the moment leaders start weighing their options: bring in an internal recruiter, or partner with an RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) provider?

On the surface, it looks like a simple cost question. A recruiter’s salary vs an RPO subscription. But as Tom Mackintosh, Managing Director here at Solve, points out, that comparison doesn’t reflect the full picture. He explains:

“Hiring one person isn’t the same as building a recruitment function. You need process, technology, employer brand and delivery, and it’s rare that a single individual can cover all of those at once.”

The Series A reality check

Take the case of a typical Series A company. Up until funding, they’ve managed with five or six hires a year, usually through networks or job ads. Post-funding, they need 20 new people within nine months.

At that point, they see two paths:

Option 1: Hire internally

An in-house recruiter will need to:

• Choose and implement an ATS

• Set up sourcing tools and licenses

• Establish KPIs and reporting

• Manage employer brand development

• Deliver 3–4 hires per month

Even an experienced recruiter will struggle to balance building all of this infrastructure while also filling urgent roles.

Option 2: Partner with an RPO

Instead of starting from scratch, an RPO drops in a fully functional recruitment capability from day one. “An RPO operates as an extension of your team,” Tom explains. “You get delivery, but also the systems, tools and strategy that allow you to scale sustainably.”

Why the salary vs subscription view falls short

It’s common for businesses to compare the cost of a recruiter’s salary against an RPO subscription and assume they’re weighing equal services. In reality, it’s apples to oranges.

Tom often sees the results of that decision 12 months down the line: businesses that hired internally but ended up with gaps in their process, inconsistent delivery, and ongoing reliance on agencies. “They might have filled some roles, but they haven’t built a foundation. Without the systems, you’ll always be chasing short-term fixes,” he says.

Making the decision

There isn’t one “right” answer. Some companies will want to invest in building in-house capability, but that comes with time, cost, and expertise requirements that are often underestimated.

As Tom puts it:

“The important thing is understanding the reality of each option. If you go internal, do you know what tools to buy and why? Do you know how to measure quality of hire? Do you have the bandwidth to manage it all? If you don’t, then RPO may be the faster and safer route.”

Don’t see it as a choice between “cheap” and “expensive.” Frame it as a choice between building a function from scratch or plugging in a proven one immediately.

Think an RPO is the right model for your business? Let's chat.

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