Five routes, what each one costs, and the situation each is actually for.
Tiered hours sold monthly, usually with an onboarding fee and a minimum term. One published example runs from $9,850 a month for ten hours a week up to $27,000 for thirty, on a six month initial term with a $5,000 one time onboarding fee. Predictable, and expensive at the small end.
$165,000 to $200,000 fully loaded for a mid to senior operator, plus a three to five month search and a ramp. The right answer eventually, and a slow answer now.
One person, monthly, no bench. Cheapest and highest continuity, with a hard limit on hours and no cover.
| Route | Typical cost | What you are buying |
|---|---|---|
| Agency retainer | $3,000 to $27,000 a month | Team, rotating |
| Productised service | $9,850 to $27,000 a month | Tiered hours, minimum term |
| Full time hire | $165,000 to $200,000 loaded | Permanent, slow to start |
| Sapwood | $2,000 a month, free diagnostic | One operator, Kaypo included |
A diagnostic first, then a fractional operator. Sapwood's diagnostic is free and the retainer is $2,000 a month.
At scale, often. Below about 150 people the entry tier usually costs more than the problem.
Ask each for hours included, term length, onboarding fees, who does the work, and what happens to the context when they leave.
No. Most teams start with a diagnostic, fix the urgent things fractionally, then hire when the work becomes continuous.
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