Connecting businesses with the right interim HR professionals

I’m Sebastian Voll, a Senior Sales Consultant at Frazer Jones – supporting businesses and HR professionals across South Germany and in all sectors. It’s my role to connect employers with experienced and talented interim HR professionals.

The increasing demand for interims in Germany

Over the last few years, the demand for interim HR professionals in Germany has drastically increased as more businesses rely on freelancers across all areas of HR – including HR Managers and HR Business Partners, leading all the way up to Chief HR Officers.

These freelancers can cover an array of specialisms, ranging from HR generalists to experts in compensation and benefits, learning and development, talent acquisition, payroll and more.

According to 2023 study by Freelancer, Germany is one of the top 10 countries in the world for freelancing. The Gen Z workforce prioritises flexibility and independence over 9-5 office jobs, so SIA predicts that over 50% of the global workforce will be freelancers by 2027.

How do businesses benefit from hiring interims?

This increased demand and appetite is driven by a combination of benefits for employers and for HR interim professionals themselves. For businesses, freelancers offer a huge number of advantages to support their HR objectives and strategies:

• Cost saving: it’s expensive to employ full-time HR professionals, especially when you consider added costs like annual leave, benefits, bonuses and office space. HR freelancers are employed on a short-term basis and can cost the business substantially less, especially if they work remotely. According to Freelancer, 64% of freelancers work remotely, while 33% prefer hybrid and remaining 3% on-site
• Knowledge and expertise: freelancers in HR often have specialised and niche skills that can be applied on a short-term basis to cover someone’s leave, or to focus on a specific project for the company. 82% of freelancers’ time is spent on productive tasks. This saves companies from upskilling a full HR team when they might not need those skills when the project ends
• More time: employing a freelancer gives employers more time to find the right permanent employee, without leaving a gap in the team and therefore maintaining workflow and team morale. According to Freelancer, 73% of interim professionals are satisfied with their income

How do candidates benefit from taking interim roles?

In turn, there are also many benefits for the candidate. According to Freelancer’s study, 73% of freelancers say they became a freelancer partly because they like to be their own boss. 52% cited better opportunities for a higher income. 51% said they like the flexible working hours. Other benefits include:

• Skill development and expanded knowledge base: interim HR professionals can develop their skills by working with a diverse range of companies and projects. They are often challenged to solve unique problems, and have the opportunity to work with different people and perspectives
• Flexibility and independence: interim HR roles can often provide more flexibility than permanent positions. Professionals also have the chance to choose which projects they work on and can manage their own workload independently. 77% of freelancers will reject a project if the hourly rate is too low
• Financial benefits: interim HR professionals are also tempted by the competitive compensation they can receive because of their specialist and expert skills. As the demand for these professionals increase, they can demand better pay to reflect the value of their work. This is especially true for day or project-based rates

How can Frazer Jones help businesses and interim professionals?

At Frazer Jones, we always try to find the right match for employers and freelancers. We will only approach those businesses or candidates that we think are the right fit for one another. We also interview candidates ourselves before the introduction to listen to their needs and make sure they align with our client’s.

We can work with new and existing clients to connect them with interim professionals. First, we’ll have a detailed discussion about the vacancy. We’ll then start searching for a suitable candidate from our large database.

For us, it’s not only the skills match that’s important. It’s also the personal relationships we have with employers and candidates. We perform as efficiently as possible, so our clients usually receive the first suitable candidates within the first 48 hours after the interview.

We also continue to support our clients throughout our relationship with frequent catch ups. As recruitment consultants, we have a unique insight into the market, so we’re able to discuss:

• Strategies for managing interim employees
• Updates on industry trends
• Industry-specific insights

We can also support candidates with guidance and advice around their career progression, such as interview preparation, CV support and company insights.

To discuss your interim hiring needs or career, please get in touch with me directly at sebastianvoll@frazerjones.com or complete our form below: