Fractional HR Services
ERC’s fractional HR services put an experienced HR consultant on your team for a set number of hours each month. Your consultant handles employee relations, compliance, onboarding, and policy work, and helps you plan what your HR function needs as you grow.
How it works
An HR consultant works with you for a set number of hours each week or month, onsite, remote, or a mix.
Who does the work
One of our fractional HR consultants, with 10 to 25-plus years of HR experience and SHRM-CP, PHR, and MBA credentials.
What does it cost
Cost depends on hours per month, time onsite, the scope of work, and how long the engagement runs. Get pricing.
What Our Fractional HR Services Cover
HR Compliance
Stay current on the employment laws that apply to your workforce, from wage and hour rules and required postings to leave and recordkeeping. When you need a deeper look, we can run a full HR compliance audit or a Form I-9 review.
Employee Relations
Your consultant handles conflict resolution, policy enforcement, employee handbook reviews, and disciplinary guidance. Managers make consistent calls, and employees know where to bring a concern.
Onboarding and Offboarding
New hire paperwork, benefits enrollment, and a walk-through of your handbook and policies get new employees productive sooner. When someone leaves, we handle the offboarding steps so the separation is smooth and compliant.
Performance Management
We work with your managers to set clear goals for each employee, recommend coaching and development, build a rewards and recognition program, and keep reviews on schedule.
Stay & Exit Interviews
Stay and exit interviews tell you why people stay, why they leave, and what to change to keep your best employees.
Fractional HR is ideal for…
No full-time HR professional yet.
We handle the day-to-day and set up the structure your organization needs as it grows.
An HR department of one who needs more hands.
Your consultant takes on projects or a share of the day-to-day so your HR lead can focus on the work only they can do.
A gap in HR support.
When a leave of absence, an unexpected departure, or a short-term need leaves HR uncovered, our consultants keep your people supported and your operations running.
An organization in transition.
Whether you’re scaling quickly, restructuring, or preparing for a sale, we help you stay compliant, manage workforce changes, and build the HR foundation the next stage needs.
Our Fractional HR Consultants
You’ll meet your consultant before the engagement starts, and that person stays your day-to-day contact. Our fractional HR consultants have led and advised HR teams in just about every industry and organization size.
Lisa Grisafo
Lisa Grisafo brings over 25 years of experience in the HR, banking, and financial services industries. She’s a former VP of HR and is a Certified Professional by SHRM (SHRM-CP).
Helen Oshaben
Helen Oshaben is a former Director of HR and Senior Consultant with over 11 years of experience. She holds a SHRM-CP certification.
Becky Johnson
Becky Johnson has 10+ years of HR experience in manufacturing, corporate, and consulting environments. She holds an MBA from Lake Erie College.
Susan Chermonte
Susan’s consulting work spans a wide range of industries, including non-profits, manufacturing, accounting, distribution, and professional services.
Allison Kenney
Allison has over 20 years of comprehensive HR experience. She is a certified Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and a Certified Professional by SHRM (SHRM-CP).
How Starting Point Turned an HR Gap into a Consistent, Sustainable HR Function
Starting Point, a leading non-profit in Cleveland, faced an HR leadership transition just as open enrollment approached, all while forms, policies, and recordkeeping needed to be audited and assigned owners so they were done properly.
The Fractional HR Process
1
Kickoff
We meet your leadership team, learn your goals, and take on anything urgent, like an open employee issue or an enrollment deadline. We also set up how your team reaches your consultant.
2
HR Review
We review your handbook, files, I-9s, and leave tracking, then flag what to fix first.
3
Project Plan
You get a written plan with priorities, owners, and timelines. Your consultant is now running day-to-day HR.
4
Ongoing
Your consultant works like part of your team, handling day-to-day HR from employee relations and compliance to engagement and policy updates, and working through the project plan in order.
Frequently Asked Questions
We typically work with organizations in Northeast Ohio in one of the following situations:
- They have an HR professional on staff who needs additional support and resources
- They don’t have a dedicated HR professional
- They’re in transition between HR professionals or planning for the departure or leave of a current HR professional
Fractional HR can be quite advantageous from a cost perspective.
For organizations without an existing HR employee or department, Fractional HR services can be an affordable solution for managing day-to-day HR or specific projects. Some small-to-mid-sized organizations may not require a full-time HR employee, which can be costly with salary, benefits, and overhead expenses.
Organizations looking to fill an employment gap, whether due to an expected departure or a leave of absence can control costs by leveraging Fractional HR services rather than hiring a temporary HR professional.
Fractional HR services enable organizations to pay for HR services in short periods of time, optimizing their budget allocation and providing a more affordable solution for their HR needs.
Typically a Fractional HR professional will report to the organization’s leadership or management team. Depending on the organizational structure, they may report directly to the CEO, business owner, or a designated executive such as the Chief Operating Officer (COO). The reporting relationship ensures clear communication, alignment with business goals, and effective collaboration between the Fractional HR professional and the organization’s decision-makers.
ERC offers Fractional HR support, which refers to HR support on a part-time basis for a predetermined period of time. A qualified HR professional assists with specific HR tasks, projects, or ongoing support. This arrangement is ideal for organizations that require project-based assistance within the areas of HR compliance, handbook and policy review, employee relations, onboarding, performance management, and compensation support.
On the other hand, a Fractional HR Executive refers to engaging a senior-level HR leader on a part-time or interim basis to provide strategic HR guidance and oversight. A Fractional HR Executive is often a seasoned HR professional with extensive experience in HR leadership roles. They can offer higher-level strategic planning, organizational design, talent management, culture development, and executive-level HR support. This arrangement is ideal for organizations that need strategic HR direction and leadership without the need for a full-time executive-level HR position.
There are a lot of different names for bringing in outside HR expertise. Here’s how we look at it:
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Fractional HR vs. Interim HR: For us, these are essentially the same, you’re bringing in an experienced HR professional to step in quickly, stabilize what’s needed, and handle both day-to-day people issues and longer-term HR priorities
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Fractional HR vs. Part-Time HR (in-house): Part-time HR is typically an internal employee working reduced hours, fractional HR is an external, senior-level HR partner you can flex up or down without adding headcount
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Fractional HR vs. Outsourced HR (often PEO-like): Outsourced HR usually points to a provider managing HR administration, payroll, and benefits, fractional HR is focused on HR guidance, employee relations, compliance support, and implementing the right HR practices inside your organization
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Fractional HR vs. HR Advisor: “HR advisor” can mean a few things; we treat it as strategic guidance plus practical support, while some advisors skew more toward compliance-only or “call us when you need us” consulting
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Fractional HR vs. HR Retainer / Retained HR: Retainers are often just how the relationship is priced, if it’s retained fractional HR, you’re getting ongoing access to a dedicated HR partner, but some “retained HR” offerings are closer to bundled admin services
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Fractional HR Director / Fractional HRBP: These usually emphasize higher-level strategy and partnering with leadership. We can operate at that level too, but we also roll up our sleeves to help with real-world execution and employee relations when that’s what you need
Get Pricing or More Information
Get pricing for ERC’s Fractional HR Support & Services. Have questions? Speak with an expert to learn more.
