Model comparison
Saiyō vs recruitment agencies: stop paying per hire.
At 5+ hires a year, the agency model breaks. Saiyō replaces variable 22% placement fees with a flat monthly subscription, one embedded partner, and proactively headhunted candidates, typically 50–65% cheaper per hire.
The short answer
Agencies charge a percentage of salary every time they place a candidate, and they're incentivised to close fees, not find the right person. Saiyō charges one flat monthly fee, embeds in your team, and is incentivised to support your whole hiring plan.
At a glance
| Dimension | Saiyō (RaaS) | Recruitment agencies |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Flat monthly subscription | 20–25% of first-year salary per hire |
| Cost on a £100k hire | Included in subscription | £20,000–£25,000 per hire |
| Cost on 10 hires | Same flat fee | £200,000–£250,000 in placement fees |
| Incentive alignment | Aligned to your hiring plan | Aligned to closing fees fast |
| Sourcing | Dedicated proactive headhunting | Same LinkedIn searches, multiple agencies |
| Embedded in your team | Yes, your ATS, stand-ups, brief | External vendor, transactional brief |
| Exclusivity | One partner, one bar | Often 3–5 agencies on the same role |
| Candidate experience | Branded as you, owned end-to-end | Inconsistent, varies per agency |
How agencies work
Contingent agencies get paid only when they place a candidate , usually 20–25% of first-year salary. That model creates two problems: first, the cost per hire is unpredictable and scales linearly with hiring volume. Second, agencies are incentivised to close placements, not to find the best long-term fit. You often end up with three to five agencies competing on the same role, producing duplicated outreach and inconsistent candidate experience.
- 20–25% per-hire fees, paid on close
- Multiple agencies on the same role
- Incentive to close, not to find best fit
- Candidate experience varies per vendor
How Saiyō works differently
One subscription, one embedded partner, one consistent bar. Senior headhunters work inside your team and ATS, going after passive candidates that aren't applying anywhere. Cost is a fixed monthly line item, your CFO can plan around it. Incentives align with your hiring plan, not with closing the next fee.
- Flat monthly subscription, no per-hire fees
- One partner, one bar, one process
- Aligned to long-term fit, not placement close
- Branded as you, candidate experience owned
When agencies still make sense
- You have one or two ad-hoc roles a year and don't need ongoing capacity
- You're hiring something genuinely niche where contingent agencies have a unique network
- You have an internal TA team that just needs occasional contingent overflow
When Saiyō is the better fit
- You're hiring more than 5 roles a year and the agency maths is breaking
- You want one partner with one consistent bar, not 5 agencies briefing in parallel
- You need predictable hiring spend the CFO can plan around
- You want candidates owned end-to-end with your employer brand intact
- You'd rather invest in pipeline than pay rebates on bad hires
Done with agency fees?
See the cost difference in a 30-minute call.
We'll model your hiring plan against your current agency spend and show you exactly where the subscription pays back, no hard sell.