Pay While They Stay™
Pay for your hire while they stay
Our fee is 20% of base salary, paid in 12 monthly instalments from your hire's start date. If they leave, the month you let us know is your last payment. Nothing up front, and 12 months of protection instead of the usual 12 weeks.
For permanent and executive hires in London, New York and San Francisco, and for ambitious teams hiring further afield
Tap a salary, a month or a bar to see what you would pay if your hire leaves.
They stay the full year: you pay £18,000, the same as a single invoice. Nothing is paid before they start.
How it worksFour steps, no small print
- 1
We run the search
You brief us and we bring you a shortlist of people we have met. You pay nothing while we search.
- 2
You hire
Your fee is fixed at 20% of base salary. Bonus, commission, car allowance, equity and benefits are never included.
- 3
You pay monthly
From your hire's start date the fee is split into 12 equal instalments of 1.67% of base salary.
- 4
They leave? You stop, we step in
The month you let us know is your last payment. Then we work out with you what went wrong and get the role moving again.
What it costsThe same fee, spread over a year
Pay While They Stay costs no more than paying one invoice. You pay 20% of base salary either way. What changes is when you pay, and what happens if your hire leaves.
It is not a loan and there is no interest. It is our fee, invoiced monthly.
London and the UK plus VAT
| Base salary | Monthly | Year total |
|---|---|---|
| £60,000 | £1,000 | £12,000 |
| £75,000 | £1,250 | £15,000 |
| £90,000 | £1,500 | £18,000 |
| £120,000 | £2,000 | £24,000 |
| £150,000 | £2,500 | £30,000 |
New York and San Francisco
| Base salary | Monthly | Year total |
|---|---|---|
| $120,000 | $2,000 | $24,000 |
| $150,000 | $2,500 | $30,000 |
| $180,000 | $3,000 | $36,000 |
| $240,000 | $4,000 | $48,000 |
| $300,000 | $5,000 | $60,000 |
How it comparesA 12 month rebate, not 12 weeks
Most agencies take their whole fee on day one and refund part of it only if your hire leaves in the first 8 to 12 weeks.Most agencies take their whole fee on day one and offer a 60 to 90 day guarantee, usually a replacement rather than a refund. Here is the same £90,000$180,000 hire three ways.
| What you are comparing | Typical agency | Hurren & Hope Single invoice | Hurren & Hope Pay While They Stay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee | 15 to 25% of first-year salary | 20% of base salary | 20% of base salary |
| What the fee is worked out on | Usually base salary, but some agencies add guaranteed bonus, car allowance or other pay | Base salary only | Base salary only |
| When you pay | All of it when your hire starts | All of it when your hire starts | 12 monthly instalments from the start date |
| If your hire leaves | A sliding-scale refund for 8 to 12 weeks, then nothing | A refund for every month after the month you let us know, for 12 months | Payments stop the month you let us know, at any point in the 12 months |
| They stay the full year | Up to £22,500 | £18,000 | £18,000 |
| They leave in month 5 | The rebate period has ended so you have spent up to £22,500 with nothing to show for it | £7,500, after a £10,500 refund | You have paid £7,500 and nothing more is owed |
| What you are comparing | Typical agency | Hurren & Hope Single invoice | Hurren & Hope Pay While They Stay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee | 15 to 25% of first-year salary | 20% of base salary | 20% of base salary |
| What the fee is worked out on | Usually base salary, but some agencies add guaranteed bonus, car allowance or other pay | Base salary only | Base salary only |
| When you pay | All of it when your hire starts | All of it when your hire starts | 12 monthly instalments from the start date |
| If your hire leaves | A 60 to 90 day guarantee, usually a replacement rather than a refund | A refund for every month after the month you let us know, for 12 months | Payments stop the month you let us know, at any point in the 12 months |
| They stay the full year | Up to $45,000 | $36,000 | $36,000 |
| They leave in month 5 | The guarantee has ended so you have spent up to $45,000 with nothing to show for it | $15,000, after a $21,000 refund | You have paid $15,000 and nothing more is owed |
Why clients choose itWe only get paid while it works
12 months of protection
Every month your hire stays is a month you pay for. The month you let us know they are leaving is the last. No refund to chase.
Better cashflow
A £90,000 hire costs £1,500 a month rather than £18,000$180,000 hire costs $3,000 a month rather than $36,000 on day one, so your budget goes further while the team grows.
Skin in the game
We are paid only while your hire stays, so we look for people who will stay. Our interests and yours point the same way.
No finance, no interest
It is not a loan or a credit agreement. It is our normal fee on a monthly invoice, with no extra charge for spreading it.
We back our hires for a year
Pay While They Stay started in 2025 from a conversation with Dan Taylor, commercial officer at Lavanda, a proptech client that was paid by its own customers only while those customers stayed. We thought recruitment fees should work the same way.
We can offer it because our hires stay. Every figure here comes from our own placement records.
"With over 20 years in hiring, we are confident in our abilities and our historical data. It's why we have no trouble offering our clients a 12 month guarantee."
Who it is forOpen to every client, any size
Bootstrapped, profitable or venture-backed. If you are ambitious and hiring permanent technology people in London, New York or San Francisco, we are committed to using our experience to support you at every stage of your growth.
Engineering, data, product and go-to-market
20% of base salary, paid over 12 months. Average time to fill: 23 days.
Talk to a hiring expertCTO, VP and C-suite
25% of base salary only. One third at engagement and the balance monthly over 12 months. If your new leader leaves, the payments stop.
About executive searchHire now, pay when you raise
Aligned defers up to 75% of the fee until your next funding round. If that round doesn't happen, the deferred part isn't owed. It suits pre-seed to Series A founders.
Visit hurrenandhope.vcHiring contractors? Contract roles are charged on a day rate, so Pay While They Stay does not apply. See how contract hiring works.
Want to see the numbers for your role?
A 20 minute call with Mark or Mike. You get the salary benchmark and your monthly cost before you commit to anything.
Pay While They Stay questions
How does Pay While They Stay work?
Our fee is 20% of base salary, paid as 12 monthly instalments of 1.67% from your hire's start date. For a £90,000 hire that is £1,500$180,000 hire that is $3,000 a month. If they leave, for any reason, the month you let us know is the last payment and nothing more is owed.
Does it cost more than paying one invoice?
No. The fee is 20% of base salary either way, and there is no charge for spreading it. If your hire stays the full year you pay exactly what a single invoice would have cost.
Is there a lower fee if we hire more than once?
Yes. Give us three or more roles to fill and every hire is 18% of base salary, paid monthly at 1.5% a month. If you have more hiring planned over the year and are happy to commit to a number of roles, we can agree a lower rate still. If you then hire fewer than the number agreed, the difference in fees is payable.
What happens if my new hire leaves?
Whatever the reason, whether they resign, are made redundant or are let go, the month you let us know is your last payment. You do not have to claim a refund, because you never pay for the months after that. Stopping the payments does not fill the seat, so we do not stop there. We talk it through with you, learn what changed, sharpen the brief and get the role moving again. If they leave within the first 90 days, the replacement search is free.
Is VAT added to the fee?
For UK clients, yes: our fees are plus VAT. Clients in the US are not charged VAT.
Do I pay anything before my hire starts?
No. For permanent roles there is nothing to pay while we search. Instalments begin from your hire's start date.
Is Pay While They Stay a loan or finance?
No. It is not a loan, there is no interest and it is not a credit agreement. It is our recruitment fee, invoiced monthly instead of all at once.
What is the fee worked out on?
Base salary only. Bonus, commission, car allowance, equity and benefits are never included. Some agencies do include them, so check how "salary" is defined in any terms you are comparing.
How is this different from a normal agency rebate?
A typical agency takes the whole fee when your hire starts and refunds part of it on a sliding scale if they leave within 8 to 12 weeks. With Pay While They Stay you only ever pay for the months your hire stays, for the full 12 months.
Who can use Pay While They Stay?
Any company hiring permanent technology people, whether bootstrapped, profitable or venture-backed. Most of our clients hire in London, New York or San Francisco, where we focus our work, and clients often ask us to support their satellite teams elsewhere in the UK, the US and Europe. It covers engineering, AI and machine learning, data, product, go-to-market, cybersecurity and leadership roles.
Can I use it for executive search?
Yes. Executive search is 25% of base salary only. We take one third at engagement and the balance monthly over 12 months, and the payments stop if your new leader leaves.
How is it different from Aligned?
Pay While They Stay shares the risk that a hire leaves. Aligned, on hurrenandhope.vc, shares funding risk for venture-backed founders by deferring up to 75% of the fee until the next funding round. If that round doesn't happen, the deferred part isn't owed.
What do recruitment agencies usually charge?
In the UK, contingency agencies typically charge 15 to 25% of first-year salary, paid in full when the hire starts, with a partial rebate if the hire leaves in the first 8 to 12 weeks. In the US the range is similar, usually with a 60 to 90 day replacement guarantee. Hurren & Hope charges 20% of base salary, and you can pay it monthly through Pay While They Stay.
Ready to hire? Pay while they stay.
Pay While They Stay in numbers