Where Are Your Recruitment Hours Really Going?
Hiring is more than checking boxes, it’s another full-time job on top of the one you already have. Behind every open role is a growing list of responsibilities, decisions, and tradeoffs, most of which fall on the shoulders of already stretched leaders.
This isn’t just about filling a seat. It’s about making space for the kind of thoughtful, strategic decisions that too often get sidelined once a search is underway.
The Hidden Hours Behind Every Hire
Leaders across organizations are often pulled into responsibilities that go far beyond their primary roles. Directors and managers are spending valuable time trying to build candidate pools from the ground up, often without the dedicated support they need. That might mean writing job postings, coordinating with HR, reviewing resumes, reaching out to prospects, or juggling interview logistics.
Executives, on the other hand, are pulled in earlier, tasked with setting the tone, aligning on priorities, and ensuring the process reflects institutional goals. But even with an HR team in place, it takes time and intention to get a search off the ground the right way.
So how much time is actually being spent? On average, building a strong pool of candidates can require thirty to fifty hours of work. Sometimes more.
Here is a breakdown of how that time is typically distributed:
- Creating an external job posting from the internal job description: 90 minutes
- Posting across platforms: 20 to 30 minutes
- Reviewing applications: 8 hours for 1,000 resumes at 30 seconds each
- Outreach and messaging: 8–12 hours, depending on the number of prospects and how many follow-ups are required. This is often where the bulk of search time lives, finding the right people and getting them to engage takes real effort.
- Scheduling interviews: 20 minutes per candidate, though the back-and-forth can still add up quickly when juggling multiple schedules and rounds.
- Conducting interviews: At least 45 minutes per interview, often repeated across 2 to 3 rounds per candidate. This is where the time really starts to stack up, especially when multiple stakeholders are involved.
- Post-interview discussions: 20 to 45 minutes per candidate
- Reference checks: 20 to 30 minutes per finalist
These are the visible hours, the ones you can point to on your calendar. But they are only part of the full picture.
What the Clock Does Not Capture
What these numbers don’t reflect is the background effort that is just as real. The hidden work. The context switching. The leadership interruptions.
Here are some of the unseen time drains that often go uncounted:
- Internal approvals and alignment across teams
- Revising job descriptions based on shifting goals and needs of the organization (Check out this helpful guide)
- Creating an external document to engage
- Drafting role-specific messaging to reflect your culture
- Responding to candidate questions and maintaining engagement
- Coordinating between multiple team members’ schedules
- Providing thoughtful feedback to applicants
- Adjusting when a finalist backs out and the process restarts
Together, these pieces add to the true cost of recruitment. They pull focus from strategic work and slow your ability to move with confidence.
The Opportunity Cost of Time
Every hour spent managing recruitment logistics is an hour not spent advancing priorities, building teams, or solving problems.
Now imagine that time being redirected toward efforts that truly require your expertise. Strengthening culture. Driving innovation. Leading change. Supporting people.
When your most valuable contributors are consumed by the mechanics of recruiting, it limits what your organization can achieve.
The Cost of a “Good Enough” Hire
When roles remain open for too long or searches stall, many organizations start to feel the pressure. That’s when decisions get made for the sake of progress rather than alignment.
Bringing someone on board who is not quite the right fit might seem like a temporary solution. But the real cost often comes later. Missed goals. Strained teams. Lowered morale. And eventually, a need to start the process all over again.
Some studies suggest the cost of a misstep in hiring can reach one third of the role’s annual salary. But the impact is not just financial. It slows everything down.
Let’s Talk About Real Cost Savings
Partnering with the Another Source team does more than save time. It saves real money in two meaningful ways.
First, by reducing the time your team invests. If you were to calculate thirty to fifty hours of leadership time in salary terms, that could translate to thousands of dollars per search. Redirecting that time to higher value work improves both impact and efficiency.
Second, by avoiding the steep pricing models that many search firms still use. Traditional firms often charge around 40% of the role’s annual salary – or a minimum $50,000 – $60,000 charge. Some go even higher, adding administrative fees.
In contrast, we offer one simple flat fee, which is always less than 10% of the role’s salary. No add-ons. No percentage-based surprises. Just a straightforward investment with proven outcomes.
What You Gain by Letting Go
When leaders partner with us, they gain more than resumes. They gain:
- Time to focus on high value work
- Confidence in each step of the process
- Fewer disruptions from misaligned hires
In short, you get to lead while we take care of the search.
Ready to Reclaim Your Time?
You have important work to do. Another Source is here to help you protect the time and energy needed to do it well.
If you want to learn more or see what this looks like in action, let us know. We are here to make the next search easier, faster, and more aligned with your goals.
