HR Consultant vs Recruiter vs Retention Specialist: An Honest Comparison
Founders and business owners regularly ask me: "What's the difference between working with you and hiring an HR consultant, using a recruiter or getting a coach?"
It's a good question and I totally get the need to know the difference because getting this wrong could mean you spending a lot of money on something that doesn't solve your actual problem.
As The People Keeper, I focus on fixing why people keep leaving and preventing it from happening again. My work sits is part strategic, part hands-on, and fully focused on stopping the revolving door for good. But I understand that might not be what you need and that actually another alternative might be the better solution for your situation.
This article explains what each option does, when each is the right fit and how to figure out which one you actually need.
HR Consultants/Outsourced HR
What they do: HR consultants help with compliance, policies, employment law and handling people-related challenges when they arise. They'll advise on things like disciplinaries, grievances, redundancies, TUPE transfers and some will help with employment tribunals. They'll write or review your policies and make sure you're meeting legal obligations.
When HR consultants are the right fit:
You're facing a tribunal claim or legal dispute with an employee
You need to handle a redundancy, TUPE or restructure
You've got a complex disciplinary or grievance that needs expert handling
You need policies written or reviewed for legal compliance
You want on-call advice when HR situations come up
Your business has complex employment law requirements due to size, sector or collective agreements
How they work: Usually on retainer for ongoing advice, or project-based for specific situations. You call them when issues arise and they advise or handle it for you.
Where they don't help: HR consultants are designed to handle problems when they arise, not prevent them from happening. They'll help you navigate a tribunal, but they won't typically work with you to fix why people are leaving in the first place. If your issue is that nobody knows what's expected, standards keep slipping, or you're hiring the wrong people, then legal compliance and policies won't fix that.
Coaches
What they do: Coaches work with you 1-1, to develop your leadership skills, mindset and effectiveness as a leader. They focus on your personal growth, decision-making, communication style and how you show up as a founder or business owner.
When a coach is the right fit:
You want to develop as a leader and improve how you lead
You're struggling with specific challenges (delegation, difficult conversations, managing stress)
You want someone to challenge your thinking and hold you accountable
You're making a transition (startup to scaleup, founder to CEO)
You want confidential support to work through leadership dilemmas
Your leadership style or mindset is the primary barrier to growth
How they work: Regular one-on-one sessions (usually fortnightly or monthly) focused on your development as a leader. Coaching is about asking questions and helping you find your own answers, not telling you what to do.
Where they don't help: The work is often personal, not operational, which means the business can stay "messy" despite this work.
Culture & Engagement Consultants
What they do: Culture and engagement consultants help you measure, understand and improve your workplace culture and employee engagement. They run surveys, focus groups and diagnostics to identify issues, then recommend initiatives to improve culture, engagement and employee experience.
When a culture consultant is the right fit:
You want to measure and benchmark your culture or engagement levels
You're a larger business (50+ employees) with the resources to run culture programmes
You need data and insights about how your employees feel about working there
You want to implement culture initiatives (values workshops, engagement programmes, recognition schemes)
You've got budget for ongoing culture projects and measurement
How they work: Usually project-based; they'll run diagnostics, present findings and recommend initiatives. Some offer ongoing support to implement culture programmes.
Where they don't help: Culture consultants measure and recommend initiatives, but they don't typically help to implement the solutions that address the root causes of why people are leaving. They'll tell you engagement is low and suggest values workshops or recognition programmes, but they won't fix your broken hiring process, teach you how to give feedback, or help you delegate properly, for example. Surveys and initiatives don't stop people leaving if the fundamentals are broken.
Recruiters
What they do: Recruiters find and present candidates for your open roles. They advertise positions, screen applicants, conduct initial interviews and manage the hiring process up to offer stage.
When a recruiter is the right fit:
You need to fill roles quickly and don't have capacity to manage the process
You're hiring for specialist or hard-to-fill positions
You're expanding into new markets or sectors and need access to networks you don't have
The volume of applications is overwhelming your internal capacity
You need temporary or contract staff at short notice
How they work: They're usually paid on a percentage of salary (15-25%) when someone starts, or on retained search for senior/specialist roles.
Where they don't help: Recruiters don't fix churn. Their job ends once the new hire starts. If your environment's still unstable, unclear, or chaotic, they'll keep filling the same role again and again. They won't fix why people aren't staying, improve your hiring decisions, or build the foundations that make people want to stay.
HR Tech/People Analytics Platforms
What they do: HR tech platforms help you manage people data, processes and provide analytics. They typically include employee records, time and attendance, performance management, employee surveys and reporting dashboards. Some offer AI-driven insights about engagement, retention risk and productivity.
When HR tech is the right fit:
You're managing people processes manually (in an excel spreadsheet) and it's becoming unmanageable
You want data and analytics about your workforce
You need to track performance, goals, or development plans systematically
You want employees to self-serve for holiday requests, payslips and updating their records
You're large enough (usually 5+ employees) that the investment makes sense
You've got someone internally who'll manage and maintain the platform
How they work: Subscription-based platform with implementation and ongoing support. Requires internal resource to set up, maintain and actually use the data.
Where they don't help: HR tech organises data and automates processes, but it doesn't fix what's broken. A platform can show you that employee churn is high or engagement is low, but it won't tell you why or fix it for you. Technology doesn't replace good leadership, clear expectations, or proper systems. You still need to do something with the data.
Benefits Consultants
What they do: Benefits consultants help you set up and manage employee benefits packages like private medical insurance, pension schemes, life assurance, income protection, gym memberships, employee assistance programmes and discount platforms.
When a benefits consultant is the right fit:
Your benefits package is below market standard for your sector
Candidates are turning down offers specifically because your benefits aren't competitive
You want to consolidate or improve your existing benefits offering
You need help with benefits administration and compliance
Your team has requested specific benefits you don't currently offer
You're competing for talent with larger companies who have stronger benefits
How they work: They assess your current benefits, recommend improvements, and help you implement and manage them. Usually involves ongoing support and administration.
Where they don't help: Benefits are hygiene factors, not retention drivers. Good benefits prevent dissatisfaction and help you compete for talent, but they don't make people stay if the job itself is broken. Nobody stays in a chaotic, badly-managed environment because you've got a good pension scheme. Benefits matter, but they won't fix fundamental issues with how you hire, manage or lead.
Retention Specialists (What I Do)
What I do: I work with founders to find out why people are actually leaving, fix the root causes, help them prevent it from happening again and build the foundations for scaling your business. That includes fixing hiring processes, setting up clear ways of working, teaching how to give feedback and delegate, and creating a people plan that supports business growth.
When a retention specialist is the right fit:
You're losing people you want to keep and you don't understand why
New hires aren't working out and you're not sure what's going wrong
Your team can't operate without you and you're burned out
The revolving door is blocking your ability to grow
You've tried pay rises and benefits but people still leave
You want to build proper foundations before you scale
You need implementation support, not just advice
How I work: Fixed-term project (typically 6 months) where we work together to diagnose what's broken, implement fixes and build sustainable habits. Includes coaching, done-for-you implementation and hands-on support throughout.
Where I don't help: I'm not a lawyer, so if you're facing tribunal claims or complex employment law issues, you need an HR consultant for that. I won't design your benefits package because that's what benefits consultants do and I won't source candidates for your open roles like a recruiter would. What I also can't help with is situations where you're not willing to honestly look at what's happening in your business or do the uncomfortable work required to change it, because fixing retention problems requires you to be actively involved in examining what's broken and implementing the solutions (with help and support, of course!).
So Which Do You Need?
Here's how to figure it out based on your actual situation:
You need an HR consultant if: You're dealing with legal or compliance issues, or you want ongoing access to employment law advice.
You need a coach if: Your leadership skills or mindset are the primary thing holding you or the business back.
You need a culture consultant if: You're a larger business that wants to measure culture and run engagement initiatives.
You need a recruiter if: You've got open roles and need help filling them quickly, or you're hiring for specialist positions.
You need HR tech if: You're managing people processes manually and need systems to handle data and workflows.
You need a benefits consultant if: Your benefits package is genuinely uncompetitive and it's affecting your ability to hire.
You need a retention specialist if: People keep leaving and you want to fix what's causing it.
You Might Need More Than One (and that's fine!)
These aren't competing solutions; they solve different problems.
You might work with me to fix your retention and hiring, use a recruiter for specialist hires, work with a coach on your personal development and review your benefits package once the foundations are solid.
That's not unusual. Most growing businesses need different types of support at different times.
The real question here is not "which is better?"
It's "what problem am I actually trying to solve?"
If your problem is legal compliance → HR consultant
If your problem is running your business and related skills → Business coach
If your problem is measuring/improving culture → Culture consultant
If your problem is filling open roles → Recruiter
If your problem is people data and processes → HR tech
If your problem is uncompetitive benefits → Benefits consultant
If your problem is people leaving → Retention specialist
Get clear on the actual problem first. Then choose the right solution for that specific problem.
