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What is a Project-Based Job Engagement?

Understand the Project Based Job Engagement

Amogh Balikai avatar
Written by Amogh Balikai
Updated this week

Recruiterflow now supports Project-Based job engagements: a flexible model designed for agencies handling high-volume or fast-growth hiring projects.

This engagement model blends elements of contingent and retained search to offer better risk sharing, cash flow predictability, and client commitment.

What is Project-Based Job Engagement?

A Project-Based job engagement is a hybrid search model where:

  • The agency receives an upfront project fee from the client.

  • A success fee (percentage of the hired candidate's salary) is also paid when a hire is made.

  • The upfront project fee is deducted from the success fee before final payment is made.

This model gives agencies some guaranteed revenue early in the process, while keeping performance incentives aligned with successful hires.

🔍 Example 1: Single Hire

  • Expected Salary: $100,000

  • Success Fee: 30% ($30,000)

  • Upfront Project Fee: $10,000

If a candidate is placed at $110,000, the new success fee is 30% of $110,000 = $33,000.
Since $10,000 was already paid, the adjusted revenue due = $23,000.

🔍 Example 2: Multi-Hire

  • 2 Openings, Expected Salary: $100,000

  • Success Fee: 30%, Upfront Project Fee: $20,000

Hire 1 at $110,000 → Success fee = $33,000
Adjusted revenue = $33,000 - $20,000 = $13,000

Hire 2 at $100,000 → Success fee = $30,000
Adjusted revenue = $30,000 (no deduction left)

The upfront project fee is tracked and deducted across placements within the same job.

How Project-Based Contingent Works in Recruiterflow

You can define this engagement model under the Billing section of any job.

Adding Project-Based Contingent Billing Details

  1. Go to the job’s Billing section while setting up a new job.

  2. Choose Project from the dropdown.

  3. Add:

    • Salary and commission on successful hire (contingent-like success fee)

    • Upfront Project Fee

Upfront Project Fee

You'll be asked to enter:

  • Project fee

  • Billing date

  • Due date

  • Attribution (team members and contacts)

Successful Hire Details

When a candidate is hired, Recruiterflow will:

  • Auto-calculate adjusted revenue (Revenue - remaining project fee)

  • Display both gross and adjusted revenue

  • Ensure adjusted revenue is never negative (leftover fees carry over)

Key Differences: Contingent vs Retained vs Project-Based Contingent

Factor

Contingent

Retained

Project

Up-front cash

None

30–50% of projected fee (in stages)

Modest project fee (e.g., 10–20% of total)

Risk for agency

High (may go unpaid)

Low

Shared – upfront fee offsets risk

Client commitment

Low

High

Medium–High – upfront fee = buy-in

Best for

Common roles, price-sensitive clients

Executive/niche searches

High-volume hiring, startup scaling

Cash-flow timing

At hire

At kick-off + milestones

At kick-off + per hire

Downside

Competitive, unpredictable revenue

Longer sales cycle, pushback on fees

Scope management, tracking fee usage

Upside

Fast sales, low friction

Predictable revenue, deeper relationships

Blends speed + security, aligns incentives

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