Go Fractional vs. Heidrick & Struggles: Which Executive Recruiting Partner Is Right for You?
Compare Go Fractional and Heidrick & Struggles for executive hiring. Learn why Go Fractional’s fractional and interim-to-full-time model offers speed, flexibility, and access to founder-level talent.
May 20th, 2026
Executive search is a high-stakes decision. The right leader can transform your company; the wrong one can set you back years. Choosing the right partner to find that leader matters just as much.
Heidrick & Struggles is one of the world’s premier executive search and leadership advisory firms, serving Fortune 500 companies and global enterprises for over 70 years. Go Fractional offers a modern alternative featuring a curated network of 10,000+ pre-vetted, multi-exit entrepreneurs and former C-suite executives available for fractional, interim, and full-time placements—giving companies access to founder-level talent with the ability to “try before they buy” and validate both subject matter expertise and cultural fit before making a permanent commitment.
This comparison breaks down the key differences between Heidrick & Struggles and Go Fractional, helping you decide which partner is right for your executive hiring needs. Whether you’re a Fortune 500 seeking a new CEO or a growth-stage company needing a fractional COO, understanding these approaches will help you make a smarter decision.
Quick Comparison Table
| Factor | Heidrick & Struggles | Go Fractional |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1953 | 2021 |
| Headquarters | Chicago, IL | New York, NY |
| Company Size | 5,000+ employees, 50+ offices globally | Boutique platform with 10,000+ vetted executives |
| Time to Hire | 4-8 months (typical retained search) | As fast as 3 days | Engagement Types | Primarily full-time permanent; On-Demand Talent | Fractional, Interim, and Full-Time | Search/Placement Fee | 30-35% of first-year salary ($100K+ minimums) | No placement fees | Try Before You Buy | Limited | Yes (interim-to-full-time conversion) | Talent Pool | Passive global executives via retained search | 10,000+ pre-vetted, multi-exit entrepreneurs & C-suite executives | Best For | Fortune 500, large enterprises | Startups, growth-stage, PE-backed companies |
About Heidrick & Struggles
Heidrick & Struggles is a global executive search and leadership advisory firm founded in 1953 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. As one of the “Big Five” executive search firms (part of the “SHREK” group: Spencer Stuart, Heidrick, Russell Reynolds, Egon Zehnder, Korn Ferry), Heidrick & Struggles is renowned for placing CEOs, board directors, and senior executives at the world’s largest companies.
What Heidrick & Struggles Offers
Heidrick & Struggles provides comprehensive executive search and leadership services:
- Executive Search: Retained searches for CEO, C-suite, and senior leadership
- On-Demand Talent: Interim executive and project-based leadership
- Leadership Consulting: Assessment, development, succession planning
- Heidrick Consulting: Culture shaping, team effectiveness, organizational transformation
- Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: Specialized practice for diverse leadership
How Their Process Works
Heidrick & Struggles’ retained search process is thorough and methodical:
- Engagement: Signed retainer agreement with substantial upfront commitment
- Position Specification: Detailed role definition, success profile, and culture assessment
- Research & Sourcing: Global candidate identification leveraging 50+ offices
- Assessment: Rigorous interviews, leadership assessments, reference verification
- Candidate Presentation: Curated shortlist of 3-5 highly qualified candidates
- Selection & Integration: Interview facilitation, offer negotiation, onboarding support
Their Pricing Model
Heidrick & Struggles uses premium retained search fees:
- Search Fee: Typically 30-35% of first-year total compensation
- Minimum Fees: Often $100,000-$200,000+ for senior searches
- Additional Costs: Administrative fees, travel, assessment tools
- Payment Structure: Typically 1/3 upfront, 1/3 at 60 days, 1/3 at completion
For a $500K executive, expect total fees of $150K-$200K+ before the first day of work.
About Go Fractional
Go Fractional is a specialized talent platform founded in 2021 and headquartered in New York City. Our mission is to “Make the World Go Fractional” by connecting companies with founder-level executives on a fractional, interim, or full-time basis.
What Go Fractional Offers
Go Fractional provides the full spectrum of executive hiring:
- Fractional Executives: Part-time leadership (10-25 hours/week) for ongoing needs
- Interim Executives: Full-time temporary leadership during transitions
- Full-Time Placements: Permanent hires, often through our “try before you buy” model
- Interim-to-Full-Time Conversion: Start fractional or interim, convert when fit is validated
How Our Process Works
Go Fractional’s process is streamlined for speed and flexibility:
- Discovery Call: Free 20-minute call to understand your needs
- Candidate Matching: Pre-vetted executives presented within 3 days
- Interviews: You meet candidates and assess fit
- Engagement: Flexible terms—fractional, interim, or full-time
- Conversion (Optional): Transition to permanent if both sides agree
Pricing Model
Go Fractional offers transparent, flexible pricing:
- No Search Fees: No 25-33% placement fees
- Fractional Engagements: Monthly retainers based on hours/scope
- Cost Savings: Typically ~50% of full-time executive cost
- No Long-Term Commitment: Flexible terms, scale up or down as needed
Key Stats
- 10,000+ executives in our vetted network
- 4.7 stars on Trustpilot
- 300+ testimonials from clients and talent
- 3 days average time to match
Key Similarities
Before diving into differences, it’s worth noting where Heidrick & Struggles and Go Fractional overlap:
Before diving into differences, it’s worth noting where Heidrick & Struggles and Go Fractional overlap:
- C-Suite Focus: Both serve senior leadership roles—CEO, COO, CFO, CMO, CTO, and other C-suite positions
- Quality Emphasis: Both prioritize placing exceptional executives who can drive business outcomes
- Cultural Fit Matters: Both recognize that executive success depends on alignment with organizational culture
- Interim Capabilities: Both offer interim/temporary executive placements (Heidrick via On-Demand Talent)
- Assessment Rigor: Both evaluate candidates beyond resumes—considering leadership style, track record, and strategic capability
Key Differences
1. Speed to Hire
Heidrick & Struggles: Traditional retained searches take 4-8 months from engagement to start date. The process involves extensive research, global candidate sourcing, multiple interview rounds, and thorough assessments. For CEO or board searches, timelines can extend to a year or more.
Go Fractional: Pre-vetted executives can be matched in as little as 3 days. Because our talent pool consists of executives actively seeking fractional and interim work—not passive candidates who need to be convinced to leave their current roles—the process moves dramatically faster.
The Impact: Every month without the right leadership costs you in strategic direction, team alignment, and competitive positioning. A 3-day match vs. an 8-month search represents a transformative speed advantage.
2. Cost & Fee Structure
Heidrick & Struggles: Retained search fees typically run 30-35% of first-year total compensation, with minimum fees of $100,000-$200,000+. For a $500K executive, you might pay $150K-$200K in search fees alone—before salary, benefits, and equity.
Go Fractional: No placement fees. You pay for the executive’s time through flexible engagement terms. Fractional arrangements typically cost ~50% of full-time equivalent, and there are no six-figure search fees.
The Math: - Heidrick & Struggles: $175K search fee + $500K salary + benefits/equity = $750K+ first-year cost - Go Fractional: $0 search fee + fractional engagement = Dramatically lower total investment
3. Engagement Flexibility
Heidrick & Struggles: Primarily focused on full-time permanent placements. While they offer On-Demand Talent for interim needs, their core business model is retained search for permanent executives. Once you hire, you’re committed.
Go Fractional: Offers the full spectrum—fractional (part-time ongoing), interim (full-time temporary), and full-time (permanent). Engagement terms are flexible: start at 15 hours/week, scale to 30, convert to full-time, or adjust as needs change.
Why This Matters: Not every company needs 40+ hours of C-suite attention. A fractional CFO at 20 hours/week might deliver more strategic value than a full-time hire who’s still ramping up—at half the cost.
4. Try Before You Buy
Heidrick & Struggles: Traditional search relies on extensive assessment, interviews, and references to predict fit. You make a multi-hundred-thousand-dollar commitment based on evaluation processes. If it doesn’t work out, you’re facing severance, another search, and months of disruption.
Go Fractional: Our interim-to-full-time model lets you work with an executive before committing permanently. Start with a fractional or interim engagement, evaluate fit based on actual performance, then convert to full-time when confidence is high.
The Risk Equation: Executive mis-hires cost $500K-$1.5M when you factor in salary, severance, lost productivity, team disruption, and opportunity cost. The “try before you buy” approach dramatically reduces this risk by validating both expertise AND cultural/team fit before permanent commitment.
5. Talent Pool & Approach
Heidrick & Struggles: Sources passive candidates—executives currently in senior roles at top companies who aren’t actively looking. This requires extensive research, relationship-building, and convincing. The process is thorough but time-consuming.
Go Fractional: Our network of 10,000+ executives have actively chosen fractional work—available for interim, contract-to-hire, and remote engagements. They’re multi-exit entrepreneurs, former C-suite leaders, and senior operators who want flexibility and impact across multiple companies. They’re not settling for fractional—they’re selecting it.
The Quality Advantage: Executives who choose fractional work are often the highest-caliber talent. They’ve already had successful exits, led companies through transformations, and now want to apply their expertise where it creates maximum value—without the constraints of traditional full-time employment.
6. Client Profile
Heidrick & Struggles: Primarily serves Fortune 500 companies, large enterprises, and global organizations with substantial budgets and long hiring timelines. Over 70% of Fortune 1000 companies have used Heidrick & Struggles.
Go Fractional: Serves startups, growth-stage companies, and PE-backed organizations that need executive talent without the timeline or budget for traditional retained search. Our model is built for companies that value speed and flexibility.
When to Choose Heidrick & Struggles
Heidrick & Struggles remains a strong choice in specific scenarios:
✅ Fortune 500 or large enterprise needing a CEO, board director, or C-suite executive
✅ Board-level searches where institutional credibility and global networks matter
✅ CEO succession planning requiring deep assessment and extensive market mapping
✅ Organizations wanting bundled services (leadership consulting, culture shaping, team effectiveness)
✅ Companies with 6-12 month hiring timelines and substantial budgets ($150K+ for search)
✅ When stakeholders require the credibility of a “Big Five” search firm
When to Choose Go Fractional
Go Fractional is the better choice when:
✅ You need leadership now, not in 6-12 months
✅ You want to validate fit before making a permanent commitment (try before you buy)
✅ Budget is a consideration—you need senior expertise without six-figure search fees
✅ You need fractional/part-time leadership (10-25 hours/week)
✅ You’ve been burned by previous executive mis-hires and want lower risk
✅ You’re a startup, growth-stage, or PE-backed company that values speed and flexibility
✅ You’re not a Fortune 500—and don’t need to pay Fortune 500 prices
✅ Cultural and team fit are paramount—you want to see the executive in action before committing
Can You Use Both?
Absolutely. Many companies use Go Fractional and traditional search firms for different needs:
- Immediate coverage: Engage a Go Fractional interim executive to provide leadership while Heidrick & Struggles runs a permanent search for a CEO or board member
- Different roles: Use Heidrick & Struggles for CEO or board searches where institutional credibility matters, and Go Fractional for VP-level or functional leadership where speed and flexibility are priorities
- Parallel paths: Use Go Fractional’s interim-to-full-time model as an alternative to traditional search—if the interim executive works out, you’ve found your permanent hire faster and with less risk
The approaches serve different needs and can complement each other.
Client Success Story: Lob
The Challenge: Lob needed experienced engineering leadership quickly but wanted to validate fit before committing to a full-time hire.
The Go Fractional Solution: Lob engaged a fractional VP of Engineering through Go Fractional. Within 12 days of the first call, the executive was in place and making an impact.
The Outcome: After just 6 weeks of fractional work proving his value, the executive converted to a permanent VP of Engineering role.
The Quote: “Working with Go Fractional has been an absolute pleasure. They connected us with high-quality engineering leaders and filled the role within just 12 days of our first call. After six weeks of fractional work, he joined as our permanent VP of Engineering. Go Fractional’s speed and partnership significantly boosted our team’s productivity, and we are thrilled to have filled the position seamlessly without any gaps.” — Victoria Ashton, Vice President of People, Lob
The Bottom Line
Heidrick & Struggles is a global powerhouse with 70+ years of experience, extensive networks, and comprehensive leadership consulting services. For Fortune 500 enterprises, board-level searches, and organizations that need the institutional credibility and global reach of a “Big Five” firm, Heidrick & Struggles delivers.
Go Fractional offers a modern alternative built for speed, flexibility, and reduced risk. Our fractional, interim, and full-time model—with the ability to “try before you buy”—is ideal for companies that need leadership now, want to validate fit before committing, or prefer the flexibility of fractional arrangements.
The Decision Framework: - If you’re a Fortune 500 with 6+ months and $150K+ for a search → Heidrick & Struggles may be appropriate - If you need leadership in days, want flexibility, or want to de-risk your hire → Go Fractional is the smarter choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Go Fractional’s pricing compare to Heidrick & Struggles?
Heidrick & Struggles charges retained search fees of 30-35% of first-year compensation, with minimums often exceeding $100,000. Go Fractional has no placement fees—you pay only for the executive’s engagement time, typically at ~50% of full-time cost for fractional arrangements.
Can Go Fractional help with full-time executive hiring?
Yes. While we specialize in fractional and interim placements, many engagements convert to full-time. Our “try before you buy” model is actually one of the best paths to a successful permanent hire—you validate fit with real work before committing.
What types of executives does Go Fractional place?
We place VP to C-suite executives across all functions: CTO, COO, CMO, CFO, CRO, CPO, CHRO, CIO, CISO, and more. Our network includes 10,000+ multi-exit entrepreneurs and former C-suite leaders.
How quickly can Go Fractional find an executive?
We typically match companies with pre-vetted executives within 3 days. Because our talent pool consists of executives actively seeking fractional and interim work, there’s no lengthy sourcing process.
How does Heidrick’s On-Demand Talent compare to Go Fractional?
Heidrick’s On-Demand Talent is their interim executive practice, while Go Fractional is 100% focused on fractional and interim executives. Go Fractional’s entire model—talent pool, processes, pricing—is optimized for flexible executive engagements.
What if the fractional executive doesn’t work out?
That’s one of the key advantages of the fractional model—if it’s not a fit, you can adjust or end the engagement without the cost and complexity of terminating a full-time executive. There’s no severance and no $500K mistake. Plus, Go Fractional can replace your fractional executive in as little as 3 days at no additional cost—try doing that with a traditional search firm.
Ready to Get Started?
Skip the lengthy search and placement fees. Get matched with a pre-vetted fractional or interim executive in as little as 3 days.
Go Fractional: Fractional Talent, Full-Time Impact.
