Claude: both observations

Frazer Jones and Middlemore look like the strongest fits for running both briefs, with Robert Walters, Robert Half and Hays as broader or more interim-heavy options. I haven’t verified any firm’s current interim bench or retained-search track record, so treat this as a shortlist to test.

Specialist firms that cover both interim and permanent

• Frazer Jones is the most obvious fit. It describes itself as a global HR recruitment and executive search consultancy, offering executive search, permanent and interim payroll recruitment. It is headquartered in the City of London. It also appears to split the work between consultants, with a payroll director focused on interim hires across the UK. That separation could help you, provided the interim and search teams coordinate. [Book a consultation +2](https://www.frazerjones.com/?p=140035)

• Middlemore is a specialist executive search firm. It covers global payroll, HR, HRIS and finance, with services spanning executive search, permanent, contract and interim solutions, talent mapping and salary benchmarking. The talent mapping is useful for your permanent search, and its transformation and vendor-management focus suits a global payroll head. [gpa](https://gpa.net/blogs/directory/middlemore)

• Robert Walters is active in global payroll interim work, including a current listing for a Global Payroll Implementation Lead on a 12/18-month contract. That suggests a bench of senior interims, though I couldn’t confirm its retained-search depth in payroll. [robertwalters](https://www.robertwalters.co.uk/humanresources/jobs/rewardcompensationbenefits/1898940-global-payroll-implementation-lead---1218-months-ftc.html)

• Robert Half and Hays are large generalists with interim management arms. Their payroll listings I found were mostly manager-level, so ask them to prove senior-leadership depth.

What the market looks like

Your set-up is a familiar one. A Frazer Jones listing described interim cover for a global payroll operations leader while the client recruits a permanent head, at £500-600 per day for 3-6 months. That listing dates from 2023, so rates have probably moved. Ask each firm for current day-rate benchmarks and expect interim leaders to have to be sourced quickly.

[personneltoday](https://jobs.personneltoday.com/job/1401667189/global-payroll-operations-leader/)

Choosing between them

• Ask each firm to name the specific consultants for the interim and the search, and how they will share information.

• Ask for two or three recent examples of senior global payroll interim placements, plus a retained-search placement at head level.

• Check conflict handling. If one firm places the interim, it may be tempted to push that person for the permanent role.

• Clarify fees. Interim is usually a margin on the day rate, while retained search is staged. Ask whether either firm will discount for taking both briefs.

• Check IR35 handling, as senior interim roles are often assessed as inside IR35.

A workable handover plan

1. Weeks 0-2: Agree the interim’s mandate: run the payroll cycle, maintain governance and controls, manage vendors, and document the state of play. Keep it separate from transformation unless you want a change agent.

2. Weeks 2-6: The interim produces a function health check covering country footprint, vendors, risks and team gaps. This becomes the basis for the permanent job spec and candidate briefings.

3. Months 2-4: The interim stays out of the permanent selection but supports candidate conversations about the function.

4. Final 4-6 weeks: Plan an overlap with the permanent hire, covering at least one full payroll cycle. Build in notice periods, since senior permanent candidates often need three to six months. A six-month interim is tight, so agree an extension option upfront.

I can draft a brief for the agencies or a comparison questionnaire if that would help.

These are the firms that look best placed to run both briefs, based on what I found. I haven’t verified their track records, fees or current availability, so treat the list as a starting point for a pitch process.

Strongest fit: specialists in payroll leadership who cover interim and permanent

• Frazer Jones describes itself as a global HR recruitment and executive search consultancy. It offers executive search for payroll leaders as well as interim and fractional payroll placements. Its past adverts show this exact pairing. In one, an interim Global Payroll Operations Leader was hired for 3–6 months while the client recruited a permanent headcount, and the role could go permanent for the right person. [frazerjones](https://frazerjones.com/?p=140035) [personneltoday](https://jobs.personneltoday.com/job/1401667189/global-payroll-operations-leader/)

• Middlemore is a specialist firm in global payroll, HR, HRIS and finance. Its services include executive search, permanent recruitment, contract and interim solutions, talent mapping, salary benchmarking and succession planning. The talent mapping and benchmarking would help your talent team as well as your CFO. It is listed in the Global Payroll Association directory, which suggests it knows the payroll community well. [gpa](https://gpa.net/blogs/directory/middlemore)

• Altum Consulting is a possible interim route. It has recruited for an interim Global Director of Payroll at a London technology business. I didn’t see evidence of a permanent search offering, so ask them about it. [itjobswatch](https://itjobswatch.co.uk/jv/Altum-Consulting/Interim-Director-of-Payroll-Job-London-South-East-England-UK-4w1wc9)

Broader firms with interim and search arms

• Robert Walters is active in senior payroll interim work. It has advertised interim global payroll implementation roles on 12–18 month fixed-term contracts. That suggests transformation capability more than pure leadership cover. [robertwalters](https://robertwalters.co.uk/humanresources/jobs/rewardcompensationbenefits/1898940-global-payroll-implementation-lead---1218-months-ftc.html)

• Robert Half covers interim management and executive search and advertises six-month interim global payroll manager contracts. Its listings skew more towards manager level than head level. [roberthalf](https://roberthalf.com/gb/en/jobs/camberley/interim) [roberthalf](https://roberthalf.com/gb/en/jobs/basingstoke/temp-services-manager)

• Sheffield Haworth offers executive search, interim consulting and human capital research and advisory. It is stronger in financial services, so it is most relevant if you’re in that sector. [wealthbriefing](https://wealthbriefing.com/html/article.php/global-headhunter-poaches-from-a-rival-)

• Oliver Sanderson is an executive search firm that has placed interim payroll and HR systems transformation leads. It could suit you if the permanent head will also own a systems programme. [itjobswatch](https://itjobswatch.co.uk/jv/Oliver-Sanderson-Group-PLC/Interim-Payroll-HR-Systems-Transformation-Lead-12-months-FTC-Inside-IR35-Job-England-UK-4w0z1s)

Planning the handover

The firm you pick should be able to do these:

1. Start the permanent search first. Brief the permanent head properly before the interim arrives, so the interim can hand over to a defined role and target start date. Many senior payroll notice periods run three to six months, so a six-month cover window is tight.

2. Write the interim’s job as stabilise, document, hand over. Cover run-rate payroll, controls and vendor governance, plus a clear list of open issues. Don’t make them re-architect the function unless that is the plan.

3. Decide whether the interim can be a candidate. Frazer Jones’s ad above shows some interims convert to permanent. Settle this early, because it affects how the firms will approach the brief.

4. Build in overlap. Two to four weeks with both people in post works better than a clean cut. Sort out contract terms for the interim’s extension or early exit before you start.

5. Check IR35 status for the interim engagement. Some of the ads above state “inside IR35” explicitly.

Questions to ask in the pitch

• Who on their team covers interim and who covers search, and do they coordinate?

• Can they show recent global payroll head placements, not just manager-level ones?

• What are the fee structures, for example a combined or discounted arrangement if the same firm fills both roles?

• Can they supply a shortlist of vetted interims within one to two weeks?

I can draft a one-page brief for the pitch covering both roles and the handover timeline if that would help.