What It All Costs Together
When all the phases are considered together, an unclear job advert, a poorly configured ATS, a disjointed selection process, inadequate onboarding, a picture emerges that is rarely looked at as a whole.
Recruitment costs: job adverts, external agencies, internal time. Typically between £3,000 and £15,000 per hire, depending on sector and seniority.
Bridging costs: overtime, cover arrangements, external contractors during the vacancy period.
Productivity loss: new hires typically operate at 50 to 75 per cent of expected capacity during their first three to six months.
Turnover: when a hire doesn't work out, the entire process begins again, with all its associated costs.
Hidden costs: declining motivation across the team, quality issues, effects on client or customer experience that are harder to trace but no less real.
A single failed hire can easily cost one and a half to two times the annual salary of the role. That figure rises when onboarding and integration have not been handled well.