When you’re in the market for recruitment software, it can very difficult to get an honest breakdown of how much the total cost may be when comparing different recruitment software solutions and providers. Recruitment software needs to satisfy various business models and because of that, there are a range of options and associated costs to take into consideration.
So, to help your recruitment agency budget or disentangle some of the mystery surrounding recruitment software costs (not just software licences), here’s a brief guide to the range of products and services on the market.
Software / Database Installation
£550 – £4,500 (one-off cost)
As with any comprehensive software solution, you will need to consider whether your recruitment software will be installed and hosted either as a cloud-based or on-premise solution.
On-premise software is installed locally on your company server and the application on your user’s computers.
Cloud-based software, also known as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), is hosted on the/a provider’s server and accessed through the internet.
The software/database installation is generally a one-off cost per database instance. Both hosting models have their advantages, see our cloud vs desktop in recruitment software blog for more information.
With cloud-based (SaaS) hosted software, you will also need to factor in additional monthly, or yearly, charges for the service.
Recruitment Software Licence
Generally, most recruitment software providers will offer at least one or a combination of the following recruitment software licence models:
Outright Purchase Model
£650 – £1,300 per licence
With this model, you purchase each recruitment software licence outright in the beginning with the total cost outlay in year 1 and most providers will offer a discount when a bulk number of licences are purchased at once.
Rental Model
£50 – £125 per licence per month
With this model, the recruitment software licence cost is paid monthly and is spread over a longer period of time. The licences are never owned by the recruitment agency and sometimes can be more expensive than an outright purchase model.
If you are a start-up recruitment agency, this model can be beneficial because it allows you to avoid a large, upfront cash outlay in year 1 and assist with managing cash flow.
Rental to Purchase Model
Some recruitment software providers offer a rental to purchase recruitment licence model. This means there’s no large initial cash outlay in year 1, the recruitment agency knows the total cost to own the licence/s as the rental period is determined upfront (generally for a 12 – 36 months).
When you’re weighing up recruitment software costs, it is easy to become too focused on the license fees and not consider the additional costs that come with even the cheapest of license fees. These separate costs often depend on the size of your agency and your own business model.
Helpdesk Support
£185 – £250 per active recruitment software licence per annum
Helpdesk support is an important service offered by all recruitment software providers. Helpdesk support packages can offer a range of technical or functional support or a combination of both, including telephone and email support.
Technology Partners / Third Party Software Integration
£350 – £3,000 (one-off purchase)
Most large recruitment software providers have a range of technology partners that offer direct integration with their recruitment software. Technology partners can range from back office payroll or account software, job posting distribution, SMS text messaging to business intelligence platforms.
Depending on the third-party software integration and the recruitment software provider, there can be additional helpdesk support costs for each software integration.
Data Migration & Import Services
£850 – £1,200 per day
The total cost of data migration and import is based on what type of data needs to be exported, what recruitment software the data is being exported from, the complexity of the data structure and the import into the new recruitment software.
Most recruitment software providers will provide a fixed project cost of the data migration and import requirement, which includes project scoping, data mapping, data extraction and conversion and User Acceptance Testing (UAT). Depending on your current recruitment software provider there could also be additional charges to release your data.
Implementation Services
£0 – £2,000 per day
Recruitment software implementation requires close collaboration with your business to ensure the implementation is delivered successfully and on time. The range of implementation services vary from recruitment software providers, from a free charge for basic implementation services or a per day rate for implementation project management and business consultancy services.
Training Services
£850 – £2,100 per day
The investment in training your teams during the software implementation process is critical to ensure you and your teams make the most of your new recruitment software and its integration into your business.
Most recruitment software providers charge for training services such as:
• Individual client onsite or online training courses (capped at the number of delegated that can attend each course)
• Open online courses (multiple client users attending)
• Access to user manuals or a knowledge centre
Choosing the right recruitment software for your agency is difficult enough without knowing essential costs. It’s better to know up front how much you need to budget for to calculate and maximise ROI.
Are you needing a comprehensive guide to buying new recruitment software? Download our free eBook below and make the right choice for your recruitment agency.
