Growing your team shouldn’t keep you up at night  

Fractional HR is where a senior HR director works in your business on a part-time basis, typically one to three days per month, giving you strategic HR leadership at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire.

It's not consultancy from the outside, and it's not a helpline you call when things go wrong. A fractional HR director embeds in your business, attends your leadership meetings, coaches your managers, and owns the people agenda. Siobhan Godden provides fractional HR support to SMEs of 20-80 employees across Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and London.

A fractional HR director embeds inside your business as a member of your leadership team, whereas an HR consultancy typically advises from the outside on specific projects or issues.

The practical difference is ownership. A consultancy gives you advice and a report. A fractional HR director owns the people agenda, attends your meetings, coaches your managers, handles the difficult conversations, and builds the HR infrastructure from the inside. Think partner, not supplier.

Siobhan Godden typically works with founder-led businesses of 20 to 80 employees who need senior HR support but aren't ready for a full-time HR director, across Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and London.

Most clients are growing, sometimes uncomfortably fast, and the people side is starting to feel more complex than it should. That said, I also take on specific projects for larger organisations — things like restructures, leadership programmes, or Insights Discovery workshops — where you need specialist expertise without adding headcount.

You can book a free 30-minute discovery call at highperforminghr.com, call Siobhan Godden on 07786 264 522, or email siobhan@highperforminghr.com.

The discovery call is the best starting point — I'll listen, ask the right questions, and give you honest advice about whether you need HR support and what level would be right. Based in Bedfordshire, I work across Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire and London.

Fractional HR support from High Performing HR is typically structured as either a day rate (for project and ad hoc work) or a monthly retainer (for ongoing support), costing significantly less than a full-time HR director salary of £70,000-£100,000+.

Every engagement is different, so pricing is agreed during a free discovery call. All pricing is discussed openly — no hidden fees, no long lock-in contracts. The goal is to give you the right level of support at a cost that makes commercial sense for your stage of growth.

Siobhan Godden works both on-site and remotely, based in Bedfordshire and covering Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire and London, with most clients receiving a blend of in-person and remote support.

I'll be there in person for leadership meetings, difficult conversations, workshops and team sessions. Between visits, your team has access to me by phone, email or video. Most retained clients have me on-site one to three days per month with remote support in between.

Siobhan Godden is a CIPD Fellow and ICF-accredited coach with 20+ years' HR experience, described by clients as commercially sharp, refreshingly honest, and a safe pair of hands who embeds in your business rather than advising from a distance.

I don't write policies that sit in a drawer. I create frameworks people actually use, help you make better people decisions, and give you your time back. Typically retained as a member of your leadership team, I own the people agenda rather than just advising on it.