Fractional HR Services in Des Moines & throughout the U.S.

✓ Experienced HR Support Without a Full-Time Hire
✓ A Team of HR Professionals Behind Your Business
✓ Flexible Support That Grows With You

What Is Fractional HR?

Quick Overview

This is the text area for a paragraph describing this service. You may want to give examples of the service and who may benefit. Describe the benefits and advantages of this group of services, explaining to users why they should choose your company.

Fractional HR gives your business access to experienced HR professionals without the cost or commitment of hiring a full-time HR employee. HR Excellence Consulting works as an extension of your team, providing ongoing HR support for employee issues, compliance, hiring and retention, handbooks and policies, performance management, workplace investigations, compensation and more.

For small and growing businesses, fractional HR provides the expertise of an HR department with support that can be tailored to what your organization actually needs.

Does My Business Need Fractional HR?

Every organization needs HR support, but not every organization needs a full-time HR employee.

For many small businesses, HR responsibilities initially fall to the owner, office manager, bookkeeper or another employee who already has a full-time job. That may work when you have only a few employees.

Then the business grows.

You hire more people. Managers have questions. An employee makes a complaint. Someone requests an accommodation. Your handbook hasn't been updated in years. Turnover increases. You're not sure whether an employee issue has been documented correctly.

Suddenly, HR isn't something you can handle whenever you have time.

That's where fractional HR can help.

HR Excellence Consulting gives your leadership team an experienced HR resource to turn to without requiring you to build an in-house HR department before your business is ready for one.

You may be ready for fractional HR if:

• HR is taking too much of the owner's or leadership team's time.
• Your office manager or another employee has become the unofficial HR person.
• You're growing and adding employees, managers, locations or states.
• Employee complaints or performance issues are becoming more frequent.
• Turnover or morale has become a concern.
• Managers aren't handling employee situations consistently.
• You're unsure whether your policies and HR practices are compliant.
• You need experienced HR guidance but don't need a full-time HR employee.

Not sure? Take our 2-Minute HR Checkup →

What Does a Fractional HR Team Do?

Fractional HR isn't simply someone you call to complete paperwork. We become an extension of your organization and a resource for your leadership team.

Depending on your needs, HR Excellence Consulting can assist with:

Employee Relations &

Workplace Issues →

From performance, attendance and behavior concerns to employee complaints and difficult conversations, we help leadership determine appropriate next steps. We can also conduct workplace investigations when needed.

Employee Handbooks, Policies & Compliance →

We create and update employee handbooks, review HR policies and practices, and help businesses keep up with applicable employment requirements as their organization changes.

Hiring, Onboarding & Retention →

We can help improve recruiting, hiring and onboarding processes so new employees get a stronger start—and help identify HR issues that may be contributing to turnover.

Performance Management & Manager Support →

Managers shouldn't have to figure out difficult employee situations on their own. We provide guidance on documentation, performance conversations, disciplinary issues and consistent management practices.

Compensation & Benefits →

We can assist with compensation reviews, benefits considerations and HR practices designed to help businesses remain competitive while working within real-world budgets.

HR Technology & Operations →

From payroll and HR systems to forms, employee records and HR processes, we can help you determine whether your current systems are supporting your business—or making HR harder than it needs to be.

Workers' Compensation & Leave Support →

We can assist with the HR side of workers' compensation claims, leave situations and other employee matters that require ongoing coordination and documentation.

Fractional HR Is More Than One Person

When you work with HR Excellence Consulting, you're not relying on one person to handle every HR need.

Melissa is supported by an experienced team of HR professionals, giving your organization access to broader knowledge, additional resources and continuity of support.

Our team brings decades of combined experience working with small organizations, particularly those with 75 employees or fewer. We've worked in environments where people wear multiple hats, resources matter and solutions have to be practical.

That means your HR support doesn't disappear simply because one person is unavailable. You have a team behind your business.

Fractional HR vs. Hiring a Full-Time HR Employee

Fractional HR

• Flexible level of HR support
• Access to an experienced HR team
• Monthly service investment
• Can adjust as the organization changes
• Good fit when HR expertise is needed but not 40 hours a week

Full-Time HR Employee

• Dedicated full-time position
• Expertise primarily depends on one employee
• Salary plus payroll taxes, benefits and overhead
• Fixed staffing commitment
• Good fit when HR workload supports a full-time position

Fractional HR isn't necessarily a permanent replacement for an internal HR department.

As your organization grows, your needs may change. There may eventually be a point when hiring an internal HR professional makes sense.

Until then, fractional HR can give you experienced support without building an HR department before you need one.

How Does Fractional HR Work?

We start with a conversation about your organization, not a predetermined package.

We'll want to understand your number of employees, locations, current HR responsibilities, immediate concerns and where your leadership team needs the most support.

From there, we can determine what level of ongoing HR support makes sense for your organization.

Depending on the relationship, HR Excellence Consulting may serve as your HR representative, participate in leadership meetings, assist managers with employee issues, review HR practices and provide ongoing guidance as situations arise.

The goal is simple: give your business access to the HR expertise it needs, when it needs it.

What Size Business Is Fractional HR Best For?

There isn't a magic employee number.

HR Excellence Consulting often begins providing ongoing fractional HR support when an organization reaches approximately 10 employees, but industry, workforce complexity and growth can matter just as much as headcount.

A company with eight employees and multiple locations may have very different HR needs than a company with 25 employees working in one location.

The better question isn't simply, “How many employees do we have?” It's “Have our HR needs outgrown the way we're handling them today?”

Do I Need Fractional HR or Just Help With One Project?

You may not need ongoing HR support at all.

Some businesses come to HR Excellence Consulting for a specific employee issue, an employee handbook, a workplace investigation, an HR technology project or another one-time need.

Others realize they need someone they can call throughout the year as employee and HR situations arise.

You don't have to figure that out before contacting us.



Tell us what's going on, and we'll help you determine whether fractional HR, project-based support or another approach makes the most sense.

Fractional HR Services in Des Moines and Beyond

HR Excellence Consulting is based in Iowa and provides fractional HR services to businesses throughout the Des Moines metro and across Iowa, as well as organizations with employees in multiple states.



Our consultants bring multi-state HR experience and can work with organizations virtually, allowing growing businesses to access experienced HR support without geography becoming a barrier.

Frequently Asked Questions About Fractional HR

Not Sure What Kind of HR Help You Need?

That's okay. You don't have to diagnose the HR problem before you call us.



Tell us what's happening in your business. We'll listen, ask questions and help you determine the best next step.