FAQ

Hello Generalist is a hiring platform that matches startups and high-growth online companies with experienced fractional operators in operations, growth and marketing, finance, people ops, and AI. You get part-time, interim, project, and advisory help from a vetted network of US-based startup operators, without making a full-time hire. We scope the role with you, introduce a short list of candidates, and handle contracts and payments.

You start with a free 45-minute role scope call with our founder, Shaina. We turn that conversation into a clear scope (hours, budget, what success looks like), then introduce you to 5 or fewer operators who fit. You read their proposals, interview the ones you like, and hire. Contracts and payments run through our app, and the Hello Generalist team is available for support throughout your contract lifetime.

Hello Generalist adds a 20% fee on top of the operator’s rate, month to month. There’s no subscription, no hidden markup, and nothing to pay until you hire. Operators in our network charge between $100 and $300 an hour depending on the role and their experience, and many roles are suitable for a predictable monthly retainer. The fee covers scoping, matching, contracts, payment processing, ongoing support, and a replacement if it isn’t working. If you’d like to end our fees or bring an operator onto your team at any time, there is a $20,000 hiring fee.

Fractional means an operator joins your team for 5 to 30 hours a week, ongoing. Project work is a defined problem with a clear finish line. Advisory is lighter, periodic input from someone who’s been there. Interim full-time is a proven operator stepping in full-time to cover a gap or lead through a transition until your permanent hire lands. Plenty of companies start with one and add another later.

You can hire for business-side roles: Chiefs of Staff, COOs, and first ops hires; fractional CMOs and growth leads; fractional CFOs and controllers; Heads of People and recruiters; and AI enablement leads. We also scope combination roles, like finance plus people ops, which most platforms can’t. We don’t place engineers, designers, or product managers.

Most companies are interviewing operators within 3 days of their scoping call. Once you pick someone, contracts are handled in our app, so they can usually start right away. Our operators have done the job before, so they’re useful in week one, not month three.

Fewer than 1% of operators who apply to Hello Generalist get in. We look for three things: experience inside a high-growth or venture-backed company, a track record of doing the exact job you’re hiring for, and specific results they can point to. Shaina personally reviews the strongest applicants and is involved in every match.

No. Most founders come to the first call with a messy problem, not a job description. Writing the scope with you is part of what we do, and plenty of people leave with a sharper (or different) role than the one they came in with.

Tell us and we’ll sort it out. First we figure out whether it’s a scope problem or a fit problem. If it’s fit, we’ll find you someone else. Contracts are month to month, so you’re never locked in.

Yes, if the operator wants the job. You can end our fees and bring them onto your team as an employee or direct contractor at any time for a flat $20,000 hiring fee, which is often less than a recruiter would charge for a full-time search.

Hello Generalist operators are mostly based in the US, and all of them work in North American time zones.

Recruiters fill full-time roles and charge up to 30% of first-year salary. Freelance marketplaces leave you sorting through hundreds of profiles yourself. Other contract platforms are not transparent with their rates, and some are known to charge up to double the operator’s rate as their fee. Hello Generalist sits in between: we scope the role with you, a real person picks a short list of 5 or fewer vetted operators, and you pay a transparent 20% on top of their rate, month to month.

Hire a fractional operator when the work is real but doesn’t fill 40 hours a week, when you need senior experience you can’t afford full-time yet, or when you need help now and can’t wait months for a search. A lot of what keeps a startup running is a 10-hour-a-week problem. Fractional lets you pay for the hours you need and scale up when the business does.

Our operators have range, developed during their time building fast-growing startups. They’re exceptional at a few things, but have seen many parts of building a company, so they can make judgment calls across functions and do the work, not just advise on it. What we don’t mean is someone who does everything.

Hello Generalist is a curated network that matches experienced startup operators with fractional, project, advisory, and interim roles at growing companies. We find and scope the roles, introduce you when there’s a fit, and handle contracts and payments. You also join a community of operators building independent careers.

No. Joining Hello Generalist is free for operators. Like a recruiter, we make money from companies: we add a fee on top of your rate, so it never comes out of what you charge.

We look for operators who’ve built inside venture-backed or high-growth companies and have real expertise in operations, growth and marketing, finance, people ops, bizops, or AI enablement. You should work in North American time zones and treat independent work as a serious part of your income. We don’t place engineers, designers, or product managers.

Once you’re accepted, you build a profile with your services, past companies, case studies, and the kinds of roles you want. When a role fits, we email you the scope. If you’re interested, you send a short proposal, and we introduce you to the company if it’s a match.

Good. We introduce 5 or fewer operators to each role, and 94% of companies hire someone from the short list we send. If we match you, you’ve got a real shot.

Most roles are fractional, 5 to 30 hours a week with one company, ongoing. We also match project work, advisory roles, and interim full-time stints. Roles span operations, growth and marketing, finance, people ops, AI, and combination roles that mix two or more.

You set your own rate. Operators in our network charge between $100 and $300 an hour depending on the role and their experience. Our fee is added on top for the company, so you keep your full rate.

Hello Generalist bills the company and pays you directly, on a regular schedule set in your contract. You track your hours, we handle the invoicing and the chasing, and payment arrives through Gusto.

The average contract through Hello Generalist lasts 16 months. These are real, ongoing roles with growing teams, not one-off gigs.

You need to work in North American time zones, since our companies expect hires to overlap with their working hours. Most of our network is US-based. If you’re a strong fit and live elsewhere, we’d still encourage you to apply.

A select few operators take contracts alongside a full-time job, but most of our network does independent work as their main income. Companies need ongoing, committed help, so that’s what we look for. If you’re still full-time and planning your leap, check out Manual Override, our accelerator for operators building independent businesses.

That’s your call. Companies can bring an operator onto their team by paying Hello Generalist a flat $20,000 hiring fee, but only if you want the job. Plenty of operators prefer to stay independent.

It’s a group of operators building independent careers who swap rates, leads, and what’s actually working. Going independent can be lonely. This is where you find people who get it.