Recruitment is one of the most underestimated business expenses. Many organisations look only at job ads or agency fees when calculating cost per hire. In reality, the true recruitment costs in Thailand include recruiter and HR salaries, job boards and other tech subscriptions, branding campaigns, training, and the valuable hours managers lose during lengthy hiring processes.

As competition continues to intensify, companies are weighing up whether to keep recruitment in-house, outsource through RPO or premium recruitment agencies, or adopt more flexible models like RaaS™ (Recruitment-as-a-Service). Each model has a different cost structure, staffing requirement, and level of flexibility. The question is not simply what you spend, but what you gain in return.

In-house recruitment: control comes at a price

An internal recruitment team offers full control but not always best practice. Recruiters are embedded in the business, understand the culture, and work closely with managers. The employer brand is shaped directly, and processes can be tailored to exact needs. But this control comes at a cost.

The budget that funds an in-house team could often buy access to a broader set of resources externally. Instead of two internal recruiters focused only on your business, the same investment with a recruitment partner can give you access to multiple experienced consultants, wider candidate networks, and more advanced tools. On top of that, in-house recruitment is time consuming. It can create tension between HR and hiring managers over priorities and candidate quality. Internal teams also tend to have limited access to market insights compared to agencies or outsourcing partners, and technology is rarely shared seamlessly across departments.

Who suits an In-house recruitment model

In-house recruitment works best for large organisations with steady, predictable hiring volumes. For example, a manufacturer in Thailand consistently hiring dozens of operators and engineers each year can justify permanent recruiters on payroll. The investment pays off when volumes are high enough to keep an internal team fully utilised. For smaller or more fluctuating hiring needs, the spend is better directed towards solutions that offer broader expertise and flexibility.

RPO Recruitment Process Outsourcing : Scale with High Fees

Recruitment Process Outsourcing, or RPO, is designed to take the pressure off HR. Providers embed recruiters inside the business, bring their own systems, and manage reporting. Premium recruitment agencies also deliver trusted processes, extensive candidate networks, and reliability that businesses can count on.

In practice, however, many companies negotiate project-based agreements for bulk hiring, which can reduce the rate significantly, sometimes to half of the standard fee. Even then, costs remain substantial compared to models that spread spend predictably across the year. On top of this, RPO contracts often include monthly retainers between 250,000 and 500,000 baht, which lock companies into long-term commitments regardless of hiring volume.

Who suits an RPO Recruitment Process Outsourcing model

RPO and premium agencies are best suited to multinationals or organisations with consistently high-volume and centralised hiring needs. A global logistics company staffing thousands of roles across multiple sites can benefit from the scale and structure. For mid-sized companies, however, the financial weight of agency fees or RPO retainers can limit flexibility and tie up budget.

RaaS™: Predictable, Flexible, Scalable

JacksonGrant’s RaaS™ combines the strengths of in-house, agency, and RPO models while removing their limitations. Delivered as a subscription, RaaS™ gives companies predictable monthly costs, access to pre-built talent pools, integrated employer branding. Training and market insights are included, and time to hire can be significantly reduced.

What you pay for with RaaS™ is not just recruiters, but a whole recruitment engine. Instead of a small team working in isolation or a rigid outsourced model, you gain access to a pool of experienced consultants, shared technology platforms, and market intelligence that continuously updates your hiring strategy. Employer branding and job board costs are included, and your managers regain time to focus on growth.

Who suits a RaaS™ model

RaaS™ is ideal for companies in Thailand that want agility without the weight of fixed overheads. Growing businesses that need to scale quickly, or established organisations looking to reduce hidden costs, benefit from its flexibility. From SMEs preparing for expansion to corporates facing talent shortages, RaaS™ enables businesses to compete more effectively in a talent-short market.

There have traditionally only been two ways to go: keep the recruitment in house or outsource to a Recruitment Company. Now RaaS™ has arrived to disrupt the market with added efficiency, innovation and value.

Comparison In House Recruitment vs RPO vs RaaS™

Model	Cost Predictability	Flexibility	Strengths	Best Suited For
In-House Recruitment	Low  Costs fluctuate with salaries and hiring volume	Moderate	Deep understanding of company culture and values	Large organisations with steady, predictable hiring needs
RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing)	Medium Structured contracts and project fees	Moderate	Scalable resources and consistent process delivery	Multinationals or high-volume hiring environments
RaaS™ (Recruitment-as-a-Service)	High Subscription model ensures transparency and stability	High Scale up or down quickly as needs change	Combines the insight of consultants, shared technology, and employer branding in one integrated solution	Businesses in Thailand seeking smarter, data-driven, and cost-efficient hiring strategies

In-house teams give you control and familiarity, but that control can come at a higher long-term cost. RPO and premium agencies offer structure and scale, though they often make it harder to stay flexible. RaaS™ sits in the middle, predictable, adaptable, and scalable, helping companies in Thailand tap into wider talent networks, stronger branding, and data-driven hiring without hidden costs.

Recruitment keeps changing, and so should the way businesses plan for it. The real question isn’t which model is cheapest, but which one gives you the best value and agility.

If you’d like to explore strategy options or talk through what works in practice, just let me know.