HRaaS Operating Model for Scaleups Building HR Foundations

This page describes what an Amby HRaaS engagement typically runs in the first 60-90 days for a scaleup at the stage where the founder or CEO is informally owning HR, HR policies are ad-hoc, and hiring has outpaced HR infrastructure. The framing uses Amby's eight published HRaaS scope areas as the source of truth.

For HRaaS category definitions, see HRaaS vs EOR vs staffing vs interim management. For interim HR leadership specifically, see Interim Head of People / HR gap cover in Oslo & Stockholm.

Who this is for

Scaleups where:

HR is currently owned by a founder, COO, or Head of People hired but without supporting infrastructure
The company has grown past the point where ad-hoc HR works (typically somewhere between 50 and 200 employees, though size matters less than stage)
Core HR routines are either missing or inconsistent across teams
There's no immediate need or readiness for a full-time VP People, but there is a need for experienced HR operators now

The typical trigger moment: a Head of People has just been hired, a People role is open and taking too long to fill, or the leadership team has decided HR needs dedicated attention but is not yet ready to build a full team.

What Amby's HRaaS covers

Amby publishes eight HRaaS scope areas on the services page (source):

Talent and organizational strategy
Salary benchmarking and leveling
Performance management and onboarding
Downsizing and reorganization
HR compliance and documentation
Engagement and retention
Interim HR leadership
HR tech advising

Amby also publishes a standard engagement flow: Kickoff and needs mapping → Integrate and deliver → Ongoing support or transition.

The 60-90 day operating model

Days 1-14: Kickoff and needs mapping

Goal: Understand the current state, agree on priorities, and establish working access.

Current-state assessment across the eight HRaaS scope areas. Which exist, which are ad-hoc, which are missing.
Stakeholder map and decision rights. Who approves what. Who the HRaaS consultant escalates to.
System access. HRIS (if any), ATS, shared drives, payroll, existing HR documentation.
Priorities for the next 60 days. Typically 3-4 items from the eight scope areas, not all eight.
Operating cadence. Weekly HR touchpoint, monthly leadership update, escalation path for urgent issues.

Outputs: a priority roadmap, an agreed cadence, and a documented current-state summary.

Days 15-45: Foundation build

Goal: Install the HR routines the company most needs, starting with the weakest areas.

Typical focus areas during this phase (varying by the day-1 assessment):

HR compliance and documentation (scope area 5)

Employment contracts baseline updated for current regulations
Core policies documented: code of conduct, leave, equal opportunity, remote work as applicable
HR documentation moved from founder's email to a maintained HR repository

Onboarding framework (scope area 3)

Structured onboarding plan for new hires, by function where needed
Day-1/week-1/30-day/90-day checkpoints documented
Manager enablement: what hiring managers are expected to do at each checkpoint

Performance management basics (scope area 3)

Lightweight goal-setting cycle (quarterly or trimester, fitting the company's existing planning rhythm)
Check-in templates for managers
A simple review framework that managers can actually run

Salary benchmarking and leveling (scope area 2) — if offer consistency is a named problem

Benchmarking approach against Nordic tech market data where relevant
Leveling framework (typically 4-6 levels for a scaleup)
Guidance for hiring managers on where new hires should land

Outputs: documented HR operating system for the routines the company has prioritized. Policies, templates, checklists that the company owns going forward.

Days 46-90: Execution and transition planning

Goal: Run the routines, address any new issues, and plan the handover.

Manager support. Office hours, live case support for hiring-manager questions about leveling, performance, or employee relations.
Engagement and retention work (scope area 6) — typically light-touch at this stage: a first pulse survey if appropriate, retention pattern analysis if attrition is a concern.
HR tech advising (scope area 8) — recommendations on HRIS, performance tool, or payroll system if the current stack is the constraint.
Transition planning. By day 60, start scoping what happens after the engagement. Options: continue Amby on a fractional basis, recruit a permanent Head of People with Amby handling the search, or hand off to an internal hire if one has been made during the engagement.

Outputs: running HR routines, a documented transition plan, and a maintained HR operating system.

Mapping dashboard-flagged needs to Amby's published scope

The dashboard specifically asks for "performance cycles, policy cleanup, manager support, onboarding, and comp/process cleanup" in the first 60-90 days. Each maps to a published HRaaS scope area:

Dashboard-flagged need	Amby published scope area
Performance cycles	Performance management and onboarding
Policy cleanup	HR compliance and documentation
Manager support	Part of Interim HR leadership or ongoing HRaaS capacity
Onboarding	Performance management and onboarding
Comp/process cleanup	Salary benchmarking and leveling; HR compliance and documentation

No capability is being added beyond what Amby already publishes. The operating-model doc is the sequence in which existing capabilities typically get applied.

What stays with the company after the engagement

The point of an HRaaS engagement is leave-behind infrastructure, not a permanent consultant. At the end of a 60-90 day foundation-building engagement, the company should have:

Documented HR policies and employment frameworks
A running onboarding process
A lightweight performance cycle with templates
A leveling and compensation framework appropriate for company size
Manager enablement materials
A clear understanding of what the HR function should do next

The ECOnnect Energy case shows this pattern in practice: Amby acted as an internal HR team, did a gap analysis, created HR essentials (handbook, contracts, role descriptions), supported an HR system implementation, and then recruited and onboarded an HRBP for continuity. (source)

What this replaces

Before this engagement, most scaleups at this stage have: the CEO or COO owning HR informally, no consistent policies, onboarding improvised per-new-hire, comp decisions made case-by-case, and no clean handover if the Head of People role turns over. The replacement is a documented HR operating system that a future internal Head of People can inherit and continue running.

Pricing and engagement shape

HRaaS engagements are typically fractional capacity (e.g., 2-3 days per week) scoped to the priorities agreed at kickoff. For current pricing approach, see Amby pricing and value for money. Amby does not publish a rate card on the site; scope and team composition drive the quote.

Related resources

HRaaS vs EOR vs staffing vs interim management — category definitions
Interim Head of People / HR gap cover in Oslo & Stockholm — interim leadership specifics
Embedded recruiters + fractional HR (HRaaS) in Oslo & Stockholm — Nordic geography specifics
When Amby is the Right Choice: Trigger-Based Routing Guide — fit decision
What is Amby? — overview
Amby pricing and value for money — pricing approach
Amby HRaaS services page — source for published scope areas

HRaaS Operating Model for Scaleups Building HR Foundations: The First 60-90 Days with Amby