RPO that hires under your brand.
End-to-end, embedded, hybrid or on-demand — an SForce RPO team becomes your talent function, measured on time to hire, cost per hire and quality. Delivered anywhere in India.
What is RPO?
RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) is a model where an employer transfers all or part of its hiring to an external provider that works as an extension of the internal team — usually under the client’s own employer brand.
The distinction from a recruitment agency is ownership. An agency is paid per placement and competes with other agencies on the same role. An RPO provider owns the process — sourcing, screening, interview coordination, offer management, onboarding and hiring analytics — and is measured on funnel outcomes rather than individual CVs. Pricing follows suit: monthly or per-hire, not a percentage of salary.
Four ways to run RPO.
Most clients start with one model and move between them as hiring volume changes.
End-to-end RPO
We own the whole hiring function across roles, locations and levels — the full funnel, reporting and workforce planning.
Embedded RPO
Dedicated recruiters inside your team, on your systems, under your brand. Candidates experience it as your in-house talent team.
Hybrid RPO
We run sourcing and screening at volume; your team owns final interviews, offers and closing. Built for capacity gaps at the top of the funnel.
On-demand RPO
Short-cycle RPO for a funding ramp, a branch or plant opening, a seasonal peak or one hard-to-fill function. No long-term contract.
RPO vs in-house vs staffing agency.
The three ways companies get hiring done, and where each genuinely wins.
| In-house team | Staffing agency | RPO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial model | Fixed salary cost | Fee per placement (% of salary) | Monthly or per-hire, agreed up front |
| Who owns the process | You | Nobody — split across competing agencies | The RPO partner, to an SLA |
| Capacity when volume spikes | Fixed — you must hire recruiters first | Elastic but uncoordinated | Elastic and coordinated |
| Typical mobilisation | 2–3 months to hire recruiters | Days | Days to a couple of weeks |
| Employer brand | Strongest | Weakest — agency-branded outreach | Your brand; RPO works behind it |
| Hiring data & reporting | Depends on your tooling | Rarely provided | Built in — funnel, time and cost per hire |
| Best suited to | Steady, predictable hiring | Occasional or one-off roles | Sustained, high-volume or multi-location hiring |
Most organisations run a small in-house core and use RPO to absorb volume and specialist demand — it is rarely an either/or decision.
Six situations where RPO wins.
If two or more of these describe you, RPO will usually beat both alternatives.
One pod. One SLA. Anywhere in India.
Every RPO engagement gets a named account director and a dedicated delivery pod — sourcers, screeners and coordinators sized to your plan. They work on your ATS where you have one, and ours where you do not.
Reporting is weekly and quantitative: funnel conversion at every stage, time to hire, cost per hire, offer-to-join ratio and source effectiveness. If a stage is leaking, you see it in the same week rather than at quarter end.
Delivery is not limited by where our office sits. We run multi-branch and multi-state mandates anywhere in India under a single SLA and a single point of accountability.
RPO, answered plainly.
What is RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing)?
RPO is a model where an employer transfers all or part of its hiring to an external provider, which then works as an extension of the internal team — usually under the client's own brand. Unlike a recruitment agency paid per placement, an RPO provider owns the recruitment process itself: sourcing, screening, interview coordination, offer management, onboarding and hiring analytics. It is typically priced on a monthly or per-hire basis rather than a percentage of salary.
What is embedded RPO?
Embedded RPO places dedicated recruiters inside your team, working on your systems, in your interview process and under your employer brand. Candidates experience it as your in-house talent team. It suits companies with continuous hiring that want in-house culture and control without carrying permanent recruitment headcount.
What is hybrid RPO?
Hybrid RPO splits the process between your internal team and the provider. A common split is the provider running sourcing and screening at volume while your internal team owns final interviews, offers and closing. It is used where an in-house team exists but lacks capacity at the top of the funnel.
What is on-demand RPO?
On-demand (or selective) RPO is short-cycle RPO switched on for a defined need — a funding-driven ramp, a new branch or plant opening, a seasonal peak or a single hard-to-fill function. You get RPO process rigour for weeks or months without a long-term contract.
RPO vs in-house recruitment — which is better?
In-house recruitment gives maximum control and the deepest employer-brand knowledge, but capacity is fixed: a sudden ramp means hiring recruiters, which itself takes months. RPO gives elastic capacity, faster mobilisation and hiring analytics from day one, at the cost of onboarding a partner into your process. Most organisations do not choose one — they run a small in-house core and use RPO to absorb volume and specialist demand.
RPO vs a staffing agency — what is the difference?
A staffing or recruitment agency is transactional: it is paid per placement and typically works alongside several competing agencies on the same role. RPO is a process partnership: the provider owns the funnel, reports on it, and is measured on quality, cost per hire and time to hire rather than individual placements. Agencies suit occasional or one-off roles; RPO suits sustained, predictable or large-scale hiring.
Is RPO only for large enterprises?
No. Large enterprises use end-to-end RPO, but on-demand and hybrid models make RPO viable for mid-sized companies and funded startups hiring in bursts. The deciding factor is hiring volume and predictability, not company size.
Can SForce deliver RPO anywhere in India?
Yes. Our RPO teams deliver anywhere in India — any city, any state — including multi-location and multi-branch mandates run to a single SLA through one named account director. We are headquartered in Surat, but delivery is not limited by our office location.
Also consider contract staffing for flexible capacity and enterprise & global delivery for multi-city ramps run to SLA.
Considering RPO?
Tell us your hiring plan — we will tell you honestly whether RPO, agency or in-house fits it best.