HR Consultant for scaling startups.

    I find what's actually broken, fix it, and build the foundation so it stays fixed.

    Founders, COOs, and CHROs bring me in when the company has outgrown its people infrastructure. Twenty years, from a 40-person startup to Google. Fractional, embedded, fast.

    Hand me the messSee How I Work
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    What I do

    Fractional HR services.

    The whole people function for a scaling company, from the first handbook to the fifth country.

    01

    HR Strategy & Build

    Function build or rebuild, org design and leveling, handbooks, manager playbooks.

    02

    Systems & Data

    HRIS selection, implementation, and migration. Data cleanup, reporting, one source of truth.

    03

    Payroll & Benefits

    US multi-state payroll, benefits and 401(k), leave, wage-and-hour, and I-9 compliance.

    04

    Employee Lifecycle

    Onboarding that scales past 50, 100, 200. Manager enablement, employee relations, exits.

    05

    Global & Scale

    International expansion, EOR and PEO off-ramps, entity setup, multi-country payroll.

    How we work together

    It starts with Map.

    Map: the diagnostic

    Set scope, set end date. A clear picture of what is actually broken, what to fix first, and what it takes. This is how new clients start, because fixing the wrong thing is the most expensive mistake on the people side.

    Then:

    Build

    The core engagement. I embed with your team at least 15 hours a week and do the work, whether that's a defined project or running your HR function. HR ops, HRIS cleanup, onboarding, handbooks, compliance, EOR off-ramps. Not a deck of recommendations.

    Sustain

    The lighter relationship after a Build. Monthly check-ins, on-call access, and a second opinion before the big people decisions.

    Interim HR

    Time-boxed coverage while you hire a permanent HR leader. A few hours a week for a few weeks, so nothing drops in the gap.

    Up close: EOR & PEO off-ramps

    Off the EOR. Onto infrastructure you own.

    Deel and Remote get you hiring in a new country in a week. That's the point. Then you have a few dozen people across three countries, a bill that grows with every hire, and offer letters that promised things local law doesn't allow. That's usually when I get the call.

    1. 01

      Map what you actually have.

      Every contract, every promise, every country, every benefit. Before anyone files for an entity.

    2. 02

      Pick the right exit, country by country.

      Your own entity, global payroll, or stay on the EOR where it still makes sense. One answer rarely fits all of them.

    3. 03

      Move people without breaking trust.

      Contracts, payroll, benefits, and the conversation with each employee. Nobody should find out they have a new employer from their payslip.

    190+
    Employees moved off EORs
    5
    Countries off EOR

    UK, Japan, Colombia, Poland, and Mexico. Teams from 2 people to 100.

    Planning an exit? Let's map it.
    Free diagnostic

    Is your HR foundation keeping up?

    Nine quick questions. Green, yellow, or red: an honest read on where you actually stand across compliance, HR tech, people ops, and org design. Under two minutes.

    Take the diagnostic

    Green

    Solid foundation

    Yellow

    Cracks forming

    Red

    Urgent

    What people say

    In their words.

    "She takes the time to diagnose before jumping to solutions. She stepped into a complex mix of vendors, country-specific requirements, and operational gaps, quickly brought structure to the chaos, and turned it into systems that are practical, scalable, and easy to run. For any people leader scaling internationally, building infrastructure, or trying to bring order to a fast-growing organization, she would be an exceptional partner to have on your team."
    Jennifer Rouse, Chief People Officer, Alumni Ventures
    Client: international expansion program
    Elaine Adamson, fractional HR consultantAbout Elaine

    People call me the Chief Problem Solver.

    I come in at the moment Series A chaos needs to become Series B infrastructure. Companies scaling faster than their HR can hold. The people side starting to crack. I diagnose what is actually broken before anyone starts fixing it. Sometimes that is cleaning up people data and systems. Sometimes it is building the HR function from the ground up. Often it is standing up the international infrastructure nobody had time to create.

    • 20+ years in People Operations and HR strategy
    • Built global infrastructure across 7+ countries in orgs up to 1,300+ employees
    • Deep stack experience: Workday, ADP, Rippling, ChartHop, BambooHR, Paylocity
    • Eliminated 60% of manual workflows and delivered $200K+ in annual savings
    • Background at Apollo, DigitalOcean, Nest Labs, Google, Intapp, and more
    20+
    Years Experience
    7+
    Countries Operated In
    1,300+
    Employees Supported
    $200K+
    Annual Savings

    Tell me what
    is broken.

    If something is cracking on your people side and you do not know where to start, that is the conversation. Pick a time that works.

    elaine@elaineadamson.com·LinkedIn

    Bay Area, CA

    Book a call

    Or email me at elaine@elaineadamson.com