Should you hire a full-time communications director or a fractional one?
The short answer
Hire full time when the work fills a week: a team to run, reporters calling most weeks, or someone who has to be in the building every day. Go fractional when you need senior judgment and steady writing for part of the week, and you'd rather not carry a salary with a median of $146,910 before benefits.
A ten-minute test
List every communications job that comes up in a normal month: the staff note, the posts, the board update, the reporter who calls, the statement when something breaks. Next to each one, write how often it happens and who does it now.
If the list fills a full week every week, or it includes running a team, you're looking at a full-time hire. If it's real work that fills part of a week, and right now it lands on you at night, fractional fits.
When full time is the right call
- You have a team, or you're about to, and it needs a manager every day.
- Reporters call most weeks, or you're in a long crisis.
- Leadership wants someone in every meeting and in the building.
- The work fills 40 hours on its own, every week.
When fractional fits
- You need the words more than the meetings: the staff note, the posts, the statement when something breaks.
- You're growing, between leaders, or not sure yet what the full-time role should be.
- You want senior judgment without a senior salary and benefits.
- You want to try the role before you write the job description.
What each costs
| Option | Typical cost | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time PR manager, median salary | $146,910 a year | BLS, May 2025 |
| Full-time PR manager, salary plus benefits | About $210,000 a year | My math, with benefits at 30.0% of compensation (BLS, June 2026) |
| Part-time help, solo publicist to boutique PR firm | About $2,000 to $10,000 a month | Everything-PR, 2026 |
| Catalyst19 Fractional Communications Chief | $5,000 a month, or $60,000 a year | This site |
A full-time hire also means a search, interviews and onboarding before the first staff note goes out. For more on the numbers, see what a fractional communications director costs.
What the empty seat costs
While you decide, someone still writes the staff note. Usually it's the leader at 11 p.m., or nobody. When people don't hear from the top, they fill the gap themselves, and it shows up as turnover, rumors and a bad week in the news with nobody ready to speak.
Where Catalyst19 fits
My Fractional Communications Chief covers the fractional side: $5,000 a month, no setup fee, a 90-day first term, then month to month on 30 days' notice. You get your words every week in your voice, the statement when something breaks and one standing hour with me every two weeks.
If the test above says full time, hire full time, and I'll tell you so on the call. Some leaders start fractional and hire later. Month to month leaves that door open.
Book 20 minutesQuick answers
Is a fractional communications director worth it?
It is when the work is real but fills only part of a week. You get senior writing and judgment for a monthly fee instead of a full salary and benefits.
Can a fractional communications director handle a crisis?
They can write the statement and coach the leader. A long crisis with daily press may need full-time or agency help on top of that.
How many hours does a fractional communications director work?
It depends on the contract. Ask for the scope in writing: what gets written, how often you meet and who approves it. Mine is scoped by the work: weekly words, the statement when something breaks and a standing hour every two weeks.
Can I start fractional and hire full time later?
Yes. Mine runs a 90-day first term, then month to month on 30 days' notice, so you can hire when the role is ready.
What's the difference between a fractional communications director and a consultant?
A consultant usually advises and hands back a plan. A fractional director does the work every week as part of your team.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, "Public Relations and Fundraising Managers" (median pay for public relations managers, May 2025). www.bls.gov
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026," released September 9, 2026 (benefits were 30.0% of compensation for private industry workers). www.bls.gov
- Everything-PR, "How Much Does a PR Firm Cost? $3,500 to $90,000+ (2026)," published June 21, 2026, updated October 12, 2026. everything-pr.com
