Startups and scale-ups often face a pivotal question after raising funding: Should we build out our team with permanent hires, or rely on contractors and agencies? While flexibility can be an asset in early stages, there are crucial moments when bringing in permanent, full-time talent becomes essential for sustained growth and investor confidence.

Below, we explore when and why permanent hires make the most sense, especially in the context of post-funding growth.

1. You’re Building Long-Term Value in Core Areas

If your company is centred around a product, platform, or service that requires continuous development and iteration, you need permanent talent embedded in the business. Teams like engineering, product, and data are core to the company’s intellectual property and competitive edge.

• Gain deeper knowledge over time
• Align more closely with long-term strategy
• Are more likely to contribute to innovation and culture

This is especially critical in product-led growth companies or those in tech-heavy industries like SaaS, AI, or healthtech.

2. Investors Expect Team Stability

By the time a startup reaches Series A, investors are looking for more than a great idea—they want to see signs of a company that can scale predictably and efficiently. Part of that is ensuring the right people are in place to lead and execute.

Permanent hires are seen as a sign of:

• Stability and seriousness
• Commitment to execution
• Team maturity and culture fit

Temporary or outsourced teams may work in the Seed phase, but Series A+ rounds often require the presence of strong, in-house leadership—especially in roles like CTO, Head of Product, or Head of Sales.

3. You Need to Retain Company Knowledge

When you’re growing fast, knowledge can easily become fragmented or lost—especially if you’re relying too much on external contractors or consultants. This can create a “leaky bucket” problem: you’re pouring resources into growth, but the insights, processes, and product history are walking out the door after every contract ends.

Permanent hires help:

• Retain institutional memory
• Improve cross-functional collaboration
• Build process and systems over time

In particular, roles like CTO, VP Engineering, or Head of Sales benefit from long-term ownership of strategy and operations.

4. You’re Creating a Sustainable Culture and Infrastructure

Culture is often cited as a startup’s greatest asset—and it’s nearly impossible to scale if you don’t invest in people who are fully committed. Permanent team members form the backbone of company culture, helping to:

• Define values and ways of working
• Shape leadership pipelines
• Provide stability during growth or pivots

As your company scales, you’ll also need infrastructure around HR, finance, and operations. These functions benefit immensely from permanent ownership, especially when building toward compliance, reporting, or IPO readiness.

Typical Permanent Hires Post-Funding

While every company is different, some roles are almost always worth making permanent as you grow:

• Founders and Co-founders – continue to set vision and culture
• C-suite executives – CEO, CTO, CFO, CMO, and COO
• Engineers & product managers – core to IP and customer experience
• Sales and marketing leaders – drive repeatable revenue
• People/HR leaders – scale hiring and maintain culture

Conclusion

Bringing on permanent hires isn’t just about headcount—it’s a strategic investment in the future of your company. At the right time, full-time team members become the foundation of innovation, culture, and growth.

While contractors, freelancers, and agencies all play an important role in early-stage execution, long-term success depends on building a committed, capable core team that can take your startup from funded to formidable.