Why we built Humla

1. Opaque costs and middle layers that absorb the budget

Traditional agencies and Managed Service Providers (MSPs) sit between leaders and the nurses they need. Each layer adds fees and slows decisions. Leaders often see a single hourly rate without clarity on how much reaches the nurse or what the intermediary takes. The result is an expensive process with limited visibility. Budget owners cannot easily compare options or tune spend. Nurses see that a significant share of the rate never reaches the bedside, which erodes trust and makes future coverage harder to secure.

2. Inflexible contracts

Units surge and settle. Seasonality, census spikes, and sick calls rarely align to 13 or 26 week blocks. Yet the traditional approach often requires long commitments, minimums, and a lengthy lead time to get started. If a leader needs five weeks of coverage or periodic help, they are pushed into a longer agreement that outlasts the need and ties up dollars that could be deployed elsewhere. The rigidity also makes it harder to build a reliable bench for short notice gaps.

3. A structure that did not serve nurses or long term sustainability

Even when rates rose, the model was not built to sustain systems or support nurse growth. Too little of the spend reached the nurse, and the paths to practice were fragmented. Nurses juggled paperwork and duplicative credentialing while facilities struggled to keep records current across multiple vendors. That mismatch reduced loyalty on both sides and made every new request feel like starting from scratch.

4. The rest of the world had already moved to marketplaces

Transportation, lodging, and everyday services learned to match supply and demand with simple, transparent platforms. Solutions like Uber, Airbnb, and Rover, amongst others, have become commonplace and expected. People now expect direct connection, fast verification, and clear pricing. Nursing deserved the same. A marketplace to connect nurse leaders looking to fill shifts with qualified nursing looking to work felt inevitable. This model would let leaders see where each dollar goes, would give nurses a fairer share of the rate, and would help both sides move at the speed of need.

What Humla is and how it works

Humla is a digital platform and marketplace, not a traditional staffing agency. Facilities match directly with credentialed W-2 nurses to fill shifts. There are no contracts and no minimums. Pricing is transparent on every posting, including what the nurse earns and Humla’s single digit platform fee. The goal is simple. Give leaders speed and flexibility, and make sure more of the rate reaches the nurse. 

From the first day a facility signs on, the network is available. There is no recruiting game or lag time. Pricing is visible every time you post, including the nurse wage and Humla’s single digit platform fee. Humla’s instant network and transparency are what set it apart.

We find our partnership with Humla a pure success story. At first it sounded too good to be true, but here we are, using the platform and meeting our staffing needs effectively and at lower cost. We hope to continue this partnership long into the future.

-Carla, CNO

Proof that the model works 

A rural facility in the Mountain West moved from a high hourly agency rate to Humla’s transparent model and cut staffing costs by almost 23 percent while also increasing the rate that the nurses made. Leaders saw the nurse wage and the platform fee on every shift, which made the choice straightforward.

Why facilities switch to Humla

• Direct access to credentialed W-2 nurses with no contracts or minimums. 
• End to end credentialing compliance is digitally handled by Humla so teams stay focused on care. 
• Flexible workflows that match real clinical operations, from orientation to direct requests to private pools. 
• Transparent pricing on every shift with a visible single digit platform fee. 
• Instant access to a nursing network that removes recruiting lag.