HR demands can be an overwhelming and daunting area for small businesses, given their limited time, resources, and expertise in this area. For many small businesses with increasing staff or that are considering growing into new markets, leaders must begin to think about what HR support they need to ensure critical elements and best practices are activated.
From this, fundamental questions such as, do we hire in-house? Who do we hire? What area do we focus on first? Who is going to manage the projects? The budget and people?
Very quickly, a small question around HR can lead down a rabbit hole of questions, concerns, legal implications, and the list goes on. Many intelligent leaders turn to HR outsourcing support to avoid complications, headaches, and errors. These companies are built and explicitly aligned to streamline functions while managing the HR lifecycle’s various elements.
What does outsourced HR look like?
By choosing to outsource HR functions, you are employing expert consultants to manage various HR areas and the employee lifecycle in your business. This typically includes services like:
- HR strategy in culture and engagement
- Payroll and benefits administration
- Maintaining legislative compliance for employment law
- HR Information System implementation and maintenance
This support creates the perfect avenue for small business owners to focus on more growth-centric areas that drive revenue and customer relations in order to take the business to the next level.
Benefits Of Outsourcing HR
The benefits of outsourcing HR areas vary from business to business. However, one thing that is true across the board is what outsourcing can bring to your business.
Hyperfocus on high-value activities – As a small business, time is money. You need to do a lot with a little, so every minute counts. Knowing that your HR department is taken care of, managers can funnel all their energy and smarts into your organization’s strategic areas to ensure you keep and grow your competitive advantage in the market.
Access to best in market solutions – Small organizations need to focus on the bottom line more than ever. Through the ability to save costs with your outsourced HR solutions, you can compete more fiercely with other small businesses and use those savings for additional revenue-generating activities such as business development and marketing.
Staying compliant with ever-changing laws – One day, you can be on the right side of employment law, and the next day, you’re not. Employment law can be fickle, and it can be even more of a challenge if you have employees in various states or geographical regions. With an outsourced HR function, those headaches would not be yours to bear.
Warning Signs You Need To Consider HR Outsourcing
Small businesses tend to have a do-it-yourself attitude as they see themselves as the best handlers of crucial tasks. While this may be fine for some areas, the organization eventually reaches a point where operations begin to feel the strain.
Employees’ stress levels are getting too high – If your employees struggle to maintain work-life balance or get short-tempered over simple tasks, this is a sign HR needs to step in and support. This type of behavior and workplace culture can harm productivity and can increase turnover.
Deteriorating customer service – Customers are vital to the success of your business. If the answers to their questions or problems experience a delay, this can lead to an increase in disgruntled customers and impact your bottom line. This is a symptom that the employees are too swamped to give customers quality time. With an external HR provider, you can ensure your team has clearly defined goals and performance development plans that will in turn make your customers feel like they’re number one.
Sales are taking a nosedive – Insufficient staffing and poor time management play a significant role in declining revenue. Having the right people resources as well as training to keep your team high performing is essential.
As a small business owner, you can’t afford to miss a beat. With all the facets of your business to worry about, HR doesn’t need to be one. Let the HR professionals focus on your people while you focus on the company.