It is easy to understand that you are tired of the stress that comes along with trying to keep up a good HR department in-house. There are many compliance issues that you have to deal with since the law is ever-changing this can be a major challenge. In this article, we are going to talk more about outsourcing your human resources in the state of California and give you seven tips that will help you be the most effective in doing so.
1. Pay Attention to How They Offer Support
When you are entering into business with a California PEO, you want to make sure that you are going to offer you the support that you need. Ask to have a walkthrough of their facilities to see how they are set up. Notice how they are answering the phones. Do they move quickly or do they have a “they can wait” attitude?
You should do your own test of customer support as well by calling, emailing, using their live chat and any other forms of customer support they offer. See what kind of communication you will be able to expect once you are through their sales process and on the other side of things.
2. See What Their Reviews Are Like
With websites like Yelp and Google (News - Alert) reviews, you are likely able to see customer reviews on this company. While you may still want to ask for references, reviews are going to give you an overall idea of how past clients felt about their experience with them or even current clients. If you do come across reviews that are negative, you should give the company an opportunity to explain the situation. You don’t want to pass up a good company because of a few minor review issues. If you notice there is an ongoing theme with many different people, then this could be a whole other issue.
3. Check How Their Legal Department Is
Ensuring the PEO that you choose understands the current laws is important. Your business needs to be compliant, and if you don’t understand the areas that you need improvement, you may find yourself in court. Going to court over inappropriate questions on applications, improper pay, not giving enough leave time, etc. can be extremely expensive and if you are in the wrong, you will have to pay considerable settlement amounts. Having a lawsuit against your business early on can be quite a hard bunch so make sure the PEO can help you with any compliance issues right away.
4. Find Out How They Recruit
Before you turn over the important task of bringing in recruits, you need to make sure their standards are in line with your own. While you will find it is of little benefit to personally sift through resumes, you do need to make sure that the person who is doing it knows what you are looking for and how to find good candidates for your business. Once you have agreed on the recruiting process, you will be able to rest easy knowing that you will have new talent coming into your company that fits your requirements.
5. Inquire About Administrative Task Processes
While administrative tasks may be mundane, there are very important parts of the process that must be handled with care. When you are dealing with employee benefits, payroll processing, planning relocation, etc. there is a lot to do. Without a large team, it can be taxing. If you feel like your current HR situation is less than desirable, you should look into the process which the PEO you are considering has put in place.
6. Determine Cost Differentials
It would be nice to have a blank check to write for the HR department, but sadly, that is most likely not the case. You need to look at the difference in cost from one company to the next. If you have two that stand up well to each other, you may find yourself able to take the lesser price and still get the same great price. Make sure you do not sacrifice quality for a lesser price since this could cost you big money depending on where a mistake was made.
7. Find Out How They Do Organizational Development
Organizational development is key when you want to ensure that your business stays on track for growth. If your business is not going forward, it is going backward, and your organization has a great deal to do with which direction your company is going. Since your organization is so important, you need to see how the PEO you are considering would deal with the challenges and what practices they would put in place to make sure there are proper growth and development taking place.
Conclusion
When you agree with a PEO, you agree to co-employ. This agreement could give you less control over the people that you are managing, but it also takes away a lot of the risk and splits it between you and the PEO. A great number of business professionals find this relationship to be beneficial so they can focus on their business, but their employees are still happy and well cared for. Operating in an area of excellence vs. an area where you are not well suited will help everyone that does business with you as a client or works with you as an employee.
