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  • For an industry that serves over 2.5 million people, Professional Employer Organizations can still be a bit of a mystery for the average business owner. The industry has helped businesses manage important HR functions for decades, but one of the most common questions owners ask is “Why have I never heard of PEOs before?”

    There are a few reasons for this, starting with the fact that there’s no simple, one-sentence explanation for what PEOs do.

    It’s a Pretty Complex Industry

    So exactly what is a PEO? A PEO doesn’t provide a tangible product. Instead, it offers an array of services and solutions. The National Association of Professional Employer Organizations states that PEOs “provide comprehensive HR solutions for small businesses.” In terms of an explanation, it’s a nice start, but it doesn’t go into nearly enough detail to truly describe how a PEO can help businesses and their owners.

    Business owners recognize the various important human resource functions they need for their business, such as payroll processing, employee benefits, legal compliance, risk management, and more. A PEO is designed to manage all of these critical HR functions.

    Of course, every business is different. This means that these HR solutions can change depending on each company’s specific needs. Combine that with the differences between compliance laws and other human resource distinctions and it can take a while to describe specifically what a PEO can do to improve your business.

    You Don’t See PEOs in Ads

    If a quick chat isn’t enough to explain the complexities of the PEO industry, that means that the traditional forms of advertisements are out. Unlike fast food chains, local furniture stores, and other businesses, you’ll rarely see or hear an advertisement for a PEO on TV or the radio because a 30-second spot won’t be able to really explain what the industry is all about.

    PEOs Don’t Always Call You Directly

    Another reason you may not have heard about PEOs is that not a lot of businesses in the PEO industry have the sales force to contact business owners by phone. At Group Management Services, we have the team in place to contact business owners and help educate them about PEOs, but not all of the roughly 1,000 PEOs in the country have the capacity to reach out to prospective businesses.

    PEOs Have Grown Dramatically in Recent Years

    While the PEO industry dates back to Marvin R. Selter and the late 1960s, the PEO industry has experienced a surge over the past five years that has helped introduce PEOs to more business owners. I joined GMS six-and-a-half years ago, when the PEO industry was worth around $85 billion. Today, it’s up to around $168 billion. 

    What helped drive the industry to nearly roughly double in size? Four words: “Increased laws and regulation.” 

    Over the past five years, a combination of the Affordable Care Act and increased regulations from the Department of Labor (DoL) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have added to what owners need to do to keep their businesses compliant. This development has led to more employers turning to PEOs to manage their HR functions to keep up with these regulations.

    Learn More About PEOs

    Now that you have an introduction into why you may not have known about PEOs, it’s time to learn more about the industry and how a PEO can help your business. Check out our PEO Education Center for additional resources on PEOs and HR management and contact us today to talk to one of our experts about exactly what kind of role a PEO can play for your company.

  • If you own a small, five-person company, it might be tempting to think that you don’t need to invest any time or money into human resource functions like a big business. That’s a bad idea.

    Every company needs HR, regardless of size. Just like how you don’t build a house without a proper foundation, a small business – or any business – needs to create a solid human resource foundation to succeed.

    Why Small Companies Can Benefit from HR Management

    A common objection that a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) hears is that an owner thinks that their business is too small to invest money in HR management. Some businesses may have an office manager with HR experience, but it is difficult for one person to match all of the help a PEO can provide.

    Certain HR laws may come into play at different employee milestones, but there are still basic HR processes that need to be in place whether a company has one employee or 100 employees. A PEO can ensure that your business has those processes ready. If there is a workers’ compensation claim, a PEO can handle it. If a former employee files an unemployment claim, a PEO can manage it. No company is truly too small for critical HR functions, and you don’t want to get stuck dealing with HR laws that you never thought could or would affect you.

    Investing in the Future with HR Management

    Another major reason why it’s critical to invest in HR is that your business isn’t going to stay small forever. A five-employee company should eventually want to turn into a 10-employee company, and then a 20-employee company, and so on. 

    A PEO allows you to shift your focus to core business functions rather than HR  processes. This allows you to focus on driving revenue and growing your business instead of payroll management, benefits administration, and other time-consuming tasks. Also, a PEO can do all of this for a set fee, saving you from investing in a full-time HR representative.

    A Small Business HR Partner

    PEOs can be a huge help to businesses, large and small. According to the National Association of Professional Employers Organizations, small business that use a PEO…

    • Grow 7 to 9 percent faster
    • Have 10 to 14 percent lower employee turnover
    • Are 50 percent less likely to go out of business

    Investing in your business’ HR processes is a big step toward a more successful future. Contact us today to talk to one of our experts about how Group Management Services can build a strong HR foundation for your small business.

  • When the Affordable Care Act passed in late 2010, one of the major tenets of the plan was the creation of healthcare exchanges in every state. These exchanges would be state-run with federal seed money used to create them. People who didn’t have coverage or had unaffordable coverage through their employers would be able to buy subsidized plans at a comparatively low cost.

    The exchanges began with the implementation of the ACA in 2014. Of the 50 states, 23 of them were run by the federal government. In late 2015, it was reported that 12 of the 23 federally-run state exchanges were shutting down due to unsustainable losses. In some areas, things have gotten worse.

    Image of healthcare exchanges. Learn about self-insured health care plans.

    Withdrawal from the Healthcare Exchanges

    Over the last couple of years, some insurance companies have begun announcing their intent to withdraw from the healthcare exchanges. In some counties, they were the last insurance company standing. According to a recent Washington Post article, dozens of counties across the country could be without any insurance companies in the exchanges. 

    According to that same article, “that leaves 35 thousand marketplace enrollees living in a county with no affordable way to purchase insurance (As it stands, people who receive subsidies can only use them to purchase coverage in the marketplace.), and 2.4 million would be left with just one insurer’s plan to choose from. That’s out of 12.2 million enrollees total.”

    What to Do Without the Healthcare Exchanges

    If you’re an employer who counted on those exchanges for your employees to get coverage, what are you to do? If you’d like to take care of your employees and offer them coverage, you can begin shopping for a group plan, but you’ve probably heard about the extremely high costs of even the most basic coverage. You can wait for Congress to step in, but partisanship appears to be at an all-time high and the prospects of a quick resolution seem remote.

    Another option is to look at self-insuring your healthcare through a level-funded plan, like the kind offered by GMS. To find out if this is something that could work for an organization of your size contact us today to talk to one of our healthcare experts about a self-insured health plan.

  • It can be very difficult for small business owners to compete with big companies when it comes to 401(k) plans. Due to their size, large corporations can use economy of scale to their advantage and offer attractive retirement plans that are more affordable due to the size of their employee base. 

    Small business owners don’t have hundreds of employees to their name, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t have access to economies of scale through other resources. 

    How a PEO Can Provide New 401(k) Advantages

    Small business owners are typically subjected to a lot of costs when they manage their own 401(k) plan, which can scare off some employers. The Pew Charitable Trusts conducted a survey with small- and medium-sized businesses that don’t offer a 401(k) to employees and found that 71 percent of these business claimed that the associated expenses played a role in their decision to forgo a retirement plan. 

    Without some help, those costs can quickly add up over time. There can be a lot of set-up fees and other miscellaneous charges to maintain plan documents. Most employers are also not experts of retirement planning, so they also need to hire a Third-Party Administrator to handle their 401(k) plan for them.

    Small businesses aren’t going to match the output of a big corporation. With a Professional Employer Organization like Group Management Services, they don’t have to. Since GMS represents over 1,000 different companies, we can provide companies with the same types of benefits that the large corporations get due to economy of scale. 

    Our Multiple Employer Plan creates a level of buying power that a lot of small businesses never get to have. That power can lead to a more diverse investment menu than they might be able to get on a single employer plan, as well as additional perks. We also handle 401(k) Plan administration in house with the aid of Transamerica, which allows us to cut down on the costs that employers would typically pay a Third-Party Administrator.

    The Multiple Employer Plan also relieves employers of many of the responsibilities attached to providing substantial fiduciary support for their plan. That includes the following:

    • Making sure that contributions get deposited in a timely fashion.
    • Selecting and monitoring the investments offered on the plan. We conduct quarterly meetings with our Financial Advisors to do our due diligence on the funds offered on our platform.
    • Making sure that plan documents are maintained and keeping our clients compliant.
    • Filing one 5500 to the DOL with our clients listed.
    • Offering access to a dedicated financial adviser and educational material. 

    Retirement Guide

    Use Economy of Scale to Your Business’ Advantage

    Economy of scale can help your business save big while providing a retirement plan your employees want. Contact us today to talk to one of our experts about our 401(k) plans for small businesses.

  • If you think it’s hard to find good talent these days, you’re not alone. The Society for Human Resource Management conducted a survey of more than 3,300 HR professionals and found that “more than two-thirds of surveyed organizations hiring full-time staff indicate[d] they are having a difficult time recruiting for job openings.”

    Thanks to a combination of factors, hiring employees that truly fit your requirements can be a tricky process. SHRM’s Jennifer Schramm cites “a low number of applicants, lack of needed work experience among those that do apply, competition from other employers, and a lack of technical skills among job applicants” as obstacles that employers face these days.

    When it comes to finding the right applicant for the job, it’s important to know where to look. Here’s where you should consider looking to find the quality talent your business needs to grow.

    Image of employee recruiting for businesses.

    Consider Employee Referrals and Networks

    Employee referrals are a way to utilize the way to utilize personal and professional networks to your company’s advantage. An internal referral program can be a very effective way to find quality employees, particularly if the referrals lead to new company leaders or management. 

    Engaged employees will have a good understanding of what it takes to fit in at a company and are more likely to want their company to succeed. Because of this, they may refer friends and colleagues who may suit your open positions. They’re also less likely to refer unqualified friends and family because their reputation may be affected by a bad suggestion. Ultimately, a 2016 Gallup study showed that “internal referrals were more than 40% more likely to interview successfully and be offered a spot in the program than candidates who applied through the company’s media channels.”

    Use Social Media

    If you’re looking for a very specific type of applicant, social media may work for you. Social media recruitment ads can help you get your open position in front of a large audience of people that match your qualifications. Facebook advertising in particular allows you to get extremely granular in your targeting. You can narrow down your search to people with certain job titles, who work in specific industries, and live in a certain area. With a well-made social media ad, you can reach a large group of targeted people.

    Another benefit of using social media is that it can allow companies to weed out bad candidates. According to a Forbes article by TalentCulture CEO Meghan M. Biro, “61% of hiring managers found something they didn’t like on a candidate’s social media account, and 55% of hiring managers reconsidered the hire based on what they found.” A little bit of detective work on social media can help you whittle down exactly who you bring in for interviews and save you and your team some valuable time.

    Hire Internally

    Internal hires are already familiar with the company, so you know where they’ll stand when it comes to your corporate culture. You also won’t need to spend nearly as much time on orientation just to get them up to speed. University of Pennsylvania Wharton School professor Matthew Bidwell has also done research indicating that external hires can “earn 18 percent to 20 percent more than existing employees promoted to similar positions.”

    If your business requires somebody with a new skill set or a fresh set of ideas, external hires make sense. If you have people in your company that you believe can step up and do the job, an internal hire can be an effective – and cheaper – solution that can lead to more immediate results.

    Find the Right People for Your Business

    A targeted recruitment approach can help you find the right employees for your business. Of course, the search is just one part of a long, and potentially costly, process. 

    A Professional Employer Organization can help you recruit, train, and retain quality employees. Our experts can help you identify the most qualified job candidates and offer them attractive benefits. Contact us today to talk with one of our experts about employee training and recruiting services that will help you grow your business. 

  • Every few years, Ohio business owners may notice unexpected increases in their unemployment insurance rates. At first, they may think that this is an error, but it’s actually part of regularly-scheduled increases called mutualized rates that apply to businesses across the state.

    If you’re one of those Ohio business owners, you probably have a few questions, such as “what is a mutualized rate” and “why is Ohio charging me extra every few years?” Those are both very valid questions, so here’s a quick rundown on extra mutualized rates in the Buckeye State.

    What are Extra Mutualized Rates?

    While the rate increases may come as a surprise, they’re part of a regular schedule. Every four years, the State of Ohio introduces an extra mutualized rate of 0.6 percent, which accounts for why you’re contributing more toward insurance than you expected. In fact, 2017 is one of the years that an extra mutualized rate is assessed.

    So why does Ohio add these rates every four years? The reason is to replenish the state mutual fund. 

    The Office of Unemployment Insurance Operations states that “the primary purpose of the mutualized account is to maintain the unemployment trust fund at a safe level and recover the costs of unemployment benefits that are not chargeable to individual employers.” In more basic terms, the rate increase is used to create a pool of money to fund certain unemployment payments.

    Let’s say there are unemployment claims at a company that went out of business, or someone resigned and went to work for a company that laid them off. Both situations are allowed claims, so the unemployment trust fund would pay for them through the contributions you, and any other Ohio business, makes through the 0.6 percent extra mutualized rate.

    Managing Your Unemployment Rates

    While there are certain elements, like the extra mutualized rates, that are unavoidable expenses, there are ways to manage unemployment taxes so that your business can cut costs each year. Group Management Services can help you employ strategies to reduce unemployment tax risks and increase cashflow.

    If you have any questions about your rates or potential risk management strategies, contact us today to talk to one of our experts about our unemployment claims management services.

  • Paper has played a huge role for businesses. Legal documents and contracts can be found in offices around the country. Business cards and print ads helped to seal deals for decades. Even money is printed on paper. Thanks to technology, however, the times have been a changin’.

    In this digital age, businesses can cut down on paper usage in favor of online documents and processes. It’s become so popular that, according to a study on document-creation site Nitro, 49 percent of CEOs name sustainability as a top three initiative for their organization. A paperless workplace is a great way to achieve that goal.

    Why Businesses Go Paperless

    At this point, you may be thinking, “Yeah, that sounds great, but how does going paperless actually help me?” Independent Business Consultant Larry Alton lays out six big reasons on Inc.com on why businesses should make the move to cut out paper:

    • Time
    • Access
    • Space
    • Security
    • Money
    • Environment

    Today, there’s no need to physically print out, file, and search for documents. Everything can be securely stored online through the cloud, which means less time spent handling paper documents that could fill several filing cabinets or storage boxes. Also, online documents can be accessed 24/7 from any location with an internet connection.

    After all of that, there’s also the savings. Alton cites that paperless offices save “roughly $80 per employee (annually) in costs related to paper, ink, toner, storage space, and postage.” He also adds that the average firm uses more than 10,000 pieces of paper in a year. That means a paperless initiative can help both your wallet and the environment.

    However, it’s tough to create a completely paperless business. According to Nitro, only 3 percent of businesses have eliminated paper from every process. 

    Between old traditions that die hard or businesses that still need to maintain at least some sort of paper usage, a 100 percent paper-free environment isn’t necessarily attainable. However, businesses can still receive some of the benefits of going paperless by making small changes over time. One great place to start is paperless payroll.

    Start Small with Paperless Payroll

    Changing your payroll process can be an easy first step toward going paperless. Instead of dealing out paper checks for every single employee, businesses can work with an online payroll provider to streamline the process and save through direct deposit (also known as electronic funds transfer) or global cash cards. There’s added costs to paper checks.

    Just how much can businesses save on paperless billing? Due to physical resources and processing fees, it may be more than you may think. A report in Business News Daily states that “businesses save between $2.87 and $3.15 per pay run by paying employees electronically, such as via direct deposit, instead of via paper check.” The report also points out that online pay stubs save an additional $1.20.

    Online payroll is one simple way to cut down on some unnecessary costs and inconveniences. As a Professional Employer Organization, we can provide online payroll services to make the move to a paper-free company. Contact us today to talk to one of our experts about online payroll services and software for your business. 

  • Employees handbooks are more than just a stack of papers you hand to new hires. An employee handbook can be key part of informing your workers about several items, including:

    • Company philosophy
    • Conditions of employment
    • Company policies and procedures
    • Compensation and benefits

    Handbooks are great at introducing a new hire to your business, but it’s not the only role it plays. A handbook also serves as an important compliance document that shares the rights and obligations for both employees and their employers. Including certain criteria about these legal obligations and having your employees sign off that they received a copy of the handbook, can help protect your business in case there’s ever a labor dispute.

    Of course, things change. Your company can grow, opening you up to new legal requirements. Legislative changes can affect several of your policies. Over time, you’ll need to update your handbook to address these changes if you want to avoid any potential issues. 

    Opening Yourself Up to Liability

    So how much can an outdated handbook cost you? Turns out, a whole lot.

    According to a study by Insurance Journal, roughly one in every eight small- to mid-sized business are hit with employment claims. Those claims can turn into pretty expensive lawsuits, with the average charge costing around $125,000, including attorney’s fees and settlements.

    When you neglect to update your handbook, you open yourself to legal threats. For example, changes in drug policy can directly impact any language on substance abuse and drug testing in your handbook. The legalization of marijuana in certain states may force you to work with a lawyer to amend your handbook, so the specifics of your policy clear for new hires.

    Another example involves recent immigration reform updates. Federal law now requires American employers to have new hires complete the updated I-9 form within three days of their start date. Your handbook should reflect this update for any new employees.

    There are plenty of other scenarios, but it generally boils down to making sure your handbook stays current with any legislative or company changes. Without these updates, any related legal claims could become trouble.

    Putting Together an In-depth, Updated Handbook

    An outdated handbook – or worse, no handbook at all – can be a problem. Unfortunately, there isn’t a quick solution to drafting a comprehensive handbook. This document needs to be customized around your business, so copying and pasting examples from online just won’t do. 

    To put together a complete handbook, you need to have input from all your HR functions to make sure you have every detail necessary to keep your employees informed and your business compliant. By working with Professional Employer Organization, you have access to a variety of HR experts that can provide guidance on what you need to include in your handbook and any upcoming changes that may affect it. 

    Contact GMS today to learn more about how we can help you maintain an updated handbook and other human resource risk management services.

  • There are growing signs that the economy is improving. Perhaps the most notable marker is that more people are starting to come back to the workforce. The unemployment rate is continuing a downward trend, meaning that more employers are starting to hire again.

    Of course, finding good employees is important to a company’s growth, but keeping their best employees is vital to an employer’s productivity. Keeping your best employees ensures a smoother transition for newer employees and keeps the job environment stable with their most seasoned employees.

    Of course, with a growing job market, sometimes a company’s best employees begin looking at this as an opportunity to “test the waters” of their own value and see if there are better options. How does a small business owner retain good employees while attracting qualified candidates? By offering benefits.

    What Workers Want

    There are many benefits out there and employees put different values on each one. Which benefits should you offer? According to a Gallup poll in a recent post at Employee Benefits News, these are the 11 you should consider:

    1. Full-time flexible working locations (35%)
    2. Part-time flexible working locations (37%)
    3. Profit Sharing (40%)
    4. Paid leave for sick/medical/personal days (48%)
    5. Non-health insurance benefits like vision, dental, etc. (48%)
    6. Retirement plan/401(k) with employer matches (50%)
    7. Flex-time (51%)
    8. Retirement plan with defined benefits (51%)
    9. Paid vacation (53%)
    10. Monetary bonuses (54%)
    11. Health Insurance (61%)

    Of course, cost factors into this and not everyone can offer everything, so it becomes crucial for an employer to know which ones to offer. An employee survey can help set a course.

    Finding a trusted partner to help you set up a benefits plan and get them to you at an affordable cost becomes another issue. A Professional Employer Organization (PEO) like GMS can help create employee benefits policies and offer big company benefits at big company rates to help small business owners compete with larger companies for those great employees. Contact us today to talk with one of our benefits experts about your benefits package.

  • Administrative professionals can be the gears that keep your business machine moving forward. Administrative Professionals Day is April 26, so we’d like to highlight a few high-profile assistants, secretaries, and other notable administrative workers throughout history.

    Image of Rosa Parks, civil right activist, secretary, and receptionist.

    Rosa Parks

    Odds are that you know Rosa Parks as the famous civil rights activist who refused to give up her bus seat in Montgomery, Ala. back in 1955. During that time, she also served as the secretary for her local chapter of the NAACP. She continued to play an active role in the civil rights movement and moved to Detroit, where she was hired as the secretary and receptionist for U.S. Representative John Conyers, a position she held from 1965 to 1988.

    Erin Brockovich

    Before Erin Brockovich was the focus of an Academy Award-winning film featuring Julia Roberts, she was a legal secretary. Her most well-known work involved allegations that the Pacific Gas & Electric Company contaminated drinking water in a small California town. Her work helped lead to a $333 million settlement, the largest direct-action lawsuit settlement in the U.S. when the case concluded in 1996.

    Ursula Burns

    While Burns is known as the first female African-American CEO of a Fortune 500 company, she initially started out as a personal assistant at Xerox. Burns had held a few positions at other companies before she was offered a position in 1990 as the personal assistant for Wayland Hicks, Xerox’s then president of marketing and customer operations. 

    Burns worked her way up in the company and was named CEO in 2009. She held the position until the end of 2016 and now serves as Chairwoman for the company.

    Thomas A. Watson

    Phones are a huge part of businesses around the world. One assistant helped make the telephone a reality. Thomas A. Watson served as Alexander Graham Bell assistant and was the very first person to receive a message by phone. After moving on from his assistant’s position for Bell, Watson worked as a farmer and a traveling Shakespearean actor before founding one of the largest shipyards in early 1900’s America.

    Rewarding Administrative Professionals

    While there have been many notable administrative professionals, the most important to your company  is  the one you have working at your office. There are plenty of things that you can do to reward your administrative employees, both for Administrative Professionals Day any other day of the year, but one of the best is by offering a benefits package that can truly reflect just how valuable they are to your company. 

    Contact us today to talk with one of our experts about how partnering with a PEO can help you retain your employees and save money through our benefits administration services.