No matter what industry you’re in, if you’re managing a business, you’re going to be busy.
While you might be tempted to do everything yourself or to have it all done by members of your crew, sometimes it makes sense to bring in a third party to lend a hand.
Everyone knows that a general contractor’s job is to line up the right subcontractors to tackle a construction project, but subcontracting isn’t just for building, repairs, and remodeling. All sorts of companies outsource tasks for numerous reasons:
- Subcontractors don’t require the commitment to long-term expense that full-time employees do.
- You don’t have to worry about health insurance, retirement plans, or employee benefits for your subcontractors.
- Subcontractors specialize. It might not make sense to create a full-time job for an expensive, highly skilled employee to do a project that has a clear start and stop.
- Subcontractors are considered to be the owners of their own businesses, so a company doesn’t have the same obligations to a contractor as it would to an employee. This also means it can reduce your exposure to lawsuits.
There are many other reasons that companies hire contractors, but there may be some jobs you can sub out that you never realized you could.
Screening, hiring, and even payroll can be subcontracted.
It’s true, and depending on your business, it may be worth considering. As is detailed in another article in our Business Tips series, you want to build your team by hiring thoroughly screened, dependable and skilled employees. The screening process is not something you want to skimp on. Learn more about that here.
Another challenge that growing companies face is managing payroll. Every business owner has known the struggle of either finding the time or the financial resources to make payroll at one point or another. It can be overwhelming to navigate all of the ins and outs of managing different employees with different salaries and tax situations and benefits, not to mention, learning payroll software and then meeting government deadlines for mailing out W-2s and adjusting withholdings as needed when an employee’s filing status changes, say, through marriage, children, divorce, or death of a spouse.
When you sub out payroll to an experienced company, that’s a major task you can scratch off you’re already lengthy to-do list. In addition, you can be assured that all of the i’s are dotted and the t’s are crossed when it comes to health insurance, taxes, 401k, cafeteria plans, and more.
Did you know you can subcontract to help maintain high standards?
Policy and compliance have become a critical focus in the HR world today. Not only does this protect employers and businesses, but it provides a safe and successful working environment for employees.
In this day and age, in particular, you want to make sure there aren’t careless missteps being taken in the way you do business or by those in management. Not only can the fallout from preventable mistakes be a time-consuming distraction, they can also cost your company a lot both financially, and in some cases, in reputation.
Some of the most commonly overlooked areas of compliance include:
- EEOC
- Fair Hiring and Firing
- Sexual Harassment
- Employee Leave
- Unemployment
- HIPAA
While not all of those might apply to your business, some of them might and it’s worth it just to make sure you’re in compliance now before an issue comes up and catches you off-guard.
You don’t have to do it all.
Sometimes it’s smart to delegate tasks to subcontractors with the experience to get the job done right. If you’re bewildered about where to begin, there are plenty of knowledgeable folks who can come alongside you to help you.
An article that appears at Entrepreneur online titled “Use Subcontractors to Build Your Business” details five steps for successfully using subcontracting. Number one on that list is, “Find the best people for the job.”
We can help with that. In fact, we can help with all sorts of tasks to help you grow your business. With decades of experience in screening, hiring, payroll, and more, our knowledgeable staff can answer any questions you have about whether or not subbing out any of the above areas would make sense for your business. Click here to reach out and someone will be in touch with you.