A Solid PEO Partnership Can Address New Challenges

It’s no secret that the business climate in 2017 is radically different from 50, 25, or even 10 years ago. From how employees work to political changes and an increasingly global reach, an executive from a generation or two ago wouldn’t recognize many of the problems business owners face now.

Professional employer organizations have evolved, too. Three businessmen -- Eugene Boffa, Louis Calmare, and Joseph Martinez -- started the first employee leasing firm in the 1960’s. By the 1980’s there were nearly 300 PEOs in the United States, and PEOs have since created a massive marketplace to serve businesses with an array of core functions.

Just as businesses are presented with new problems, PEOs have stepped up to address them -- and a series of new challenges not present even a decade ago can be solved by partnering with a PEO.

Healthcare Is A Mess

Predicting the future of American healthcare and health insurance isn’t just an inexact science. It’s an utter crapshoot at this point and business owners are worried sick about how to proceed.

The uncertain future of Obamacare means that small- and medium-sized businesses don’t know what’s coming for one of their largest expenses and an important tool for attracting and retaining talent. Will a full repeal open up new markets and present a host of fresh options? What would a repeal and replace look like for small businesses? Throw in talk of a single-payer option and the 2018 landscape for healthcare is anyone’s guess.

And all the while you as a business owner are wondering what to do as your employees fret over ensuring that they’ll have solid, dependable access to high-quality healthcare for themselves and their families. Arranging health insurance for employees 30 years ago wasn’t impossible, but now there’s much more value in working with an organization that can lead your company and its people through the minefield that is our current healthcare system.

Technology and Social Media Add Complexity

The added value and productivity that technology has brought to the workplace is almost immeasurable. We do virtually everything differently and more efficiently than we used to. But those increases have also brought issues around privacy, intellectual property, and a separation between personal/employee lives that we wouldn’t have dreamed of a generation ago.

Social media is a wonderful way to communicate with customers, vendors, and the broader marketplace -- there’s no denying it. Few employee handbooks have been updated to address all the potential issues with social media use and the workplace. PEOs have stepped in to help by guiding businesses through the process of developing clear, effective policies that protect both firms and employees. Without a strong, complete employee handbook, everyone is left unprotected.

At this point, it’s not uncommon for small businesses to deal regularly with foreign providers -- and that includes hires based in another country. The world is a big place teeming with motivated, accomplished people, and the businesses who can tap that talent have an edge over those who can’t.

PEOs can help businesses work with great talent based elsewhere, including sorting out all compliance issues with their employment. They can even help with recruitment or sponsoring visas for foreign workers. In the 20th century this wasn’t as much of an issue; we could find everyone we needed within a radius covered by a tank of gas. But today, businesses who want to work with the best and brightest are looking across the globe to find the perfect match.

In 5 years these new developments might seem like trite issues, but they’re incredibly relevant now for any business owner who doesn’t want to get bogged down in a swamp of changes. And in 5 years, they will be replaced by another set of challenges we didn’t see coming. Doesn’t it make sense to start working with a partner who can handle them for you?