Small business owners have a lot of tasks they have to take care of, including payroll for employees if they have them. Not all of those tasks have to be done in house, however, and payroll is an easy one to outsource. There literally are thousands of payroll companies that can take over this vital function and take one task off of a business owner’s plate.
Payroll processing is complex and risky, and it can cause very expensive penalties if you make a mistake. Payroll is not simply as easy as cutting a check to your employees. There are thousands of regulations regarding things like overtime and tax withholding. A small business owner is not likely to have the expertise and training to keep up with all the rules on payroll, and having a full-time person on staff who does have that experience and expertise is expensive. That’s why it can make a lot of sense to use a company that specializes in payroll outsourcing.
Another advantage to using a payroll management firm is that such companies also often offer other services, such as HR services, compliance with health and safety regulations and even medical record scanning services. For a medical practice, the ability to receive medical record scanning services and payroll services from the same company can be a huge benefit.
While hiring a payroll management company does cost you money, it is much cheaper than having a full-time payroll employee on staff. And outsourcing your payroll is much cheaper when you are growing. Payroll companies usually charge a set fee based on each account, and it may get cheaper on a per-account basis. That means you could actually pay less for payroll services as you grow. On the other hand, if you have to add to your salaried staff to take care of payroll growth, it is likely to be more expensive.
Payroll companies can be especially helpful if you have locations in different states or countries. Trying to have staff people keep track of the different laws in each state or country can be nearly impossible, but payroll companies can do it seamlessly and may not even charge you anything extra.
If you have a small business, it’s definitely worth your time — and money — to consider outsourcing your payroll duties to a payroll management company.