subject: How Payroll Outsourcing Can Benefit Your Small Business [print this page] Most small business owners start off by handling payroll themselves. They continue to handle the payroll as their business grows, until it starts to take up a significant amount of their time every week. The amount of time needed to manage payroll weekly often goes unnoticed because it gradually increases as more people are added to the company.
When payroll starts to take up too much time, it is beneficial to the small business owner to outsource the process. This gives them the opportunity to take a step back and focus on building their business. Instead of worrying about making sure everyone gets paid on time, they can concentrate on aspects of the business that increase revenue and customer satisfaction.
Payroll is a necessity, but it is a challenge that most small business owners could do without. Spending long hours managing employee hours, tax deductions, keeping records, and other responsibilities distracts business owners from managing other aspects of their company.
Once payroll becomes too much work, many small business owners hire a new employee or hand payroll off to someone already working for the company. While this allows the owner to focus on other things, it is not the most cost-effective means of handling payroll. Using a payroll company is usually significantly cheaper than using your own employees to handle payroll.
In addition to saving you time and money, hiring a payroll outsourcing company can be beneficial in regards to taxes as well. A good payroll service will offer a tax guarantee, ensuring the small business does not have to worry about being penalized by the IRS. If penalties do occur, the payroll company takes responsibility for them, paying the penalties out of their pocket.
By placing their payroll in the hands of a good payroll company, small business owners practically eliminate the worry of running afoul of complex and changing tax laws. This benefit alone may be enough to steer many small companies into choosing to outsource their payroll.
Outsourcing payroll can help a small company improve its standing with its employees. Payroll checks from an outside payroll company are more likely to be accurate, and will be delivered on a timely basis. In the unlikely event problems do occur, they will be handled quickly and efficiently. Small companies can offer the convenience of direct deposit to their employees, eliminating the hassle of handing out paper checks every pay period.
