Companies looking to outsource employee benefits administration often turn to their insurance brokers. That is not a bad idea if benefits administration is the only HR function a company needs help with. But if there are other functions ownership is looking to outsource, it makes better sense to hook up with a PEO.
PEOs are perfectly suited to benefits administration. You could say it is in their DNA. Outsourcing all things benefits as part of a general PEO services package immediately eliminates one of the biggest HR headaches around. In addition, organizations get access to other services including time and attendance, payroll administration, and even assistance with compliance.
Benefits Can Be Extremely Complicated
As a company owner or manager, you know that company benefits can be extremely complicated. For starters, there is no shortage of options in everything from health insurance to voluntary benefits. Trying to figure out which options are best for your employees can be overwhelming.
Above and beyond choices, you have all sorts of compliance issues to worry about. Your health insurance package alone is a minefield fraught with danger thanks to state laws, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and other regulatory issues. Along with the regulations comes a plethora of reporting requirements that require a ton of documentation.
Do not forget payroll deductions, either. Because employees tend to contribute their portion of the benefits through their paychecks, benefits administration is suddenly tied into payroll. That only creates an untenable situation when you have a broker trying to work with a payroll provider to get things done.
PEO: One Partner for All of It
A PEO service provider’s biggest advantage is the ability to handle it all. Imagine a single contractor taking on each and every HR task you don’t want to keep in-house. From mundane tasks like time and attendance to more complex endeavors like benefits administration, you have just one contractor to deal with. That’s nice.
One contractor means one point of contact. It generally means interacting with a single account manager rather than a whole team of individuals. It also means one bill to pay and one person to contact when you have questions.
Interested in Your Company’s Success
One final point in support of outsourcing benefits administration to a PEO is understanding that a PEO is intrinsically interested in your company’s success. A PEO only succeeds when its clients succeed, and for very good reason: PEOs act as co-employers for all intents and purposes. If a client is struggling and in danger of closing, the PEO’s position is in jeopardy.
Fairness demands a recognition of the fact that insurance brokers do not want their clients to fail, either. Brokers need successful clients to maintain their own book of business. But brokers are not directly involved in their client’s day-to-day operations. A broker’s bottom line is only marginally impacted when a client struggles.
It is Time to Let It Go
The fact that you have read this post all the way through suggests we have managed to get your attention. If that’s because your company is currently struggling with benefits administration, there is a solution by way of PEO services. Maybe it’s time to let benefits administration go. Perhaps it’s time to outsource to an organization perfectly suited to administering all things benefits.
Turning your benefits package over to an experienced PEO will immediately take a huge burden off your shoulders – or the shoulders of whoever handles benefits within your company. If this sounds like something you are interested in, contact VertiSource HR. Benefits administration is just one of the many PEO services we offer.