• HR consulting firms provide specialized guidance and support for businesses in multiple areas, from strategic planning to performance management.
• By leveraging the expertise of a dedicated HR consultant, companies can gain fresh insights and accelerate their business transformation.
• At EmPower HR, we understand your business’s unique needs and create personalized strategies to drive your success. Contact us to get started!

Every business faces unique HR challenges. From navigating compliance to managing employee relations, the to-do list is endless and time is always running out. That’s where HR consulting steps in, offering expertise and insights to transform organizational structures and cultivate a thriving workplace environment.

A human resource consulting firm can cover a lot of ground, such as crafting effective recruitment strategies, implementing diversity initiatives in the workplace, or designing a stellar onboarding process.

Read on to learn how HR consulting can elevate your business and provide a tailored plan to address your current challenges.

Let’s jump right in!

Understanding the Power of HR Consulting

First thing first: What is HR consulting? Short for Human Resources Consulting, HR consulting refers to a specialized service provided by professionals or firms with expertise in various aspects of HR management.

An HR consultant provides strategic advice, support, and customized solutions to companies seeking to improve their workforce management practices and increase employee engagement.

Here are some of the many areas where HR consulting can help companies:

• Strategic planning
• Recruitment and selection
• Employee engagement
• Performance management
• Training and development
• HR compliance
• Diversity and inclusion

By leveraging the expertise of HR consulting, you can unlock the true power of your workforce, creating a competitive advantage and paving the way for success.

Strategic Steps for Business Transformation

Transforming your business through HR consulting involves strategic planning and implementation. Here are some key steps to guide your business transformation journey:

• Know your starting point. Assess your current HR practices, policies, and procedures. Identify areas of strength and areas that need improvement.
• Define your goals. Clearly define your business objectives and goals. Determine how HR initiatives can support these objectives, whether it’s improving employee retention, increasing diversity, enhancing performance, or achieving compliance.
• Involve key stakeholders in your transformation. This includes senior leadership, department heads, and employees. Seek input, gather feedback, and ensure alignment with your business priorities.
• Work with HR consultants to develop customized solutions tailored to your business needs and goals. This may involve designing strategic recruitment plans, implementing performance management systems, or establishing diversity and inclusion initiatives.
• Implement effective change management strategies. To ensure a smooth adoption of the new HR practices, make sure to communicate openly with employees about the reasons for change, provide training and support, and address any concerns.
• Embrace a culture of continuous improvement. Regularly monitor and evaluate your HR initiatives. Ask your employees for feedback, track key performance metrics, and make adjustments along the way.
• Measure the impact of your HR transformation efforts. A few key business metrics to keep in mind are employee satisfaction, retention rates, productivity, and profitability. Use data-driven insights to assess the effectiveness of your strategies and make informed decisions.
• Remain adaptable and flexible. Continuously reassess your HR strategies and adjust as necessary to stay competitive and responsive to evolving needs, market dynamics, and trends.

The Role of HR Consulting Partnerships

Engaging in a partnership with an HR consulting firm can boost your business transformation efforts in various ways.

These are some of the benefits of working with an HR consultancy firm:

• Specialized expertise: HR consulting firms bring specific industry knowledge to the table. By partnering with these professionals, you gain access to a diverse team with experience in various HR domains, including recruitment, talent management, and compliance.
• Objective perspective: External HR consultants offer an objective perspective on your organization’s HR challenges and opportunities. They can identify blind spots, uncover hidden inefficiencies, and offer fresh insights that you may not be aware of.
• Tailored solutions: Rather than offering fixed solutions, HR consulting partnerships work closely with your team to understand your organizational culture, challenges, and objectives, and craft customized solutions that align with your strategic priorities.
• Resource optimization: Instead of hiring full-time HR staff or overburdening your existing employees with additional responsibilities, you can tap into the specialized skills and resources of consulting partners on an as-needed basis.
• Risk mitigation: HR consulting partnerships help mitigate risks associated with HR initiatives, such as legal compliance issues, regulatory changes, and reputational risks. Consultants are always up-to-date with industry trends and emerging regulations, providing proactive guidance and support to ensure your business remains compliant and resilient.
• Accelerated results: HR consulting partnerships can accelerate the pace of business transformation by providing access to best practices, proven methodologies, and efficient implementation processes. Consultants bring a wealth of experience and industry insights, helping you avoid common pitfalls and achieve results more quickly.

Conclusion: Embrace Transformation with HR Consulting

HR consulting can go a long way in unlocking the full potential of your business and helping you navigate HR challenges, from compliance to employee engagement.

Looking for a personalized approach to HR? At EmPower HR, we take the time to fully understand your unique goals and challenges and provide dedicated HR consulting services. We believe that having a solid foundation is the key to long-term success, so we focus on ensuring your HR strategies align with your goals and values.

Let’s get your business ready for sustained growth! Contact us to learn how an HR consultant can help.

Related Articles

• PEO Services: A Guide to Grow Your Company
• A Deep Dive into Employment Practices Liability Insurance
• 4 Ways Companies Can Maintain Positive Culture During Rapid Growth

• PEO services allow small and medium-sized businesses to outsource time-consuming HR tasks.
• By partnering with a PEO, businesses can have more time to focus on strategic initiatives and negotiate competitive benefits for their employees.
• EmPower HR supports small businesses by managing payroll, compliance, benefits administration, and more HR administrative tasks. Contact us to get started!

You are in business for a reason. You have big goals and a solid purpose. But somehow along the way, the endless administrative tasks have distracted you from the things that can move the needle and grow your company. PEO services can get you back on track by taking charge of time-consuming tasks like processing payroll or handling employee benefits.

Partnering with a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) can offer exciting benefits, especially if you are a small business with few employees and a tight budget.

Read on to find out the advantages of hiring PEO services and how they can set your business on the path to success.

Let’s jump right in!

What are PEO Services

As we mentioned, PEO stands for Professional Employer Organization. By hiring PEO services, companies can outsource some of their most time-consuming HR tasks to a strategic partner, allowing them to be more efficient and have more time to focus on HR activities that drive business growth.

“Companies that partner with a PEO develop 7 to 9% faster and are 50% less likely to fail.”

— McBassi and Associates

When you hire a PEO, both companies engage in a co-employment agreement, which means you share certain responsibilities.

The PEO takes on the role of the administrative employer, handling crucial aspects such as payroll, taxes, compliance, and managing employee benefits. This allows your business to concentrate on what truly matters — managing the core business, determining fair compensation levels, and overseeing the daily tasks and performance of your employees.

Differences Between PEO Services

Generally, most PEOs cover the following HR areas:

• Payroll processing and taxes
• Employee benefits administration
• Risk management & compliance

However, some PEOs may offer additional services, like talent acquisition and recruiting to help you find top talent and bring them on board.

PEOs can also differentiate themselves by specializing in specific industries or operating in certain geographic areas.

EmPower HR serves over 400 small businesses in diverse sectors like non-profit, hospitality, technology, professional services, and more.

Finally, some PEOs are designed to suit the needs of global enterprises and can serve as Employers of Record (EOR). These PEOs take on the responsibilities of a local employer, ensuring that businesses can hire employees across borders in a compliant manner.

What PEO Services Don’t Include

It’s important to debunk the myth that PEOs are meant to replace your internal HR team. On the contrary, PEOs work alongside your team, offering support and sharing their expertise to navigate through challenging HR situations.

But just to clear up some doubts, these are the things that PEO services don’t include:

• Managing employees’ day-to-day activities. The role of PEOs is to support you in HR management. But tasks such as employee supervision, task assignment, and performance evaluations are still your responsibility.
• Designing training programs and opportunities for development. Although PEOs may offer some training resources, they do not assume the responsibility of creating and executing extensive employee training or development initiatives for your employees.
• Creating an onboarding program for new hires. While PEOs handle all things compliance and can help you out with the necessary paperwork, the rest of the onboarding process depends on you. Onboarding is so much more than administrative tasks, so keep it in mind to provide a stellar experience for your new employees.

PEO Services Benefits

Does your HR team feel trapped in a never-ending loop of administrative tasks, such as payroll, compliance, and benefits? It’s time to set them free! Joining forces with a PEO can bring numerous benefits to your small business:

1. Say Goodbye to Administrative HR Tasks

PEOs take the tiresome aspects of HR off your plate, from processing payroll and calculating taxes to negotiating competitive employee benefits.

Instead, your small HR team will now have more time to focus on nurturing an inclusive workplace and coming up with initiatives to keep your employees happy and motivated.

2. Reduce Payroll Errors and Ensure Compliance

Payroll is a sensitive topic that your business needs to get right. If not, you risk dealing with frustrated employees, financial losses, and unfair compensation claims.

By leveraging the specialized knowledge and advanced software of a PEO, you can minimize errors in payroll processing and guarantee that all your employees receive their payments accurately and on time.

3. Gain Access to Competitive Benefits Packages at an Affordable Price

Fortune 500-level benefits seem beyond the reach of small businesses, right? Well, it doesn’t have to be that way.

Offering competitive benefits has a decisive impact on your employee brand and can be a strategic way of keeping top talent by your side.

By partnering with a Professional Employer Organization, businesses can tap into a vast network of clients and gain access to competitive employee benefits that otherwise would be impossible to assume.

These benefits include not only health insurance but also retirement plans and various other perks.

4. Delegate Compliance to an Expert Team

Keeping up with constantly evolving employment laws and regulations across federal, state, and local levels can be quite daunting. That’s where PEO services come in.

PEOs specialize in HR compliance and can provide invaluable assistance to your business. By helping you understand and meet legal requirements, they minimize the risk of penalties and lawsuits, keeping your business (and your employees) on the safe side.

Partner with EmPower HR for PEO Services and Get to the Reason You’re in Business

There is only a limited number of hours a day to work on your business — and your HR administrative tasks shouldn’t take them all!

At EmPower HR we help companies grow by allowing them to focus on the things they can do best while handling complex HR tasks for them.

Benefits of EmPower HR’s PEO Services

Why choose EmPower HR as your partner for PEO services? Here are three reasons you should consider:

• We go beyond customer service — we genuinely care about your business success and are always available to answer your questions or help you solve any HR challenge you may have.
• We specialize in small businesses and offer customized solutions based on your specific needs.
• On top of all the PEO services, we also provide HR consulting services to support your strategic HR planning and help you grow your business!

PEO Services Final Ideas

PEO services can alleviate the burden of administrative HR tasks, like payroll processing, compliance requests, and managing employee benefits. By allowing an external provider to handle these time-consuming HR activities, your team can have more time to spend on revenue-generating strategies and keeping a thriving workplace.

At EmPower HR we offer PEO services for small businesses across a variety of industries, giving you access to customized solutions based on your business HR needs.

Contact us to learn how we can help your business grow, by taking care of your administrative workload!

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• How to Optimize HR During a Recession

We’ve listed the top questions we get asked about contacting references without permission. Can employers contact references without permission? What are backdoor reference checks and are they illegal? Here are our top answers and compliance tips regarding checking references. 

If a Candidate Asks You Not to Contact Their Current Employer

It’s ultimately up to you, but we recommend that you respect the candidate’s wishes. When candidate’s ask you not to use references from their current employer, it’s (usually) for a valid reason. While it may be tempting to see this as a red flag, be open to see the situation from the candidate’s perspective. Some common reasons that candidates request a vow of secrecy include: 

• Keeping their job hunt on the down low. The candidate isn’t ready to inform their employer about their search for a new opportunity. It’s understandable that they don’t want to put their livelihood on the line, their current employer could fire them if they find they’re looking for work elsewhere. (Even though we don’t recommend terminating an employee for looking for another job.)
• Fear of repercussions in their current workplace. If word gets out about their job hunt, current employers or coworkers could retaliate and treat the employee differently if they decide to stay at their current company. 
• Inaccurate responses. A toxic boss might give an inaccurate statement about their ability to do the job based on personal conflict that isn’t accurate to the job’s responsibilities.

Can Employers Contact References Without Permission?

Legally, yes, you can contact references without permission and backdoor reference checking isn’t illegal. The decision is up to you, but it’s highly recommended that you respect the candidate’s request not to contact certain references. The hiring process should make an effort to build the candidate’s trust with the company. If you contact previous employers against a candidate’s wishes, they may feel disrespected.

If you do decide to contact the current employer despite the candidate’s request, it’s best practice to let the candidate know beforehand and explain what questions you will be asking their employer (job performance, job title, etc.). The candidate may opt to let you go ahead with the reference check or they may decide to withdraw themselves from consideration instead of having you reach out. Either way, it’s best to let them know your intentions, especially if contacting their current employer could have negative repercussions for them.

Are ‘Backdoor’ Reference Checks Illegal?

It’s known as a “backdoor reference check” when a recruiter reaches out to a contact that was not provided by the candidate. There’s other names floating around for this such as informal checks, or quiet checks – they’re all the same thing. Through networking sites or contacts, recruiters can identify mutual connections that can answer questions about a potential candidate. 

Wondering if a backdoor reference check is illegal? The answer is no. Even though it’s legal to perform backdoor reference checks, it can cause problems. You may have to deal with:

• An uncredible source. When reaching out into the unknown, you never know what you’re going to receive. You may find yourself contacting an unreliable contact that didn’t work directly with your candidate or at a different time period or location.
• Biased information. Selecting a random ex-coworker or connection can end up being a best friend or an enemy, either way you’re probably going to receive a biased review. 
• Broken trust. Contacting references the candidate didn’t provide will confuse them and break any trust they have with you and your company during the process – especially if you contact their current employer without permission.

Reference Check Compliance Tips

Ask Compliant Questions

Be mindful of the information you can and cannot receive. It’s crucial to be respectful of company policy and know the restrictions on what information references can legally provide in your state. For example, you can only request information on “job performance” from an employer in Illinois. 

When reaching out to employers, their company policy may prevent them from sharing some job specifics such as salary and dates of employment. These company policies aim to prevent risk of liability for discrimination or defamation. 

Stay Organized

When speaking to a referral, it’s best to have a script. Asking each referral the same question gives your candidates a level playing field. Plus, without a standardized process, you could miss crucial details about your candidate. An organized approach will help you stay compliant and get the best information. 

Avoid Bias and Discrimination

Be sure to talk to multiple references to reach common themes. (Just like in baking, the key to reference checks is consistency!) If certain referrals seem far off from the others or unreliable, use your best judgment to determine the accuracy of their story. 

Interviewing references is similar to conducting a job interview, you can’t discuss personal information in reference checks. Even if you don’t realize you are being biased or discriminatory, even the best interviewers can slip up. To avoid that slippery slope, don’t ask personal questions unrelated to the job description. As a reminder, you cannot ask about:

• Age
• Marital status
• Ethnicity
• Sexuality
• Religion
• Disability

These, and others, fall under federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Laws that protect candidates from discrimination.

HR Can Keep You Compliant

Too often, HR leaders and business owners get bogged down in the nitty gritty details of HR. (Wait, what can I legally ask in a reference check again?) Business owners and HR leaders, consider outsourcing HR to help expand your talent search and streamline your recruitment process. Outsourcing HR gives you access to HR gurus who have mastered what you can and can’t ask references. So you don’t have to worry about asking the wrong questions and potential legal penalties. They can help you build an organized approach to the referral process, know what to ask and how to interpret the responses.

Don’t get us wrong– we love to compete! But to win top talent, business owners need to understand how their hiring process timeline compares to the competition. 

Use this guide to help you find the optimal interview and hiring process timeline for your business. We’ve included our best advice on how to cut the hiring process timeline and recruit quality employees faster. (We know you can compete with the big players!) Plus, we’ve thrown in expert tips to help you find your latest and greatest employee.

What Is The Timeline For Hiring?

In general, the hiring process for most professional services takes between 2 weeks and 30 days on average. Jobvite’s 2021 Recruiting Benchmark Report shows a time-to-hire of 14-30 days for 54% of employers, with 70% of employers filling openings in less than 30 days. So, if your hiring process takes longer than 4 weeks, you risk losing your top-tier candidates to competitors. 

Note that the timeline for completing the hiring process, from the initial job posting to the acceptance of an offer, varies among industries. Even with these averages, the hiring process timeline will undoubtedly look different for each business. Plus, you should be somewhat flexible with the hiring process timeline to make sure you’re getting the best candidates for the job. 

How Long Should The Interview Process Be?

The interview process timeline is the biggest roadblock in your hiring process. The job interview process can be lengthy. Many companies have an involved interview process starting with screening interviews, which often take place on the phone, followed by in-person interviews, second interviews and even third interviews. (That’s a big chunk of the hiring process timeline!)

A recent article by the Balance, breaks down the average amount of time to get an offer, but the average interview process timeline depends on industry and skill level. It takes new college grads 24 days on average to receive a job offer after an interview. An extensive Glassdoor survey shows that just the interview process of the recruitment process usually takes about 23 days.

HR Pro Tip

Because of how much time interviewing takes, it’s critical to interview effectively. As we’ll discuss later in this guide, there are steps you can take to better interview and recruit the right people for the job. Ask candidates insightful questions to see if they’re just looking at this position as a stepping stone, or if they’re in it for the long term.  How they answer will say a lot.

How To Cut The Hiring Process Timeline And Recruit Faster

Don’t give your favorite candidate the chance to wander off to a different opportunity. Here are just a few tips to let you get ahead in the competition.

Use Video Content In Your Job Ad

Job seekers get tired of scanning through the job postings with the same format. Adding video content can be a huge differentiator for your brand. (Take that, other stale job ads!) It’s also a great way to showcase your company culture and build a relationship with new applicants. 

Adding video to your job ads can help you:

• Showcase your brand and culture
• Highlight job perks and incentives
• Encourage sharing and engagement on social media
• Expand your talent search by increasing your visibility

Use video content in your job ad to show applicants around your company, highlighting key employees and their experiences. It doesn’t have to be glamorous! Having a manager talk about the role and company culture has the potential to resonate with candidates on a different level.

Strategically Place Your Job Ad

There are tons of places where you can post a job ad. From Indeed, LinkedIn, Monster (and infinity and beyond!) The list of places where you can post a job opening never ends. It takes a keen eye to understand the best place to post a job advertisement and why. 

Most recruiters turn to LinkedIn as a recruiting tool, but it’s become so crowded with recruiters that it’s actually grown harder to source passive candidates. Oversaturation on LinkedIn is the main reason that 52% of hiring managers claim that passive candidate recruiting has become less effective. Our advice? First thing’s first, determine your budget and timeline. Then, do some research and find out which channels are best suited to your target audience and budget.

How Can You Promote Your Job Posting?

If you want to attract high-quality candidates, it is not enough just to publish your job openings on your career site and job boards. Your best job candidates are passive job seekers, who are not actively looking for a new job. Some of the top places to post your job ad to recruit passive candidates are:

• Job-specific websites where your target audience frequently visits. Industry-specialized websites like forums and blogs are a ​​great place for promoting your job postings.
• Your company newsletter. Make sure to include your job posting in your company’s newsletter to spread the information about your new job opening. 
• Social media platforms. Facebook and Twitter’s targeted search capabilities can be used to find high-quality passive candidates. You’re probably familiar with social platforms like Snapchat and Instagram, but you might not have considered incorporating them into your recruiting strategy. These platforms can be used in unique ways to attract passive candidates.

The right marketing technology or recruiting software can help you utilize the right platforms for your job ad and get in front of your ideal candidates.

HR Pro Tip

Not seeing results? Try outsourcing an HR professional for your talent acquisition. Outsourcing your company’s recruiting efforts can help you expand your talent search and build a pipeline of experienced talent.

Interview Effectively

When done effectively, asking the right questions during an interview can have a huge impact on the hiring process timeline. Asking the right questions upfront can help you determine if an applicant’s skills, experience and personality meet the job’s requirements. Here are just a few things you can do to interview better:

• Ask open-ended questions. Open-ended questions encourage candidates to provide longer answers and to expand on their knowledge, strengths and job experiences. They also provide greater insight into a candidate’s personality.
• Prepare questions in advance. We’re always surprised at how many interviewers don’t prepare questions in advance. (Save winging it for open mic night!) 
• Avoid certain questions. Don’t ask about age, ethnic heritage, or church they belong to. These questions directly ask for personal information and can get you in trouble with federal law. It is important for interviewers to be familiar with federal employment laws, so they don’t discriminate against potential employees.

It’s one of the biggest hiring mistakes we see: lack of adequate planning for an interview. It can help to have a written outline or checklist of important points to be covered, even in addition to the specific questions you will be asking candidates. Download our guide below for an exclusive look at how to guide an interview and our best 10 questions every employer should be asking during an interview. 

Download Now

Outsource Your HR

You may find yourself becoming overwhelmed by the hiring process. (It happens to the best of us!) Did you know that outsourcing your HR allows you to better recruit and onboard your employees? No seriously, it does. When you outsource HR, you’ll get to work with HR professionals who know the ins and outs of the recruitment process – from strategic job advertising to qualifying candidates. At EmPower HR, we can help with:

• Writing a killer job description and ad
• Targeted recruitment advertising
• Interview best practices and guidance
• Candidate review and shortlisting
• Strategies to recruit passive candidates

Long story short, we’ll develop a rockin’ recruitment and hiring strategy to help you fill your open positions with the best talent out there. Contact us today!

If as an employer you’re considering this route, there are many steps you can take in the planning and execution process which can minimize risks of liability and decreased company morale. Here are some best practices and tips for reducing workforce:

Alternatives to Layoffs

Before you decide to permanently reduce workforce, there are a number of potential cost-saving options that you can consider, including:

• Hiring and wage freezes
• Postponement of wage increases
• Reducing fringe benefits
• Reducing your company’s insurance premium expenses
• Reducing work hours with proportionate pay cuts
• Discontinuing the use of temporary and part-time employees and redistributing their work to permanent employees

Whether layoffs, early retirement or other measures are taken, sensitivity in communications with employees is essential in order to maintain morale. As such, your first order of business should be to explain the company’s financial position and enlist employee support whenever possible.

Planning For Workforce Reduction

Once it’s been determined that a workforce reduction is necessary, it’s the job of operations, human resources and your legal counsel to devise a plan that minimizes the risks of litigation and ensure there is ample sensitivity and communication during the process.

Before taking any action toward reduction in force (RIF), consider these steps:

• Document the financial conditions necessitating the RIF
• Identify goals of the staff reduction
• Identify the job functions and/or skills that are essential to successful operations
• Eliminate and/or consolidate unnecessary jobs
• Review limitations or liabilities created by collective-bargaining agreements, employment contracts, etc.
• Consider using a RIF committee for evaluating positions
• Set a timetable for carrying out the RIF

It should go without saying that RIF should never be used as a substitute for terminating employees who are performing below standard. It’s also best to be sensitive to situations where an employee can show they were laid off close to the time when they would have qualified for a benefit (e.g., pension vesting rights, retirement eligibility, etc.), were chosen because of age or because they earn higher pay, as these can be seen as discriminatory.

Meet with your legal council to gather the information you need to know and the requirements you need to adhere to when it comes to things such as state or industry related laws, severance benefits, pension plans, collective-bargaining agreements and more. Talk with your legal council to ensure that your RIF will not violate (if applicable to your business or industry) the:

• Older Workers’ Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA)
• Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act)

Communication Is Key

Employees affected by a staff reduction should be advised of the RIF in as professional and supportive a manner as possible. You should be prepared to cope with employee shock, surprise and inability to absorb every detail. Here are some examples of how this may be conducted.

• If possible, two members of management should meet with affected employees individually
• Communications should be brief and direct as to the company’s decision
• If asked, those communicating to the employees should be able to briefly explain the basis for the decision
• The communicators should also explain the following:
  • Recall/rehire rights, if any
  • Severance benefits (if any), health insurance conversion rights, and other monetary issues
  • Outplacement or other transitional services being offered, if any

After Workforce Reduction

As a means of goodwill after a workforce reduction has taken place, consider providing outplacement services to assist affected employees in obtaining new employment.

The remaining employees should be provided with prompt and accurate information about the desired goals and anticipated timetables associated with the RIF(s). Another great idea to keep morale high is to provide remaining employees with modest incentives (monetary or otherwise) for increased productivity.

Workforce reductions provide unique opportunities to reorganize and streamline operations.
To maximize the cost savings affected by staff reductions, existing processes or operating procedures should be redesigned to improve efficiencies and eliminate the duplication of effort and expense. Some ways to accomplish this are:

• Job cross-training
• Restructuring to avoid unnecessary layers of supervision or management
• Evaluating existing business practices with the goal of reducing hidden costs such as travel, entertainment or recruitment expenses

We hope the information provided here will help you and your business understand the options available if you wish to avoid a workforce reduction, as well as provide you with important tips for planning an RIF if necessary.