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If you’ve hired employees – congratulations! Now it’s time to ensure your new recruits get paid. Earlier this week, I shared two essential steps to set up and manage payroll for your small business.

Now that you’ve decided to outsource payroll management, it’s time to assess your business needs, locate the best providers and learn how to manage the process.

Selecting a Payroll Service Provider

One of the most important things to consider is the level of interaction you want from your payroll service provider. It may seem like payroll is a “set it and forget it” component to running a business, but the truth is that a number of issues can arise as part of the normal course of running your company.

It is critical to understand the level of involvement and customer service your provider is going to give you. Make the wrong selection for your business, and you could end up throwing your own resources at these unforeseen items that need resolution. Your people and time should be focused more on your company’s core competencies. A good customer service team will work with you to save you time, money and frustration, should issues arise.

It is also vital to consider the industry in which your business operates and consider any specific needs that need to be factored into payroll. For instance, restaurants have some unique reporting needs such as tipping that some payroll companies handle better than others. The trades (construction, electrician, etc.) also have specific needs like job costing, certified payroll and others.

While most payroll companies will claim to have the expertise to handle these requirements, there are definitely some that are better than others. Find out if they have direct experience by asking who their clients are in specific industries.

8 Questions to Ask Your Potential Payroll Services Company

Once you have determined your payroll needs and vetted some options through conversations with business peers, it is time to go ahead and evaluate payroll service providers.

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