The Challenge:
When a midsized engineering firm had become frustrated with the poor customer service it was receiving from its current PEO, the owner was ready to abandon the PEO model all together. The firm had been promised safety and risk services by the PEO, but when it came time to deliver, the PEO said that the firm wasn’t paying a high enough premium to receive those services. The PEO also frustrated the firm’s employees by taking weeks to get reports done and by rarely returning employee’s phone calls. Also, the technology used by the PEO was outdated and did not give employees the easy access to information that they needed. The owner of the firm wanted to sever ties with the PEO, but building an entire in-house HR department meant assuming more expense and more risk. The firm chose instead to find a new PEO.
The Solution:
After an intensive search, they selected G&A Partners. Understandably, the engineers wanted to avoid the service issues they had encountered with their previous PEO, so they established a lengthy checklist of rigorous performance criteria G&A would have to meet. G&A provided the firm with an extensive list of specific services to be rendered, a service level agreement, and a detailed performance matrix for each level of service.
The Outcome:
Not only was G&A Partners able to exceed the engineers’ service expectations, but we also provided the firm access to our proprietary time and attendance software and assumed responsibility for their 401(k) plan.
After just a short time with G&A, the firm was able to eliminate $175,000 in costs and reassign their only HR expert (who before had spent much of her time overseeing, and often correcting, the prior PEO’s work) to more strategic HR functions, like recruiting and employee relations. New HR technology allowed the firm to streamline its processes, which meant fewer mistakes and greater productivity. But perhaps the most pleasant and unexpected outcome was the peace of mind the firm’s owner discovered when he was able to transfer the firm’s 401(k) to G&A, along with his personal fiduciary responsibilities and risk.
Superior service, smarter processes, savings, greater productivity, and personal peace of mind – check!
