Outsourcing is NOT a 4 Letter Word!

Thetruth is that all companies need HR.  Butnot all companies need the same type or same amount of HR.  The laws are in place for all, so complianceis an issue across the board.  At somepoint, all companies will need to hire. Some may do it once a day, others maybe once a year – but it’s stillrecruitment no matter how you slice it. Every organization at some point will deal with employee relationsissues – big or small, they exist.  Sohow can HR be scaled to provide that perfect fit for every company?  The answer is outsourcing.

Ahhhhhh!  No, you just said that horrible word!  How dare you? 

Ok,hang on – let me give this some perspective. For a while now, the term ‘outsourcing’ has meant the kiss of death forHR professionals.  Outsourcing = jobslost.  Sometimes that is the case,especially in the event of a restructuring, a sale, or business need to cutcosts.  But that’s not the outsourcingI’m talking about. 

Ihave spent the majority of my HR career in outsourcing and I love it.  The companies I’ve worked for have focused onproviding HR services to small and mid-sized businesses.  And when I say ‘small business’ I mean‘small’ – in some cases just 1 or 2 employees in the company.  (I love when articles, new stories, orpresentations mention small business and quantify that as 500 employees orless.  I’m here to tell you there is ahuge difference between a 500-employee company and the 5-employee plumbing companyI work with.)  Shouldn’t those smallcompanies have HR too?  Don’t they haveto maintain the same level of compliance as the big boys?  From a financial perspective, it would beimpossible for these small companies to hire an employee dedicated to HR.  They don’t have that luxury – all availablecash and resources have to go toward payroll and running operations.  But through outsourcing options, smallcompanies can ensure compliance and get the assistance they need in a mannerthat works for them. 

Outsourcingis not only good for small and mid-size business – it’s good for HRprofessionals too.  I was fortunate tostart my HR career in outsourcing; I learned more in a shorter period of timethan I ever would have in a traditional stand-alone organization.  One day I’m working with a manufacturing companyon its benefits open enrollment; the next it’s assisting a physician practicewith their employee handbook.  I’veessentially worked with every type of industry – what a world of HRexposure!  It has shaped the professionalI’ve become today.  I have seen othersgrow into fantastic HR practitioners by working in outsourcing – you can’t beatthe experience.  To be fair, I have workedin large (5000-7000 employees) companies and I have found their HR departmentsto not be quite up to par with the teams I’ve worked with in outsourcing.  Variety can be a wonderful tool to enhance anHR career. 

Whileat the SHRM19 conference in Las Vegas, I was fortunate to hear Martha Stewartspeak on her experiences in business and life. I found her to be insightful and a strong businesswoman with a rock-solidwork ethic.  During her session, shementioned that the ownership company over her organization outsources their HRfunction.  I could feel the collectivesilent gasp in the audience!  There wasdefinitely a tingle in the air after she made that statement.  Given the traditional thoughts behindoutsourcing, it’s no surprise – I would assume a company as large as MarthaStewart’s would have its own HR department too. But I have to say I was pleased, and I would bet the folks serving asthe outsourced HR practitioners for Martha Stewart’s organization are outstanding. 

#SHRM19#LivingintheGray #HRTribe #HRonPurpose #HRRising #HRoutsourcing