As a business owner, ensuring your company has complete and compliant HR regulations to cover your day-to-day and long-term activity isn’t just a smart move, but a necessity in the eyes of the law. In the UK, there is legislation that each and every business is required to follow – health and safety, equality and diversity, and disciplinaries and grievances, to name a few – which all come with their own intricate set of procedures and protocols to consider.
If you’re running a business, looking to launch, or just not sure where to begin with your HR compliance, there is a solution. You don’t have to go down the route of in-housing HR – external HR services are an ever-increasingly popular way to make sure your team has everything they need from a HR perspective, while keeping your company on the right side of the law. Keep reading for our complete guide on outsourcing HR for your business.
What Does HR Outsourcing Include?
HR outsourcing is simply a means of getting the HR services you need without hiring an in-house team of HR professionals. It’s the same process as with any other outsourced service provider – an external party of experts provides a business with a service, and the business saves time, energy and money that can be put to better use elsewhere.
With HR, outsourcing can look a little different from business to business. For example, an organisation might decide to outsource their entire HR function to cover each and every HR service a business requires by law. In other instances, a business might just need to outsource one or two specific areas of HR, such as recruitment or diversity.
There are three main types of outsourced HR services:
- Business Process Outsourcing (BPO): This is when businesses outsource a HR provider to target a specific task, such as payroll.
- Application Services: This is the process of outsourcing for the management of HR services that focus solely on physical and technology-based aspects.
- Shared Services: Similar to above, this is the process of outsourcing for the management of HR services that focus solely on the transactional or administrative aspects.
What Are the Benefits of External HR Services?
1. Cost Savings & Financial Benefits
One of the most significant benefits to outsourcing HR? The positive impact on a business’s finances. External HR services can be far more cost-effective than hiring an entire in-house team of HR professionals. There’s not just the extra payroll to consider – employee tax, time and money dedicated to the hiring process, and the extra office space all needs to be taken into account with in-house HR.
Outsourcing, on the other hand, saves businesses a considerable amount of cash that they can then dedicate to investing in other things, giving more opportunities to take the business to the next level. With no extra salaries, benefits, and overhead costs to account for, business owners are free to fund other financial investments that they’d like to explore, which can create more opportunities for business growth and expansion.
2. Specialised HR Expertise & Resources
With an outsourced provider, you’ll have the chance to work with an expert in that field – a professional with a wealth of experience who can bring their knowledge to enhance your business. External HR providers will be equipped with specialist skills to manage complicated HR queries and issues, and can guide a business through everything they need to stay on the right side of HR law – they will be able to navigate the complexities of all the rules and regulations companies must meet on a daily basis with ease.
When you work with an outsourced HR professional, you can usually rest easy that your HR compliance will be entirely taken care of, giving you more time to focus on managing and growing your business.
3. Compliance With Employment Laws & Regulations
Which brings us onto our next benefit – an outsourced HR expert guarantees you will not fall into any hot legal water. With so much to keep up with, becoming familiar with the complexities of employment law can be a daunting and difficult task. With external HR services, this headache is taken out of your hands and into those of someone with experience, training, and expertise under their belt.
HR service providers will also be responsible with keeping up with any evolutions in employment law, meaning you won’t have to worry about missing important updates or crucial changes that might occur.
4. Enhanced Focus on Core Business Activities
With all the free time and space saved by handing over the HR reins to an outsourced expert, businesses have the chance to dedicate their efforts elsewhere – on the work that really requires their attention. Managing a business is no small task, and business owners are often required to wear lots of different hats if they want to stay on top of operations. With one less hat, handed over to an HR professional, there is a greater freedom to focus on the core business activities that are going to keep their company on the rise.
5. Flexibility & Scalability
An outsourced HR provider gives businesses the gift of greater flexibility – they are able to quickly adapt to changes without going through the rigamarole of recruitment or termination. This is invaluable in terms of scalability, as it ensures companies have the right team that feeds into their unique business goals at any given moment.
Looking to Outsource Your HR Services?
Are you on the hunt for outsourced HR services? You’ve come to the right place. At The HR Dept, we offer tailor-made solutions specifically designed to target your unique business needs, whether that’s a full-scale takeover of all HR operations or just a helping hand with a short-term recruitment process.
Our local HR services always come backed by an expert team fully equipped to tackle any and every HR requirement you might have, with specialist support, professional guidance, and sound legal advice that stays on top of evolving industry trends so you’re always kept in line with employment laws and regulations. Get in touch today to hear more about our services and take the first step towards HR expertise you can count on.
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