The Importance of HR Offloading in the Healthcare Industry

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Last week we discussed the importance of talent management software and how much time and money it can save you by recruiting the right talent. Not to mention the advantages of being able to seamlessly manage that talent! But, we also touched upon the need for multiple HR-related solutions.

Too often we see the owners of growing medical practices trying to wear all of the hats, when in reality the only hat they should be wearing is the “doctor hat!” You know the importance of focusing on your patients and providing them with the utmost care, and we know the importance of being able to let go of the reigns and offload HR.

Here are just 3 reasons to “let go”…

  1. Outsourcing HR is an important cost-cutting measure: If you need to cut back on costs or even staff, you certainly cannot let go your practice’s medical professionals – you need them to treat patients! Outsourcing HR is a great way to ensure business still runs smoothly, and your patients remain entirely satisfied. Even if you are not experiencing a staff cutback, outsourcing HR will permit many of the employees within the office (including the office manager) to operate more efficiently and redefine their roles – they can refocus their efforts on growing the practice and recruiting new patients.
  2. Headache-Free Compliance: You’re an expert in medicine, not employment law! Many medical practice owners choose to engage a PEO or an HRO for the sole purpose of eliminating headaches and ensuring employer compliance. In addition to the many other benefits PEOs and HR companies provide, PEOs protect – against costly lawsuits, against compliance failure, and against preventable workplace mistakes/accidents.
  3. Technology: Employee management has its fair share of technology. From source of hire metrics to compliance-smart time tracking systems and payroll – there’s a lot to utilize and a lot to manage.

    Leaving these functions up to HR experts permits you to focus on your core competencies.

Need some help getting started? At Employer Solutions Plus, we represent the “best of” in HR Offloading, PEO Strategies, Payroll Only Solutions, Health Insurance Options / Employee Benefits and Ancillary Benefit Programs.

Contact us to get started!

The Importance of Talent Management Software in the Healthcare Industry

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Strep throat in room 4, a sprained ankle in room 6, a nose bleed in 7, and a sick infant in 3. If you’re the owner of a medical practice, talent management is probably the last thing on your mind today. However, without it you risk having a practice that lacks quality care.

Talent management software is an important tool for every industry, but especially important for those within the healthcare industry. As doctors, every minute you have with a patient counts. You don’t have time for administrative and hiring headaches, do you?

Talent management software helps healthcare organizations acquire, develop, assess and retain the best workforce possible.  This maximizes the quality and efficiency of patient care by constantly recruiting team members that are engaged, competent and experienced. Oh – And cost effective!

Just some of the capabilities of talent management software include new applicant tracking, on-boarding, performance management, reference checking, physician recruiting and candidate sourcing. Some software programs even have the ability to manage, track and report on compliance, ensuring that your practice (and employees) operate with as minimal risk as possible.

The want and need for talent management software within this industry is clear. But, is it affordable? At Employer Solutions Plus, we often recommend bundling the benefits of talent management software into a co-employment relationship with a PEO. Knowing that you need multiple vendors surrounding your practice (i.e. a talent management software provider, health insurance, workers compensation, and payroll), it only makes sense to bundle these services under one employee management umbrella: a PEO.

By relying on one service provider for all of your outsourcing needs, you’re able to limit the amount of time you spend working outside of your core competencies, but you can also significantly decrease the amount of time you’d normally spend interacting with vendors.

For more information on talent management software and other employee-related management solutions, contact Employer Solutions Plus. We’ll help you determine which areas of your business require the most attention, and whether or not those areas are a good fit for a single vendor or a PEO.

When is the Best Time To Switch to a PEO?

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Whether you’re a company looking to engage in a PEO contract for the first time, or a company that already works with a PEO but is looking to make a switch, timing is everything!

It is a common misunderstanding that PEO contracts need to begin on January 1. If companies wait for the next calendar year, they could waste months overpaying for services, experiencing dissatisfaction, or outgrowing a vendor.

However there are a few red flags that are worth paying attention to, so that money is not lost or wasted when making a switch. Here are just a few:

  • Payroll Tax Restarts: You must be careful to avoid payroll tax restarts. Sometimes the amount of money put toward State Unemployment, Social Security, Medicare, and other taxes to date can be forfeited.
  • Health Insurance: With a health insurance switch, the amount of deductible that employees have paid to date with another health insurance provider can be forfeited. While this won’t necessarily be an upset for you as the business owner, but it may result in several disgruntled employees!
  • Anything Paid in Advance or Deposits Made: Did you make a deposit on workers compensation insurance? Do you pay any insurance premiums one month in advance? These are important things to look at so that you don’t have an overlap of services (or costs) when starting with a new provider.

While the above mentioned items are worth paying attention to, they aren’t worth scaring you away from a new PEO contract. Did you know that some PEOs offer credits for taxes already paid? That’s right, even if you have put money toward SUTA or other taxes, you can be “reimbursed” by your new PEO. Employer Solutions Plus can identify the most convenient (but also the most cost-effective) time frame for making the switch! Need some help? Contact us today!

 

5 Reminders for Avoiding Wrongful Termination

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Terminating an employee can be an awkward (and stressful) task. But, as a business owner you’ve got more important things to worry about: compliance.

As if the need to terminate someone wasn’t a difficult enough situation in itself, a wrongful termination claim can quickly take things from bad to worse…a lot worse!

We remind all employers to run down the following checklist before pursuing termination:

  1. Documentation: Do you have the proper documentation to support your credibility and the need for termination? All past incidents, behavioral issues, and performance issues should be documented within the employee’s file.
  2. Warnings: So, you’ve documented incidents – does your employee know that these incidents were documented? Were they given a verbal or written warning prior to termination? Even if it was a verbal warning, the details of the verbal warning need to be documented.
  3. Private Room: The termination meeting should be scheduled in a room or private area separate from other employees. This will help avoid drawing the attention of other employees and will reduce the likelihood of interruption, but more importantly it will not risk creating a situation where the employee leaves feeling ashamed, mistreated, or embarrassed in front of co-workers. In addition to securing a private location, scheduling a termination meeting at the end of the day will ensure that the employee does not need to pack up their things and exit in front of others.
  4. Witness: Never terminate someone on your own. Always have another person from HR or management accompany you. This will eliminate any issues that may arise concerning his or her word against yours.
  5. Consistency: Have you fired someone in the past for this particular reason? Have you been consistent in enforcing the “rules” outlined within your employee handbook? You cannot fire one employee and keep another one on staff that has violated the same rule(s).

For more information on hiring and firing, visit our hiring and firing section within this blog. If you have any questions, contact us directly at Employer Solutions Plus!