Nearly half of all small businesses fail in the first four years. In light of this bleak statistic, you might think a Human Resources department would cut into a startup’s bottom line before it has a chance to get past the starting line. Not so! A solid Human Resources foundation can actually help your startup avoid costly deficiencies. It will also make your business more productive and responsive to changing business needs. So really, your startup desperately needs an HR solution at “Go,” or else you’re setting yourself up to join those 4-year failures.

HR Solutions for Startups

The sturdiest HR foundation is based on best practices, fits your business’ size and culture, and is flexible enough to grow with you. Don’t worry—setting clear HR expectations won’t make your company any less cool, and you can still leave the hoodies and Chucks in the dress code. A flexible HR strategy will offer your startup structure, mitigate risk, and set your team off on the right foot, while letting your growing business work the way you need it to. Here’s how HR helps out:

• Talent acquisition. The right talent can help your business thrive! Yet businesses fail 23 percent of the time because they can’t attract or keep the right talent. Solid HR can help you attract the right employees for your business needs and your company culture, as well as teach you strategies to keep them on board.
• Employee development. Employees who receive training and career development feel happier, stay with the company longer, and presumably bring more competitive skills to the industry. Identify what training and development your employees need, when they need it, and then have that training delivered in your offices.
• Policy setting. Part of that structure we talked about comes from clear HR policies. Even startups can use an employee handbook! So HR will create the right policies for your business around attendance, performance reviews, discipline, internet use, dress code, PTO, benefits, and more.
• Record keeping. If you’re running a startup, you have better things to do than push paper. But HR is responsible for a lot of sensitive information, including performance reviews, PTO tracking, W-4s and I-9s, and so much more—not an area where you want to make a mistake.
• Legal compliance. HR keeps up with the latest rules and regulations to keep your business in legal compliance—a scary and potentially costly area to ignore because your attention is where it should be, on driving business growth. The last thing you need is a lawsuit sinking your startup. HR keeps up on the latest regulations so you don’t have to.

A Go-To HR resource like YES! Your Human Resources Solution can steer your HR strategy so you can focus on driving business results. Our team partners with senior management to identify opportunities, uncover solutions, and focus your team on meeting business goals. Just look at this real-life example of our team in action:

A VISION FOR THE FUTURE: A consumer product start-up company was growing fast, but without a clear and consistent corporate structure. Employees couldn’t see the bright future at the end of this haphazard tunnel.

YES! Solution: Met with the CEO and senior management to evolve a clear vision of the company’s future. Prepared for growth by analyzing business needs and designing an adaptable corporate structure, which included implementing a key leadership hire, an efficient HR foundation, and clear job descriptions for all employees.

No matter the business, a solid Human Resources foundation is always important to a successful organization. At YES!, our Go-To HR resource is available by phone, email, and on-site office visits to handle project work, employee relations, staffing, and workforce planning. Project management is ongoing and often done off-site, making YES! Go-To HR a true model of flexible resourcing. Plus we love working with startups and early-stage companies!

Contact us for a free consultation to discover how your startup business can leverage the power of saying YES!