PEO Consulting Firms
Ok, let’s start off right off the bat discussing the difference between looking for expertise from a consulting firm and a broker.
Both generally imply that there is a cost you must pay for their services vs. going directly to a seller (in this case a PEO), but in fact, that is not necessarily the case at all.
A consulting firm charges fees upfront. In the PEO world, however, there are very few, if any PEO consulting companies that have enough clients in your space, size, industry, nor location to have the experience and comprehension of the marketplace to allow them to make a sound decision for you.
Maybe you can find one, but we wouldn’t recommend gambling with such an important decision.
That leaves you with either going direct or using a broker when you are shopping for a PEO.
Here’s a simple, straightforward answer – going direct means you will not get honest, unbiased answers about that PEO’s salespeople. Their employer PEO is the only thing they can sell. They also add on a lot of money for themselves when you use the direct PEO salesforce (e.g. You respond to their ads -> you get trapped into this retail priced model).
And when you go directly to different PEOs you’ll get a different form from each and then they’ll drive you crazy getting quotes, while they all keep asking the same questions over and over again. And then you’ll drive yourself crazy trying to compare them all – since they all have such a different way to present everything!
It will take entirely too long, and by the time you finally have answers your renewal will have come and gone, and you’ll have wasted most of your time. That’s the unfortunate truth.
The other possibility is that you will pick one that you liked and then partner with them, only to find out things (sometimes pretty bad or expensive things) you should’ve and you didn’t know to ask before you agreed and committed to them. Maybe it’ll be OK, maybe it won’t, but the cost of picking the wrong PEO for the wrong reasons is big and can be really bad, trust us on this one.
So that leaves you with using a Broker, and you may think we are biased because we’re brokers too- but the truth is we’re brokers because we believe everything we’re about to say.
- Shopping on your own is an incredibly time-consuming and confusing experience.
- Brokers save you money vs going direct.
- We know the real costs the PEO can charge.
- We cut out the direct rep fees (25% additional then through some brokers).
- We have wholesale pricing .
- We hear from all of our clients, the good and the bad about each PEO so we can share that information with you to help you make a more informed decision. The direct reps obviously won’t tell you what is bad about them.
- Brokers save you time while helping to shield you from the seemingly endless questions AND forms of all the different PEO sales reps and underwriters.
- Also, brokers know the right people to help while also knowing how to get leverage, getting you the best possible rates and services at each PEO.
One of the most important things is that your brokers should know is – which of the 700 to 900 out there are the best to look at for you. They are all so very different EVEN THOUGH THEY ALL SOUND THE SAME.
We know just going to the top five (because the advertiser appears to be great) seems like a great plan, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be great for you compared to other PEOs that either isn’t as big or don’t have the money to advertise. Even if the top five or 10 all seem to be the right company, you will overpay if you go direct.
A great broker will make sure you get the modules, implementation team, and Service team upfront, and brokers do know the right people and right PEO‘s out of the 700 to 900 out there that will make your life better in the future.
Most importantly what a broker does is not just save you money and time doing the comparisons and telling you the intangible truths, they also make sure you don’t make a wrong decision.
Ok, so if using a broker is the best direction then how do you go about finding the right PEO broker?
Well, there is actually a big difference between Peo brokers.
There are those that are used to be reps at PEOs and quit or got fired and have a little company.
There are those that were payroll reps and were fired or independent insurance agents that stopped.
Or you have insurance brokers that pretend to be PEO reps.
Although it sounds like it’s the same business, it’s a totally different industry that also includes benefits, so they think they know what they’re doing. Different contacts, different everything.
We know this very well if you take a second to read the About section and Our Story you’ll see that the owner of ThePEOPeople.com started and built two of the biggest insurance brokerage firms in the country.
We really know that a PEO brokerage firm is actually very different than an insurance agency, and it took us years of learning and experience to understand that.
Your broker most likely does not really understand that, and that’s actually why brokers come through us to help them figure it out. (see the FAQ on this)
PEO Consultant, PEO Consulting Company, or PEO Consulting Firm
So, what is a PEO consultant or PEO consulting company or PEO consulting firm?
Well in most industries consulting companies generally charge fees and provide canned answers. They have a list of questions and a list of answers that go to those questions, and you usually get some type of generic or automated response when you want to go deeper into what’s included with these fees.
PEO consulting services may seem complex or confusing, but what we really are is a bridge. There are companies that want to help the businesses they work with get the best programs for their employees, and businesses who want their employees to be taken care of and their business to be secure – and we connect the two and eliminate the stress and headaches of trying to figure out who to trust.
We’ve been doing it for years, DECADES even. We know the ins and outs of PEOs and collaborating with them to ensure the best of both worlds, keeping you from being taken advantage of (especially since you usually don’t realize you are until it’s too late). With us, you’re dealing with real, experienced PEO consultants that know what they’re doing & know how to do it.
Our team has always been a brokerage company. We don’t charge fees and only earn our money if we find options that are great for you. We don’t just sign clients to get paid off of fees, we genuinely care about getting the best for you and the people you’re responsible for taking care of. Our PEO Consulting services are designed around simple aligned objectives with you and your company.
It’s not billable hours and time – it’s results we deliver, or we don’t get paid. We aren’t into PEO consulting for the money, we’re into it for the better options we’re able to get for businesses to take care of their employees, the better conditions their workers are able to secure for them. Better conditions mean better moods, better moods mean better work, better work means more profit & sales – so basically just making one small change and selecting the right PEO can be a snowball effect that can advance your company.
We are Objective. We are in this for one thing, to help businesses take better care of their people. We are PEO Consulting done right – not caring about the vendor, but only caring about our clients. We are into negotiating and getting the best deal, not just spreadsheeting and putting you on a client list – but getting together with you and talking about the real practical truth in each of the cells of a spreadsheet and the best way to get the plans that do the most for you.
All that being said beware of those companies that are PEO consulting services and charge for overly academic analysis, sometimes all of those big words and terms are meant to confuse and distract you from the fact that they really don’t know what they’re talking about in-depth.
If someone can’t explain their services to you in a way that a 5th grader can understand, there’s a good chance they don’t understand it enough themselves and are just repeating what they heard from somewhere else. Which would you rather have – someone trying to fool you with complex charts and big phrases, or the straightforward real experience and practical answers of multiple clients with multiple PEO’s with YEARS in the business?
The choice is obvious, isn’t it?
So, the quick bottom line conclusion:
PEO consultants are basically not a thing, going directly to the reps will drive you crazy and you will overpay while not getting all the services and modules you could have.
We know everybody thinks that if you go direct it’ll save you money, but I’m here to tell you it absolutely will not! Let me repeat that – going direct to the PEO versus using a broker can cost you up to 25% more!! Don’t get caught in the retail channel and start dealing with the direct reps (see the FAQ on this).
So, if you’re shopping for a PEO you should use a PEO Broker and you should only pick a broker that is big, has clout, has an infrastructure, and that only deals in the PEO brokers business…. hmm, who ever could that be – oh right, it’s us!.
We are ThePEOPeople.com, and we take the stress, time and effort out of finding the right PEO.
