HR Consulting Firms for Small Businesses: 15 Leading Experts

Effective human resources policies are probably one of the most important investments that any small business can make in its ability to continue growing! Especially true for small businesses, employee retention and buy-in are crucial elements needed to grow sustainably.

We’ve written before on the purpose of compensation consulting and some top providers in that space. Today, we’ll be doing the same for the much broader category of human resources consulting for small businesses. Here’s what we’ll cover:

• A quick overview of HR for small businesses
• Top HR consulting firms by specialty
• How to choose an HR consultant for your business

Use the list above to jump to a specific section, or follow along from the top. We’ll start with a quick overview of human resources management and the options available to small businesses.

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First, what are the essential functions that an HR professional or service provider should cover?

Common Types of HR Services for Small Businesses

As a general category of operations at your business, human resources encompasses a very wide range of essential activities, touching on compliance, long-term strategic planning, and every part of the employee lifecycle.

Human resources management typically includes the following core responsibilities:

• Recruitment and onboarding/training
• Compensation, payroll, and benefits management
• Internal communications
• Retention and internal culture
• Employee development
• Labor relations and compliance
• Related record-keeping and documentation

The area of compliance can itself be a particularly complicated category to navigate on your own without extensive knowledge of the landscape. Anti-discrimination laws, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, social security policies, OSHA requirements, and more are all essential areas of compliance that HR services can support.

In addition, it’s important to remember that a company’s culture and various internal policies all have a significant, combined impact on employee retention and engagement. Especially for growing businesses and start-ups, it can be very easy to lose sight of the bigger picture and risk derailing your team. For sustainable growth and team buy-in, a big-picture strategy managed by dedicated HR professionals or service providers will be key. 

For a thorough overview of the purpose and functions of human resources for small businesses, check out the Small Business Administration’s introductory course.

Who provides HR services?

There are a number of ways that a growing business can tackle the core HR functions listed previously:

• Hiring an in-house HR professional or team. This should be any business’s long-term goal. However, the resources needed to build out a new department are often prohibitive for small and growing organizations, at least in their first several years of operation.
• Working with a human resources consultant. A third-party HR expert can provide specialized support around the specific areas that your business needs help with. Hiring an expert is typically the best choice for long-term success. Consultants can also provide and configure talent management software to help your in-house HR team streamline its work.
• Outsourcing or contracting with an external HR service. This category includes a number of different options. You might hire a dedicated HR service to fully support your company remotely, or you could use web-based HR services to handle specific aspects, like payroll and benefits.

This article will walk through a few top providers of HR services, consultation, and strategy development for small businesses, along with their particular specialties.

When should a small business outsource its HR tasks?

Outsourcing your HR tasks by contracting an external service or hiring a consulting firm is typically a smart move for small businesses. The various areas of human resources management all need attention in order to build a sustainable, compliant company with an engaged team. However, there are a few pros and cons to stay aware of when it comes to seeking outside support:

Benefits of hiring external HR support:

• Filling gaps — A consultant or HR service can complete essential tasks and provide resources and expertise that you don’t have in-house.
• Efficiency — External support can get essential HR work done faster and more correctly than an inexperienced internal team.
• Buy-in — Recommendations from third-party experts typically get more favorable buy-in from leadership than proposals from employees.
• Objectivity — A consultant will provide a more objective, external perspective when helping to identify issues and develop new strategies for your HR operations.
• Avoiding major risk — Professional, certified HR support will help you avoid the potential major legal risks of handling HR on your own incorrectly. 

Potential drawbacks of outsourcing your HR functions:

• Costs — Working with a consultant can be a significant one-time expense, and using other services or software will be an even longer recurring cost. Plus, working with a consultant will require an ongoing investment of your time and input to be truly effective.
• Misalignment — A third-party expert or service might not fully understand your goals or sector. This often occurs to nonprofits looking for HR support.
• Potential risks — Your business is still liable for the legal implications of incorrect HR work, and web-based services always run the risk of hacks and privacy violations.

It’s very important to carefully talk through your goals, priorities, and concerns with any potential HR consultants or third-party services you might hire for your small business. We’ll cover this process in more depth in the last section of this article.

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Top HR Consulting Firms for Small Businesses by Specialty

Now, let’s walk through the leading experts who provide human resources for small businesses. These top picks include both traditional consulting firms, outsourced HR services, and web-based HR tools, so this list can give you a good sense of the wide range of options out there:

• Astron Solutions — Best full-service HR support
• Bambee — Best for businesses on a budget
• Active Strategy — Best for team development
• Remedy Intelligent Staffing — Best for recruitment
• Alliant — Best for benefits solutions
• SevenStar HR — Best for engagement strategy
• HR Works — Best for affirmative action planning
• Employera — Best for employer branding
• Jumpstart HR — Best for HR coaching
• Employers Advantage — Best for handbook development
• Zenefits — Best for streamlined onboarding
• Personnel Planners — Best for unemployment management
• Gusto — Best for payroll support
• Sequoia — Best for tech start-ups
• Vensure — Best for custom support packages

Use the list above to jump to a particular entry, or browse along from the top. Let’s get started:

1. Astron Solutions

Best Full-Service HR Consulting Firm for Small Businesses

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Astron Solutions is a full-service HR consulting firm whose approach is ideal for small businesses. With 20 years of experience working with businesses and nonprofit organizations across a wide variety of sectors and contexts, they understand that no two organizations are alike.

They understand that a flexible, customized approach will always be the smarter move when it comes to developing new human resources processes and solutions. Astron Solutions’ expertise and industry insights around compensation, retention, and engagement (and the complex ways in which they interact) can help your organization build a stronger HR foundation for growth.

Astron Solutions’ Top HR Services

Astron Solutions offers a full range of human resources consulting services, including:

• Full human resources consulting, customized to address the particular needs, challenges, and goals of each business
• Total Rewards compensation consulting, including executive compensation and strategy development
• Custom compensation and HR survey development, execution, and analysis
• The Flare® Talent Management Suite, a cloud-based platform to streamline your HR processes

Main Takeaway

With a fully-customized approach to each client’s unique needs and human resources goals (plus over 20 years experience in the space!), Astron Solutions is a top choice for any small business or growing organization.

Reach out to Astron Solutions to discuss your human resources challenges.

2. Bambee

Best HR Consulting Firm for Small Businesses on a Budget

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Bambee offers remote HR support for small businesses that can’t afford to hire their own dedicated, in-house team just yet.

Its full range of basic HR services and its very approachable price point ($99/month) makes it a great supplementary option for growing businesses. Remember, when it comes to HR compliance, it’s rarely a good idea to handle it completely on your own.

Bambee’s Top HR Services

Bambee offers remote support in a number of HR areas, including:

• HR policy development, implementation, and management
• Compliant employee onboarding and termination support
• Coaching and guidance from a dedicated HR expert
• Full guidance on labor regulations and compliance

Main Takeaway

Bambee’s motto is “HR policy shouldn’t be left to Google,” and we couldn’t agree more! With affordable, remote HR support available from providers like Bambee, even the smallest of businesses can rest assured knowing their policies are fully compliant.

Explore Bambee’s full range of remote support offerings and features.

3. Active Strategy

Best HR Consulting Firm for Team Development

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Active Strategy is a leading HR consulting firm focused on team building and leadership development for businesses of all sizes. As a company grows, fostering growth and leadership from within is probably one of the most effective investments to make for its long-term success.

Active Strategy’s customized coaching services could be the perfect way to boost your organization’s team spirit or refine your management’s skillsets.

Active Strategy’s Top HR Services

Active Strategy focuses on a core set of HR services:

• Leadership development and training to boost employee satisfaction, delegation skills, and team efficiency
• Career coaching to invest even more personalized training and support for your company’s key players

Main Takeaway

Supporting and developing the human aspect of your business is one of the most important functions of any HR department! Active Strategy’s personalized services are perfect for businesses that want to seriously invest in their teams’ development.

Explore Active Strategy’s team and leadership development offerings.

4. Remedy Intelligent Staffing

Best HR Consulting Firm for Recruitment

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Supporting recruitment or hiring is an essential human resources function, and Remedy Intelligent Staffing stands out as a leader in the space for small businesses. They place equal value on assessing skills, behavior, and integrity to give you a complete view of your candidates.

With unique screening technologies and a proven approach, this consulting firm can provide the recruitment resources your team needs to grow smarter than ever.

Remedy Intelligent Staffing’s Top HR Services

Remedy Intelligent Staffing can support your recruitment goals in a number of ways:

• Candidate screening services, including skills-based and behavioral assessments
• Staffing services drawing from a pool of top talent
• Workforce management, specializing in high-volume and seasonal sectors

Main Takeaway

Recruitment is one of the central tasks of an HR professional and one of the most impactful areas of HR, too. Working with experts to learn the ropes of candidate screening is always a smart move for growing businesses.

Learn more about Remedy Intelligent Staffing’s approach to recruitment.

5. Alliant

Best HR Consulting Firm for Benefits Solutions

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Alliant is a leading HR consulting firm focused solely on helping businesses develop, refine, and manage their benefits packages.

The benefits that your small business provides employees are a crucial element of their overall compensation, what we call the Total Rewards that you offer. Striking the right balance of benefits, workplace atmosphere, and direct compensation can support your HR goals and fuel new levels of engagement and retention across your team.

Alliant’s Top HR Services

Alliant offers a number of specific services under the broader umbrella of benefits solution design:

• General benefits strategy and implementation
• Health, wellness, and productivity-focused strategy development
• Industry benefits benchmarking for your company’s sector and size
• Benefits compliance and absence, disability, and life insurance support

Main Takeaway

Offering your employees a supportive array of benefits will generate stronger engagement and long-term success for your business. If you’re a new employer, though, navigating all the benefits options and compliance requirements can be a challenge without expert help from a firm like Alliant.

Explore Alliant’s full range of benefits consulting services.

6. SevenStar HR

Best HR Consulting Firm for Engagement Strategy

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Keeping employees highly engaged with their work is essential, especially for smaller teams. HR consulting firm SevenStar HR specializes in developing customized employee engagement strategies for businesses of all sizes.

With their “Five Cs” approach (in which employee engagement is gauged on whether or not they’re consistent, cooperative, committed, conscientious, and curious), this firm can help you create an actionable strategy for strengthening your team and deepening engagement across the board.

SevenStar HR’s Top HR Services

SevenStar HR focuses their offerings largely around helping businesses boost their employee engagement:

• Engagement assessments and strategy development to improve or maintain levels
• Compliance review and corrective plan development
• Training programs, including communication, anti-harassment and -discrimination, and leadership

Main Takeaway

Stable employee engagement is a prerequisite for success, especially if your team is small and works very closely together. Guidance, training, and strategy development might be the right move if your business is growing and you want to ensure that your engagement rates stay healthy.

Learn more about SevenStar HR’s engagement-focused consulting services.

7. HR Works

Best HR Consulting Firm for Affirmative Action Planning

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Affirmative action compliance is a crucial concern for HR departments in some organizations and sectors. HR Works is a leading consulting firm that specializes in developing customized, long-term affirmative action plans for organizations of all sizes.

With over 25 years of experience in the field, this consulting firm is your best bet for complete compliance in a plan that your business can rely on over the long run.

HR Works’ Top HR Services

HR Works’ key services include:

• Affirmative action plan design and implementation
• OFCCP audit support and federal reporting
• Training and support for long-term affirmative action compliance

Main Takeaway

If your organization is required to comply with affirmative action requirements, you can put way too much on the line if you risk handling it on your own. Working with an experienced expert is the best way to ensure success.

Check out HR Works’ affirmative action compliance and support services.

8. Employera

Best HR Consulting Firm for Employer Branding

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Employera understands that for some sectors, your brand and identity as an employer are everything when it comes to engagement and recruitment.

For many types of businesses today, developing a distinct, authentic employer brand is an essential part of success, and it can play a huge role in how quickly and sustainably you’re able to scale up your operations.

Employera’s Top HR Services

Employera’s key consultation services to support employer branding include:

• Brand assessment and strategy development
• Employer value proposition and messaging strategy
• PR strategy, support, and training
• Community engagement campaigns

Main Takeaway

A lot goes into how potential employees, current employees, and customers see your small business. Working with an HR consulting firm early in your brand development can give your team a leg up and an effective roadmap as you grow.

Check out Employera’s full range of employer branding services.

9. Jumpstart HR

Best HR Consulting Firm for HR Coaching

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Whether you need a quick strategy adjustment or help to develop a long-term plan for your business’s human resources, Jumpstart HR is the perfect resource to support your existing HR professional or department.

Their customized packages can support nearly any issue or development challenge that your human resources department has been facing and lay out an actionable plan for moving forward.

Jumpstart HR’s Top HR Services

Jumpstart HR’s coaching and strategy development services include:

• Legal compliance support for brand new businesses
• Strategic administration HR services to ensure alignment with broader goals
• Leadership and culture development and coaching for management and HR leaders

Main Takeaway

HR is a broad category of operations, and the challenges your small business faces could take any number of forms. Flexible support from a consulting firm that can give you answers quickly is never a bad partner to have on your side.

Explore the full range of support packages from Jumpstart HR.

10. Employers Advantage

Best HR Consulting Firm for Handbook Development

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Employers Advantage is a leading HR service for employee handbook creation and company policy development.

Working with an expert to develop and standardize your first set of company policies will go a long way to create a stable HR foundation for continued growth down the line.

Employers Advantage’s Top HR Services

Employers Advantage offers a number of services centered around helping get your HR processes up and running, including:

• Custom employee handbook development
• Support for initial policy development and compliance
• Investigations and documentation of claims

Main Takeaway

Setting up your business’s first set of HR policies and procedures can be overwhelming. Firms like Employers Advantage specialize in simplifying what is otherwise an extremely complicated process.

Check out Employers Advantage’s handbook development service.

11. Zenefits

Best HR Consulting Firm for Streamlined Onboarding

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Your employee onboarding process sets the tone for the whole span of your engagement with that employee. Work with a leading platform like Zenefits to ensure that the tone you set is the right one that doesn’t waste an employee’s time or overwhelm them on their first day.

Small businesses increasingly turn to online platforms like this HR service because they offer some of the more affordable and scalable onboarding methods out there.

Zenefits’ Top HR Services

The onboarding features of the Zenefits platform include:

• Streamlined offer letter management, with included templates
• Self-onboarding for new hires, including digital W-4s and I-9s
• Automated onboarding workflows and other key employee events
• PTO management and tracking

Main Takeaway

As an online HR platform, Zenefits is a particularly good choice if your business has struggled in the past with offering new employees a streamlined, intuitive, and uncomplicated onboarding process.

Check out the full set of features on the Zenefits platform.

12. Personnel Planners

Best HR Consulting Firm for Unemployment Management

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Planning ahead and developing a strategy for covering your business’s unemployment insurance and related needs is crucial. Personnel Planners is a top consulting firm to help your business and existing HR department develop actionable steps for handling insurance claims and audits.

No growing business should get derailed because of an entangling unemployment issue! Plan ahead, or at least call in expert help if you need it.

Personnel Planners’ Top HR Services

Personnel Planners’ top unemployment management services include:

• Supervisor training and pre-termination guidance
• Claims processing, hearing preparation, and representation
• Record maintenance and management with online tools

Main Takeaway

One mistake around how your business handles a termination or prepares its unemployment strategies can put a serious hold on your growth. Working with an expert guide before or during any issues that arise is a smart move.

Check out all of Personnel Planners’ unemployment management services.

13. Gusto

Best HR Consulting Firm for Payroll Support

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Gusto is a leading online HR platform designed to help small businesses easily outsource their core HR functions.

Payroll is probably one of the most important tasks that HR departments handle, so an automated online tool for payroll has to be up to par. Gusto leads the pack with its intuitive features and easy-to-use design.

Gusto’s Top HR Services

The Gusto platform contains a number of key payroll features, including:

• Complete automation of payroll, including filing payroll taxes
• Comprehensive support and personalized payroll guidance
• Included benefits management and time tracking features

Main Takeaway

Gusto makes it incredibly easy for small businesses to get up and running with the most essential HR features quickly. It’s a smart choice for any growing organization.

Explore Gusto’s full set of payroll features and tools.

14. Sequoia

Best HR Consulting Firm for Tech Startups

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Consulting firms will often specialize in a very specific market where their insights and experience truly give them an edge. When it comes to HR development and support for rapidly growing tech startups, Sequoia leads the pack.

They understand that handling every HR task in-house can become extremely burdensome to companies that are quickly growing, and their services are geared towards supporting clients’ growth however possible.

Sequoia’s Top HR Services

Sequoia offers a full range of key HR services, including:

• Benefits package design and 401(k) management
• Risk management and compliance
• Health and wellbeing support and strategy
• Full HR outsourcing for growing organizations

Main Takeaway

As an organization grows, it becomes increasingly critical that it handles every key HR task properly. This is especially true once you surpass 50 employees. Sequoia tailors its services and approach specifically to firms that are rapidly approaching that benchmark and need stable HR support fast.

Check out Sequoia’s approach to supporting businesses with 0-100 employees.

15. Vensure

Best HR Consulting Firm for Custom Packages

Overview of this HR Consulting Firm for Small Business

Sometimes, a small business has completely unique human resources needs. That’s where a consulting service like Vensure becomes particularly useful.

Vensure provides a full range of outsourced HR services, available in customizable packages and pre-configured for businesses of all different sizes.

Vensure’s Top HR Services

Vensure’s core HR services include:

• Scalable PEO services
• Full-service outsourced HR options
• Benefits and payroll management
• Risk management and compliance

Main Takeaway

Offering both preset and customizable packages of HR services make it easy for small businesses to quickly get set up with the essential functions they need. Vensure is a great option to consider for customized packages of HR tools.

Check out Vensure’s full range of HR services for small businesses.

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How to Choose and Hire an HR Consulting Firm

If you’ve decided to hire an HR consulting firm or another HR service, there are a few important steps you should follow. This is especially true for smaller businesses that haven’t yet worked with a consultant or needed to make major arrangements with a third-party vendor. Follow this general outline of steps:

1. Define your needs. Why do you need the services of an HR consultant? There’s likely a very specific issue that needs addressing or a gap in your current HR processes that needs resolving. Or you might simply not have any HR policies in place yet and need to develop some. Clearly defining your needs will focus the scope of your engagement with a consultant and give them a better idea of your needs.
2. Discuss with key stakeholders. Make sure your whole leadership team is on board with hiring an HR consultant or external service. For small businesses, this might just be one or two people, but a unified understanding of your HR needs will still prevent confusion, wasted time, or pushback down the line once you’ve committed.
3. Outline your guidelines. This means laying out in concrete terms what you expect from your engagement with a consultant or other third-party service. The most important guidelines to consider are the general budget, start date, and timeframe of the project. You’ll need these later when you begin reaching out to candidates.
4. Begin your research. Start looking for candidates using resources like this article or asking peers in other organizations about their experiences with HR consulting. The SHRM vendor directory is a reliable and official resource for this step.
5. Draft an RFP (or request demos). Put together a request for proposal detailing your needs and specific guidelines. Check out the RFP template on our guide to hiring a compensation consultant for nonprofits for an example of what an effective RFP should contain. Your candidates will use this information to put together a customized strategy for your business. If you’re considering using an external or web-based HR service, reach out to request demos and to discuss your needs. Take careful notes on which services offer which features and functions.
6. Compare the candidates. After submitting your RFP to a shortlist of candidates, carefully review their responses with your leadership team. Do any stand out as particularly well-suited to your needs? Reach out directly to discuss any additional questions you have, and begin comparing the candidates to one another.
7. Make your pick. After fully researching each candidate, checking in with their references, and reviewing their proposals (or demos of their web-based services), make your pick! One will likely stand out as the best bet. Remember that HR solutions and strategies require highly flexible and customized approaches, so avoid proposals that seem too one-size-fits-all.

Understanding HRCI Certifications

Since HR consulting can involve complex, serious, and very consequential elements that will directly affect your employees, you’ll need to make sure your potential consultants are certified. The HR Certification Institute, or HRCI, is the central credentialing organization in the space and works to set measurable and rigorous standards for HR professionals.

It’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the different certification levels offered by HRCI and to look for those credentials in your candidates. Explore HRCI’s official certifications here.

Additional Questions to Ask Your Candidates

Finally, let’s review some questions that may be useful to ask your potential consultants or other vendors. During the research, RFP, and comparison process, it’s essential that you gauge whether or not their services will be a good fit with your goals, team, and internal culture. Use this list of questions to start brainstorming your own:

• What’s your experience with this type of project or with this industry/sector?
• How have you flexibly adapted to unforeseen obstacles or roadblocks in the past?
• Who on your team will be assigned to work with us on this project?
• What does your current typical client look like?
• How long have you been in the business?
• What’s your projected timeline for this type of project?
• What separates you from other vendors we’re exploring?
• What are your standard or typical payment terms?
• Will you sign an NDA?

Of course, remember to ask for references, as well. Direct testimonials and feedback from other businesses like yours can be some of the most useful information to have during the selection process.

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Choosing and hiring an HR consultant for your small business is a major decision and a huge investment for continued growth. Whether you need to build out your first set of HR policies, get support for the HR essentials like payroll and benefits, audit your compliance status, or address a very specific HR issue that’s arisen, a consultant can help.

Keep familiarizing yourself with the space and researching top providers. For more, check out our other consulting resources for additional tips and strategies:

• Top Compensation Consulting Firms for Any Sector. Compensation, generally a subset of HR, is an extremely complex area to tackle on your own! These top experts can help you develop new strategies.
• Choose a Nonprofit Human Resources Consultant: A Quick Guide. For nonprofit organizations, the process is fairly similar to that followed by small businesses. Learn more with this guide.
• HR-Related Finance Terms Made Simple. In-house HR staff might not be fully familiar with some of the essential finance terms you’ll need to discuss. Bookmark this resource.