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When Is the Right Time To Hire Employees?

by Lisa K. Stephenson

Scaling a business is usually the most important thing for brand owners, whether it involves hiring employees, ordering more inventory, or simply expanding. But where is the capital?

Image Credit: We Are / Getty Images


HIRING EMPLOYEES

On the surface, hiring employees may seem like the best move for your business, but few discuss the actual costs associated with having employees. If you hire someone and pay them a $30,000 annual income, you are subjected to the same taxes as your staff member.


In simple terms, both the employer and the employee are responsible for paying social security and Medicare taxes. Employers must also pay federal and state unemployment taxes. Employers pay 6.2% of each employee’s wages for social security taxes, and employees must match that same 6.2%.


Both the employer and the employee are each responsible for contributing 1.45% of an employee’s wages, amounting to a total of 2.9%. When you're an entrepreneur with employees, taxation comes into play; when you're self-employed, it does not. The first step in deciding to start a business is to understand your role in the business to ensure correct tax payments. Many people are misinformed and may fall behind on taxes, owing the IRS hundreds, if not millions, in unpaid taxes.


The right time to hire employees is when you have a profitable business and can afford to do so. Remember, essentially, you're paying the state and government to have people work for you. This is why it's important to do your due diligence and be very meticulous with the hiring process. Many individuals complain about the hiring process for certain jobs, but the reality is that having employees is expensive. Employers must take these precautionary measures to ensure they are hiring the right people for the job.


CUSTOMER SERVICE

If you’ve managed to build a successful business and want to ensure that your customers receive excellent customer service, training your employees to understand this great importance is necessary and will cost more. Taking into account the price for training, coaching, transportation, employees wanting to feel celebrated in the workplace (no pizza parties), and overall, culture. It’s unfortunate to think that many employers do not factor in these things, which ultimately leads employees to become lazy, disinterested, rude, and belligerent to customers and/or guests.


Service workers have jokingly made content online where they pretend to have a dramatic breakdown when a customer or client says, “I’m never coming back here again.” While this may seem amusing at first, it is overall detrimental to a company. Losing one customer can be equivalent to losing an employee. These employees don’t understand that employers pay a lot of money to keep them on the payroll.

  • Healthcare

  • 401K

  • Bonuses

  • Training

  • Payroll fees + taxes

Are just some of the things employers have to invest in to have a functioning team.


RELEASING CONTROL

No one, and I mean no one, will ever be as passionate about your business as you are; therefore, you cannot expect someone to take as much pride as you will. As an entrepreneur who now writes and handles marketing for other companies after building three successful businesses, I can say with confidence that it took a lot of trust, a revolving door, and patience to find the team I have today.


We employ over 75 individuals and have managed to foster and nurture an environment where everyone feels heard, understood, needed, and prioritized. The work culture is great, but it took many years to get here. Nothing happened overnight.


Patience is key when you’re ready to outsource responsibilities for your company. Another thing to note, please do not spend extra money paying for recruiters or job posting websites like Zip recruiter. It’s a waste of capital that could go towards nurturing your job environment. Websites like Indeed, without sponsorship, work just fine. I only recommend doing a deep dive online to make sure you're completing the job description thoroughly and it’s attractive to potential candidates.


WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR WHEN EXAMINING A POTENTIAL CANDIDATE’S RESUME?

Patricia Donaldson, ASIAS Brands Human Resource Manager, says, “I immediately delete resumes that are emailed as a Word document. Those who do not include a cover letter with their resume, where information about the company is included, are also deleted.


When using free platforms such as Indeed, it’s easy to apply and so many candidates will mass apply for jobs without even reading up on the company. It’s obvious. Those people are not worth hiring, especially when you think about how much it costs to both run a business and hire staff.”

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