New Technologies Give Boost

Small businesses employ half of the private sector in the US and create two out of three new jobs, according to the Small Business Administration. While the 28 million small businesses nationwide serve as an important economic engine of this country, keeping one surviving and thriving can be particularly challenging.

Luckily, hot new technologies are helping small companies flourish by eliminating much of the operational costs and grunt work associated with running a business, allowing them to gain the efficiencies of a much larger operation. Chief among them are cloud-based solutions that are helping cut IT costs and make small businesses more efficient.

If you are an entrepreneur or manage a small business, keep in mind that human resources (HR) work consumes 25-35 percent of a small business owner’s time, according to SCORE, a nonprofit that helps small businesses get off the ground and grow. New services can help streamline this so you can get back to the basics of creating and selling your product.

“As a small business, we have the same amount of fiscal pressure as a big corporation, but we don’t have the same resources,” says Luigi Boccia, business development for Brooklyn Tweed, a manufacturer of yarns and knitwear patterns.

Boccia’s team uses Zenefits, a web- based service that combines HR, benefits, payroll and more, in one platform. And because many of these services are offered for free to businesses, companies can save significant time and money — as much as 30 days per year, according to the company’s recent survey of nearly 500 businesses.

Keeping track of state and federal regulations and reporting requirements can drain even more time from small business owners. For business owners who find compliance to be a particularly challenging component of HR, a service like Zenefits can also keep a business up-to-date and on-track and help avoid costly fines.

Other web-based back-office management tools, like Xero, can expedite accounting and bookkeeping.