On the one hand, since the average entrepreneur works puts in a 70- hour workweek, according to the Princeton Review, what business owner wouldn’t want an extra hand or two? But hiring an employee can significantly change how your run your business and so before propping that Help Wanted sign in the window, consider the following factors.

Payroll:

Employees expect to get paid, on time, on a regular basis. There are few small business owners who haven’t forgone a salary for a short — or long —period of time during slowdowns or times of expansion. Once you have staff, however, you will need to ensure that your company’s income is sufficient and stable enough to support their salaries each pay period.

The cost of payroll taxes should also be taken into consideration. As an employer, you will be expected to pay a portion of your employee’s social security and Medicare, as well as to pay state and federal unemployment taxes. Finally, evaluate how your business will manage the payroll process. There are several robust payroll and accounting software packages available. Payroll laws and processes can be complex, , so many small businesses outsource this task.

Offering benefits, particularly health insurance, can be very costly for companies, and if your small business can’t afford to offer benefits, you certainly wouldn’t be alone. According to a recent survey by Discover Business Card, and published in the Washington Post, 77 percent of small business owners don’t offer health insurance to their employees — and 25 percent of those business owners went without health insurance themselves.

Still, you may find it more difficult to attract the caliber of employee you are looking for without benefits offerings. So explore your options. For example, some local and national business organizations, including our area’s Chambers of Commerce, offer health insurance packages to their members. They are able to leverage the large combined numbers of their members’ employees and negotiate rates that small business owners would not be able to get on their own.

Managing:

Once you calculate the dollars and cents aspects of being an employer, think about the less tangible factors. Hiring qualified, trustworthy staff is just the first step. . There’s scheduling, developing — and documenting — employee policies and procedures, troubleshooting personnel issues, and just generally overseeing the work that’s being done to ensure it’s to your satisfaction.

The Cost vs. Benefit Factor:

Hiring employees adds an additional layer of cost and complexity to your business, but in many cases it’s worth it. If your workload is growing past your capacity to handle on your own, employees can help relieve you of that burden and help your business deliver its product or service more efficiently and cost effectively — improving customer service, allowing you to reach more clients, and, ultimately, generating more revenue.

If you’re weighing the pros and cons of hiring employees, and still can’t decide if it’s the right choice for your business, make an appointment to visit the Small Business Development Center – — Olympic College (SDBC) in Bremerton. The SDBC’s certified business counselor can help you weigh the pros and cons of adding employees to your business and provide you with additional resources that you can use to make an informed decision.

(Editor’s Note: Wendy Miles, Director of Customized Training and Military Education at Olympic College, oversees the operation of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC). For partnership opportunities, contact Ms. Milehers at 360-475-7786. For SBDC counseling services and workshops contact Rand Riedrich at 360-307-4220, rriedrich@olympic.edu.)