Snapshot

Company: Haffty Consulting
Employees at Start: Less than 10
Employees Today: 75+

Challenge: Too small for most PEO providers, but needed benefits and HR structure to support hiring and growth

Solution: Worked with PEO 360 to evaluate options and implement a right-fit PEO aligned with their size, workforce, and growth plans

Outcome: Enabled hiring, supported rapid growth, and maintained flexibility through ongoing advisory support

The Challenge

When Haffty Consulting was first getting off the ground, HR was simply part of running the business.

The team was small — a few full-time employees supported by a broader network of contractors. Payroll was in place, but beyond that, there wasn’t much infrastructure. And at that stage, there didn’t need to be.

But one thing quickly became clear: If the business was going to grow, they would need to offer healthcare and build a more structured approach to HR.

That’s where things became complicated. Because of the company’s small size, most traditional providers weren’t an option. At the same time, waiting wasn’t a viable solution, either. Without benefits in place, hiring full-time employees would become increasingly difficult.

The challenge was figuring out how to build the right foundation early, without internal HR expertise, and without a clear path forward.

The Decision Point

At a certain point, it became clear that continuing without a more structured HR approach wasn’t going to work.

The company needed to offer healthcare to support hiring. They needed more consistency around payroll, compliance, and employee support. And they needed to make those decisions early enough to avoid slowing down growth.

But they didn’t have the internal experience to evaluate those options with confidence.

“We didn’t have experience evaluating healthcare or benefits. We needed someone who understood how to navigate that.”  — David Haffty, Partner at Haffty Consulting

That’s when they were introduced to PEO 360.

Instead of trying to piece together a solution on their own — comparing vendors, guessing at tradeoffs, and hoping it would hold up as the business grew — they had a partner who could guide them through what actually made sense for their situation.

How PEO 360 Helped

PEO 360 stepped in as an independent advisor, helping the Haffty team evaluate multiple options and understand what would actually work for their situation.

Instead of pushing a specific provider, PEO 360 focused on fit.

That meant:

• Identifying PEOs willing to work with a smaller team
• Comparing cost structures, benefits offerings, and service models
• Weighing short-term needs against long-term scalability

The goal wasn’t to move the Haffty team into a PEO; it was to help them make the right decision for where the business was at that moment.

“Having someone we trusted to be unbiased — that was the biggest value for us.” — David Haffty, Partner at Haffty Consulting

With that guidance, Haffty Consulting ultimately selected a PEO that was the right fit given their size, workforce, and constraints.

The Outcome: From a Team of 5 to 75

Putting that structure in place early had an immediate impact.

Most importantly, it allowed the company to offer healthcare, which directly affected their ability to hire.

“If we didn’t have healthcare, we couldn’t have hired a number of our employees.” — David Haffty, Partner at Haffty Consulting

From there, the business was able to grow without needing to rebuild an HR foundation along the way.

What started as a small team of just a few employees expanded to more than 75, supported by systems that were already in place. The decision to go with a PEO didn’t just solve an immediate need — it created the stability that the company needed to scale up fast.

Looking Ahead: What’s Next for Haffty Consulting

As Haffty Consulting has grown, their needs have evolved. Throughout that growth, they’ve had ongoing support from PEO 360 to evaluate their setup and make adjustments over time.

That has included:

• Ongoing, year-round check-ins and guidance
• Annual market comparisons
• Vendor evaluations
• Renegotiating improved terms with their existing provider
• Guidance on compliance and regulatory considerations

“They’ve been great about helping us evaluate our options each year and make adjustments when needed.” — David Haffty, Partner at Haffty Consulting

Not every aspect of their current PEO is perfect, and that’s part of the point.

The value of working with PEO 360 comes from having an advisor who can step back, assess what’s working, and help the business adjust when it makes sense.

The result? Instead of being locked into their initial decision, Haffty Consulting has been able to stay aligned with emerging needs as the business has grown, with ongoing support to reevaluate, renegotiate, or change direction when needed.

What to Do When HR Starts to Get More Complex

For many small businesses, there’s a point where HR starts to require more structure. That often happens around five employees: when hiring expands, benefits become a priority, or compliance begins to carry more weight.

At that stage, the question usually isn’t whether to make a change, but how to make the right one.

As this case shows, having the right guidance early can make a meaningful difference, not just in choosing a solution, but in setting the business up to grow with more clarity and confidence over time.