Proven value for PEOs

As a human capital management consulting firm, Applied Business Solutions (ABS) has over 75 years of combined payroll, insurance, and human resources (HR) experience. ABS services help clients reduce the overall cost of protecting their business, attract and retain employees, and save time, all in an effort to increase their profitability. The company has a simple yet effective mission: “To allow our clients to pursue their passion and professional goals through a unique platform of business services.”

Applied business solutions at a glance

• 150 employees
• Privately held
• Headquartered in
• Jacksonville, Florida

ABS covers numerous areas of business and HR operations, like payroll, employee benefits, health insurance, workers’ compensation, recruiting, employee training and development, workplace safety programs, compliance with federal and state employment laws, labor and workplace regulatory requirements, risk and safety management, and related administrative responsibilities.

ABS uses two BLR® solutions: HR Hero® and TrainingToday®. The firm uses HR Hero for employment law compliance and internal workflow improvements and TrainingToday for online course content, and its integrated learning management system (LMS) for both internal and external purposes. Its clients receive TrainingToday as a value-add to the overall service that ABS provides, and it’s considering á la carte buying options in the future.

The tools and courses most used by ABS and its clients are:

HR Hero—State Law Chart Builder, Salary Finder, Employer’s Guide to COVID-19, and the general search function

TrainingToday—its built-in LMS, plus learning content like harassment, antidiscrimination, time management, cybersecurity, and workforce management

Challenges

Value and scalability are two of the primary concerns and focuses for ABS regarding vendor services it chooses to bring into the product offering. The product must be good enough to meet ABS’s standards of excellence while being cost-effective and scalable to meet the needs of its clients.

ABS is a return customer after testing the waters with another HR service provider. When Brad assumed his role as director, he did a deep dive into the firm’s current vendor’s services and reentered the market, searching for a replacement compliance and training solution. After researching his list of potential vendors, Brad determined that BLR provided the greatest value for scalability, content, and cost benefit. He brought ABS back to the BLR product suite, which he noted has a better LMS system today than it used to. He went on to mention that since the new system was implemented and integrated, he has heard only good feedback from the company’s clients.

“The cost was great. Honestly, since we already had a prior relationship with Steve, he was really good from a service standpoint. That side has really gone above and beyond for us every time, so it’s kind of hard to beat that at this point.”
—Brad Morton, Director of Human Resources

Value delivered

The most significant benefits ABS receives from its partnership with BLR are:

• Best-in-class customer service and support
• Scalability
• Extensive content library
• Value—cost benefit
• Timesaving HR workflow solutions

Solution

The solution for Brad and ABS was quite simple: Partner with the industry’s leading compliance and training service provider to deliver top-quality products and resources to their clients while maintaining cost margins that meet their organization’s business strategy.

As ABS continues to provide exceptional services to its clients and focuses on its rapid growth, BLR will continue providing trailblazing compliance and training solutions that benefit our partner’s business goals. A partnership with BLR goes beyond the sale, bringing industry experts onto your team with the intent to see your vision come to fruition.