Streamlining and simplifying back-office duties
With less time juggling vendors and administering benefits and other HR functions, the Cobalt team is free to focus on growing the business.
Takeaways
As Cobalt grew, the company used different vendors for payroll, benefits, and HR. But juggling multiple vendors made running back-office duties complicated.
With Justworks, Cobalt gets more competitive rates for health insurance. As a result, they actually save more on health insurance than what Justworks costs otherwise.
Plus, the team doesn’t have to wonder if they’re getting things right. They know Justworks has their back with the expert 24/7 customer support they need.
How It Began
If you’ve heard of Amazon’s Alexa before, you’re likely familiar with Jeff Adams’ work. Jeff led the speech language technology team that developed Alexa before founding Boston-based Cobalt Technology in 2014.
“We decided to start Cobalt for other companies who want to build something interesting with speech and tech,” said Jeff.
Many of his customers have software to help people who are learning a new language. “Whatever they want to do, it’s typically not something that’s available, off-the-shelf ready. We go off and build it,” said Jeff.
As his business grew, Jeff signed up for different vendors to help with payroll, benefits, and HR solutions. But juggling multiple vendors made running back-office duties more complicated and less centralized.
"I feel like someone’s got my back."
Jeff Adams
Getting Much Needed Support
The level of customer service Jeff had with his vendors wasn’t what he had hoped for, either.
“When I was [working with other vendors], I was on my own,” said Jeff. “As a new business owner, I was always wondering, ‘Am I doing the right thing?’ I didn’t really have a way to know that.”
Now that he’s using Justworks, Jeff has a dedicated account manager who knows him and can help out when he needs it.
“[With Justworks], I feel like someone’s got my back,” said Jeff.
Gaining Access to Competitive Health Insurance
Justworks also helped Jeff’s company save money by switching from a broker to a PEO.
A PEO, or Professional Employer Organization, bands customers' employees together to gain access to the same level of high-quality health insurance that enterprise-level companies enjoy. PEOs also handle payroll, benefits, and certain compliance tasks as an all-in-one solution.
“[Justworks] provides much more competitive rates for health insurance. As a result, I think I’m actually saving more on health insurance than what Justworks costs me otherwise,” said Jeff.
With less time juggling vendors and administering benefits and other HR functions, Jeff is free to focus on growing his business — which he believes may soon double in size.
