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You Can't Do it All Yourself

As the economy improves, so does the outlook for small business. That may mean you'll find way too many things to do and not enough time for you or your staff to complete them. Or maybe you've been solo for a while and have decided your business is growing enough to need help.

What do you do? Hire full or part time employees? Outsource to an independent contractor?

Before you decide, take the time to define the position. Create a job description. What do you want the person to do? What are you willing to give up total control over? What level of experience or education must the person have? Documenting the responsibilities of the position will help you decide. And it will help you hire the right person the first time.

Don't get stuck in defining this position from a technical point of view. What is most important when hiring for your business is to ensure that the new person fits in well with your culture. That means you want to make sure and hire someone whose values are similar to yours -- consider things like personal ethics, communication style, and response methods to name a few. And choose carefully. Hiring a person can be a costly endeavor.

Consider the IRS' 20 point checklist when determining whether to hire an employee vs. independent contractor. You want to make sure you do this currently as the penalties for misclassifying can be stiff. Your best bet is to check the IRS publications. For some accurate information