Employers must work hard to keep their employees happy – and keep them from heading to jobs elsewhere. As the cost of living continues to soar, many workers are searching for positions that offer not just competitive salaries, but top-notch benefits as well.

"We give our clients the same Cadillac-style benefits as Fortune 500 firms can offer. And that gives them a critical competitive edge when looking to hire and retain good employees."
Bob Burbidge, founder of Genesis.

For the owners of small businesses, few issues are as critical as attracting and retaining good employees. After all, a company is only as good as the people behind it. It's easy to see how employee recruitment and good benefits are inextricably linked. According to a new workplace survey from the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO), the majority of small businesses view finding good employees as their biggest problem. And their second biggest? Health care.

No wonder. The cost for family health coverage exceeded $12,100 last year, with employees contributing about $3,200 of that, according to recent health care research. For small businesses, these costs can be devastating. In Massachusetts, employers face added pressures, now that health insurance has become mandatory for all state residents and many small businesses are struggling to meet these new requirements.

But there is a solution. Increasing numbers of small businesses have eased their benefits burdens, thanks to professional employer organizations, or PEOs , which help manage employee benefits, payroll and other human resources concerns. PEOs give small- to mid-sized companies a giant boost, allowing them to compete with larger firms that provide comprehensive benefits beyond health insurance alone.

PEOs typically cater to businesses ranging in size from 10 to 250 employees, in all varieties of fields, from technology and manufacturing to retail and professional services, and many, many more. By taking over key management tasks for their clients, PEOs take the HR onus off employers, allowing them to focus on what truly matters most: growing their core business.

Likewise, a PEO can help solve an employer's health insurance quandaries, offering power in numbers. By providing collective buying power, PEOs can provide comprehensive health insurance packages and other key benefits.