Item 1. Business
Item 1. Business.
General
We provide an array of human resources (“HR”) and business solutions designed to help improve business performance. Since our formation in 1986, we have evolved from being solely a professional employer organization (“PEO”), an industry we pioneered, to our current position as a comprehensive business performance solutions provider.
Our long-term strategy is to provide the best small and medium-sized businesses in the United States with our specialized human resources service offering and to leverage our buying power and expertise to provide additional valuable services to clients. Our most comprehensive HR services offerings are provided through our Workforce Optimization ® and Workforce Synchronization TM solutions (together, our “PEO HR Outsourcing solutions”), which encompass a broad range of human resources functions, including payroll and employment administration, employee benefits, workers’ compensation, government compliance, performance management, and training and development services, along with our cloud-based human capital management platform, Insperity Premier TM . Workforce Optimization is our most comprehensive HR outsourcing solution and is our primary offering. Workforce Synchronization, which generally is offered only to our middle market client segment, is a lower cost offering with a typically longer commitment that includes the same compliance and administrative services as Workforce Optimization and allows those clients to select, for an additional fee, from the strategic HR products and services that are included with Workforce Optimization.
In addition to our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, we offer Workforce Acceleration TM , a comprehensive service that includes traditional payroll and human capital management solutions. We also offer a number of other business performance solutions, including Comprehensive Traditional Payroll and Human Capital Management, Time and Attendance, Performance Management, Organizational Planning, Recruiting Services, Employment Screening, Retirement Services and Insurance Services, many of which are offered as a cloud-based software solution. These other products and services are offered separately or along with our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions or with Workforce Acceleration.
Our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions are designed to improve the productivity and profitability of small and medium-sized businesses. These solutions relieve business owners and key executives of many employer-related administrative and regulatory burdens, which enable them to focus on the core competencies of their businesses. Our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions also promote employee performance through human resources management techniques designed to improve employee satisfaction. We enter into a Client Service Agreement (“CSA”) with each of our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients under which we and our client act as co-employers of the employees who work at the client’s worksite, or worksite employees (“WSEEs”). Under the CSA, we assume responsibility for personnel administration and assist our clients in complying with employment-related governmental regulations, while the client retains the employees’ services in its business and remains the employer for other purposes. We charge a comprehensive service fee (“comprehensive service fee” or “gross billing”), which is invoiced concurrently with the processing of payroll for the WSEEs of the client. The comprehensive service fee consists of the payroll of our WSEEs plus an additional amount reflected as a percentage of the payroll cost of the WSEEs.
We accomplish the objectives of our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions through a “high-touch/high-tech” approach to service delivery. In advisory areas, such as recruiting, employee performance management and employee training, we employ a high-touch approach designed to ensure that our clients receive the personal attention and expertise needed to create a customized human resources solution. We utilize a variety of information technology capabilities to deliver our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, including Insperity Premier TM , our cloud-based human capital management platform through which we, along with our clients and WSEEs, manage payroll, benefits, retirement solutions and other HR-related information, creating efficiencies for all parties.
As of December 31, 2020, we had 70 offices, including 82 sales offices in 40 markets. In addition, we had four regional service centers along with human resources and client service personnel located in a majority of our 40 sales markets, which serviced an average of 239,232 WSEEs per month in the fourth quarter of 2020. Our service centers coordinate PEO HR Outsourcing solutions for clients on a regional basis and localized face-to-face human resources services.
We were organized as a corporation in 1986. Our principal executive offices are located at 19001 Crescent Springs Drive, Kingwood, Texas 77339. Our telephone number at that address is (281) 358-8986, and our website address is www.insperity.com. Our stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NSP.” We file or furnish periodic reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including our annual reports on Form 10-K,
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quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and if applicable, amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act. Through the investor relations section of our website, we make available electronic copies of the documents that we file or furnish to the SEC, the charters of the standing committees of our Board of Directors and other documents related to our corporate governance, including our Code of Conduct. Access to these electronic filings is available free of charge as soon as reasonably practicable after filing or furnishing them to the SEC. Printed copies of our committee charters and other governance documents and filings can be requested by writing to our corporate secretary at the address above.
PEO Industry
The PEO industry began to evolve in the early 1980s largely in response to the burdens placed on small and medium-sized employers by an increasingly complex legal and regulatory environment. While various service providers were available to assist these businesses with specific tasks, PEOs emerged as providers of a more comprehensive range of services relating to the employer/employee relationship. In a PEO arrangement, the PEO assumes certain aspects of the employer/employee relationship as defined in the contract between the PEO and its client. Because PEOs provide employer-related services to a large number of employees, they can achieve economies of scale that allow them to perform employment-related functions more efficiently, provide a greater variety of employee benefits, and devote more attention to human resources management than a client can individually.
We believe the key factors driving demand for PEO services include:
• the focus on growth and productivity of the small and medium-sized business community in the United States, utilizing outsourcing to concentrate on core competencies
• the need to provide competitive health care and related benefits to attract and retain employees
• the increasing costs associated with health and workers’ compensation insurance coverage, workplace safety programs, employee-related complaints and litigation
• complex regulation of payroll, payroll tax and employment issues and the related costs of compliance, including the allocation of time and effort to such functions by owners and key executives
• the significant costs, time and specialized knowledge required to purchase or develop the technology infrastructure to administer benefits, HR and payroll processing on an integrated basis
A significant factor in the development of the PEO industry has been increasing recognition and acceptance of PEOs and the co-employer relationship by federal and state governmental authorities. Insperity and other industry leaders, in concert with the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (“NAPEO”), have worked with the relevant governmental entities for the establishment of a regulatory framework that protects clients and employees, discourages unscrupulous and financially unsound PEOs, and promotes further development of the industry. Currently, 42 states have enacted legislation either recognizing PEOs or requiring licensing, registration, or certification, and several others are considering such regulation. Such laws vary from state to state but generally provide for monitoring the fiscal responsibility of PEOs. State regulation assists in screening insufficiently capitalized PEO operations and helps to resolve interpretive issues concerning employer/employee status for specific purposes under applicable state law. We have actively supported such regulatory efforts and are currently recognized, licensed, registered, certified or pursuing registration in all of these states. The cost of compliance with these regulations is not material to our financial position or results of operations.
The Small Business Efficiency Act (“SBEA”) created a federal regulatory framework for the payment of wages to WSEEs and the reporting and remittance of federal payroll taxes on those wages paid by PEOs certified under the Internal Revenue Code as meeting certain requirements (“CPEOs”). We actively supported the enactment of this law. The SBEA clarified that a CPEO, rather than the client, is treated as the employer for purposes of reporting and remitting payroll taxes. It also clarified that a CPEO is treated as a successor employer for purposes of the wage base of WSEEs on which federal payroll taxes are applied. In addition, the law clarified that clients of a CPEO remain eligible for specified tax credits for which they would have been eligible absent the CPEO relationship. Following the establishment of the voluntary certification program by the Internal Revenue Service of the United States (“IRS”) and Treasury Department, our PEO subsidiary, Insperity PEO Services, L.P., received its designation as a CPEO from the IRS.
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Service Offerings
PEO HR Outsourcing Solutions
We serve small and medium-sized businesses by providing our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, which encompass a broad range of services. Both of our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions offer the following:
• benefits and payroll administration
• health and workers’ compensation insurance programs
• personnel records management
• employer liability management
• assistance with government compliance
• general HR advice
• access to Insperity Premier for employees, managers and client owners
• 401(k) retirement plan sponsored by us
Our Workforce Optimization solution also provides additional services that our Workforce Synchronization clients can purchase for an additional fee, including the following:
• employee recruiting and support
• employee performance management
• training and development services
Our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions are designed to attract and retain high-quality employees, while relieving client owners and key executives of many employer-related administrative and regulatory burdens. Among the employment-related laws and regulations that may affect a client are the following:
• Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) • Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008
• Federal Income Contribution Act (FICA) • Drug-Free Workplace Act
• Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) • Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) • Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN)
• Employee Retirement Income Security Act, as amended (ERISA) • Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA)
• Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) • State unemployment and employment security laws
• Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) • State workers’ compensation laws
• Title VII (Civil Rights Act of 1964) • Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (the “Reconciliation Act”)
• Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) • Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA)
• Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) • State and local law equivalents of the foregoing
• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) • The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)
• The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) • The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act
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These laws and regulations are complex, and in some instances overlapping. We assist our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients in complying with these laws and regulations by providing services in the categories set forth below:
Administrative Functions . Administrative functions encompass a wide variety of processing and recordkeeping tasks, mostly related to payroll administration and regulatory compliance. Specific examples include:
• payroll processing
• payroll tax deposits
• payroll tax reporting
• employee file maintenance
• unemployment claims processing
• workers’ compensation claims reporting and monitoring
Benefit Plans Administration . We maintain several benefit plans for eligible WSEEs including the following:
• a group health plan
• a health savings account program
• a health care flexible spending account plan
• a 401(k) retirement plan
• cafeteria plans for group health and health savings account contributions
• short-term and long-term disability insurance
• an educational assistance program
• an adoption assistance program
• group term life insurance
• group universal life insurance
• accidental death and dismemberment insurance
• paid family leave, where required by law
The group health plan includes medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage, as well as a work-life program. All benefit plans are provided to eligible employees based on the specific eligibility provisions of each plan. We are the policyholder responsible for the costs and premiums associated with any group insurance policies that provide benefits under these plans, and we act as plan sponsor and administrator of the plans. We negotiate the terms and costs of the plans, maintain the plans in accordance with applicable federal and state regulations and serve as liaison for the delivery of these benefits to WSEEs and corporate employees. COBRA coverage is extended to eligible terminated WSEEs and other eligible individuals in accordance with applicable law. We believe that the variety and comprehensive nature of our benefit plan offerings are generally not available to employees in our small and medium-sized business target market and are usually offered only by larger companies that can spread program costs over a much larger group of employees. As a result, we believe the availability of these benefit plans provides our clients with a competitive advantage that small and medium-sized businesses are typically unable to attain on their own.
Insperity Premier. Insperity Premier is our cloud-based human capital management platform for our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions and is available to our clients with minimal implementation effort or cost. It is designed to provide our service providers with insight into client and WSEE HR information to better support their needs. Insperity Premier provides role-based access to a wide range of human capital management functions, along with personalized content to the
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managers, owners and WSEEs of our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients, including:
For managers and client owners:
• WebPayroll for the submission, approval and reporting of payroll data
• mobile access to review and approve payroll transactions and employee time entry
• tools to manage the onboarding of new employees
• employee administration functions such as viewing or changing information about employees
• access to client-specific compliance-related information relevant to many HR areas
• reporting and analytics tools to create, view, save and export reports and data about employees and to do more complex analysis and visualization of their workforce data with the Insperity People Analytics solution
• ability to manage employee time and attendance information, absences and paid time off
• access to talent management tools in the areas of recruiting, performance management and learning management
• access to a library of online human resources forms
• access to a wide range of best-practices human resources management content
For WSEEs:
• access to view, edit and change a range of employee profile information
• online check stubs, pay history, W-2s, update W-4 forms and other state forms
• employee-specific benefits content, including summary plan descriptions, enrollment status and tools to assist with benefits selection for Insperity-sponsored plans
• access to 401(k) retirement plan information for covered plans
• e-Learning web-based training
• links to benefits providers and other key vendors
• performance management tools including self-reviews and review history, if offered by client
• ability to submit time and attendance information, absences and paid time off requests
• mobile access to perform a wide range of employee-specific activities such as reporting time and attendance and paid time off, view pay stubs, insurance coverage and ID cards, view 401(k) balances and other commonly accessed data
Personnel Management . In addition to the services that we deliver through Insperity Premier, we provide a wide variety of personnel management services that give our clients access to HR advisors and additional resources normally found only in the human resources departments of large companies. All PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients have access to our advice concerning personnel policies and practices, including recruiting, discipline and termination procedures. Other personnel management services we provide include:
• drafting and reviewing personnel policies and employee handbooks
• designing job descriptions
• performing prospective employee screening and background investigations
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• designing performance appraisal processes and forms
• professional development and issues-oriented training
• employee counseling
• substance abuse awareness training
• outplacement services
• compensation guidance
Employer Liability Management . Under the CSA, we assume many of the employment-related responsibilities associated with the administrative functions, benefit plans administration and personnel management services we provide. For many of those employment-related responsibilities that are the responsibility of the client or of both the client and us, we may assist our clients in managing and limiting liability. This assistance may include safety-related risk management reviews as well as the implementation by our clients of safety programs designed to reduce workplace accidents and, consequently, workers’ compensation claims. We also provide guidance to clients for avoiding discrimination, sexual harassment and civil rights violations, and we assist with termination decisions when consulted to attempt to minimize liability on those grounds. While we do not provide legal services to our clients, we employ in-house and external counsel who specialize in several areas of employment law, have broad experience in disputes concerning the employer/employee relationship and provide support to our internal human resources professionals. As part of our comprehensive service, we also maintain employment practice liability insurance coverage for ourselves and our clients, monitor developments in HR-related laws and regulations, and notify clients of the potential effect of such changes on employer liability.
MarketPlace SM provided by Insperity ® . Through our many alliances with best-of-class providers, Insperity’s MarketPlace is an e-commerce portal that brings a wide range of products and services to our clients, WSEEs and their families. Through MarketPlace, which is provided through Insperity Premier, our clients also have the opportunity to offer their products and services to other clients and WSEEs.
Middle Market Solutions. We believe the middle market sector, which we generally define as those companies with employees ranging from approximately 150 to 5,000 WSEEs, has historically been under-served by the PEO industry. Currently, we have a dedicated sales management, service personnel and consulting staff who concentrate solely on the middle market sector. Our average number of WSEEs per month in our middle market sector decreased 5.6% from 2019, representing approximately 24.4% and 25.7% of our total average paid WSEEs during 2020 and 2019, respectively. Clients with an average number of WSEEs exceeding 1,000 paid WSEEs represented 4.7% and 5.0% of our total average paid WSEEs during 2020 and 2019, respectively.
Other Product and Services Offerings
We offer other product and services offerings on a stand-alone basis and to our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients. We also strive to leverage our relationships with our customers to enable cross-selling of our various products and services.
During 2020 and 2019, revenues from our other products and services offerings as a percentage of our total revenues were 0.9% and 1.0%, respectively.
Following are the key components of our other products and services, which are offered separately or as a bundle:
Comprehensive Traditional Payroll and Human Capital Management Solution. Our Insperity Workforce Acceleration solution is a comprehensive human capital management and payroll services solution for clients that do not choose our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions. This solution combines a cloud-based human resources software suite that provides integrated payroll, HR administration and employee onboarding, benefits administration, performance management, and time and attendance functionality with HR guidance and tools, as well as reporting and analytics. In addition, through a strategic partner, Workforce Acceleration clients have access to a national, licensed insurance brokerage that specializes in the insurance needs of small businesses.
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Time and Attendance. Our Time and Attendance products and services provide small to medium-sized businesses with software, hardware and services to track, allocate, and analyze employee resources and provide inputs into clients’ payroll processing and accounting systems. The service is primarily delivered as a cloud-based solution or an on-premise installation. For customers utilizing Time and Attendance in conjunction with our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, we provide access through Insperity Premier.
Performance Management. Our Performance Management products and services provide human resources software offerings including Insperity ® PerformSmart ® a performance management cloud-based offering. Insperity PerformSmart is available to both our Workforce Optimization and Workforce Synchronization clients. For customers utilizing PerformSmart in conjunction with our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, we provide access through Insperity Premier. Performance Management products are sold through online subscription arrangements and through various reseller arrangements.
Organizational Planning. Organizational Planning offers cloud-based software used by companies to facilitate the creation, management and communication of detailed organizational management charts. For customers utilizing OrgPlus RealTime in conjunction with our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, we provide access through Insperity Premier.
Recruiting Services. Our Recruiting Services offer direct hire placement on an as-needed basis and provides outsourced support for individual requisitions or large-scale hiring projects. In addition, we provide consulting services to assist in the creation and maintenance of consistent hiring practices and retention strategies. We also provide compensation services, behavior-based interview training and talent assessment.
Employment Screening. Our Employment Screening services offer a customized approach to background-check reporting for companies. Services include criminal records checks; verification of employment history or education; driving record, civil record and credit history checks; and confirmation of extraordinary credentials.
Retirement Services. Our Retirement Services solutions deliver comprehensive 401(k) retirement plan recordkeeping and administrative services to small and medium-sized businesses, primarily in connection with a 401(k) retirement plan we sponsor for our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients. Services include employee education and enrollment, participant communications, elective deferral withholding and transmission, matching contribution calculation, loan and distribution processing, regulatory filing preparation and nondiscrimination testing.
Insurance Services. Our Insurance Services solutions offer assistance through our licensed insurance agency to small and medium-sized businesses throughout the United States to secure affordable, customizable business insurance packages and life, health and disability insurance policies. Insurance Services also assists individuals in obtaining insurance coverages.
Client Service Agreement
All PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients execute a CSA with us. The CSA provides for an ongoing relationship between Insperity and the PEO HR Outsourcing solutions client. For most clients, the CSA generally is an annual contract subject to earlier termination by Insperity or the client upon 30 days’ written notice or upon shorter notice in the event of default. CSAs for our middle market clients are generally two-year contracts, subject to earlier termination by clients upon payment of a termination fee or otherwise by the parties upon an event of default. The CSA establishes our comprehensive service fee, which is subject to periodic adjustments to account for changes in the composition of the client’s workforce, employee benefit election changes, and statutory changes that affect our costs. Under the CSA, clients active in January of any year are obligated to pay the estimated payroll tax component of the comprehensive service fee in a manner that reflects the pattern of incurred payroll tax costs. This practice aligns clients’ payments to us with our obligations to make payments to tax authorities, which are higher in the earlier part of the year and decrease as limits on wages subject to payroll tax are reached.
The CSA also establishes the division of responsibilities between us and the client as co-employers. Pursuant to the CSA, we are responsible for personnel administration and for compliance with certain employment-related government regulations. In addition, we assume liability for payment of salaries and wages (as well as related payroll taxes) of our WSEEs and responsibility for providing specified employee benefits to such persons. These liabilities are not contingent on the prepayment by the client of the associated comprehensive service fee. Instead, as a result of our employment relationship with each of our WSEEs, we are liable for payment of salary and wages to the WSEEs as reported by the client and are responsible for providing specified employee benefits to such persons regardless of whether the client
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pays the associated comprehensive service fee. The client retains the employees’ services and remains liable for complying with certain government regulations that require control of the worksite or daily supervisory responsibility or is otherwise beyond our ability to assume. A third group of responsibilities and liabilities are assumed by both Insperity and the client where such concurrent responsibility is appropriate. The specific division of applicable responsibilities under our CSAs generally is as follows:
Insperity Responsibilities
• Payment of wages and salaries as reported by the client and related tax reporting and remittance (local, state and federal withholding, FICA, FUTA, state unemployment)
• Workers’ compensation compliance, procurement, management and reporting
• Compliance with the Code, COBRA, HIPAA and ERISA for Insperity-sponsored employee benefit plans, as well as monitoring changes in other governmental laws and regulations governing the employer/employee relationship and updating the client when necessary
• Offering benefits under Insperity-sponsored employee benefit plans that comply with PPACA requirements
• Employee benefits administration of plans sponsored solely by Insperity
Client Responsibilities
• Payment, through Insperity, of commissions, bonuses, vacations, paid time off, sick pay, paid leaves of absence, and severance payments
• Payment and related tax reporting and remittance of non-qualified deferred compensation and equity-based compensation
• Products produced and/or services provided
• Compliance with OSHA regulations, EPA regulations, FLSA, FMLA, WARN, USERRA, and state and local equivalents and compliance with government contracting provisions
• Compliance with federal, state, and local pay or play health care mandates and all such other similar federal, state and local legislation
• Compliance with the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”), including all organizing efforts and expenses related to a collective bargaining agreement and related benefits
• Professional licensing requirements, fidelity bonding, and professional liability insurance
• Ownership and protection of all client intellectual property rights
• COBRA, HIPAA, PPACA, the Code and ERISA compliance for client-sponsored employee benefit plans
• For clients electing payroll tax deferrals and tax credits under the FFCRA and CARES Act, the client has sole responsibility for determining eligibility under the programs and for reporting and depositing deferred amounts with the U.S. Treasury
Concurrent Responsibilities
• Implementation of policies and practices relating to the employee/employer relationship
• Internal compliance with all federal, state and local employment laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ADEA, Title I of ADA, the Consumer Credit Protection Act and immigration laws and regulations
We maintain employment practice liability insurance coverages (including coverages for our clients) to manage our exposure for various employee-related claims. Our incurred costs in excess of annual premiums with respect to this exposure have historically been insignificant to our operating results.
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Because we are a co-employer with the client for some purposes, it is possible that we could incur liability for violations of such laws, even if we are not responsible for the conduct giving rise to such liability. Our CSA ordinarily addresses this issue by providing that the client will indemnify us for liability incurred to the extent the liability is attributable to conduct by the client. Notwithstanding this contractual right to indemnification, it is possible that we could be unable to collect on a claim for indemnification and may therefore be ultimately responsible for satisfying the liability in question.
In most instances, clients are required to remit their comprehensive service fees no later than the same day as the applicable payroll date by wire transfer or automated clearinghouse transaction. Although we are ultimately liable, as the employer for payroll purposes, to pay employees for work previously performed, we retain the ability to terminate immediately the CSA and associated WSEEs or to require prepayment, letters of credit, or other collateral upon deterioration in a client’s financial condition or upon non-payment by a client. These rights, the periodic nature of payroll, and the overall quality of our client base have resulted in an excellent overall collections history.
PEO HR Outsourcing Solutions Clients
Insperity’s PEO HR Outsourcing solutions provide value-added, full-service human resources solutions we believe are most suitable to a specific segment of the small and medium-sized business community. We target successful businesses with approximately 10 to 5,000 employees that recognize the advantage in the strategic use of high-performance human resources practices. We have set a long-term goal to serve approximately 10% of the overall small and medium-sized business community in terms of WSEEs. We serve clients and WSEEs located throughout the United States.
By region, our revenue distribution for the year ended December 31, 2020, was as follows:
Please read Note 1 “Accounting Policies,” to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information related to the change in revenues by region.
All prospective PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients are evaluated on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of employer-related risks entailing many factors, including (where permitted) industry and operations, workplace safety and workers’ compensation, unemployment history, operating stability, group medical information, human resources practices and other employer risks. As part of our client selection strategy, we strive to minimize offering our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions to businesses falling within certain specified NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) codes for those industries that we believe present a higher employer risk such as employee injury, high turnover or litigation.
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Our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions client base is broadly distributed throughout a wide variety of industries as follows:
This diverse client base lowers our exposure to downturns or volatility in any particular industry. However, our performance could be affected by a downturn in one of these industries or by general economic conditions within the small and medium-sized business community.
We focus heavily on client retention. During 2020 and 2019, our retention rate was approximately 82% and 85%, respectively. For all PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients, the average annual retention rate over the last five years was approximately 85%. Client attrition is attributable to a variety of factors, including: (1) client non-renewal due to price or service factors; (2) client business failure, sale, merger or disposition; (3) our termination of the CSA resulting from the client’s non-compliance or inability to make timely payments; and (4) competition from other PEOs or business services firms.
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Marketing and Sales
As of December 31, 2020, we had 82 sales offices located in 40 markets. Our sales offices typically consist of six to eight Business Performance Advisors (“BPAs”), a district sales manager, and an office administrator. To take advantage of economic efficiencies, multiple sales offices may share a physical location. Insperity’s markets and their respective year of entry are as follows:
Market Sales Offices Initial Entry Date Market Sales Offices Initial Entry Date
Houston 6 1986 Raleigh 1 2006
San Antonio 1 1989 Kansas City 1 2007
Austin 2 1989 Columbus 1 2010
Orlando 1 1989 Nashville 1 2011
Dallas/Fort Worth 6 1993 Philadelphia 2 2012
Atlanta 4 1994 Seattle 1 2015
Phoenix 2 1995 Indianapolis 1 2016
Chicago 5 1995 Fort Lauderdale 1 2017
Washington D.C. 2 1995 Milwaukee 1 2017
Denver 2 1996 Oklahoma City 1 2018
Los Angeles 7 1997 Pittsburgh 1 2018
Charlotte 1 1997 San Jose 1 2018
St. Louis 2 1998 Stamford 1 2018
San Francisco 3 1998 Portland 1 2019
New York 5 1999 Tampa 1 2019
Baltimore 2 2000 Las Vegas 1 2019
Newark 3 2000 Sacramento 1 2019
San Diego 2 2001 Providence 1 2019
Boston 3 2001 Salt Lake City 1 2020
Minneapolis 2 2002 Virginia Beach 1 2020
We identify markets using a systematic market evaluation and selection process. We continue to evaluate a broad range of factors in the selection process, using a market selection model that weighs various criteria that, based on our experience, we believe are reliable predictors of successful penetration. Among the factors we consider are:
• market size, in terms of small and medium-sized businesses engaged in selected industries that meet our risk profile
• market receptivity to PEO services, including the regulatory environment and relevant history with other PEO providers
• existing relationships within a given market, such as vendor or client relationships
• expansion cost issues, such as advertising and overhead costs
• direct cost issues that bear on our effectiveness in controlling and managing the cost of our services, such as workers’ compensation and health insurance costs, unemployment risks, and various legal and other factors
• a comparison of the services we offer to alternatives available to small and medium-sized businesses in the relevant market, such as the cost to the target clients of procuring services directly or through other PEOs
• long-term strategy issues, such as the general perception of markets and our estimate of the long-term revenue growth potential of the market
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We develop a mix of national and local advertising media and a placement strategy tailored to each individual market. After selecting a market and developing our marketing mix, but prior to entering the market, we engage in an organized media and public relations campaign to prepare the market for our entry and to begin the process of generating sales leads. We market our services through various business promotions and a broad range of media outlets, including digital marketing, television, radio, newspapers, periodicals and direct mail. We employ public relations firms for most of our markets as well as advertising consultants to coordinate and implement our marketing campaigns. We have developed an inventory of television, radio and newsprint advertisements, which are utilized in this effort.
We routinely seek to develop new marketing approaches and campaigns to capitalize on changes in the competitive landscape for our human resources services and to more successfully reach our target market. We have an agreement with the Professional Golf Association Champions Tour to be the title sponsor of the annual Insperity Invitational ™ presented by UnitedHealthcare ® professional golf tournament held annually in The Woodlands, Texas (a suburb of Houston). In addition, we have an arrangement with Jim Nantz, a sports commentator, to serve as our national spokesperson. Our marketing campaigns use this event and the relationship with Mr. Nantz as a focal point of our brand marketing efforts.
Our organic growth model generates sales leads from five primary sources: direct sales efforts, advertising, third-party channel programs, referrals, marketing alliances, and the Internet. These leads result in initial presentations to prospective PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients, and ultimately, prospective PEO HR Outsourcing solutions client business profiles. A prospective PEO HR Outsourcing solutions client’s business profile reflects information gathered by the BPA about the prospect’s employees, including base compensation, level of benefits coverage options, job classification, state of employment and workers’ compensation classification. This information is used to generate a bid from our customized bid system, which applies Insperity’s proprietary pricing model to the census data. Concurrent with this process, we evaluate prospective clients through the previously described comprehensive employer risk analysis. Upon completion of a favorable employer risk evaluation, the BPA presents the bid and attempts to complete the sale and enroll the prospect. Our selling process typically takes approximately 90 days for clients with less than 150 employees, and 180 days or longer for middle market clients. The process can be extended during economic downturns.
We have implemented cross-selling channels between our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions business and our other products and services. This cross-selling strategy focuses on using our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions to increase market penetration in each of our other products and services and using our other product and service offerings as a source of leads for our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions. The cross-selling channels attempt to reduce barriers to selling our products and services and allow us to tailor service packages to better meet the specific needs of the business.
Competition
We provide a value-added, full-service human resources solution through our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, which we believe is most suitable to a specific segment of the small and medium-sized business community. This full-service approach is exemplified by our commitment to provide a high level of service and technology personnel, which has produced a ratio of corporate staff to WSEEs (the “staff support ratio”) that is higher than average for the PEO industry. Based on an analysis of the 2017 through 2019 annual NAPEO surveys of the PEO industry, we have successfully leveraged our full-service approach into significantly higher returns for Insperity on a per WSEE per month basis. During the three-year period from 2017 through 2019, our staff support ratio averaged 51% higher than the PEO industry average. During the same three-year period, our gross profit per WSEE and operating income per WSEE exceeded industry averages by 137% and 225%, respectively.
Competition in the PEO industry revolves primarily around quality of services, scope of services, choice and quality of benefits packages, reputation, and price. We believe reputation, national presence, regulatory expertise, financial resources, risk management, and information technology capabilities distinguish leading PEOs from the rest of the industry. We also believe we compete favorably in these areas; however, other PEOs may offer their PEO services at lower prices than we offer.
Due to the differing geographic regions and market segments in which most PEOs operate, and the relatively low level of market penetration by the industry, we consider our primary competition for our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions to be the traditional in-house provision of human resources services. The PEO industry is highly fragmented and we have seen competition intensify; however, we believe Insperity is one of the largest PEO service providers in the United States. Our largest national competitors include the PEO divisions of large business services companies such as Automatic Data Processing, Inc. and Paychex, Inc., and other national PEOs, such as TriNet Group, Inc. In addition, we also face
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competition from: (1) fee-for-service providers such as payroll processors and human resources consultants; (2) human resources technology solution companies; and (3) large regional PEOs in certain areas of the country. As Insperity and other large PEOs expand nationally, we expect that competition may intensify.
Vendor Relationships
Insperity provides benefits to its WSEEs under arrangements with a variety of vendors. We consider our contracts with UnitedHealthcare (“United”) and the Chubb Group of Insurance Companies (“Chubb”) to be the most significant elements of our employee benefits package, as they would be the most difficult to replace.
We provide group health insurance coverage to our WSEEs through a national network of carriers including United, UnitedHealthcare of California, Kaiser Permanente, Blue Shield of California, HMSA BlueCross BlueShield of Hawaii and Tufts, all of which provide fully insured policies or service contracts. The health insurance contract with United provides approximately 87% of our health insurance coverage and expires on December 31, 2022, subject to cancellation by either party upon 180 days’ notice. For a discussion of our contract with United, which is accounted for using a partially self-funded insurance accounting model, please read Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates—Benefits Costs.”
Our workers’ compensation coverage (the “Chubb Program”) has been provided through an arrangement with Chubb (formerly ACE American Insurance Company) since 2007. The Chubb Program is a fully insured program whereby Chubb has the responsibility to pay all claims incurred under the policies regardless of whether we satisfy our responsibilities. The current workers’ compensation coverage with Chubb expires on September 30, 2021. Chubb has committed to extend coverage for two additional policy years (through September 30, 2023) subject to certain terms and conditions related to the division of responsibilities in the program. In the event we are unable to secure replacement coverage on competitive terms, significant disruption to our business could occur. For additional discussion of the Chubb Program, which includes terms shifting some of the financial responsibility for claims to us, please read Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates—Workers’ Compensation Costs.”
Information Technology
Insperity utilizes a variety of information technology capabilities to provide its PEO HR Outsourcing solutions and business performance improvement services to its clients and WSEEs and for its own administrative and management information requirements.
Insperity’s PEO HR Outsourcing solutions information systems, which include Insperity Premier, are a proprietary mix of applications that includes both internally developed software, licensed software applications and cloud-based services. These systems manage a wide range of transactions and information specific to our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions, to Insperity and to our clients and WSEEs, including:
• WSEE enrollment
• human resources management and employee administration
• benefits and defined contribution plan administration
• time and attendance collection and administration
• payroll processing
• client invoicing and collection
• management information and reporting
• sales bid calculations
Central to these systems are transaction processing capabilities that allow us to process a high volume of employee enrollment, employee administration, payroll, invoice and bid transactions that meet the specific needs of our clients and prospects. We administer our employee benefits through a proprietary application designed to process employee eligibility and enrollments, manage carrier relationships and maintain a variety of plan offerings. Our retirement services
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operations are conducted utilizing an industry-leading retirement plan administration application in a third-party hosted environment. Aspects of all of these components are delivered to our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions clients and WSEEs through Insperity Premier. We utilize commercially available software and cloud-based solutions for other business functions such as finance and accounting, sales force activity management and customer relationship management.
Insperity has hosting facilities located at two separate leased facilities, located in Bryan, Texas and The Woodlands, Texas. These facilities host the majority of our business applications, information security infrastructure and network equipment. Each hosting facility houses a mix of primary production applications, disaster recovery, replication and back-up applications, and pre-production environments, with the Bryan facility acting as our primary data center for all mission-critical applications. Both hosting facilities have the capacity to run all of our critical business applications and have sufficient capacity to handle all of our operations on a stand-alone basis, if required. We have an active Business Continuity Plan, which includes information technology capabilities and we utilize a variety of measures to ensure our Business Continuity Plan remains effective and available.
Our network infrastructure is designed to ensure appropriate connectivity exists among all of our facilities and employees and provides appropriate Internet connectivity to conduct business with our clients and WSEEs. The network infrastructure is provided through industry standard core network hardware and via high-speed network services provided by multiple vendors.
We have incorporated a variety of measures designed to maintain the security and privacy of the information managed through our systems and applications. These measures include industry standard technologies designed to protect, monitor and assess our data centers and network environment; best practice security policies and procedures; and a variety of measures designed to control access to sensitive and private information.
Industry Regulations
The operations for our PEO HR Outsourcing solutions are affected by numerous federal and state laws relating to tax, insurance and employment matters. By entering into a co-employer relationship with our WSEEs, we assume certain obligations and responsibilities of an employer under these federal and state laws. Because many of these federal and state laws were enacted prior to the development of nontraditional employment relationships, such as PEOs, temporary employment and outsourcing arrangements, many of these laws do not specifically address the obligations and responsibilities of nontraditional employers. Currently, the federal government and 42 states have passed laws that either recognize PEOs, require licensing or registration of PEOs, or provide voluntary certification programs for PEOs, and several others are considering such regulation. The SBEA established a voluntary certification program and created a federal regulatory framework for the payment of wages to WSEEs and for the reporting and remittance of federal payroll taxes on those wages paid by CPEOs. Our PEO subsidiary, Insperity PEO Services, L.P., is a CPEO. Please read Item 1. “Business—PEO Industry” for further information.
As an employer, we are subject to federal statutes and regulations governing the employer/employee relationship. Subject to the issues discussed below, we believe that our operations are in compliance, in all material respects, with all applicable federal statutes and regulations.
Employee Benefit Plans
We offer various employee benefits plans to eligible employees, including our WSEEs. These plans include:
• a group health plan, which includes medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage, as well as a work-life program
• a 401(k) retirement plan
• cafeteria plans under Code Section 125
• a health savings account program
• a welfare benefits plan, which includes life, disability, and accidental death and dismemberment coverage
• a health care flexible spending account plan
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• an educational assistance program
• an adoption assistance program
• a commuter benefits program
Generally, employee benefit plans are subject to provisions of the Code, ERISA, and COBRA. The number and complex nature of federal and state regulations relating to employer-sponsored health plans has continued to increase over time. We believe that additional regulatory burdens placed on employers can increase the demand for our services because small and medium-sized businesses are especially challenged in their efforts to comply with governmental regulations due to limited resources and a lack of expertise. As a co-employer in the PEO relationship, we assume or share many of the employer-related responsibilities and assist our clients in complying with many employment-related governmental laws and regulations. Historically, we believe that we have successfully marketed the compliance component of our service offering and that our compliance-related services have increased the value proposition of our service offering.
Employer Status . In order to qualify for favorable tax treatment under the Code, employee benefit plans must be established and maintained by an employer for the exclusive benefit of its employees. Generally, an entity is an “employer” of individuals for federal employment tax purposes if an employment relationship exists between the entity and the individuals under the common law test of employment. In addition, the officers of a corporation are deemed to be employees of that corporation for federal employment tax purposes. The common law test of employment, as applied by the IRS, involves an examination of approximately 20 factors to ascertain whether an employment relationship exists between a worker and a purported employer. Generally, the test is applied to determine whether an individual is an independent contractor or an employee for federal employment tax purposes and not to determine whether each of two or more companies is a “co-employer.” Substantial weight is typically given to the question of whether the purported employer has the right to direct and control the details of an individual’s work. Among the factors that appear to have been considered more important by the IRS are:
• the employer’s degree of behavioral control (the extent of instructions, training and the nature of the work)
• the financial control or the economic aspects of the relationship
• the intended relationship of the parties (whether employee benefits are provided, whether any contracts exist, whether services are ongoing or for a project, whether there are any penalties for discharge/termination, and the frequency of the business activity)
ERISA Requirements . Employee pension and welfare benefit plans are also governed by ERISA. ERISA defines “employer” as “any person acting directly as an employer, or indirectly in the interest of an employer, in relation to an employee benefit plan.” ERISA defines the term “employee” as “any individual employed by an employer.” The United States Supreme Court has held that the common law test of employment must be applied to determine whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor under ERISA. A definitive judicial interpretation of “employer” in the context of a PEO or employee leasing arrangement has not been established.
If Insperity were found not to be an employer with respect to WSEEs for ERISA purposes, its plans would not comply with ERISA and/or the Code. Further, as a result of such finding, Insperity and its plans would not enjoy, with respect to WSEEs, the preemption of state laws provided by ERISA and could be subject to varying state laws and regulations as well as to claims based upon state common laws. Even if such a finding were made, we believe we would not be materially adversely affected because we would endeavor to make available similar benefits at comparable costs.
In addition to ERISA and the Code, issues related to the relationship between Insperity and its WSEEs may also arise under other federal laws, including other federal income tax laws.
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The PPACA was signed into law on March 23, 2010. The PPACA was subsequently amended on March 30, 2010, by the Reconciliation Act. The PPACA and the Reconciliation Act (collectively the “Act”) entail sweeping health care reforms with original staggered effective dates from 2010 through 2018, some of which were subsequently extended until as late as 2020. While the Act did not have a material adverse impact on our results of operations in 2020, the future impact of the following provisions or changes to the provisions, including any changes or a repeal that may result from a case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court or future legislative actions, is unknown at this time.
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Beginning in 2014, the Act provided for the establishment of state insurance exchanges (“Exchanges”) to make health insurance available to individuals and small employers (initially defined as 100 employees or less). States had the option of building a state-based exchange, entering into a state-federal partnership exchange or accepting the federally-facilitated exchange. States that accept the federally-facilitated exchange can transition to a state-based exchange at a later date. The Exchanges provide consumers with educational services and information on available options and offer a variety of health plans. Subsidies are available to qualifying individuals who purchase health insurance through the Exchanges. As part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted in December 2017, the requirements that individuals maintain health insurance coverage or pay a federal tax penalty, which was known as the individual mandate, was effectively eliminated beginning in 2019. A limited number of states have enacted individual mandates. At this time, the Exchanges, tax credits, individual mandates and subsidies have not had a material impact on our operations, but the impact of future changes to these provisions is unknown.
Additionally, in 2014, the Act ushered in a number of insurance market reforms for the small group and individual markets. The reforms required guaranteed issue and renewability of coverage, eliminated certain underwriting practices by issuers, consolidated the number of risk pools in each state and restricted the permissible factors and variable ranges of those factors that can be considered in determining health insurance premiums. Transition relief permitted states to delay the effective date of some of these reforms. At this time, the insurance market reforms have not had a material adverse impact on our business operations, but the impact of future changes on our ability to attract and retain clients, or our ability to increase service fees to offset any increased costs is unknown.
Effective January 1, 2015, “pay or play” requirements applied to large employers with at least 50 full-time and full-time equivalent employees in the prior calendar year (“Applicable Large Employers” or “ALEs”). ALEs who fail to offer “minimum essential coverage” satisfying minimum value and affordability requirements may be subject to a penalty if a full-time employee obtains coverage from an Exchange and receives a subsidy or tax credit for such coverage. While clients are responsible for employer pay or play health care mandates under the CSA, the Insperity-sponsored group health plan qualifies as minimum essential coverage and is designed to satisfy the minimum value and affordability requirements. Clients are not required to use the affordability safe harbor utilized by us.
Information contained in the Congressional Record, which specifically references PEOs, indicates that any pay or play penalties should apply separately to clients of a PEO and not at the PEO level. However, the Act and subsequently issued IRS guidance do not expressly address the issue of whether the pay or play penalties apply only at the client level or whether the penalties can be applied at the PEO level. At this time, we are unable to determine if pay or play penalties may be assessed against a PEO for coverage provided to WSEEs under a PEO sponsored plan.
As part of the Tax Extenders Act passed in 2019, the rules imposing excise taxes commencing in 2022 on employers and insurers who offer excessive health benefits under so-called “Cadillac plans” have been repealed. At this time, we are unable to determine the effect that the repeal of these pending excise taxes will have on our business.
401(k) Retirement Plans. Our 401(k) Retirement Plan for WSEEs are operated pursuant to guidance provided by the IRS under Revenue Procedure 2002-21 and Revenue Procedure 2003-86, each of which provides guidance for the operation of defined contribution plans maintained by PEOs that benefit WSEEs. This guidance provides qualification standards for PEO plans that, if met, negate the inquiry of common law employer status for purposes of the exclusive benefit rule. All of Insperity’s 401(k) Retirement Plans have received determination letters from the IRS confirming the qualified status of the plans.
Employment Taxes
As a co-employer, Insperity generally assumes responsibility and liability for the payment of federal and state employment taxes with respect to wages and salaries paid to our WSEEs. There are essentially three types of federal employment tax obligations included in Subtitle C - Employment Taxes of the Code:
• withholding of income tax requirements governed by Code Section 3401, et seq.
• obligations under FICA, governed by Code Section 3101, et seq.
• obligations under FUTA, governed by Code Section 3301, et seq.
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Under these Code sections, employers have the obligation to withhold and remit the employer portion and, where applicable, the employee portion of these taxes.
The SBEA provides that a CPEO shall be treated as the employer under Subtitle C – Employment Taxes of the Code and shall be responsible for reporting federal employment taxes rather than the CPEO clients.
For any client CSA that is not a CPEO contract, Code Section 3401, which applies to federal income tax withholding requirements, contains an exception to the general common law test applied to determine whether an entity is an “employer” for purposes of federal income tax withholding. Code Section 3401(d)(1) states that if the person for whom services are rendered does not have control of the payment of wages, the “employer” for this purpose is the person having control of the payment of wages. The Treasury regulations issued under Code Section 3401(d)(1) state that a third party can be deemed to be the employer of workers under this section for income tax withholding purposes where the person for whom services are rendered does not have legal control of the payment of wages. While several courts have examined Code Section 3401(d)(1), its ultimate scope has not been delineated. Moreover, the IRS has to date relied extensively on the common law test of employment in determining liability for failure to comply with federal income tax withholding requirements.
Accordingly, while we believe that we can assume the withholding obligations for WSEEs, in the event we fail to meet these obligations, the client may be held ultimately liable for those obligations. While this interpretive issue has not to our knowledge discouraged clients from enrolling with Insperity, there can be no assurance that a definitive adverse resolution of this issue would not do so in the future. These interpretive uncertainties may also impact our ability to report employment taxes on our own account rather than the accounts of our clients.
Clients who elected social security deferrals under the recent CARES Act have sole responsibility for reporting and depositing deferred amounts with the U.S. Treasury.
Unemployment Taxes
We record our state unemployment insurance (“SUI”) tax expense based on taxable wages and tax rates assigned by each state. State unemployment tax rates vary by state and are determined, in part, based on Insperity’s prior years’ compensation experience in each state. Certain rates are determined, in part, by each client’s own compensation experience. In addition, states have the ability under law to increase unemployment tax rates, including retroactively, to cover deficiencies in the unemployment tax funds. Rate notices are typically provided by the states during, or prior to, the first quarter of each year; however, some notices are received later. Until we receive the final tax rate notices, we estimate our expected SUI rate in those particular states.
State Regulation
While some states do not explicitly regulate PEOs, 42 states have adopted provisions for licensing, registration, certification or recognition of PEOs, and several others are considering such regulation. Such laws vary from state to state but generally provide for monitoring the fiscal responsibility of PEOs, and in some cases codify and clarify the co-employment relationship for unemployment, workers’ compensation and other purposes under state law. We believe that we are in compliance with the material requirements in all 42 states that have such laws. Regardless of whether a state has licensing, registration or certification requirements for PEOs, we must comply with a number of other state and local regulations that could impact our operations.
Human Capital
We had approximately 3,600 corporate employees as of December 31, 2020. We believe our relations with our corporate employees are good. None of our corporate employees are covered by a collective bargaining agreement. The number of BPAs and trained BPAs impacts our ability to grow our customer base. We refer to BPAs who have been employed for two months and completed initial sales training as “trained BPAs”. During 2020 and 2019, the average number of BPAs were 645 and 590, respectively, while the average number of trained BPAs were 590 and 528, respectively.
Intellectual Property
Insperity currently has registered trademarks, copyrights and other intellectual property. We believe that our trademarks as a whole are of considerable importance to our business.
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RISK FACTORS