HR Services for Small Businesses | Bambee & Allan Jones

Allan Jones’s initial venture was Fourth and Grand, a personalized clothing subscription service similar to Trunk Club, supported by the venture studio and accelerator, Science, located in Santa Monica.

Although this particular business did not succeed, it set the stage for the young entrepreneur—who had previously left college—to establish Bambee, a Los Angeles-based company. Bambee enables small businesses to offer their employees the same level of human resources support typically available to larger organizations.

Bambee distinguishes itself from competitors such as Zenefits and other HR service providers by concentrating on the needs of both employees and employers. Many existing solutions prioritize recruitment, talent development, and benefits administration from the employer’s viewpoint. Bambee positions itself as focusing on the more sensitive, interpersonal aspects of human resources, rather than the associated business operations.

Jones explained that the idea for the company originated from observing his father, a local convenience store owner in Upland, California, navigate a challenging wrongful termination lawsuit brought by a former employee.

“Every small business in the country deserves access to a human resources expert,” Jones stated. “As a child, I witnessed my father, who ran a small store, being sued for wrongful termination, which ultimately required him to use funds earmarked for my education.”

Through his work with Los Angeles startups like Docstoc and ZipRecruiter, Jones came to understand that the vulnerability he had seen in his father’s experience as an employer also extended to employees. “Both parties were exposed to risk,” Jones noted.

Recent events at companies like WeWork, Uber, Zenefits, and Away demonstrate that a lack of robust human resources support in a company’s early stages can escalate into significant problems over time.

“This is a widespread issue affecting 5.6 million companies,” Jones said. “Recognizing this, and the absence of a viable solution, led us to believe there was a clear opportunity.”

Jones asserts that Bambee delivers 80% of the capabilities of a full-time HR professional at a considerably lower cost.

For a monthly fee of $99, Bambee provides clients with a dedicated HR manager—assisting with the creation and implementation of appropriate HR policies, collecting electronic signatures through its application, and ensuring adherence to the intricate and ever-changing landscape of regulatory compliance, according to the company. These managers can oversee internal investigations, the hiring process, employee onboarding, furloughs, and the implementation of return-to-work protocols.

Human resources professionals offer valuable insights beyond simply preventing management misconduct from becoming a widespread issue. They also provide guidance on managing employee furloughs, rehiring staff, and accounting for both scenarios. This information proved particularly crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Consequently, companies such as Stojo Projects, Knife Aid, and Hank’s Bagels utilize Bambee’s services. The company currently serves approximately 10,000 customers nationwide and has secured $32 million in funding. In October, it completed a $15 million funding round led by QED Investors, with participation from existing investors including AlphaEdison.

Jones believes there is significant potential for further expansion. Once the company has established itself in providing core HR management services, expanding into more standardized areas like employee benefits administration, payroll, and related functions should be straightforward. Additional financial services could also be offered in the future, Jones added.

“My ultimate goal is to create a more equitable relationship between employees and employers,” Jones said. “We aim to start with the fundamentals and clearly define those relationships. After observing how often these relationships are poorly defined and undervalued, we realized the importance of building trust through the HR service component… and how much further we could extend the services we offer to these companies.”