As a small-business owner, Mark D’Agostino knows firsthand the difficulties of staffing a human resources department. All too often, HR employees are overworked, undertrained and unsupported by company leadership, he says.

To address these issues, D’Agostino launched ConnectedHR, a professional services firm that provides its 30 clients with experienced HR consultants. ConnectedHR personnel work on-site at companies—albeit off their payroll and benefits programs—diving into the complex realm of workers' compensation claims, employee engagement and other duties beholden to an in-house HR operation.

"We go out to organizations and become their HR entity on a part-time basis," says D’Agostino, who started his Independence-based business in 2014. "We have one young woman who works at five different organizations each day of the week."

Company "technicians" are spread out to diverse industries such as biotech, childcare and law. Cleveland law firm The Rathbone Group and drug discovery company BioMotiv are among the entities currently hosting a ConnectedHR staff member. Client business models may differ, but human resources basics are similar across industries, D’Agostino notes.

"Our technicians have an agenda and structure they follow very closely," he says. "It's streamlined enough that they know what aspects to focus on."

Businesses that enlist D’Agostino's services generally don't have an HR strategy in place. The company founder and president understands how that goes, as he didn't have a human resources staff at the business supply distribution company he ran prior to launching ConnectedHR. Visiting other offices at the time revealed HR's dispersal throughout harried personnel groups. From there, a vision for a new employee engagement approach came into being.

Since its inception, ConnectedHR has steadily grown its client base and topped $1 million in annual revenue. D’Agostino enjoys working with an established clientele that have reached a stage of growth where a level of HR professionalism is needed.

"I'm also excited about my team," D’Agostino says. "There's such an energy and vibrancy with them. They're a very educated, experienced group."

Ensuring worker well-being is especially satisfying in a region where small business is an economic driver.

"I'm passionate about supporting these organizations, because I'm a small business owner, too," says D’Agostino. "My clients want to be a good employer for their employees."