ALTRES (simplicityHR) and KilaKila Employer Services Announce Merger
December 05, 2011
Hawaii's two most respected names in human resources outsourcing (HRO), Maui-based KilaKila Employer Services and Honolulu-based ALTRES, announced today they will merge effective January 1, 2012.
KilaKila Employer Services will continue local operations from its offices in Pukalani, Maui, while ALTRES will send additional personnel to Maui to enhance the delivery of outsourced HR services, including payroll, benefits administration, safety training, employee record keeping, compliance, and workers' compensation administration.
"Barron and I have been friends for many years," said KilaKila founder and owner, Carole Kooy, of ALTRES' President and CEO Barron Guss. "Although we've owned companies in the same business, we never acted as competitors. I'm thrilled that our companies are now coming together to better support our clients."
Earlier this year, Kooy visited ALTRES in Honolulu and saw a demonstration of HR SymphonyTM, their award-winning, cloud-based payroll and HR information system. "It was head and shoulders above the other world-class systems we had been researching," Kooy said. "And this one was clearly created with Hawaii employers in mind."
That meeting set the wheels in motion to bring the two HR outsourcing companies together. For ALTRES, the merger means being able to serve Maui's expanding market and businesses more effectively. For KilaKila clients, it means gaining unmatched new tools, enhanced technology and simplicityHR's comprehensive service offerings.
Kooy will continue in her current role of oversight and guidance, while her daughter, Ryanda Sarraude, will manage day-to-day operations on Maui.
With a total of 145 employees, the combined organization will serve as the virtual HR department for over 800 businesses statewide. "Back in 1981, I created Hawaii's first HR outsourcing business. Until now, we haven't really promoted simplicityHR on Maui, out of respect for Carole and her business," said Barron Guss, ALTRES' President and CEO. "With this merger, we now have offices, experienced personnel, new efficiencies, and genuine connections to Maui's business community."
