Payroll Companies & Payroll Services in Cleveland, OH

Barnes Wendling CPAs is a certified public accounting firm headquartered in downtown Cleveland. It handles payroll as one part of a wider practice in accounting, tax and advisory work. Most of its clients are privately owned companies across many industries, and it also works with family offices and wealthy individuals.

For a business comparing payroll providers, the main draw is that payroll is handled alongside bookkeeping, tax compliance and financial reporting. One CPA team covers all of it, so the work isn't split among several vendors.

Payroll and Bookkeeping Services

Payroll falls under the firm's bookkeeping group, which belongs to its assurance department. The team can run payroll for a client and prepare and file the payroll tax forms that come with it, including year-end W-2 and 1099 forms. One client, a public library, said the firm took care of its contractor 1099 filings quickly after a single phone call.

The tax department also gives payroll tax advice and helps with multi-state and city tax planning, which matters for Ohio employers that withhold municipal income tax.

• Payroll processing and payroll tax returns, including W-2s and 1099s
• Accounts payable and accounts receivable
• Monthly write-ups, accruals and financial statements
• Bureau of Workers' Compensation true-up reports
• Sales and use tax filings
• QuickBooks setup and ongoing support
• Controllership, from overseeing an in-house accounting staff to running the whole accounting function

Related HR and Benefits Expertise

The firm has a human resources consulting group that helps clients with recruiting, hiring and reviewing their benefits. It also has a dedicated practice that audits employee benefit plans. Together, these give payroll clients advisors who understand compensation, benefits and internal controls, as well as the mechanics of paying staff. The firm also handles fraud prevention, forensic accounting, SOC reports, business valuation, transaction support, and planning for estates, retirement, succession and owner exits.

Industries and Approach

The firm has industry groups for construction, manufacturing and distribution, not-for-profit organizations, real estate, and service businesses. It describes its guiding goal as helping clients build and protect their net worth. Its BRISE planning model combines five services that clients can mix and match to set goals and plan concrete steps toward them.

In the firm's 2025 client survey, it reported a Net Promoter Score of 88, compared with an industry benchmark of 38, and an overall satisfaction rating of 4.71 out of 5.

Background and Locations

The firm traces its roots to 1917, when Horatio Mitchell opened a small accounting office on East 9th Street. It took the Barnes name in 1946, and Robert E. Wendling became a partner in 1954. Over the following decades it merged with several firms in northern Ohio. In 2024 Rosemary Rehner became its first female president.

Its leadership includes many CPAs, some with additional credentials such as CFE, CFF, ABV and CEPA. The firm is a member of the AICPA and the MGI international association. Besides the Cleveland headquarters, it has offices in Sheffield Village and Sandusky, Ohio, and in Palatka, Florida.

CB Tax & Accounting is a Parma, Ohio firm that combines tax preparation, accounting and payroll support under one roof. It has been in practice for more than two decades. Its clients include individuals and business owners at many stages of life and wealth. Some live near Cleveland and others work with the firm from a distance.

For employers comparing payroll providers, the firm stands out as a local office where the staff who run payroll also handle the related tax filings and bookkeeping.

Payroll Services

Payroll is a core part of the firm's accounting work, and several team members focus on it directly. Staff process employer payrolls and remit employer tax deposits. They also prepare the quarterly and annual filings that come with having employees. For some smaller business clients, payroll runs through QuickBooks, and the team completes year-end reconciliations and W-2 forms. The payroll administrators also work to keep clients in good standing with the agencies that collect employment taxes.

• Employer payroll processing, including QuickBooks-based payroll
• Payroll tax payments and quarterly tax reports
• Year-end reconciliations and W-2 preparation
• Compliance support with federal, state and local taxing authorities
• Bookkeeping and general accounting for business clients

Broader Tax and Accounting Support

Beyond payroll, the practice prepares returns for individuals, corporations, partnerships, LLCs, S corporations and non-profit organizations, along with quarterly estimated taxes. Entrepreneurs who are just starting out can get help forming an LLC, S corporation, partnership or corporation. Team members also advise on tax planning, strategic business development and consulting.

The firm offers insurance and financial advising as well, and it helps clients obtain an IRS Identity Protection PIN to guard against tax-related identity theft. Prospective clients can begin with a free consultation.

Team and Credentials

The staff brings a mix of credentials. Branch Office Manager Joseph J. Scouloukas runs daily operations and works with clients on financial and investment matters. Vice President of Accounting Dean Scouloukas has spent over fifteen years in financial services. He is a Registered Tax Return Preparer and is licensed to sell insurance in Ohio.

Laureen Ondrejech is a registered tax preparer and payroll administrator. She also has a background in Ohio workers' compensation, especially the premium reduction programs available to employers in the state. Payroll administrator Denise Zlokas oversees payroll, quarterly tax reports and bookkeeping for business accounts. Lori James supports payroll processing and employer tax payments.

Michelle Ritvo is a CPA with more than 30 years in practice who began her career at a multinational accounting firm. Accounting Manager Tricia Teribery adds over three decades of industry experience. Registered tax preparer Patrick Remington has been with the company for fifteen years, and Project Manager Michael Knezevic handles returns, accounting and advisory work.

For small and mid-sized employers, the main appeal is having payroll, payroll taxes, bookkeeping, business returns and owners' personal returns handled by the same Rockside Road office. Because of this, a payroll provider can be chosen with the whole tax picture in mind. The firm has operated from its current Parma location since 2017. It credits much of its growth to referrals from satisfied clients, and its Google reviews describe staff who are friendly and explain each step.

Finalert is a U.S. firm that combines accounting, CFO-level advisory work and financial analytics. It maintains a Cleveland presence and a second office in New York. Its clients are mostly founders and leadership teams, from young ventures to companies that are growing quickly. Payroll sits inside a larger outsourced finance function that also covers bookkeeping, tax and the main transaction cycles, so a client can use one team for both its pay runs and its books.

Payroll services

The payroll practice is organized as a set of nine services that follow an employee's pay from the first hour worked to the final annual filing. The listing shows only seven distinct items:

• Time and attendance tracking
• Direct deposit setup and paycheck distribution
• Tax filing and compliance
• W-2 and 1099 preparation
• Year-end tax reporting
• Employee benefits administration
• Workers' compensation administration

Payroll connects with other areas of the firm. The tax group lists a payroll and employment tax service, while the bookkeeping team records payroll transactions and reconciles them, which helps keep labor costs accurate in the financial statements.

Wider accounting and advisory work

Beyond payroll, the firm organizes its accounting work around the standard finance cycles. Its procure-to-pay offering covers accounts payable, purchase requisitions, vendor management, invoice approvals and vendor payments. Order-to-cash includes billing, credit management, cash application and collections. Record-to-report covers fixed assets, intercompany accounting, revenue accounting, closing and financial statement preparation.

The advisory side includes fractional CFO support, budgeting and forecasting, scenario modeling, investor-ready financials, internal controls, audit support and SOX readiness. An analytics team produces KPI dashboards, Power BI dashboards, Excel financial models and automated reporting. Accounting and CFO firms can also engage Finalert for dedicated offshore teams, white-label work and staff accountant or controller support.

Industries and software

Finalert describes tailored work for eleven sectors:

• Automotive
• Consumer, retail and e-commerce
• Energy and natural resources
• Financial services
• Government and public services
• Higher education
• Life sciences and healthcare
• Industrial manufacturing
• Nonprofit
• Real estate and construction
• Technology, media and telecom

The team works inside widely used software. On the payroll side it names ADP and Gusto. Its ledger and reporting tools include QuickBooks, Xero, Zoho Books, Sage Intacct, NetSuite from Oracle, Microsoft's Dynamics 365 and SAP, with Expensify for expenses and Tableau for visualization.

Getting started and proof of results

A prospective client can begin with a twenty-minute conversation, which the firm says is held with an accountant rather than a salesperson. The website also offers a library of 234 articles, five long-form guides, an FAQ and calculators for estimating the cost of outsourced accounting.

Its single published case study involves CWS Global, a nonprofit and humanitarian organization, and reports a month-end close that was 50 percent faster, live visibility into grants and donors, and compliance that is ready for audit.

M.E. & Associates Services is a small, locally run accounting and tax practice in the Polish Village neighborhood of Parma, Ohio. The firm draws on more than three decades of experience. Its clients include individuals and a wide mix of organizations: sole proprietors, partnerships, S- and C-corporations, nonprofits, estates and trusts. Employers comparing payroll service providers may find it a useful alternative to large national processors, because it handles payroll, bookkeeping, tax returns and advisory work from a single office.

Payroll Services

Payroll is one of the practice's four main service lines, and the firm uses QuickBooks for this work. Its payroll offering includes:

• Processing of employee pay runs
• Direct deposit of wages
• Monthly and quarterly payroll reporting
• Payroll tax handling
• Other payroll options shaped around the employer's needs

Flexibility is a core part of how the office runs payroll. Clients can choose weekly, every-other-week, bi-monthly or monthly pay cycles. They also decide how completed payroll is delivered. It can be collected at the office, sent by email or postal mail, or paid straight into employee bank accounts. The firm says its goal is to fit the service to each employer rather than apply a single standard template.

Accounting and Tax Support

Beyond payroll, the firm offers bookkeeping, general ledger maintenance, QuickBooks work and profit and loss statements. It also handles compliance filings for sales tax, the Ohio Commercial Activity Tax (CAT) and municipal taxes. Clients can schedule these engagements monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually.

On the tax side, the office prepares city, state and federal returns for individuals, S-corporations (Form 1120S), C-corporations (Form 1120), partnerships (Form 1065), nonprofits, estates and trusts. It also prepares amended returns. Businesses with obligations in other states can have out-of-state returns prepared, and electronic filing is included with tax preparation.

The practice also provides consultations and reviews. These cover current and prior-year taxes for both businesses and individuals. They also extend to business restructuring and reorganization, planning and development, and compiling monthly, quarterly or annual financial statements. The firm will review QuickBooks files and processes, and it helps clients respond to notices from the IRS, the state or local tax authorities. The scope of each consultation is settled in advance, before the client shares any documents.

Working With the Firm

The office operates throughout the year, not only during tax season, so employers can get support with payroll and accounting at any time. Clients can submit paperwork in several ways: by email, fax or text, by dropping it off in person, or at a scheduled appointment.

The website offers intake forms and document checklists to help new and returning clients get organized. The firm considers each new client request individually rather than accepting every inquiry. It is best suited to small employers and households in the Parma area who want one familiar local team handling their payroll, books and tax compliance.

Szweda Consulting, LLC is an accounting firm based in the Cleveland area. It helps small businesses, non-profit organizations and individuals with payroll, bookkeeping, financial leadership and tax work. The firm calls itself Cleveland-based with a national reach, so it works with clients both in Northeast Ohio and elsewhere through a virtual model. Its main pitch is that owners should spend their time running the company while the firm handles the accounting.

Payroll Services

Payroll is one of the firm's core service lines, offered as payroll consulting combined with hands-on management. Szweda Consulting works with platforms such as Gusto to run payroll for client businesses. It makes sure staff are paid correctly and on schedule.

Payroll data is fed directly into the client's QuickBooks Online file, which cuts out the need to re-key figures and lowers the risk of manual errors. The firm also keeps the general ledger balances for federal and state payroll tax obligations reconciled. This makes it a good fit for employers who want payroll and the books kept in one place.

• Payroll consulting and setup guidance
• Ongoing payroll processing through Gusto
• Payroll entries posted to QuickBooks Online
• Tracking of federal and state payroll tax liabilities

Accounting and Advisory Support

Besides payroll, the firm offers full-charge bookkeeping, either alongside an in-house bookkeeper or in place of one. This covers customer invoicing, paying vendor bills, reconciling bank accounts and preparing financial statements, so the books are current and ready at tax time.

For businesses that need more strategic input, its part-time controller and fractional CFO service provides senior-level financial guidance without the cost of a full-time executive. That work includes cash flow analysis, forecasting and practical recommendations. Tax preparation is also available for businesses and individuals.

Szweda Consulting also has a bookkeeping offering built for non-profit organizations. It covers needs such as tracking restricted funds and preparing grant compliance reports. Organizations that use QuickBooks Online can get custom training from the firm's certified ProAdvisors. Sessions are tailored to the user's skill level and can cover a first-time setup or improvements to an existing workflow.

Background and Approach

The firm says its team has years of accounting experience and holds QuickBooks certification. It presents outsourcing as a way for small companies to get skilled professionals and modern software without the overhead of a full-time hire, such as benefits and employer payroll taxes.

Client testimonials on its site mention help in understanding business finances, keeping records organized and filing tax returns quickly. The firm also publishes educational articles for local business owners on topics such as common tax mistakes, estimated taxes, billable expenses in QuickBooks and responsible use of business credit cards.

For buyers comparing payroll providers in the Lakewood and greater Cleveland area, Szweda Consulting stands out because payroll is part of a full accounting relationship rather than a standalone product. That suits businesses that also want bookkeeping, controller-level oversight or tax support from the same team.

True North Tax Services, LLC is an accounting and tax practice based on Pearl Road in Parma, Ohio. It works with both individuals and business owners. For companies looking at payroll providers, the firm is a local option that handles payroll as part of a wider set of bookkeeping, tax and advisory work. This means wage processing can be managed alongside a business's books and tax filings rather than by a separate vendor.

Payroll and Related Business Support

Payroll appears among the firm's core business offerings. It is presented as a set of solutions fitted to each client's operations, so owners can hand off routine processing and focus on running their company. The firm also has a dedicated practice for resolving payroll tax problems. That matters to employers who have fallen behind on withholding deposits or employment tax filings. Related IRS matters the firm addresses include liens, levies, wage garnishment, seizures, payment plans and offers in compromise.

• Payroll processing tailored to each business
• Resolution of payroll tax problems and back taxes owed
• Small business bookkeeping and accounting
• QuickBooks setup, training, troubleshooting and tune-ups
• Part-time CFO and cash flow projection services
• Tax preparation, tax planning and IRS audit representation

Who They Serve

The firm's business clients are mainly small companies whose owners would rather not keep their own books. It also supports people launching a new venture, family-owned firms planning for the next generation, and nonprofit organizations that need to classify revenue and expenses correctly to protect their tax-exempt status. On the individual side, services include personal financial planning, retirement and estate planning, and elder care assistance.

Approach and Tools

True North describes its approach as personal and one-on-one. The stated goal is to find solutions suited to each client's particular circumstances while saving them time and money. Clients can transfer documents through a secure send tool and use an online client portal, and consultations can be scheduled through the website. The firm has a strong QuickBooks focus.

It helps clients choose, buy, install and learn the software, and it offers quick answers and periodic file reviews. For employers who run payroll in QuickBooks, this can make for a smoother link between payroll records and the general ledger.

Broader Advisory Capabilities

Beyond day-to-day compliance, the firm lists a wide range of advisory and assurance services. These include audits, reviews and compilations, as well as forensic accounting and litigation support. It also offers business valuation, strategic and succession planning, help preparing for bank financing, and assessments of internal controls.

For a growing employer, having payroll, tax compliance and financial guidance under one roof can reduce the number of outside providers to coordinate. It also gives the firm a fuller picture of the business when advising on cash flow or labor costs.

Buyers who want a neighborhood accounting firm in the Parma area, rather than a national payroll platform, may find True North a practical fit. This is especially true for small businesses that also need help with payroll tax issues or QuickBooks bookkeeping.