Paychex, Inc. is an American company that provides human resources, payroll, and employee benefits outsourcing services for small- to medium-sized businesses.

[1] Founded in 1971 and headquartered in Rochester, New York, the company has more than 100 offices serving approximately 740,000 payroll clients in the U.S. and Europe.

[3][4] The operation grew to include 18 franchises and partnerships, which were eventually consolidated into one private company in 1979.

[citation needed][28] The Employment Watch is frequently used by financial experts, analysts, and journalists assessing the economic outlook.

[29] Paychex CEO Martin Mucci regularly appears in the media to provide analysis of Small Business Employment Watch data, as well as insight into what the health of Paychex as a company says about the health of small business and the economy in general.