HR Foundations & Compliance
Getting the basics right, and finding the exposure before someone else does.
An honest picture of where you actually stand
An HR audit answers a question most business owners can't answer confidently: if someone looked at our people practices properly, what would they find?
It's a small, defined engagement with a clear output. Which makes it the most straightforward way to start, and the reason it's how most of our client relationships begin.
What we review
- Employment documentation Contracts, letters of offer and variation, and whether they reflect the actual arrangement.
- Coverage and classification Which award or agreement applies to whom, and whether people are correctly classified.
- Pay and entitlements Rates, allowances, penalties, loadings, overtime and leave, checked against the instrument and against what payroll is doing.
- Record-keeping Employee records and pay slips against the prescribed requirements: a common and easily avoided source of penalty.
- Policies What exists, whether it's current, whether it's consistent, and whether anyone could find an answer in it.
- Process How recruitment, onboarding, performance, conduct and exits actually run.
- Superannuation and other obligations Contribution rates, eligibility and timing.
- Risk areas specific to you Contractor and labour hire arrangements, casual conversion, roster and shift arrangements, right of entry readiness.
What you get
A written report with:
- Findings ranked by risk (critical, significant, minor) rather than an undifferentiated list
- The exposure quantified where it can be, so the size of each issue is clear
- A practical remediation plan, sequenced, with what can be fixed quickly separated from what needs a project
- Templates and fixes for the straightforward items
- A debrief so you understand what you're looking at
We write it to be read by a business owner or executive, not by an HR specialist.
How it works
- 01 Scope Size and complexity of workforce, and any areas of specific concern.
- 02 Document review Contracts, policies, records, payroll data, instruments.
- 03 Interviews A small number of conversations to understand how things actually work.
- 04 Report Findings, risk ratings and plan.
- 05 Debrief Walking through it and agreeing priorities.
We can usually start within two weeks. Time from start to report depends on the size of the organisation.
Common questions
How much does it cost?
A fixed fee based on workforce size and complexity, quoted before we start.
Will this create problems we didn't know we had?
It will identify problems you already have. There's a real difference, and the second is much cheaper than being told by someone else. Where we find something serious we'll talk you through the options for addressing it, including how self-correction is generally regarded.
Do we have to fix everything?
No, and that's why findings are risk-ranked. Some things are genuinely urgent; others are good practice you can schedule.
Is it confidential?
Yes. The report is yours.
Can you fix what you find?
Yes, and most clients ask us to. There's no obligation, and the report is written so another adviser could work from it.
Ready to talk?
Tell us what you need and we'll take it from there.
Related services
All services →HR Compliance
Award and agreement coverage, classification, entitlements, record-keeping and the obligations that carry real penalties.