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What it is
A step-by-step guide to planning your staff: how many people, in what roles, at what pay, and how to hire them.
Implementation guide
Strategic Workforce Architecture
A 25-page guide for owners and managers who are about to hire, restructure or set pay. It helps you work out what you need, then set it out: the right roles, a clear org chart, fair pay and a better way to hire. It includes templates, checklists and case studies.
AU$49
Instant download. Licensed for one organisation.
Questions? Contact us through our contact form.
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What’s inside
Five chapters, 10 templates, 5 checklists and 10 short case studies from small businesses and not-for-profits.
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Who it’s for
Small business owners, managing directors, operations managers and not-for-profit leaders, especially in teams of about 10 to 50.
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What it helps you do
Avoid a costly panic hire, write roles people can succeed in, budget wages properly, and choose staff on evidence.
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What it is not
It is not a recruitment service. You work through it yourself. Check pay figures and Award rules against current law before you use them.
The five chapters
Work through them in order the first time. After that, go back to the chapter that fits the decision in front of you. Each chapter ends with a checklist to finish before you spend money.
1 · What you need
Before you hire, check whether you need more hours, more skills or a better process. A full-time worker gives about 1,500 productive hours a year, not 1,976. It also covers the “bus factor” (one person holding key knowledge) and four options: train, hire, contract or automate.
2 · Your org chart
Draw the structure you need 18 months from now, not one built around the people you have. One boss per person, sensible team sizes (3 to 5 people for complex work), and board members kept out of day-to-day direction.
3 · Roles
Replace long task lists with four or five outcomes you can measure. Separate the must-haves from what you can teach, and write down what the person can decide on their own.
4 · Pay
Work out the true cost of a role (add at least 20 to 25% on top of salary), avoid the flat-salary trap under Modern Awards (the industry rules that set minimum pay), and set four simple pay bands.
5 · Hiring
Swap the casual chat for a short practical work test, the same scored questions for every candidate, and reference checks with direct supervisors.
What’s inside
- A 25-page PDF guide, delivered as an instant download
- Five chapters: working out what you need, your org chart, role descriptions, pay and wage budgets, and hiring
- 10 templates printed in the guide: a team skills and gaps list, a “bus factor” risk register, a one-page role description, a table showing who decides what, a true wage-cost calculator, a pay progression framework, an interview scoring sheet, and a five-question reference-check script
- 5 checklists, one to finish before each big decision
- 10 short case studies, including charities, trade businesses, a transport company and an arts centre
- A list of the research each chapter draws on
Who it is for
Small business owners, managing directors, operations managers and not-for-profit leaders who are about to hire, rewrite a role, set pay, or redraw a structure that has grown by accident. The structure advice is aimed at organisations of about 10 to 50 staff. It does not replace the Policy Pack.
What you’ll be able to do
- Tell whether you really need a new hire, or a fix to training, process or tools
- Spot where one person holds knowledge nobody else has, and plan a backup
- Draw an org chart with clear reporting lines and sensible team sizes
- Write a one-page role description with measurable outcomes and clear decision limits
- Budget the true cost of a role and place it in a fair pay band
- Choose between candidates using a work test, scored questions and proper reference checks
Want help working it through? See our workforce planning & structure service.