client case study

Human Resources Audit

About Findley Davies
Findley Davies is an independent, fee-for-
service human resources consulting, actuarial
and administrative services firm specializing
in health and group benefits, retirement plans,
compensation and rewards management,
communication solutions, and HR sourcing and
technology. Findley Davies is committed to
serving its clients with an uncommon level of
personalized service and consulting excellence.
For more information, please visit our website
at www.findleydavies.com or contact us at:
Charlotte
704.372.9331
Cleveland
216.875.1900
Columbus
614.458.1869
Greensboro
336.271.2009
Toledo
419.255.1360
Maximizing the effectiveness of your human
resources function can begin with an audit of
your current workforce practices.
Background
A small, privately-held organization in Ohio was interested in positioning itself for
growth. They needed to attract and retain some very specialized talent to continue their
business success. Without this talent, the organization would not be able to maintain its
past achievements and certainly could not expand its operations into new markets. It
was time to focus on the workforce needs and issues while creating a top employer in
the region.
Challenge
With minimal support to the Human Resources function, this client was challenged with
where to start work on their people issues. Findley Davies recommended an audit which
would review all current HR policies and practices to determine:
Which best practices should be implemented to better position the organization to
achieve its goals;
Which practices, or lack of practices, might place the organization at risk for compli-
ance or regulatory violations; and
Process improvements that will support HR in providing the highest quality service to
employees.
Solution
The HR audit began with a data and documentation request that required the Company to
gather many of their policy manuals, benefit descriptions, and other employee communica-
tions. Our audit team then met with the HR and Finance staff to gain a better understand-
ing of the current practices as well as identify other issues in the organization.
The Audit Report identified and prioritized recommendations in six key areas:
General HR structure
Policies and procedures
Employee life cycle (attraction, recruitment,
hiring, orientation, termination)
Performance evaluation and training
Compensation and benefits administration
Employee communication
Results
The HR audit was delivered to the Companys management team as a detailed report and
then presented to the executives in a summary format. It included a number of recommenda-
tions to improve their ability to attract and retain talent. For example, one recommendation
was to develop a compensation and benefits philosophy. To support this initiative, we
provided the organization with key questions for the management team to discuss. The
questionnaire allowed stakeholders to examine their current pay and benefits practices and
set a strategy to align those practices with the future business direction.
The client is going to incorporate some of the highest priorities into their business initia-
tives over the next couple years. One of their most immediate tasks will be to revise the
employee handbook to include most of the recommended best practices.
The clients feelings were expressed in a simple email after our teams presentation to
management. It said Thank you for a great presentation last week. You hit a home run.
About the Author
Carrie Alexander is a consultant in the
Communication Solutions Practice.
She can be reached at 419.327.4196 or
calexander@findleydavies.com