Human Resources Consulting

Nicholson Sheehan Consulting have extensive experience in supporting management and human resources teams to create better organisations, systems and processes. 

Our goal is to transform businesses to be customer-centric, high performing workplaces which deliver exceptional results for all stakeholders.  We have successfully consulted to a range of industries including Local, State and Federal Government; Finance & Banking; Health (private & public); Airlines; Mining & Resources; and Hospitality.  

Our consulting expertise includes:

• Workplace, health & safety       
• Performance management systems
• Organisation and process reviews
• Leadership development
• Learning program design and delivery
• Management and career coaching 
• Psychometric assessments
• Remuneration consulting
• Workplace & industrial relations

Workplace and Industrial relations cover a broad range of employment matters such as minimum wages, unfair dismissal, enterprise agreements, disciplinary management, redundancies, hours of work, leave entitlement and other matters relating to employment standards. Workplace and industrial relations have become extremely complex, and navigating the legal issues often requires specialist assistance

One size does not fit all so we will scale with your requirements: The help you need, when you need it, at realistic costs.

We offer a range of different services and work with our clients in the following areas:

• Discipline and termination (including unfair dismissal and adverse action claims)
• Workforce resizing, restructuring and redundancy
• Enterprise agreement making and renewal
• Award compliance and interpretation
• Industrial Disputes
• Contracts of employment
• Mergers and acquisitions 

Executive team coaching for improved performance

What is the difference between mentoring and coaching and how does coaching assist managers and executives?

Coaching is a performance driven process, designed to improve the professional's on-the-job performance by challenging perceptions, values and methodologies. Whereas, Mentoring is development driven, focusing not only on the professional's current role but beyond, taking a holistic approach. Mentoring assists the executive to get to where they want to go, however Coaching challenges the manager to consider where they must go to drive higher performance.

Executive coaching is individually customised, specifically for the needs of the professional. Coaches are skilled listeners and ask questions to challenge and direct the professional’s focus to potential blocks of performance. Using reality-based goal setting models and following through techniques such as the GROW model (Whitmore, 2009), coaches assist executives to focus on performance improvement goals and follow them through to successful implementation. However, one professional in isolation may improve personal performance through coaching, however how do management teams purposefully improve performance.

Firstly, a group of managers is not a Team. They may choose to act as a Team – common goal, shared values, shared responsibility, interdependence resulting in synergy, however, managers do not need each other to get their work done.

If they choose to act like a team with open, transparent communication and a commitment to positive critique to improve group and individual performance, Management Team Coaching can be a highly effective technique to drive exceptional leadership and strategic performance.

Team coaching involves individual coaching with each member of the management group followed by group coaching to explore strategic strengths, skill gaps, group goals in comparison to individual goals, working relationships, and options for interdependence to cover skill gaps and drive synergies.

Team coaching is not for the faint hearted. It often involves robust conversations but it can be a highly effective tool for new management teams to explore strategic opportunities, build relationships, and quickly achieve an effective operating rhythm. For established management groups, team coaching can be an effective reality check on strategic focus and execution, relationship blockages,

performance barriers, and a means to drive commitment to

organisational high performance.

Workplace investigations which are thorough and compliant

A workplace investigation is an impartial information gathering process into complaints of wrongdoing or misconduct made against an employee.  

Assessing complaints and performing workplace investigations assists the employer to meet their legal obligations, manage and mitigate a variety of risks, further complaints and disputes which can be a risk to the organisation’s effectiveness and efficiency.  

It is important that an organisation investigates workplace issues in a thorough manner to avoid potential widespread consequences, including court action. A single issue can develop into an external claim, negative culture, decreased morale, absenteeism, and employee turnover. 

Workplace investigations can be critical tools to: 

• Manage employee grievances 
• Target poor conduct and behaviour 
• Manage serious misconduct and determining appropriate disciplinary action 

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) requires that investigations be handled in a way that offers procedural fairness to both parties – the complainant and the respondent. Investigations need to consider the evidence for and against the claim, and find on balance, whether the allegations are substantiated. 

Where an investigation finds the allegations are substantiated, serious disciplinary action such as termination of employment can often be the outcome. Most dismissals can be challenged by the employee, opening the investigation to scrutiny by the FWC. 

To avoid repercussions, it is important to conduct an investigation process with impartiality, objectivity, and fairness. The internal and/or external perception of how thoroughly and objectively an investigation has been conducted is critical to organisational reputation and it may affect profitability.

Our Workplace Investigations team is committed to working with you to achieve the best possible results for your organisation. We have the expertise to handle investigations according to Fair Work principles and best practice. We provide commercially focused services that can be customised to your business needs. Additionally, we have extensive experience in managing human resource risk, workplace and industrial relations issues.Our team provide a timely, cost effective and thorough service to a broad range of industry sectors – public sector, non for profit, health, aged care, retail, hospitality, customer service, construction, resources, and education.