Ineffective, misaligned, and unlawful employment policies, procedures, and practices are a significant threat to an organization's employee and public relations, employment brand, and bottom line.  Competitive and financial benefits can be derived from effective HR management.  Increasingly the management tool of choice to ensure compliance, to reduce the exposure to employment related liabilities, and to improve the value of the organization's human capital is an HR audit.  Like financial audits, HR audits are designed to assess management activities, identify policy and practice weaknesses, perform due diligence, benchmark best practices, and to quantify and evaluate outcomes.

Laurdan Associates, Inc., a leader in HR auditing and employment practices liability (EPL) risk management, has developed a suite of HR auditing and EPL risk management products and services that help organizations increase the value of their human capital and reduce their exposure to EPL related losses.  In addition to ELLA^®, the Employment-Labor Law Audit^TM, the nation's leading HR auditing and employment practices risk assessment tool, Laurdan Associates conducts on-site and off audits, assists organizations develop internal auditing tools, develops internalized experiences rating programs, conducts employee and applicant surveys, and develops other assessment methodologies.

Laurdan's approach is to help employers identify and assess problems, then come up with cost-effective solutions. Laurdan's HR auditing activities include:

1. Quantifying and measuring outcomes .
   The best employment practices are of limited value if they produce the wrong or ineffective outcomes.  A critical element of Laurdan's HR audits is the determination of current and potential outcomes.
   
2. Comparing activities and results to standards and goals .
   Like financial audits, Laurdan's HR audits compare activities and results to external and internal standards and to expected and budgeted goals.
   
3. Reviewing structural, organizational, and cultural issues .
   The effectiveness of various employment policies, practices, and procedures is determined be a number of external and internal factors.  Laurdan's HR audits helps identify and assess these factors.
   
4. Assessing the employment brand .
   Like product branding, employment branding influnces customers' (employees') desire and willingness to buy the product (becoming and staying an employee).  Laurdan's HR audits help assess the organization's employment brand.
   
5. Inspecting employment posters, notices, and facilities .
   Employers are required under various federal, state, and local employment laws to post in a "conspicuous" location information concerning their employment obligations.  Laurdan's auditing activities inspect and review this area of employment practices.
   
6. Inspecting employee personnel files.
   Laurdan's HR auditing activities inspect a random selection of personnel files.
   
7. Assessing HR management and employment practices .
   Using an enhanced version of ELLA^® we will review and assess various HR management and employment practices areas, including:

• Recruitment, selection, and hiring
• Application forms
• Reference checking and responding
• Immigration related issues
• ADA
• Employee handbooks and procedural manuals
• Positive employee relations
• Diversity, inclusion, and workplace discrimination
• Affirmative Action-Pay Equity 
• Sexual harassment
• Drug-Free workplace
• AIDS and other infectious disease issues
• Job performance managment
• Retention issues
• Conflict resolution
• Discipline, terminations, and downsizing
• Leaves of absence
• Wage and hour issues
• Unemployment insurance
• Workplace safety
• Ethics and governance
• Strategic HR

Privacy Policy                               Contact us at  radler@laurdan.com or 301.299.4117