HR Consulting and Compliance for New Zealand Businesses
If you’re running a business anywhere in New Zealand, HR compliance isn’t optional — but it also shouldn’t be overwhelming, reactive, or built on fear of getting it wrong.
At Epic People, we provide practical HR consulting and compliance support for NZ businesses all over the country, that want to stay legally compliant and build a workplace where people are engaged, happy and can actually perform.
We work with small and medium-sized organisations who need clear, commercially sensible HR advice — without the jargon, panic, or cookie‑cutter templates.
In the main centres of Auckland, Wellington Christchurch, and everything in between from Northland to Southland, we’re here to help.
HR support that balances compliance and culture
Too many businesses treat HR compliance and people performance as separate things. The reality is that they are deeply connected.
Poor compliance creates risk, stress, and conflict. Poor engagement creates turnover, underperformance, and burnout. Strong HR foundations do the opposite.
Our HR consulting approach focuses on:
- NZ employment law compliance
- Clear, fair people processes
- Confident and capable leaders and managers
- Engaged, accountable employees
This hub page gives you an overview of our core HR consulting services. Each area links to a deeper page where you can explore specific support options.
Our HR Consulting and Compliance Services
HR Compliance (employment law and risk management)
Employment law in New Zealand changes regularly — and getting it wrong can be costly.
We help businesses stay compliant with:
- Employment agreements and policies
- Performance management and disciplinary processes
- Investigations and workplace issues
- Terminations, restructures, and exits
- Holidays Act obligations and employment law updates
Our focus is practical compliance — not legal theory — so you can make confident decisions and reduce risk.
We help organisations NZ-wide, not just in the main centres of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Got an overseas subsidiary? Ask us about our experience overseas!
Performance management and disciplinary support
Performance issues are one of the biggest sources of stress and risk for NZ employers — especially when managers aren’t confident or processes aren’t clear.
We support businesses with fair, compliant performance management and disciplinary processes, including:
- Managing poor performance
- Disciplinary and misconduct processes
- Investigations and issue resolution
- Performance improvement plans (PIPs)
- Coaching managers through difficult conversations
Our approach protects your business, treats employees fairly, and helps managers act early — before issues escalate.
Recruitment support (end-to-end or as needed)
Hiring the right people shouldn’t require paying recruitment agency fees — or gambling on rushed decisions.
We provide end-to-end recruitment support for NZ businesses, or targeted help at any stage of the hiring process, including:
- Role justification and workforce planning
- Writing clear, compliant position descriptions
- Job advertising and employer branding
- CV screening and shortlisting
- Designing structured, fair selection processes
- Interview guides and assessment tools
- Offer, onboarding, and early performance support
You get expert HR-led recruitment support at a fraction of the cost of a recruitment consultant, with a strong focus on fit, fairness, and long-term success.
Find out the difference between using an HR consultant and a recruitment consultant in this article.
Leadership and manager support
Many HR issues start — or end — with manager capability. If you leaders are technically great but their soft skills are on the light side, then we can help.
We support leaders and people managers with:
- Coaching and leadership development
- Managing performance and difficult conversations
- Building trust and accountability
- Creating psychologically safe teams
This service connects directly to compliance, engagement, and strategy outcomes. We do this through on demand support, one on one coaching, and training courses.
Who we work with
Our HR consulting and compliance services are designed for:
- Small and medium-sized NZ businesses in most industries
- Organisations without internal HR teams
- Growing businesses needing scalable HR systems
- Leaders who want practical, commercial HR advice
If you want an HR partner who understands both people and business realities, you’re in the right place.
Why choose Epic People?
Choosing the right HR partner matters — because the advice you receive directly shapes decisions about people, risk, and performance.
Our director brings 30+ years’ experience in HR across New Zealand and overseas, including many years operating at senior level (reporting to CEO). We’ve worked inside organisations of all sizes — from small, growing businesses to complex, high-risk environments, public and private (including public service), and we understand the realities leaders face in NZ organisations.
Our experience includes:
- Leading HR functions and advising at senior leadership and C-suite level
- Running recruitment processes for roles ranging from highly technical specialists and professional services through to executives, senior leaders, and administration roles
- Managing complex performance, disciplinary, and employment relationship issues
- Designing HR systems that balance legal compliance with commercial practicality
- Supporting organisations through growth, change, and people risk
This depth of experience means we don’t give textbook answers. We give context-aware, commercially sensible advice that works in the real world.
Clients choose Epic People because we:
- Understand New Zealand employment law and how it applies day to day
- Bring senior-level HR thinking without the cost of a full-time executive
- Are calm, clear, and pragmatic — especially in high-pressure situations
- Focus on outcomes, not unnecessary process or paperwork
We don’t overcomplicate HR — we make it workable, compliant, and aligned with how your business actually operates.
Ready to talk to a consultant about creating an epic workplace?
Behind every epic workplace, is Epic People
Talk to an HR Consultant
If you need HR consulting or compliance support for your business, let’s talk.
Whether you’re dealing with an immediate issue or want to strengthen your HR foundations, we’ll help you move forward with confidence.
