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HR Audit Support: Ensure Compliance & Efficiency with Catapult's Expertise

By Kendra Stewart posted 03-27-2025 01:25 PM

  

Performing an HR Audit is essential to ensure an organization's HR policies, practices, and procedures are compliant, efficient, and aligned with business goals. Given the dynamic nature of regulatory changes in today’s fast-changing work environment, an HR audit helps businesses stay competitive, legally compliant, and employee-friendly. But how do you determine if your company is keeping up with employment law changes, adhering to guidance from government agencies, and following best practices?  Even if you have time constraints, and/or specific concerns, you can get help for this. There are numerous benefits to having a 3rd party complete your audit. First of all, they are completely neutral. An objective review can bring issues to light that might otherwise go unnoticed. Outsourcing your audit also leaves you with the time to manage day-to-day HR functions. Catapult’s experienced consultants are available to conduct HR audits, including critical compliance reviews such as I-9 and FLSA audits. We provide end-to-end support, guiding you through the entire process and assisting with any necessary post-audit corrections. 

If you prefer to conduct an audit on your own, Catapult provides the tools and resources to support you. If you’re unsure where to start, consider focusing on one specific area. Here are some key steps and important factors to keep in mind: 

  1. Determine Scope of Audit: Consider all major functions of HR (Recruiting/Selection, Compensation, Leaves/Benefits, Performance Management, Employee Relations and Training) as a starting point and work your way from there. Or, consider starting with your major pain points in your HR Operations. Within each area, there are items to consider.  

  •  Recruiting/Selection - Hiring and Onboarding Practices

    • Review job postings, employment applications, interview/documentation/selection/rejection processes, pre-employment checks, offer letter, I-9s, Employee Handbook 

  • Compensation - Pay Policies & Procedures 

    • Ensure that employees are appropriately classified as either exempt or nonexempt. 

      • Are final pay and taxes set up correctly? 

      • Are deductions from paychecks handled correctly? 

      • Do any bonuses, merits payments, and special pay practices align with performance toward business goals/compensation philosophy? 

    • Are your leaders appropriately trained on timekeeping procedures and wage and hour policies, such as off-clock work, meal and break times, and travel time? If so, how long ago was that training, and is a refresher needed?  

  • Leaves of Absence 

    • Employers covered by the Family Medical Leave Act are required to communicate, in writing, certain key provisions of their FMLA policy and practices to employees. A company’s FMLA process should be evaluated to ensure compliance with these regulations. Employers not covered by FMLA might have responsibilities under the ADA, and other anti-discrimination laws, to provide employees with time away from work. By auditing your leave of absence practices you will help ensure employees’ requests for time off are handled appropriately.  

    • It is also important to ensure that you are compliant with FMLA laws by state as well. 

  • Performance Evaluations & Discipline 

    • Is employee documentation objective, specific, and signed by the employee? You will rely on this documentation for investigations, unemployment responses, government agency complaints, and litigation. Therefore, it needs to be meaningful, concise and consistent. If the documentation is incomplete or unsigned, the situation may turn into a dispute of one person’s word against another’s. 

    • Do personnel files include the necessary documents? Make sure all medical and I-9 information is stored separately. 

  • Other topics to consider 

    • Record Retention  

    • Employee Benefits 

    • Safety 

    • Compliance-related training 

  1. Develop a Questionnaire 

  • Catapult’s Member portal—The HUB, accessed through the members-only section of Catapult’s website, has numerous documents and tools to assist in conducting an HR audit.  

  • Sign in through this link to get to the tools and resources to help you get started with performing your own HR Audit. 

  1. Analyze & Present Results 

  • Once you audit and have your results, it is time to identify gaps and strategize solutions.  

  • Next, you need to educate leaders on areas of opportunity and get buy-in on proposed actions. 

  1. Create an Action Plan 

  • Prioritize the steps you will take toward compliance based on your organization's more immediate needs. Who needs to be involved? What additional resources do you need?  

  • Get Help: Catapult not only has HUB resources but also HR experts who can provide you with fractional support to help you update and “clean up” all the necessary priorities from the audit results. 

  1. Follow-Up 

  • Are you still on track 6 months later? One year later? Does your plan need to be adjusted? 

  • Plan your next audit. 

Catapult is here to support you, no matter how you choose to approach your audit. Whether you need assistance along the way or want to learn more about our audit services, contact us at (866) 440-0302 or info@letscatapult.org.

 

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