I’d say to anyone who wants to join the network in Australia to absolutely go for it. It’s a challenge but an incredibly exciting one."
Pia Engstrom – The HR Dept Western Suburbs, Perth

Author Archive

Further growth for The HR Dept as four franchisees launch in Perth and Sydney

Posted by Felicity Down

Outsourced human resources specialist The HR Dept has expanded further in Australia with the launch of four new franchisees in Sydney and Perth. The company, which provides HR advice and support on a personal, local basis to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) now has nine franchisees operating across Australia.

In Perth, the new franchisees are Amanda Fox in the Inner City and Chris Muir-Smith in the South. In Sydney, Esther Colman has launched in the Eastern Suburbs and is joined by Mhairi Holway in the Northern Beaches area. Each of the experts will provide high quality expertise for the benefit of local SMEs in their territories which are looking to develop their people strategies, backed by many years of experience working with large and smaller businesses.

The HR Dept launched in Australia in the autumn of 2017, based on the success of a British model which started franchising in 2005 and now has 75 franchisees serving more than 6,000 SMEs in over 100 territories in the UK, Ireland and Australia.

“We are delighted to welcome these four new franchisees into The HR Dept family.”

Gemma Tumelty, Managing Director of The HR Dept Australia, said: “It’s challenging setting up a new business but we have enjoyed significant success over the past 18 months and are delighted to welcome these four new franchisees into The HR Dept family.

“We believe our success so far is because there’s nothing else like this in the marketplace. There are off-the-shelf HR options for small businesses but nothing which compares to The HR Dept’s offering of highly expert outsourced advice and support at a price which even a start-up can afford.

“We want to help businesses across Australia grow and thrive through good people practices, in turn helping the communities they are based in to be productive and successful. We are also unique in being Australia’s only HR franchise, so we provide the first opportunity for HR professionals to set up their own franchise business. With these four new franchisees starting up in Perth and Sydney, The HR Dept’s footprint in Australia is growing rapidly and we are looking for new HR professionals to help grow our network.”

Pia Engstrom is the Professional Lead and board director for the HR Dept in Australia and also holds the company’s first franchise, having set up The HR Dept Western Suburbs in Perth back in 2017.

She said: “Part of the strength of The HR Dept’s model is that franchisees, while running their own independent businesses, are part of a support network through which they can tap into each other’s knowledge and experience. So the more franchisees we take on, the greater our ability to tackle any employment-related situation. It’s great news for the many thousands of SME businesses across Australia and I am confident that each franchise will be a great success.”

And she said that changing working cultures make The HR Dept’s offering all the more relevant for modern businesses.

“There are a number of human resources issues impacting modern businesses,” she said. “For example, HR technology is making a huge difference to the way companies manage their people and business.

“Gender equality is a very topical and current issue, which can be difficult for small to medium sized businesses, depending on the industry. Legislation is changing greatly, from treatment of casual labour, to requests for flexible working and unpaid domestic violence leave. These are just a few of the considerations that business owners need to make when thinking about proper management of their employees.

“So in the current economic environment and the society we live in today, having good people processes in place is critical, to ensure employment legislation is adhered to and businesses retain highly skilled employees.”

[As seen in Business Franchise Australia]

Meet the HR Dept Founder

Posted by Felicity Down

The HR Dept visiting from the UK 

Meet the HR Dept Founder

Sue Tumelty founded The HR Dept in 2002 after a long career in HR in various large corporate companies and subsequently franchised the business in 2003. Sue is an experienced and commercially aware HR professional. Sue stepped away from her role as Managing Director of the UK entity in January 2016 but remains Chair of the UK entity and is still active within the business and The HR Dept Bristol.

Click here to read Sue’s Bio.

Global HR Franchise

The now global HR Dept network is made up of 70 franchisees in the UK, Ireland and Australia and are looking for talented and ambitious HR Professionals to join us.

Support For Local Businesses As Tegan And Lee-Anne Launch The HR Dept Ringwood

Posted by Felicity Down

Two working mums from Ringwood with two decades of human resources experience have set up a company offering their considerable HR expertise to local businesses in their area of Melbourne.

Having given up corporate life and pursue the dream of running their own business, Tegan Rose and Lee-Anne Hunt decided to join forces and launch The HR Dept Ringwood.

Passionate for success and confident in juggling the demands of working and family life, the two mums, formerly colleagues at an international affordable housing provider, now plan to become trusted advisors in partnership with their thriving local business community.

Currently working from home bases in Heathmont and Nunawading respectively, Tegan and Lee-Anne are looking to establish then grow The HR Dept Ringwood by taking on staff.

In providing the full range of human resources advice and support, their territory of operation will cover from Blackburn out to Healesville and the Yarra Valley, along the Maroondah highway corridor.

“We’re aiming for the stars,” said Lee-Anne, who has two teenage children Lachlan and Zoe and is accredited in learning, change and project management alongside her AHRI qualifications.

“We’d both always dreamed of having our own HR business, but the timing never felt quite right with family commitments. We were putting it off until we could focus on the marketing, IT and accounting – all extra things you need to understand to set up a business from scratch – in more depth.”

The crucial point on the journey was when the pair came across an advert in the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI) magazine. The HR Dept is an international franchise business, recently launched in Australia but established in 2002, which provides outsourced HR advice and support in more than 100 territories and serves well over 6,000 SMEs across the UK, Ireland and Australia.

“When we saw that advert we both got really excited,” said Tegan, who as well as being mum to Willow, Bailey and Harper has a Bachelor of Business in Human Resource Management as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. . “It gave us the chance to do what we loved, with the support and backing of a network of professionals and an established brand. Before we knew it we were attending a discovery day and the rest is history.

“It felt right, the people were fantastic and the thought of getting in early in the Australian market was very attractive to us.

“The combination of being able to chase our own dreams, help out business people in our local area and contribute to our community, all blended with our family commitments, was too good an opportunity to walk away from.”

The HR Dept is launching simultaneously in three territories in Melbourne, with other businesswomen Jenna Paulin launching in Docklands and Jo Gazzola setting up in Essendon.

“What’s really exciting is that there’s nothing else like this in the marketplace,” said Tegan. “There are off-the-shelf HR options for small businesses but nothing which compares to The HR Dept’s offering of highly expert outsourced advice and support, at a price which even a start-up can afford.

“We want to help businesses grow and thrive through good people practices, in turn helping our community be productive and successful.

“Without good people, businesses don’t survive, but it’s hard to keep on top of the complex employment relations environment and ever-changing compliance requirements, so if that’s one less thing a business owner needs to worry about, then that’s more effort they can spend on their business. That’s where we can step in and help out.”

Lee-Anne said: “Many SMEs are still trying to get their head around the implications of the modern awards in terms of pay and entitlements. There have been several Fair Work cases in the limelight recently where companies have been ordered to repay staff and fined due to underpayment.

“SMEs maybe unaware of recent changes to legislation in some modern awards whereby employees are able to dictate when they will take excessive annual leave if they can’t reach agreement with their employer. In Victoria, the introduction of the Brodie’s Law anti-bullying legislation has changed the employee relations landscape for small businesses. Ignorance is not a defence and businesses need to be vigilant to ensure their staff are trained and they have policies in place that are acted on. This is where we can help.”

Gemma Tumelty is managing director of The HR Dept. She said: “We are delighted that two women with the expertise and experience of Tegan and Lee-Anne are helping us launch The HR Dept in Melbourne. It’s great news for SMEs in the area and I am confident that The HR Dept Ringwood will be a great success.

Who franchises?

Posted by Felicity Down

It’s an interesting question, are there particular characteristics that belong to successful franchisees?

For our opportunity, applicants must have the crucial experience to deliver the quality HR service to their customers that our brand is so well known for, we’ve helped a whole range of diverse and different HR professionals to set up under The HR Dept’s brand.

HR professionals mainly came to us after long corporate careers but amongst our ranks we boast a couple of singers and a couple of amateur dramatic performers! Tegan Rose and Lee-Anne Hunt (pictured) have recently joined us from the not-for-profit sector and have started their own HR business as a partnership, The HR Dept Ringwood.

We’ve also helped ex-forces personnel to set up their own HR businesses who’ve come to us after long and successful careers in the military. Eamonn Gibney, our first Franchisee to operate in Ireland spent years with the forces. No stranger to a challenge, he launched and firmly established The HR Dept brand in Ireland, forming a path that other Irish Licensees would soon follow. With a loyal customer base and a growing network of Licensees around him, the Irish network is going from strength to strength.

“In the first month of being a HR Dept Franchisee, following the guidance of the central office and utilising those “transferable skills” I secured my first two clients.”

But it’s not just skills or experience that draw licensees to our franchise. It’s the desire to be in charge of your own destinies, to build something, and to use their HR skills to help their local business community. So many enquire about our opportunity saying exactly the same and it’s our job to give them all the information they need to make the right decision.

“I’ve never sold before, I’m scared!”

Posted by Felicity Down

When recruiting new Franchisees, we often hear the same sort of fears from the start “but I’ve never sold anything before – does this matter?” the answer is of course, no. Here at The HR Dept, you are not necessarily selling something specific; you are selling yourself as an HR professional with a wealth of knowledge and experience to help SMEs find the best solutions to their people problems.

Upon your induction, we work closely with an external sales expert to give you the best start in how to sell yourself along with our bespoke services and products. We then offer a further full day’s training to follow up and to make sure you are getting the most out of what you have learned already.

Learn our sales secrets and create a sales and marketing plan to get your business off to a flying start!

Work for yourself, but never by yourself

Posted by Felicity Down

If you are an experienced HR Professional and looking to take the next step in your career? Look no further! As a HR Dept Franchisee you can become your own specialist HR business owner in your local area, using our successful tried and tested franchise business model.

At The HR Dept we pride ourselves on our level of expertise within the HR industry. Our market leading franchise network is now made up of more than 60 Franchisees with varying HR specialisms across the UK, Ireland and Australia.

Although each Franchisee runs their own business, they’re not alone. Each one can tap into the expertise and experience of the network, as a Franchisee you’ll work for yourself but never by yourself.

It doesn’t end with the network. Our support team is the largest HR franchise support team there is, with experts sales, marketing, business coaching, operations and finance to assist you in making your new business a success.

Our tried and tested business model allows for the work-life balance many of us dream for. This balance provides a solid infrastructure to support Franchisees through every step of their journey into setting up and running their own business, but also allowing for flexibility to retain a balance in their day-to-day lives. Support for holiday, sickness cover, even maternity leave (and much more) is also provided so your business never comes to a halt, therefore, retaining satisfied clients.

So many HR professionals want to build a business to be proud of, but don’t feel they have the expertise outside of HR to make it a success. Now you don’t have to ignore your dreams!

Our brochure has all information you need about our market leading HR franchise, download it today!

Join An Award Winning Franchise

Posted by Felicity Down

As a HR Dept business owner you too can become an award-winning franchisee.

Our UK franchisees over the last year have been nominated as finalists for various local and national awards, including nominations for their local Chamber of Commerce. For HR Dept franchisees their willingness to go above and beyond with their work to provide HR support to SMEs is certainly recognised.

We are extremely proud of our franchisees. So why not take the plunge and come to a Discovery Day to find out more about joining our network in Australia and supporting our aim to be award winning here too!

The HR Dept talk to Elite Franchise Magazine (UK)

Posted by Felicity Down

The HR Dept Managing Director Gemma Tumelty made the front cover of this month’s edition of Elite Franchise Magazine in the UK.

Gemma was really excited to have the chance to share The HR Dept story and how she came to run the family business.

Click here to read Gemma’s feature.

HR Dept in the Elite Franchise Top 100

Posted by Felicity Down

We are delighted to announce that the UK team have made the top 50 in the Elite Franchise Top 100. Elite Franchise 100 recognises the sector’s brightest businesses and ranks them according to a broad range of criteria from their financial performance and heritage in the industry to their contribution to the community and the way they embrace innovation.

Click here to find out more about the Elite Franchise 100!