OnPoint Consulting NZ

17/09/2026

Minimum $3,500 to replace someone in their first 90 days.

This number covers internal recruitment, induction, and early training, before salary even comes into it. What it doesn’t cover is what walks out the door.

A long-tenured employee carries stuff you can’t put in a handover doc: the way things get done, the context behind decisions made years ago, the relationships that keep things running without anyone noticing.

None of that transfers. It just leaves.

And when it compounds, every person who follows inherits a little less context than the last.

The retention strategic plan work is the cheapest. A conversation with someone who’s starting to drift costs you an hour. Replacing them costs you a lot more than that.

Our initial advice is always free.

15/09/2026

92 days, not 90. That two-day gap was enough to result in a claim being brought against the employer.

Real performance issues, a sound process, and termination that was carried out within the trial window.

Then, the employee’s lawyer counted the calendar days in the agreement, start date to end date, and it came to 92. That’s enough to void the whole clause.

It didn’t matter that the dismissal happened within 90 days. The employer had no protection left and ended up having to settle.

Don’t put an end date in your trial period clause. Just say it runs 90 calendar days from the commencement date of employment.

Pull up your agreement and read the clause. If you’re not sure whether it stacks up, we’ll give it to you straight.

11/09/2026

If someone’s asking you for a pay rise, you’ve probably already lost them.

Retention often gets treated like a money problem. In reality, a raise buys you three months, maybe six. It doesn’t touch whatever made them start looking for other opportunities.

The stuff that works costs way less. One healthcare organisation with 170 staff put healthy vending machines in the staff room, wraps, salads, sugar-free drinks. $400 to $500 a month. Their morale noticeably lifted.

Small, visible, consistent beats a big corporate programme every time. And it beats a pay rise trying to fix a problem it was never going to solve.

Not sure what your people would value? Have a chat about it.

08/09/2026

January, February, and March don’t add up to 90 days always.

If that’s how you’ve been counting your trial periods, you may want to read this.

Four things that void a 90-day trial period:
1. The employee has worked for you before, even briefly
2. They’re on accredited work visa
3. The clause names an end date and the days don’t land exactly at 90th day.
4. You counted months instead of calendar days.

A valid trial period doesn’t protect you from everything. A termination without a conversation or explanation can still invite grievances for unjustified disadvantage.

Have you checked your agreement yet? A 15-minute review now beats a personal grievance later.

04/09/2026

Your best employee isn’t going to tell you they’re thinking of leaving.

They’re going to show you, weeks or months before it happens. Most managers just aren’t looking.

The signs show up early, and they’re easy to miss if you’re not paying attention: more sick days than usual. That’s someone creating a bit of distance from a workplace that’s become hard to be in.

Then there’s the smaller stuff: the “good morning” that stops happening. Work that’s technically fine but flat. The person who used to speak up first in every meeting, now saying nothing at all.

These aren’t performance issues. It’s a relationship breaking down.

Treat it like the first, and you’ll only speed up the departure.

Something feel a bit off in your team lately? Let’s talk about it.

02/09/2026

We’ve heard this many times before from employers when a good employee resigns.

“I didn’t see it coming.”

The signs were there. They just weren’t seen for what they were.

By the time someone hands in their notice, you’ve usually already lost them. Sometimes long before.

It’s rarely about pay or the company. A pay rise might buy a few months, but it won’t fix what’s really going on.

So, what’s behind it, and what can you do before you’re standing there wondering how you missed it?

That’s what we dig into in this one:

The most consistent reason good employees leave is due to the relationship with their immediate manager. Not the company, not the salary, not the commute; the manager…

28/08/2026

Thinking of rehiring someone? Many businesses assume they can be put on a trial period.

That’s false, and employers often don’t realise the difference between a trial period and a probationary period until it’s too late.

Trial period
→ New hires only, never employed by you before, in any employee relationship capacity
→ Fixed at 90 calendar days, no extensions
→ No formal process needed. Good faith, notice, letter, done
→ Not an option for accredited employer work visa holders

Probation period
→ Works for anyone: returning staff, internal moves with the existing employees
→ Can be extended if both sides agree
→ Needs to be justified: conversations, documentation, a chance to respond

Neither one is automatically the ‘better’ option. Choose the clause that fits the situation, not the one that’s always been in your template.

We’ll help you set both up properly.

27/08/2026

Two extra days. And a valid termination turned into an unjustified dismissal and a five-figure settlement.

The employer did everything ‘right.’ Real performance concerns and within the correct time period. But one small drafting error in the trial period clause blew everything out of proportion.

Now, the employee was entitled to a personal grievance for unjustified dismissal.

It’s an easy mistake to make and an easier one to miss... until it costs you.

We’ve written about what went wrong, what makes a 90-day trial period valid, and how it’s different from a probationary period.

Not sure whether your agreements hold up? This article is for you.

Most Kiwi business owners know that the 90-day trial period exists. Fewer know the specific rules that make it valid, or what happens when the clause is drafted incorrectly. Even fewer employers  know the distinction between a trial period and a probationary period, until they need to rely

15/08/2026

If you’re frustrated with a team member’s performance, a quick question: have you actually told them?

It sounds obvious, but this is the most common pattern we see. The owner has been stewing for months. They’ve vented to other people. They’ve lost sleep over it. And the employee has no idea anything’s wrong.

Then one day the owner decides to “do something about it” and jumps straight to formal performance management. That’s where the trouble starts.

The fix is much simpler: have the honest conversation early. “You’re doing well here, but my expectation is here, and you’re sitting at about 60%. What can I do to help you close that gap?”

Most performance issues get solved right there — no formal process, no stress, no risk. The conversation you’ve been avoiding is usually the solution.

13/08/2026

Honest answer from an HR consultancy: you don’t need us for every conversation with your team. In fact, please don’t do that.

When an owner brings in a consultant or lawyer for every people matter, employees notice. They get defensive, they bring representation, and something that could have been sorted over a coffee turns into a formal dispute.

What you actually need is good foundations (a proper employment agreement, clear procedures) and someone you can call *before* you make a mistake, not after.

Handle the everyday conversations yourself. Keep expert advice on speed dial for when it counts. That combination resolves more issues than any amount of outsourcing ever will.