Workforce Consulting

Workforce structuring and setup

We help businesses design the right workforce operating model, choose between employee and independent contractor classification, reduce worker misclassification risk, and implement compliant contracts and governance from day one.

Trusted by more than 1,000 businesses internationally

What workforce structuring helps you do

Workforce structuring and setup ensures your workforce is built on the right foundations before you scale.

Review your current workforce structure and engagement approach

Identify compliance and operational risk

Define the right model for employees and contractors

Set up contracts, onboarding guardrails and governance controls

Stay involved beyond strategy to ensure successful execution

When you need workforce structuring and setup

This service is typically engaged when workforce structures are unclear, inconsistent or being tested by growth.

Scaling quickly or adding roles across multiple functions
Engaging contractors or managing a mixed workforce
Hiring across regions or preparing for expansion
Fixing inconsistent contracts or onboarding processes
Reducing risk ahead of growth, funding or audit events

Contractor vs Employee:
Choosing the right engagement approach

Deciding whether to engage someone as an employee or contractor is one of the most important workforce decisions a business makes, and one of the easiest to get wrong.

Businesses need to consider:

Overlooking these factors can lead to worker misclassification, resulting in back payments, penalties and reputational risk.

EPG assesses each role in context, documents the rationale behind the engagement model and ensures contracts and structures align with local requirements and are defensible if challenged.

Worker classification and misclassification risk

Worker classification is the process of determining whether an individual should be engaged as an employee or through independent contractor classification. Approaches are often inconsistent, relying on assumptions or applying a single model across jurisdictions despite differing local requirements.

Common misclassification triggers include:

In some cases, the issue can extend to sham contracting risks where workers are engaged as contractors but operate as employees in practice

EPG reduces this risk through structured assessment, clear documentation and defined governance controls. This ensures decisions are not only correct at the point of hire and defensible over time.

For ongoing monitoring and remediation, see Workforce Compliance and Governance.  For contractor engagement delivery, see Agent of Record services.

What we deliver

Our workforce structuring services provide clear, practical outputs you can implement immediately:

Current state workforce review and risk scan
Clear engagement model recommendation (employee vs contractor)
Clear guidance on EOR vs AOR aligned to your structure and risk profile
Contract and documentation setup support
Governance controls, approvals and onboarding guardrails to maintain consistency
Implementation support to put structures into practice
Handover documentation for internal teams

How it works

Assess

We review your current workforce structure, contracts and engagement approach to identify risk and gaps including classification risk and inconsistencies across roles or regions.

Design

We define the right workforce operating model, including classification, engagement pathways and governance aligned to your operating model and growth plans.

Implement

We support contract setup, onboarding frameworks and structural rollout across your workforce, working alongside your teams to ensure it is applied consistently.

Handover and govern

We provide documentation and controls to ensure your structure is maintained and scalable as your workforce grows.

From advisory to execution

Once your workforce structure is defined, EPG supports execution through the following services:

client success stories

Real people, real results

We entrusted your Team with a critical project that had a tight deadline, and they delivered with impressive efficiency. Their project management skills ensured that every milestone was met on time, and the final result exceeded our expectations.

It’s taken hard work combined with an investment in technology to transform our operations. EPG’s guidance and continued support since our early beginnings have provided better efficiency around servicing clients and vulnerable communities.

Knowing that our contract staff are looked after from a compliance point of view allows us to focus on supporting our team to bring out their best. The people we work with at EPG are always supportive, reliable and quick to act on what we need.

With EPG, we don’t have to worry about the changes in employment laws and regulations in Malaysia. We feel assured that our workers are managed per local laws and regulations, putting us in a far better position

Putting a new worker into the field utilising EPG’s direct employer model takes a matter of days and removes the employment risks that come with having your own in-country entity.

The [payroll] portal has been great so far! It is very user friendly, and I love how it shows me the payroll variances from month to month, so I can quickly note changes. The reports are easy to download. The implementation of this portal has made processing payroll much more efficient.

The way that the EPG platform is set up is going to save the team so much time next season. Never thought I’d be looking forward to doing payroll.

Michael Larkins

President at Suna Solutions

Grant Pericleous

Chief Executive Officer at NursesNow

Louise Murphy

HR Business Partner at Ferrero AU

Saqib Fayyaz

Manager at Circle CVI

Grace Ng

HR Manager at EcoVadis

Lori Hart

Women's Tennis Association

Fiona Macfarlane

Human Resources

Explore the other workforce consulting pillars

Workforce structuring and setup is one part of a broader workforce consulting model:

faqs

Got Questions?  We’ve got answers

What is worker classification, and why does it matter?

Worker classification determines how an individual is legally engaged, affecting pay, tax, entitlements and compliance obligations. Incorrect classification can result in back payments, tax liabilities, penalties and legal disputes particularly when engaging contractors or scaling across regions..

How do we choose between a contractor and an employee?

It depends on how the role is structured in practice, including control, duration and integration into your business. Each role should be assessed individually rather than applying a blanket approach.

When should we use Agent of Record vs. Employer of Record?

Agent of Record is used for compliant contractor engagement. Employer of Record is used when a worker should be employed, but you do not have a local entity. The right choice depends on classification and jurisdiction.

What does a workforce structuring engagement include?

Generally, it includes a current state review, risk assessment, engagement model design, contract setup support and governance controls, along with implementation guidance.

What if we have already misclassified workers?

Misclassified workers should be reviewed and corrected to reduce ongoing compliance risk and potential backdated obligations. EPG can support remediation by reviewing current arrangements, reclassifying workers if required, correcting documentation and addressing potential backdated obligations.

We also help implement the correct structure moving forward to prevent the issue from recurring. For ongoing monitoring, see Workforce Compliance and Governance

Talk to a workforce specialist

Establish the right workforce structure from the outset to support scalable, well-governed growth, without rework or compliance risk later.

Scale your team with confidence

Hire, employ, and manage talent

Keep payroll and HR running smoothly