01
Working Out What You Actually Need
Capacity versus capability. The real 1,500 productive hours. The 4B model: Build, Buy, Borrow, or Bot.
Strategic Workforce Architecture
Stop hiring to fix a broken week.
A 25-page field guide for small business owners, managing directors, operations managers and not-for-profit leaders who cannot afford a $90,000 mistake.
A$47
A$57
A$47
Searchable PDF
5 chapters
Templates + checklists
A$10 off is applied at checkout with code WELCOME10.
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The trap
Your team is wrecked. Someone says “just hire.”
Six months later the wage bill is higher, the work is still late, and the new person is drowning in paperwork that should never have existed. A panic hire never fixes a broken workflow.
This guide forces the decision in the right order: measure the real hours, name the real gap, draw the boxes for the organisation you need, then hire on evidence — not vibes.
What’s inside
Five chapters. One working system.
02
Drawing an Org Chart That Actually Works
Escape the incumbent trap. Sensible spans of control. Stop the Board running the office.
03
Role Descriptions That Actually Work
Four outcomes instead of thirty chores. Decision limits. No “other duties as directed.”
04
Setting Pay and Budgeting Wages
True on-cost (base + 20–25%). Four pay bands you can defend. The Award / flat-salary trap.
05
Hiring People Who Can Actually Do the Job
Work tests. Structured interviews. Reference checks that are not a waste of time.
+
Templates in every chapter
Capability inventory, bus-factor register, role one-pager, on-cost calculator, interview score sheet, and pre-decision checklists.
This is for you if
You are about to spend money you cannot take back.
- You are about to post a job ad because everyone is tired
- You run a team of roughly 10–50 people
- You lead a charity that just won a grant and thinks the next move is a full-time coordinator
- You cannot explain why two people doing the same job are paid different amounts
This is not for you if
You want posters, not a working method.
- You want theory, values posters, or HR jargon
- You need an enterprise competency framework
- You are looking for a 300-page textbook
How you use it
Read it once. Then open the chapter that matches the decision.
Do the checklist before you spend money. Searchable PDF with clickable contents. Print it or keep it on the laptop. Australian Award, ACNC and Superannuation figures are working examples — check current rates before they go into a live budget.
Get the guide
Strategic Workforce Architecture
A$47 after WELCOME10. Less than half a day of a junior salary. Infinitely cheaper than the hire you did not need.
A$57 A$47
A$10 off is applied at checkout with code WELCOME10.
I want thisInstant download after payment. PDF, 25 pages.
Questions
Before you buy
Is this a generic HR ebook?
No. It is a field manual for small businesses and charities: panic hiring, grant-funded roles, Modern Awards, bus factor, and founder bottlenecks. No values posters. No 300-page textbook.
Who is Plain Sense?
Plain Sense Consulting is a plain-talking Australian practice. The work sits with boards and operators who do not have a spare MBA or a $20k strategy deck: governance, strategy that gets used, HR and role clarity, policies people can actually read. The founder’s background is arts, education leadership, community engagement and public service across regional Australia. Read more at plainsense.au.
Is this only for not-for-profits?
No. The method is for any owner, MD or ops lead running roughly 10–50 people who is about to hire because the week feels broken. NFPs and grant-funded teams are a core audience because that is the work Plain Sense does day to day. Small businesses use the same sequence.
Can I use it outside Australia?
The decision order travels: measure hours, name the gap, draw the boxes, then hire. Award rates, ACNC and Superannuation figures are Australian working examples. Swap them for local law before they go into a budget.
What format do I get?
A searchable PDF with clickable contents and bookmarks. Twenty-five pages, five chapters, templates and checklists in each chapter. After purchase you can also use Gumroad’s Read and Send to Kindle options.
Does the A$47 price include consulting?
No. This is the guide only. If you want hands-on help with an org chart, role descriptions or a hire, book a discovery call at plainsense.au/appointment.
How does WELCOME10 work?
List price is A$57. The buy buttons open checkout with code WELCOME10 already applied, so you pay A$47.
Is this legal or financial advice?
No. The guide is general information and a working method. It is not legal, financial, tax, industrial-relations or employment advice. Check current Awards, ACNC rules, superannuation and any other law with a qualified adviser before you use a figure or template in a live budget, contract or hire.