HR Automation Audit | larsschmidt.com
Lars Schmidt · larsschmidt.com
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HR Automation Audit

Automate the Work
Between the Work

HR and People teams carry the connective tissue of every employee experience — and most of it is manual, repetitive, and high-stakes. This audit identifies exactly where Claude Cowork can eliminate the administrative drag, reduce compliance risk, and free your team to focus on the work that actually requires human judgment.

Sections
8 workflows
Dimensions
3 scores per section
Time Required
~8 minutes
Output
PDF ready
⚖️
Three-dimension scoring. HR workflows carry significant legal and compliance exposure — getting them wrong costs far more than the time saved. Each section scores on Time Drain, Repetition Rate, and Compliance Risk, so high-stakes processes surface as priorities even when volume is low.
01
Onboarding & Offboarding
New hire setup, day-one comms, equipment, access, and exit processes
Watch for these pain signals

New hires arriving without equipment or system access on day one. Offboarding checklists living in someone's head. Inconsistent documentation across managers. Exit interviews never scheduled or follow-through spotty. Every onboarding rebuilt from scratch for each hire.

Time Drain
How much weekly time goes to onboarding/offboarding paperwork, coordination, and communications?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Is the same process followed for every new hire and departure regardless of role or level?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if this process is inconsistent or undocumented? (I-9s, data access, IP agreements)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor
02
Performance Management
Review cycles, self-assessments, calibration docs, and follow-up communications
Watch for these pain signals

HR rebuilding the entire review cycle infrastructure from scratch each cycle. Reminder emails drafted manually. Manager calibration notes living in personal docs. Self-review templates never quite right. Post-review development plans rarely documented consistently.

Time Drain
How much HR team time goes to cycle setup, reminders, calibration prep, and documentation per cycle?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Does the same cycle structure repeat predictably — same templates, same communications, same sequence?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if review documentation is inconsistent or missing? (termination support, legal defensibility)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor
03
Employee Relations & Documentation
PIPs, investigations, accommodations, disciplinary records, and ER case files
Watch for these pain signals

Investigation notes inconsistently formatted across HR BPs. PIP templates adapted ad hoc. Accommodation request documentation scattered. Case files difficult to locate or reconstruct. Documentation gaps discovered only when legal gets involved.

Time Drain
How much time goes to drafting, formatting, and filing ER documentation and case records?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Do ER cases follow similar documentation patterns even if the underlying situations vary?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if ER documentation is inconsistent, missing, or poorly structured? (litigation, EEOC, ADA)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor
04
Benefits Administration & Communications
Open enrollment, life events, carrier comms, and employee benefits questions
Watch for these pain signals

Open enrollment guides rewritten each year from scratch. The same benefits questions answered individually via email all year long. Life event change communications inconsistent. Benefits comparison documents outdated by the time employees see them.

Time Drain
How much time goes to benefits communications, enrollment guides, life event processing, and employee Q&A?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Do the same communications get drafted each open enrollment, life event, or benefits change cycle?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if benefits communications are inaccurate or employees miss enrollment windows? (ERISA, ACA)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor
05
Policy Management & Handbook
Handbook maintenance, policy updates, change communications, and version control
Watch for these pain signals

Handbook last updated 18+ months ago. Policy changes communicated inconsistently to different employee segments. Multiple versions of the same policy circulating. Employees asking HR for policy clarifications that are already documented somewhere.

Time Drain
How much time goes to updating policies, maintaining the handbook, and communicating changes to employees?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Do policy updates follow a consistent structure — same review, approval, and communication workflow each time?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if policies are outdated or employees can claim they weren't notified of changes? (state law, NLRA)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor
06
People Analytics & Reporting
Headcount, attrition, DEI dashboards, and board-level people metrics
Watch for these pain signals

Monthly headcount reports taking a full day to pull together. Board decks rebuilt from scratch each quarter. Attrition analysis narratives written fresh every time. DEI data living in three different systems that never quite match. Executive asks for one-off cuts of data that take hours.

Time Drain
How much time goes to pulling, formatting, and narrating people reports per cycle?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Is the same reporting structure used cycle over cycle with similar inputs from the same sources?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if people data reporting is inaccurate or delayed? (pay equity audits, OFCCP, EEO-1)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor
07
Learning & Development Operations
Training calendars, completion tracking, manager nudges, and program documentation
Watch for these pain signals

Training completion rates tracked manually in spreadsheets. Manager reminder emails drafted individually. Program recaps written from scratch after each cohort. New hire required training not consistently assigned or tracked. L&D calendar communicated late or inconsistently.

Time Drain
How much time goes to L&D logistics — scheduling, tracking, communicating, and reporting on programs?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Do the same communications and tracking tasks repeat predictably across each program or cohort?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if required training completion is untracked or undocumented? (harassment training, safety, SOX)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor
08
Total Rewards & Compensation
Comp cycle administration, salary letters, equity comms, and total rewards statements
Watch for these pain signals

Merit increase letters drafted one by one in a mail merge that breaks every year. Total rewards statements employees don't understand. Equity grant communications landing in people's inboxes with no context. Comp cycle timelines communicated ad hoc to managers. Job architecture documentation scattered and inconsistently maintained.

Time Drain
How much time goes to comp cycle communications, letter generation, total rewards statements, and equity notifications?
1
MinimalSignificant
Repetition Rate
Do the same documents get generated each comp cycle — same structure, same data inputs, same distribution process?
1
Highly variableFully repeatable
Compliance Risk
How exposed is your org if comp communications are inconsistent or employees receive incorrect figures? (pay transparency laws, pay equity)
1
Low exposureHigh exposure
Priority Score
1 / 125
Monitor

Your HR Automation Priority Report

Based on your scores, here's where Claude Cowork will deliver the highest return on your people team's time — and where automation reduces your compliance exposure.

Your Top Automation Opportunities