NDIS business consulting and advisory

Being easy to find is one thing; being chosen is another. Most of what works early costs time rather than money.

Where the people you want to support actually look for a provider

Being useful in Facebook and community groups, not just promotional

A Provider Finder listing that says clearly what you do

Responding to enquiries well, and knowing which ones to turn down

What not to spend money on yet

Support coordinators and plan managers send participants to providers they trust. Earning that trust takes time, and it is the most reliable source of work you can build.

Which relationships are worth your time first

What support coordinators and plan managers need from you

Local connections: allied health, GPs, hospital discharge teams, community groups

Keeping in touch without being pushy

Having capacity and answering quickly, which is what gets you referred again

What you want out of the business, and who you want to help. Most new providers say they support "NDIS participants", which is too broad to build a business around.

What you want the business to give you, and when

The people you are best placed to support

Age group, level of support, where you work, how their plan is managed

Which supports to focus on, and which to leave alone

How that shapes the supports you offer and the people you hire

What you deliver and who you deliver it to are two halves of one decision. Get it wrong and you end up set up for supports you never provide, or turning away the people you could help most.

The supports you plan to deliver, and what each one requires

The disability groups and age groups you are set up for

Where you will work, and whether your team can cover it

Whether specialist supports are worth the extra work involved

Whether you offer interpreter support or culturally safe delivery

Company structure, insurances, software, banking, bookkeeping. Dull to sort out now, expensive to unpick in three years.

Company structure and who owns what

The right insurances for the supports you deliver

Software for rostering, notes and invoicing

Banking and bookkeeping set up properly from the start

Governance that suits your size

Your first few staff set the tone for everyone who follows. Hiring carefully now is much easier than changing the culture later.

Which role to fill first

Employees or contractors, and what each one means for you

Screening checks, induction and supervision

Rosters that match the right worker to the right participant

Keeping good staff once you have them

More than a poster for the wall. Your values shape who you hire, the work you turn down, and how your staff behave when no one is watching. Auditors ask about them too.

A mission statement in plain language

Three to five values your team can actually apply

How they show up in hiring, induction and supervision

Making sure your values, policies and website all say the same thing

Every provider registering with Avaana gets a business plan, because the Commission asks for one and our registration team writes it. Consulting adds the thinking behind it, so it becomes a plan you actually use rather than one that sits in a drawer.

A summary of your purpose, how you operate and who is accountable

The supports you will deliver, and any specialist supports on top

An org chart, with each senior role and what they are responsible for

A SWOT analysis: your strengths and weaknesses, and the opportunities and risks around you

Goals and an action plan, each with a date against it

Market context, using current NDIA participant and spending figures

A thorough look at how you operate, your team and your position in the market, to find what is really holding the business back rather than what is easiest to see.

A review of how the business runs day to day

How your team is performing, and whether people are staying

What the market is doing, who else is nearby, and where you could grow

Clear recommendations, specific to your business

Your staff deliver the support participants receive and auditors look at. Building the team, and showing they are properly trained, gets harder as you grow.

Roles, responsibilities and how work flows as the team grows

How to recruit, and where to advertise

Training plans that show where the gaps are

Supervision, refresher training and development

Extra training where the supports you deliver require it

What worked for two people rarely works for twenty. Changing it by choice is far easier than being forced into it.

A look at how you are currently structured

Changes that fit where you want to take the business

Ownership, governance and who decides what

Keeping compliance, licensing and accreditation in order

Help putting the changes in place

A plan for reaching more people, adding new supports and holding your ground in a market that keeps changing.

Where you sit in the market, and what you are capable of

New supports, new participant groups, new areas

Short and long-term goals, in the right order

Help putting it into practice, across marketing and delivery

Checking in and adjusting as things change

Your team delivers everything participants experience, and wages are your biggest cost. Building a good team and keeping it together is the hardest part of running a provider.

A look at your team structure, skills and capacity

Tidying up roles, responsibilities and how work gets done

Recruitment, induction and keeping good people

Managing performance and developing your staff

Building a culture that puts participants first

One-to-one coaching for you and your managers on leading, deciding and communicating as the business gets bigger. That includes inclusive leadership, so how you lead reflects what your service promises participants.

Your strengths as a leader, and where to develop

One-on-one sessions on leading and making decisions

Communicating well, handling conflict and managing change

Helping your managers delegate and manage performance

Ongoing mentoring, and someone to hold you to it

There are real opportunities to buy other providers or take on premises. We help you get good terms and avoid costly ones.

Working out what you actually need

Finding suitable premises or businesses to buy

Negotiating rent, length of lease and incentives

Due diligence, reviewing contracts and managing the deal

Managing the lease afterwards, and renegotiating when it comes up

Whether you sell, hand it on or simply step back, what you get out depends on decisions made years earlier. Planning early makes the difference.

What you want long term, for the business and for yourself

Your options: selling, merging, or handing over internally

Timing, succession and planning the handover

Getting the most for the business, and making the handover smooth

Adjusting the plan as things change