HR BREAKFAST CLUB MONTHLY FORUM

JOIN US FOR OUR OCTOBER HR BREAKFAST CLUB

Red Flags in Plain Sight: What HR Sees First, and What to Do About It

Date | 8:00am Friday 16 October 2026

Venue | In person – BAL Lawyers, Canberra House, Level 9/40 Marcus Clarke Street, Canberra 

Presenter | Bill Pardy, Director at BAL Lawyers and Ed Kang, Lawyer at BAL Lawyers

Cost | Complimentary

Join us at the BAL Lawyers HR Breakfast Club for a practical session on spotting red flags, asking the right questions and knowing who to tell, and why acting on them matters for good governance.

HR may not own procurement, finance or audit, but it is often the first to see the warning signs. A qualification is never verified. A relative sits in a reporting line. A conflict form is filed and forgotten. A manager signs off their own expenses. A complaint quietly goes nowhere.

Recent anti-corruption investigations, many involving local government, show these signs were often visible long before misconduct was uncovered. The lessons apply equally to the private sector. One recent example is the NSW ICAC’s Operation Tivoli, undertaken by Commissioner Helen Murrell SC, formerly Chief Justice of the ACT Supreme Court.

This session will explore:

• What to look for: the early warning signs in recruitment, declarations, delegations, expenses and complaints.
• What to ask: how to verify credentials, confirm that authority matches the role, and question approvals that don’t add up.
• Who to tell: where concerns should go when the person involved is a manager, an executive or the CEO, and how to protect those who speak up.
• Who is responsible: how authorisation should work across the CEO, CFO and others, and who checks the top.

Drawing on real investigations, you will leave with a practical checklist of red flags and a clearer view of where HR fits in organisational governance.

We look forward to seeing you on Friday morning, 16 October 2026.

Alternatively, you can email events@ballawyers.com.au to register attendance or to sign up for our future invitations.

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