Start with your processes
List current processes such as payroll, contracts, onboarding and employee relations. Record who performs and approves each activity and which records it uses, then identify bottlenecks or duplicated work.
Define responsibility boundaries
Separate responsibilities requiring external support from decisions retained by your organization. Data handovers, approval permissions and escalation responsibilities should be clear before delivery begins.
Agree on outputs and follow-up
Define required reports, review cadence and handling of requests and exceptions. Evaluate service delivery against specific, reviewable processes and outputs, then discuss the scope with the provider.