Senior HR expertise, on call and affordable.
Compliance confidence and high-performing teams for small businesses and nonprofits across the Coachella Valley and Southern California.
Fostering Exceptional Workplaces.
Why this matters
California employers carry real HR obligations — at every size.
Required written plans, wage and hour rules, leave and accommodation law, mandated training, and documentation that holds up when a funder, auditor, or agency asks. Most organizations under fifty employees do not need a full-time HR department. They need a senior advisor who answers the phone, knows their handbook, and helps leadership make confident decisions — the day the question comes up.
The case for an HR partner
Compliance protects the organization. Engagement grows it.
Small employers and nonprofits in California operate under the same employment laws as large corporations, usually without a dedicated HR function. A membership closes that gap in two directions: it keeps the organization compliant and defensible, and it gives leadership the practices that keep good people engaged.
Compliance you can show, not just claim
- An employee handbook kept current, written for maximum compliance and plain clarity for your team
- Required California written plans and current labor law postings
- Mandated harassment and workplace violence prevention training, delivered and tracked
- Wage and hour, exempt classification, and meal and rest practices reviewed proactively
- Personnel files, training records, and documentation organized in one place
People decisions handled well the first time
- Leave and accommodation interaction — FMLA, CFRA, PDL, SDI, PFL, and ADA
- Performance conversations and progressive coaching that improve outcomes
- Workplace concerns addressed through fair, documented process
- Hiring, onboarding, and separation steps that are consistent and respectful
- Supervisor guidance, so managers lead with confidence
Engaged teams are your highest-return asset
High-performing employees are engaged employees. They know what is expected, they trust that concerns are handled fairly, they get feedback that helps them grow, and they see their work connected to the mission. That does not happen by accident — it comes from three things HR work produces: clarity about expectations and pay practices, fairness in how concerns are handled, and the continuity that protects institutional knowledge and the confidence of your donors or customers. It is the same work that keeps you compliant.
Signs an organization is ready for HR support
- The handbook has not been reviewed in the last twelve months
- Leave, accommodation, or classification questions get a best guess
- Required training and labor law postings are not tracked anywhere
- Funders, grantors, or clients ask about HR practices and documentation
- Headcount is growing, or the first supervisors were just promoted
- HR sits with someone whose real job is finance, operations, or the mission
“Mac is very professional and knows how to navigate any and all issues related to my business, always respectful of my time and extremely honest and reliable.”
CEO — My Desert Dogs
“Mac has a calming, pleasant, yet professional demeanor. I value his knowledge of HR regulations and his ability to get the job done. He has a gentle yet assertive attitude. Mac is great to work with.”
Executive Director — Desert Best Friend's Closet
Membership program
Three levels of partnership
Organization size sets the starting point, and the depth of support you want confirms it. Every membership includes onboarding consultations, annual handbook and policy review, ongoing California compliance alerts, and direct access to a senior consultant — not a service queue.
HR Essentials
Up to 4 employees
$99/month
- Email HR guidance: Up to 10 / month
- Response: 24 business hours
- Consultation: Quarterly, 30 min
- Annual handbook, policy and compliance review
- Assurity Connect Client Portal not included
- Member project rate: $159/hr
HR Protect
5–23 employees
$189/month
- Email HR guidance: Up to 25 / month
- Response: Same day by 2 p.m. PT
- Consultation: Monthly, 30 min
- Annual handbook, policy and compliance review
- Assurity Connect Client Portal
- Member project rate: $149/hr
HR Partner
24+ employees
$269/month
- Email HR guidance: Unlimited
- Response: Same day by 2 p.m. PT
- Consultation: Monthly, 60 min
- Annual handbook, policy and compliance review
- Assurity Connect Client Portal
- Member project rate: $139/hr
| Plan | HR Essentials$99/mo · Up to 4 employees | HR Protect$189/mo · 5–23 employees | HR Partner$269/mo · 24+ employees |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advisory access | |||
| Email HR guidance requests | Up to 10 / month | Up to 25 / month | Unlimited |
| Response commitment | 24 business hours | Same day by 2 p.m. PT | Same day by 2 p.m. PT |
| Scheduled HR consultation | Quarterly, 30 min | Monthly, 30 min | Monthly, 60 min |
| Member pricing | |||
| Consulting & project rate (standard $199/hr) | $159/hr | $149/hr | $139/hr |
| Required employee training, per employee per course | $49 | $39 | $29 |
| Annual labor law posters, per location | $170 | $160 | $150 |
| Assurity Connect Client Portal | |||
| Client and employee portal, secure document vault, and HR Matters case management | |||
| Digital HR Assistant grounded in your own policies | |||
| California forms and templates library, training tracker with completion records, and reporting and audit tools | |||
Annual handbook review covers your existing handbook with written recommendations for updates. A full handbook refresh or new handbook development is scoped separately — typically estimated in the range of $950 and not to exceed $1,200, varying with the level of customization you want.
Term and billing
Twelve months, cancellable by either party with 30 days' written notice. Membership is billed monthly. Project work is scoped separately — 50% invoiced at written scope approval, balance at completion. Scheduled consultations do not roll over if unused.
Available at your member rate
Leave administration · accommodation meetings · employee separations · handbook development · Workplace Violence Prevention and Injury and Illness Prevention Plans · HR audits and workplace investigations.
What we do not do
We do not process payroll, administer benefits plans, provide insurance coverage, or give legal advice. We coordinate with the broker, payroll provider, and counsel you already trust.
The difference
Who you will actually work with
Mac Chonoles, SHRM-SCP
Principal HR Consultant & Founder
Members work directly with Mac — not a rotating service queue. He brings enterprise-level, legally grounded HR expertise with the warmth small businesses and nonprofits actually need: 40 years of business experience across retail, marketing, transportation, and healthcare, 28 of them in leadership roles and 20 years of HR experience, including a long tenure at a Fortune 100 transportation company and time with the Coachella Valley's largest nonprofit health system.
More than 3,000 resolved employee-relations matters shaped a commitment to fair process and decisions that hold up under scrutiny. You stay in the driver's seat while Mac serves as trusted advisor. All work is backed by a satisfaction guarantee.
3,000+
Employee relations matters handled
40
Years of business experience
28
Years of leadership
23
Years of Fortune 100 Experience
20
Years of HR Experience
Local
Coachella Valley based, serving Southern California
Community involvement. Vice-Chair (2026), PIHRA Coachella Valley · Employer Advisory Board, Inland Empire Desert Regional Consortium · Desert Communities Employer Advisory Council · Rancho Mirage Chamber of Commerce
How a membership begins
- 1
A no-cost conversation
Thirty minutes on the organization, its headcount, and what leadership is worried about.
- 2
A tier recommendation in writing
One recommended level with the reasoning, so leadership approves one clear number.
- 3
Onboarding, weeks one and two
Your consultations, handbook and compliance review, Assurity Connect Client Portal setup, and your document vault populated.
- 4
A first-year roadmap
Any projects worth doing are quoted against your budget, in the order that reduces risk fastest.
Service area. Throughout the Coachella Valley — Palm Springs to Coachella — and organizations across Southern California, supported remotely with on-site visits available.
Start with a conversation.
Thirty minutes at no cost, then a written recommendation with one clear number your board or owner can approve.