Jarrod McGrath | Governing Work in an Age of Accountability

AUTHOR • SPEAKER • CEO • FOUNDER

For more than two decades, I’ve worked with organisations globally as they navigate workforce complexity across compliance, productivity, and trust.
That work has consistently revealed the same challenge: as organisations scale, good intent is no longer enough. Leaders need clear visibility, traceability, and governance across how work is designed, executed, and paid.
My work now focuses on building platforms and perspectives that help organisations govern work as a system, rather than manage it as a series of disconnected activities.

 

Jarrod McGrath

About Jarrod McGrath

VENTURES

Over the past decade, this work has taken shape through the creation of two closely connected ventures, each designed to address different aspects of workforce complexity at scale.
One is grounded in deep advisory, delivery, and long-term customer partnership.
The other focuses on productising systemic risk reduction and governance capability.
Together, they reflect a deliberate approach to building durable, investable platforms that help organisations reduce risk, improve outcomes, and maintain confidence as accountability expectations continue to rise.
Smart WFM is a global workforce management advisory and delivery firm supporting complex, regulated organisations across HR, payroll, workforce management, and pay compliance.
Now in its 10th year of operation, Smart WFM is a long-standing UKG®️ partner, working with organisations to design, implement, and operate workforce solutions grounded in deep legislative, industrial, and operational understanding.
The business operates delivery centres across Australia, India, and the Philippines, and has been recognised by the Australian Financial Review as one of Australia’s Top 100 Fast Growing Companies.
Smart WFM is intentionally structured as a scalable services platform, combining repeatable delivery, strong governance, and long-term customer relationships, and remains the foundation where the most complex workforce challenges that surface and are resolved.
TraceEzy is a workforce compliance and risk assurance platform created in response to a recurring gap observed across corporate organisations: the absence of defensible, traceable interpretation of industrial instruments and workforce rules.
As regulatory scrutiny increases across Australia and the globe and boards are held accountable for non-financial risk, TraceEzy focuses on reducing compliance exposure at the source: providing transparency, explainability, and confidence in how workforce pay related decisions are interpreted and governed before payroll is executed.
Built from years of advisory and corporate delivery experience, and enabled by advances in AI, TraceEzy strengthens the governance and assurance layer that sits above existing payroll and workforce management systems.
Founder/CEO Smart WFM
Smart WFM is a global workforce management advisory and delivery firm supporting complex, regulated organisations across HR, payroll, workforce management, and pay compliance.

Now in its 10th year of operation, Smart WFM is a long-standing UKG®️ partner, working with organisations to design, implement, and operate workforce solutions grounded in deep legislative, industrial, and operational understanding.

The business operates delivery centres across Australia, India, and the Philippines, and has been recognised by the Australian Financial Review as one of Australia’s Top 100 Fast Growing Companies.

Smart WFM is intentionally structured as a scalable services platform, combining repeatable delivery, strong governance, and long-term customer relationships, and remains the foundation where the most complex workforce challenges that surface and are resolved.
Jarrod McGrath

JARROD McGRATH IN THE MEDIA

Jarrod McGrath is a regular media commentator on leadership, workforce governance, compliance risk, and the work systems that underpin modern organisations.

His perspectives are sought where work, accountability, regulation, and technology intersect: particularly as boards and executives face increasing scrutiny over how workforce decisions are interpreted, designed, governed, and evidenced.

Jarrod’s commentary has featured in leading publications, including:

AusBiz CEO Magazine Consultancy Australia Forbes

Disrupt The Economic Times Fifth Quadrant Financial Review

HR.com HRD HR Tech News HRM Asia People Matters

Smart Company Steadfast The Australian The Mandarin

 

THE MODERN CEO OUT NOW

“This is the book that every CEO needs to read, ponder and action, right here, right now”.
Andrew Griffiths, International Bestselling Author and Entrepreneurial Futurist.

Download the CHAPTER SAMPLER here  BUY NOW

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The Modern CEO

A FEW WORDS FROM JARROD McGRATH

Jarrod McGrath

The Digital Workforce Second Edition out now

 

Jarrod McGrath’s first book, The Digital Workforce is the essential guide to understanding how to fully embrace an innovation approach to digital transformation at an organisational level.

“Remarkable people are at the heart of every organization. Magical things happen when people are inspired. The Digital Workforce shines a spotlight on how to embrace people by leveraging technology”.

Aron Ain, Retired Executive Chair (Ultimate Kronos Group) and author of WorkInspired: How to Build an Organization Where Everyone Loves to Work

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The Digital Workforce by Jarrod McGrath