How Do I Choose the Right NDIS Consultant?

Every month in our Ask the Experts series, we answer one of the questions we’re hearing most often from NDIS providers.

This month, we sat down with Sharon Floyd, Director of Engels Floyd Quality Consulting, to talk about choosing the right NDIS consultant. As more providers prepare for NDIS registration and certification audits, selecting the right consultant is about much more than getting through an audit; it’s about building your organisation’s capability, strengthening your quality systems, and setting your business up for long-term success.

Q: I’m looking for an NDIS consultant. What should I be looking for?

Sharon: That’s a great question, and it’s one we’re being asked more frequently.

The right NDIS consultant can make the registration or audit process much smoother. They should help you understand and implement the NDIS Practice Standards, strengthen your quality systems, build your team’s capability, and give you confidence in your organisation’s compliance.

Just as importantly, they should leave your organisation stronger than when they started.

Q: Does the NDIS Commission have any guidance on choosing an NDIS consultant?

Sharon: Yes. Recent guidance from the NDIS Commission is an important reminder that while consultants play a valuable role in preparing providers for audit, they shouldn’t become the intermediary between the provider and the Approved Quality Auditor (AQA).

Your consultant should support and prepare you, but the audit relationship should always remain between your organisation and your auditor.

Q: What should a good NDIS consultant actually help me with?

Sharon: A quality NDIS consultant should:

• Help you understand and implement the NDIS Practice Standards.
• Develop policies and procedures that reflect your organisation, not generic templates.
• Conduct internal reviews or mock audits.
• Help implement an effective quality management system.
• Build your team’s knowledge and confidence.
• Prepare you to engage directly with your chosen Approved Quality Auditor.

Just as importantly, a consultant shouldn’t do everything for you.

Becoming an NDIS provider is a significant responsibility, and the NDIS Commission expects providers to understand their own obligations, not simply rely on their consultant. A good consultant will guide, educate and mentor your team, helping you understand why systems are in place and how to maintain them long after the engagement has finished.

The goal isn’t to create dependence, it’s to build your organisation’s capability. By the time your consultant steps away, your leadership team should feel confident managing compliance, understanding your quality systems, and engaging directly with your auditor.

That doesn’t mean you’re on your own. A trusted consultant should always be available when you need advice, have a question, or need support navigating new requirements. The difference is that they become an ongoing source of guidance and expertise, not someone your organisation depends on to manage its compliance every day.

Q: Are there any red flags I should watch out for when choosing an NDIS consultant?

Sharon: Absolutely.

The NDIS Commission specifically highlights arrangements such as referral fees, commissions or other commercial relationships between consultants and Approved Quality Auditors as potential conflicts of interest.

Auditor independence is fundamental to maintaining the integrity of the certification process.

It’s also worth noting that recent legislative changes have strengthened the NDIS Commission’s regulatory powers. In certain circumstances, the Commission now has the ability to issue banning orders against NDIS consultants and advisers whose conduct places the integrity of the Scheme or participants at risk.

If a consultant controls the relationship with your auditor, obtains audit quotes on your behalf, guarantees registration outcomes, or positions themselves between you and the auditor throughout the audit, it’s worth asking why.

Ultimately, choose a consultant who is transparent, ethical and focused on building your organisation’s capability. A reputable consultant will work alongside you, respect the independence of the audit process, and support your organisation to meet its own compliance obligations with confidence.

This addition naturally reinforces the Commission’s expectations while highlighting the importance of choosing an ethical, professional consultant.

Q: Who should communicate with my Approved Quality Auditor?

Sharon: Remember, it’s your audit.

As the provider, you should expect to:

• Engage directly with your Approved Quality Auditor.
• Receive your own audit quote.
• Agree on the audit scope yourself.
• Communicate directly with your auditor throughout the certification process.

Your consultant should support you, not sit between you and your auditor.

Q: What’s the one piece of advice you’d give providers choosing an NDIS consultant?

Sharon: Choose someone who wants to build your organisation’s capability, not your dependence on them.

The best NDIS consultants don’t simply help you pass an audit. They strengthen your systems, build your team’s confidence, and leave you better equipped to maintain compliance long after the audit has been completed.