Equal Pay Review for UK & EU employers

Feel confident about your pay system before you explain it publicly

For HR, Reward & People leaders in organisations preparing for pay gap reporting—I help you identify hidden risks, build a clear narrative, and feel confident before your data goes public.

Check your pay risk

You know your numbers.
The harder question is how to explain them.

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Deadlines are converging

UK & EU reporting cycles start 2027. Are you ready to stand behind your numbers?

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The risks aren't always where you expect

Pay gaps that look defensible on paper can unravel under scrutiny. From employees, journalists, or a board that wants clear answers.

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Data is not a narrative

You need a story that holds. For your CEO, your employees, and your stakeholders—not just a spreadsheet that technically complies.

The data matters. But what most leaders are really looking for is peace of mind—before the deadline, before the board meeting, before someone else asks first.

Equal Pay Review

A focused, independent diagnostic — typically 2–4 weeks. Designed to give you a clear picture of where your pay system creates risk or confusion—and help you find the right language for leadership, employees, and stakeholders.

Know where the risks actually are

Not just the headline gap—but where within your structure pay decisions are hardest to defend, and why.

A narrative you can stand behind

A clear, honest explanation of your pay picture—one you can take into a board meeting, an all-hands, or a press enquiry.

Concrete next steps, not a project plan

Prioritised actions you can act on immediately—without commissioning a six-month programme.

An outside perspective

Sometimes the most useful thing is someone who isn't inside the politics of your organisation—and can say clearly what they see.

A real story

"We fixed our pay system before anyone told us to."

In Russia—where equal pay law exists but enforcement is essentially zero—I led a voluntary salary equity review and implemented a structured pay management system from scratch. No regulator was watching. No public report was due. The leadership team simply decided it was the right thing to do.

That project taught me something no compliance-driven work ever could: what it actually takes to convince leadership to act without external pressure. How to surface invisible pay tensions. How to build a system people trust. How to explain the business case when there's no deadline forcing the conversation.

That's exactly the conversation most UK and EU HR teams need to have right now—before the deadline forces it.

Experience built at

Korn Ferry

Global leader in organisational consulting and executive search

Hay Group

Pioneer of job evaluation and reward methodology worldwide

Accenture

World's largest professional services firm

Arup

Independent global firm of engineers, designers and consultants

Experience across different regulatory environments

Pay equity work looks very different depending on where you are. I've worked directly in the UK, Russia, and Kazakhstan—and coordinated UK frameworks with local teams in India and the Middle East.

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United Kingdom

Mandatory reporting

My UK experience comes from working at Arup—a global organisation operating under mandatory pay gap reporting. Seeing how a large employer navigates that reality from the inside is its own kind of education.

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India & Middle East

UK-led oversight

Coordinating UK pay frameworks with local HR teams across both regions showed me where global standards meet local practice—and where the gap between policy and reality is widest.

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Russia & Kazakhstan

Direct experience

Working in environments where enforcement is weak taught me something compliance-driven work rarely does: what it takes to build a fair pay system when no external pressure is forcing anyone to act.

Pay equity looks different depending on where you're standing.

Having worked across five regulatory environments—from no enforcement to mandatory public reporting—I bring a perspective shaped by what actually happens on the ground, not just what the framework says should happen.

How to choose the right approach

Different situations call for different solutions. Here's a straightforward overview to help you think about what fits your needs.

	Large Consulting Firms	SaaS Platforms	Equal Pay Review
Best for	Large-scale reward transformation, legal risk management, multi-workstream programmes	Ongoing monitoring, annual reporting at scale, data infrastructure	Pre-reporting diagnostic, one-off health check, narrative preparation
Typical timeline	Several months	Ongoing subscription	Typically 2–4 weeks, depending on the complexity of your pay structure and data
Primary output	Strategy, transformation roadmap, legal documentation	Dashboards, automated reports	Risk summary, clear narrative, immediate actions
Investment	Significant — reflects scope and team size	Annual licence fee	Fixed project fee — discussed at discovery call

How it works

Discovery Call

We discuss your context, concerns, and timeline. No obligation.

Data Review

Confidential analysis of your pay data and current reporting approach.

Health Check Report

Clear findings on risks, gaps, and narrative recommendations.

Action Briefing

Walk through findings and immediate steps with your team.

What actually changes

Not a list of deliverables. What shifts for you and your organisation.

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You see what's actually there

Pay structures that looked fine on paper—until mapped against role, tenure, and grade. The gaps aren't always where you expect them to be.

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You can explain it clearly

Your board, your CEO, your employees—each needs a different version of the same story. You leave with language that works for each audience.

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You move before you have to

The organisations that handle reporting well aren't the ones that scrambled in April. They're the ones that looked honestly at their pay system before the pressure peaked.

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You walk into the room prepared

Not hoping the questions don't come up. Knowing what the numbers mean—and having a clear, honest answer ready when they do.

About

Natalia Yagnakova

Independent Reward Consultant

I am a reward specialist with experience in compensation, job evaluation, and pay equity—across organisations ranging from global engineering and professional services firms to fast-growing businesses in emerging markets.

My work has spanned the UK, Russia, Kazakhstan, India, and the Middle East. I have seen pay systems that hold up under scrutiny, and others that don't. I know the difference—and what it takes to get from one to the other.

I work independently, which means my only interest is helping you understand your pay system clearly and honestly.

Before your numbers go public, know where you stand.

The difference between a good pay gap report and a damaging one is often just clarity—knowing your risks, having an honest explanation ready, and not being surprised by what the data reveals.

Book a short call

A short, confidential conversation to understand your situation.

Not ready yet? Send me an email