Our Services for your Construction Business

Our Services for Your Construction Business

You might have a Contract to review, a Project losing money, a structure that no longer suits you, or a plan to bid bigger work next year.

Rachelle Hare provides your Legal Services. Rachelle and Shannon Drew provide your Business Advisory and your Construction Business Improvement. Tell us what you’re working on and we’ll tell you where to start.

Book a Strategy Session | Call Rachelle & Shannon Direct on (07) 3063 3373

2,000+ Construction Businesses Advised
50+ Years Rachelle and Shannon’s Combined Experience
3 Service Lines Business Advisory, Construction Business Improvement, Legal Services
Fixed Price Quoted Before We Start
Direct Access You Work With Rachelle and Shannon

Which issue in your business is causing the most stress?

Some owners call us knowing exactly what they need help with. They may have a Head Contract to review, a business to purchase, a Construction Contract to review and advise on , a construction project to deliver or a Shareholders Agreement to draft. They may need a cash flow forecast, help restructuring from a sole trader to a company group structure, or Shannon’s assistance to fix up their company financials and improve their Margin.

Others call us and describe what’s going on. They’re winning work and losing margin, or their bank wants numbers they can’t produce, or they’ve had an offer for the business and don’t know if the structure suits a sale.

Both work. If you know what specific service you need, call us and ask for a fixed-price quote.

If you’re having challenges but can’t point to what is going wrong, simply tell us what’s happening and we’ll advise you on which of our services best fit, what it involves and what it is likely to cost.

Business Advisory

Owners bring Rachelle and Shannon their pricing, their cash flow, their reporting, their structure, their governance and the decisions they can’t resolve on their own.

Shannon Drew is a Management Accountant, Fractional CFO and Business Adviser. He works on your management reporting, your cash flow forecasting, your Project profitability, your overhead recovery and your pricing. He also works on how your business is structured, how it’s managed and how your people are organised.

Rachelle Hare is a Construction Lawyer, Commercial Manager and Business Adviser. She works on your commercial systems, your procurement, your Contract Administration, your margin protection, your governance, your risk and your compliance.

On most Business Advisory work, you’ll deal with both of them. Rachelle’s Legal Services stay separate from this, and she provides those herself.

You can engage us for one defined piece of Business Advisory work. You can also keep us on hand while you work through something bigger. And we’re happy to work with you on an ongoing retainer basis, with no lock-in contracts, to help with your cash flow

Explore Business Advisory →

Construction Business Improvement

Construction Business Improvement is where Rachelle and Shannon work across your whole business at once.

We see the same things often. Your Project Managers each report at different times and in different ways, so nobody can give you one current position. Your procurement isn’t tight, so your margin goes before you start on site. Your Contract Administration slips, so your Variations and Claims never get made. You’re still approving decisions somebody else in your business should be making.

Rachelle and Shannon look across your finances, your contracts, your commercial management, your governance and your operations. They tell you what’s causing the problem, what to deal with first and what it’s worth to you in dollars.

Then they help you fix it. You decide how much of that work you want to do yourselves and how much you want us to do with you.

Explore Construction Business Improvement →

Legal Services

Blaze Business & Legal is a law practice. Rachelle Hare owns it and runs it herself.

You work directly with Rachelle on every matter. You get senior legal advice and answers on the spot from a lawyer with 25+ years in construction, and nobody passes your work to a junior.

You can engage Blaze Business & Legal to provide your Legal Services on their own. You don’t need Business Advisory first, and you don’t need a Strategy Session before Rachelle can look at your Contract.

Rachelle practises in Construction Law and Commercial Law.

Her Construction Law work covers your Construction Contracts before you sign them and while you’re delivering the Project. She reviews and drafts Head Contracts and Subcontracts. She prepares your Statement of Departures at tender. She advises on Variations, Extensions of Time, Liquidated Damages, payment and security, and she helps you deal with Claims and Construction Disputes before they reach a court.

Her Commercial Law work covers the Contracts and arrangements you use to run the business itself. She drafts and reviews your Commercial Contracts, Supply Agreements, Services Agreements and Employment Contracts. She also does your Business Structuring and Restructuring, your Shareholders Agreements, your Directors Agreements and your Joint Venture Agreements.

Rachelle quotes you a fixed price before she starts, so you know your legal costs before you commit to anything.

Explore Legal Services → | Request a Fixed-Price Quote →

Why we don’t send you to three different advisers

You’ve probably already got a lawyer, an accountant, a bookkeeper and maybe a broker or a business coach.

Your lawyer looks at your legal risk. Your accountant looks at your tax and your compliance. A CFO looks at your financial performance. A Commercial Manager looks at how your Projects perform commercially. Each of them gives you good advice inside their own discipline, but none of them looks at how their advice fits with everybody else’s.

That leaves the joining up to you. You decide whose recommendation goes first. You resolve the advice that conflicts. You chase everybody when nothing gets implemented.

Rachelle looks at your legal, contracting and commercial issues. Shannon looks at your financial, operational and management issues. They work through them together, so you get one set of priorities instead of three.

We’ll also work alongside the advisers you’ve already got, where that suits you.

Senior support without hiring another executive

Some businesses need somebody senior on hand every month and can’t justify another full-time salary.

Rachelle acts as your External General Counsel. She gives you ongoing Construction Law and Commercial Law support across your Contracts, your legal risk, your compliance and your Project issues.

Rachelle also acts as your External Commercial Manager. She gives you senior input into your Project commercial performance, your procurement, your Contract Administration, your commercial reporting and your commercial systems.

Shannon acts as your External CFO. He gives you management reporting, forecasting, cash flow, budgeting and Project financial information every month.

We can deliver all three remotely, on an agreed number of hours a week or days a month.

View our External Resources →

Industries we work with

Most of our clients run construction, civil and infrastructure businesses turning over $5M to $100M+. We work with Head Contractors, Subcontractors, Specialist Trade Contractors, Suppliers and Consultants across residential, commercial, civil, infrastructure, mining services and defence.

Rachelle and Shannon also work with owners outside construction. Between them they’ve advised businesses in transport, logistics, manufacturing, engineering, property development, utilities, ICT, government and professional services.

Where we are and where we work

Our office is at Suite 8, Level 7, 154 Melbourne Street, South Brisbane.

Rachelle and Shannon work with businesses throughout Queensland and across Australia. They come to your office, or they meet you on Teams, and they travel to see clients in person around the country.

How you engage us and what it costs

You’ve got three ways to start.

1. Call Rachelle and Shannon on (07) 3063 3373 and tell them what’s going on. That call costs you nothing.
2. Book a Strategy Session when you’ve got a business or commercial issue you want to work through properly. You’ll pay $650 plus GST for 60 minutes with Rachelle or with Shannon, or $750 plus GST for 60 minutes with both of them. You’ll get our advice and our recommendations during the session, and you can act on them yourself from there.
3. Ask Rachelle for a fixed-price quote on legal work. Send her the Contract, or tell her what you need drafted, and she’ll quote you before she starts.

After any of those, you’ll get a written scope and a quote for whatever comes next. You approve the quote and engage Rachelle.

Book a Strategy Session | Call Rachelle & Shannon Direct on (07) 3063 3373

Who you’ll be working with

You’ll work directly with Rachelle Hare and Shannon Drew on everything. Between them they bring 50+ years of senior experience to your business, and you get that experience first-hand rather than a junior’s version of it.

Rachelle has 25+ years as a front-end Construction Lawyer in top-tier law firms, including in-house at Tier 1 and Tier 2 Construction Contractors and Commonwealth clients, acting as General Counsel at Thiess and DHA, with CASG and AGS. She’s also spent six years full-time as a Commercial Manager.

Shannon has 25+ years advising businesses in Australia and overseas, including 14 years running his own business consultancy before he and Rachelle started Blaze Business & Legal. Much of his work sits with construction, civil and infrastructure businesses, from Specialist Trade Contractors through to large Head Contractors.

About Rachelle Hare → | About Shannon Drew →

Frequently asked questions

Can I engage Blaze Business & Legal for one service only?

A number of clients engage Rachelle to advise on their Construction Contracts , and many engage Shannon to carry out cash flow forecasts and help them improve their financial reporting. You don’t have to use all three service lines and you don’t have to commit to anything ongoing.

Do I need a Strategy Session before you’ll act for me?

A Strategy Session suits you when you want to work through a business or commercial issue with us first. If you already know you need a Contract reviewed, a Subcontract drafted or advice on a Variation, call Rachelle and ask her for a quote instead.

When do I need a Construction Lawyer instead of a Business Adviser?

You need Rachelle as your Construction Lawyer when you need legal advice, legal drafting or legal review, or when you’re dealing with a legal right, a legal obligation or a dispute. Business Advisory covers your commercial, financial, operational and management decisions. Some problems need both, and we’ll scope each part separately.

Does Shannon do any of the legal work?

Shannon Drew isn’t a lawyer and he has nothing to do with legal advice at any time. Rachelle owns the law practice inside Blaze Business & Legal and she provides every Legal Service herself.

Do you only work with construction businesses?

Construction, civil and infrastructure businesses make up most of our work, and that’s where our experience runs deepest. Rachelle and Shannon also advise businesses in other industries where the work sits inside what they do.

Will you work with the accountant and lawyer we’ve already got?

Many of our clients keep both. Your accountant keeps doing your tax and compliance work. We give you the construction-specific legal, commercial and business advice they aren’t positioned to give you.

How much do your Legal Services cost?

Rachelle quotes you a fixed price on every piece of legal work after a short scoping conversation, so you know your cost before you commit. She doesn’t bill you by the hour.

What are your opening hours?

We’re available Monday to Saturday from 6am to 10pm, and we’re closed on Sunday. Call (07) 3063 3373 or email enquiry@blazebusinessandlegal.com.au.

Tell us what you need help with

Call Rachelle and Shannon and describe what’s happening in your business. If we’re the right people for it, we’ll tell you which service fits and what it costs. If we’re not, we’ll tell you that too.

Book a Strategy Session | Call Rachelle & Shannon Direct on (07) 3063 3373