How to Reintegrate Furloughed Employees

FRS 102 Revised Seminar Brings South Yorkshire Finance Leaders Together

In collaboration with Shorts Chartered Accountants, we recently hosted a seminar for senior finance professionals from across the region.The event brought together a number of Finance Directors, Financial Controllers and senior leaders from across the region for a morning of insight, discussion and networking over breakfast. It was a pleasure to welcome so many familiar faces, alongside new contacts, reflecting the strength and depth of the Yorkshire finance community. The seminar was presented by Howard Freeman, Audit & Accounts Partner, and Andy Ryder, Corporate Finance Partner at Shorts. We are extremely grateful to both speakers for sharing their time and expertise, and for delivering a clear, practical overview of the forthcoming changes to FRS 102, which came into effect on 1 January 2026 and are expected to impact a significant number of UK businesses. The session explored what is changing and why, particularly in relation to lease accounting and revenue recognition, and considered what the updates mean in practice for finance teams and business leaders. The speakers also addressed the new reporting requirements under FRS 102, the potential impact on EBITDA and valuation methodologies, and the key considerations for organisations as they prepare for implementation. Rather than focusing purely on technical detail, the seminar encouraged broader discussion around readiness, communication with stakeholders and the commercial implications of the changes. This led to a highly engaged Q&A session, with attendees sharing perspectives and experiences from their own organisations. At Sharp Consultancy, we are committed to supporting the finance community beyond recruitment alone. Events such as this form part of our ongoing effort to create opportunities for connection, knowledge-sharing and professional development among senior finance professionals. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Shorts for partnering with us on this event, and in particular to Howard and Andy for delivering such an informative and thought-provoking session. We are also grateful to everyone who attended and contributed to the discussion. We look forward to hosting further events in the coming months and continuing to work closely with our network of finance leaders across the region.If you would like to discuss how these changes may impact your finance team, or if you are considering strengthening your leadership function, please contact us for a confidential conversation.

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Furlough. Just over 12 months ago it was a term that very few people would have been aware of but for the past year it is has been a lifeline for businesses – and employees – as organisations navigate the impact of COVID-19.

People will have been placed under very different circumstances over the past year; there will be those who have been furloughed for the duration, some who may have working on a flexible-furlough basis and others who have remained in full employment for the duration.

As many businesses now look to how they transition from this temporary measure to a post-furlough operation, we take you through some of the key considerations when looking to reintegrate employees back into the workplace.

Start the communication around returning to work early to give your team time to prepare and make any necessary arrangements for childcare etc. Make the conversation a two-way process and invite employees to share any concerns they have about returning and what additional support may be required.
Look at what processes you have in place to manage other long-term absences such as parental level or sickness. Consider offering employees a phased return as they adjust to coming back to work – some may have been furloughed for over a year and will need to time to get back up to speed.
Consider how different employees will be feeling. It is likely that you will have a mix of furloughed, flexibly-furloughed and non-furloughed employees, all of whom will have very different experiences and feelings about the past 12 months. Furloughed employees may feel isolated, frustrated to have not been a work and even guilty that colleagues have had to essentially cover for them. Those that have been at work could be resentful that they have had to deal with increased workloads in extremely anxious circumstances. Look at ways you can help everyone understand what the other has been through to ease any potential tensions.
Working remotely, meetings via Zoom and accessing work-based systems in a different way will be second nature to many by now, but for those who are returning to work for the first time, it will be to a very different workplace than the one that they left. Take time to guide those returning through the processes and adjust to a new way of working. Try to think back to those early weeks and don’t assume they will get to grips with everything right way.
It can be easy to lose touch with people - especially if you are not yet returning to the office or workplace – so schedule regular catch-up meetings to check in with returning members of the team and quickly address any concerns or problems.
Define clear goals and expectations for returning employees and identify any skills gaps which need to be addressed. Understand what aspects of their role they may not be able to undertake straightaway and allow a reasonable time for them to adjust and get back up to speed. Consider what training will be needed as either a refresher or in relation to newly implemented systems that have been put in place during their time out of the workplace.
Take some time to run through any key business updates; have people left the business, who is responsible for which areas of the business, have any key clients key or come on board?
If an employee’s return to work coincides with a return to the workplace, are there any adjustments needed around start and finish times, are they reliant upon public transport, what additional safety measures will need to be put in place?
It is possible that there may have been some staffing changes over the past 12 months – how have the team dynamics potentially changed? Has there been any shift in responsibilities and reporting lines, is work being handled by a different person or team now, how will introductions to new team members be handled?
Consider how future lockdowns will be handled and clearly communicate what steps have been put in place to handle staff – or members of their families - needing to isolate.

Sharp Consultancy specialises in the recruitment of temporary, interim and permanent finance and accountancy professionals. With offices in Leeds and Sheffield our highly experienced team of consultants recruit for positions throughout Yorkshire and beyond. CONTACT US today to find out more.

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