ASK THE EXPERT – NATIONAL PAYROLL WEEK

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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It’s National Payroll Week (Mon 6 – Fri 10 Sep), and throughout the week our team of specialist consultants have been sharing their in-depth knowledge and expertise to employers and candidates working in the sector on recruitment and career-related matters.

Sharp Consultancy has been at the forefront of transactional financial recruitment across the North for more than 25 years. Our highly experienced specialist team has an extensive network of talented candidates for roles across the full spectrum of levels within accounts payable, credit control, payroll and purchase ledger.

Today, Matt Civil, Business Manager examines the wider skills that hiring managers are looking for from the modern payroll professional.

Historically, it would be fair to say that the focus for payrollers has been about getting people paid accurately and timely. However, we are now seeing that hiring managers are placing an increasing amount of emphasis upon the value-added skills that a payroll professional can bring such as analytical skills for management information and reporting which require a higher level of Microsoft Excel skills than would have previously been expected from those working in the role.

Such a skill set can save time and money for an organisation; candidates that possess analytical skills will be able to look in to how efficient the payroll is run, highlighting errors and queries which may be avoidable in future payroll runs. This information can help organisation be better informed when it comes to making business decisions; for example, manufacturing and product-based firms can more accurately forecast costs to determine if certain course of action – including price rises, discounts, discontinue ranges – are viable and as a management tool, smart decisions, such as weighing up the value of temporary workers versus overtime costs for full time permanent employees, can be made.

Companies that have a real focus upon training, as well as investment in technology and system improvements, will not only be in a much stronger position to attract the highest calibre candidates, they will also find that by offering study support – and continuing with a programme of ongoing training opportunities - they will improve retention rates whilst their staff are developing sought-after skills.

There have been many changes to regulations and legislation in recent years, including one of the most recent – the Government furlough scheme – which will be coming to an end this month and moving forward, payroll candidates and professionals will need to demonstrate their ability to keep on top of and adapt to these changes. It is likely that more changes will be forthcoming which will lead to higher demand for the most highly skilled candidates; payrolls salaries have seen a sharp increase in the last 3 – 4 years with more emphasis placed on candidates that can run a payroll from end-to-end.

Sharp Consultancy specialises in the recruitment of temporary, interim and permanent transactional finance professionals across the full spectrum of roles including accounts payable, credit control, payroll and purchase ledgers. 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.