Review flexible work

If you and your employee have chosen a flexible working arrangement, it is important to realise that this may need to be reviewed after your employee returns. Keep in touch with your employee, and facilitate open discussions about whether the previous agreement is working well or whether they have any other requirements or suggestions that might be more suitable.

See it as a process

Your employee is unlikely to be as polished as they were before they left the office. This is a natural part of taking leave, and does not mean that their overall capabilities have decreased. Try and see their return as part of a wider transition back to work that will take some time. It is important both for your employee’s health and their career that they are able to take some time to adapt to being back at work.

Manage workloads

Check in with your employee about their workload capabilities. Especially in the initial stages of return, you should be careful not to overload employees with work that is likely to be unpredictable or require extended hours, especially if they are working flexibly. However at the same time, it is also important that your employee does not feel like their quality of work has been compromised due to taking parental leave or flexible work.

Appreciate their work

Appreciate the performance of your employee when they return to work, and compliment them on things they are doing well.