Who’s in demand – March 2009

Despite the reports of recruitment freezes and redundancies, many of our clients are still recruiting. However, the process for recruiting continues to be more rigorous, a trend we reported in our November 2008 edition of Market Talk Accounting & Finance. Whether there are more layers to the sign off procedure, more stages at interview or a greater reliance on assessment tools, the recruitment process is lengthening to ensure that the right person is recruited first time.

So which skills are employers still recruiting? As our recent research, Balancing Act: Is the accounting and finance profession ready to step up? shows, commercially-minded accountants who can respond quickly in a volatile market and provide forward-looking analysis of information are in demand. In one media conglomerate we’re seeing accounting and finance departments have to reforecast as often as every month. It’s in situations like these that those with these particular skills truly prove their worth.

Qualified accountants with strong risk, regulatory and compliance experience are still in demand, particularly in the banking and financial services market. In fact accountants with these skills are more in demand than any other banking and financial services profession.

a number of employers are electing to recruit accounting and finance professionals on a temporary to permanent or contract basis.

With year end approaching for the majority of public sector and NHS organisations, we are seeing the annual need for auditors with public sector experience to take on short term contracts. The need for qualified financial accountants with public sector experience continues as finance departments meet the new IFRS government reporting standards, while central government and NHS organisations require finance skills for strategic projects.

As we reported in the November 2008 edition of Market Talk Accounting & finance, personal insolvency and corporate recovery experts remain prominent and sought after skills driven by the current state of the economy.

What is becoming more apparent is that in a bid to bring in the needed skills while there is a recruitment freeze in place, a number of employers are electing to recruit accounting and finance professionals on a temporary to permanent or contract basis. By doing this employers not only can avoid the initial costs associated with permanent members of staff, they have another opportunity to assess the skills and experience they bring.

If the skills we’ve reported continue to be in demand, candidates need to be able to clearly demonstrate their experience in line with what the employers are looking for. And those looking for a permanent role may need to be open and flexible to taking on temporary or contract roles before moving into the post on a permanent basis.