Companies struggling to fill their finance and accounting staff might want to pay closer attention to job seekers’ priorities.
Overall, 9,889 finance professionals around the globe surveyed by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) registered a smorgasbord of significant concerns about their working environment, compensation, skills development, career opportunities, and even work-related mental health.
Given the shortage of finance talent and the consequent plethora of job opportunities, attracting and retaining such talent presents both a major ongoing challenge and a clear opportunity for employers and CFOs.
“There’s a real opportunity for employers who are strong in this area to differentiate themselves in a competitive market,” said Jillian House, head of ACCA North America.
Might there also be an opportunity to allow finance and accounting staff to do more work remotely?
An overwhelming majority (76%) of the respondents cited hybrid remote/office work as their preferred arrangement, while only 11% said they favored being fully in the office. However, their reality is different: just 42% of those surveyed said they were actually in a hybrid working pattern, while more than half (52%) were working only in the office.
There’s a fair chance, though, that employers will relax their views in the coming years, with younger workers increasingly looking for the right balance between home and office life, the ACCA said. And why not? Two-thirds (66%) of survey respondents said they were more productive when working remotely.
Other elements outside of work environment play a role as well. Seven in 10 among North American survey respondents indicated a strong diversity and inclusion culture is a key factor in deciding to work at an organization.
Pay for Performance?
Compensation is another area in which finance and accounting professionals feel they are left short. Barely more than a third (37%) of survey takers said they were satisfied with their pay.
Further, respondents were decidedly wary about their near-future real earning power, as they identified the impact of inflation on wages as their single biggest work-related fear.
Inflation is creating “incredible pressure” on employers, according to the ACCA. “The mounting pressures from both inflation and living costs represent both an economic concern as well as a talent risk if left unaddressed through appropriate compensation policies,” the report warned.
“There’s a question too, more noticeably in developing markets, of talent attraction and retention, becoming untenable without pay benchmarking adjustments and faster salary restructuring.”
In a statement that’s sure to raise eyebrows among some CFOs, the ACCA wrote that “short-term profitability may need balancing against long-term workforce stability risks if the livelihood squeeze in the profession keeps intensifying.”
Other areas of concern for finance and accounting professionals:
- More than half (57%) of respondents agreed with the statement, “I feel my mental health suffers because of work pressures.” Poor work-life balance is a common theme, the ACCA noted, as are concerns relating to the blurring of work and personal lives exacerbated by remote working practices.
- Less than half (45%) of those polled said they were satisfied with the career opportunities they receive from their current employer.
- More than half (54%) of the finance and accounting professionals said they were concerned that they were not developing the skills they need for the future workplace.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given respondents’ concerns, many are keeping an eye out for new employment opportunities. Almost half (44%) said they would like to move to their next role within a year, and more than half (54%) expected their next career move to be external to their current organization.
A plurality (31%) of survey participants cited improved remuneration as their main reason for intending to make an external move. Next were improved career opportunities (28%) and better work-life balance (11%). However, only 1% said their main reason would be so they could work at home.