Hays Accountancy & Finance - October 2007

Commerce & Industry

Hotspots

NSW:

Big 4 audit candidates, with or without commercial experience, are at the heart of the skills shortage in NSW at present. Those candidates with excellent communication and presentation skills are in strong demand for corporate or group financial roles that involve consolidations and international reporting standards, while ongoing compliance requirements have also created demand for financial reporting managers.

Another hotspot of demand exists for qualified cost accountants with hands-on experience within the manufacturing industry. This trend has emerged as companies seek to keep their manufacturing costs down, and requires candidates with in-depth knowledge of cost analysis in manufacturing-specific areas such as labour, overheads and materials.

Management accountants with the ability to provide additional value to the business through strategic and operational planning are also increasingly sought by employers, as are business analysts at the $80,000 to $85,000 level as companies focus on analysis of commercial opportunities and process reviews.

At the accounting support level payroll, credit control and accounts receivable candidates with solid full function experience are required; counter offers have increased substantially as employers seek to retain these skills.

Victoria:

Similarly to NSW, Victoria's employers require audit professionals, although the hotspot exists for first-time movers from either the big 4 or 2nd tier, while overseas travellers with this background and the appropriate visa are receiving multiple offers for their services, resulting in premium hourly rates offered by companies competing for their skills.

Growth within compliance teams as risk management and external regulatory pressures increase has ensured demand for these professionals remains high, while tax remains an area of huge candidate shortages.

With several instances of resources and mining companies listing on the stock exchange, a number of requirements have been created for accountants with statutory and external reporting experience within ASX listed organisations.

Western Australia:

The market in the west continues to show significant strength with newly created roles driving vacancy activity. Financial and management accountants remain in demand while another hotspot of demand exists for fly-in fly-out (FIFO) financial accountants, mine accountants and business analysts at the $100,000 and above level. In addition part-time candidates are required for newly created positions in smaller organisations that are expanding.

Project accountants, finance managers for business units or regional responsibilities and group accountants supporting FCs and CFOs in WA head offices are also in demand, while there have been a number of requirements for corporate accountants to assist CFOs in junior exploration companies.

South Australia:

Process improvement initiatives such as systems development in addition to new project work have created hotspots for systems and project accountants. Qualified candidates with five or more years experience are of particular interest.

ACT:

Degree qualified accountants with between two and five years experience continue to remain in high demand, without a corresponding supply. Vacancy activity has also increased for financial controllers and finance managers at the $100,000 to $120,000 level yet there is a severe shortage of candidates for supply. Financial accountants with between four to five years experience and who are qualified as CA or CPA are also in demand.

The coming quarter

Improved attraction strategies are tempting more candidates to current vacancies and subsequent turnover ensures the market's buoyancy, with the replacement of departing staff dominating activity. This trend is also driving the temporary market, with employers using contract options to fill a role vacated by a departing staff member until a permanent candidate is sourced.

Three further market trends will also keep vacancy activity high across Australia over the quarter. The increasing use of counter offers results in high demand from those attempting to recruit, while a desire by employers to secure solid skills has seen temporary-to-permanent recruitment increase as it allows an employer to effectively have a working trial of a candidate. Finally, contractors are often moved to other projects once their original contract expires, which keeps the temporary market buoyant.

In a regional trend, new exploration companies in Perth will keep requirements high over the coming quarter for strong all-rounders and for contract staff with broad financial and management accounting skills.

Executive recruitment.

Following growth in late August and September, the market for permanent executive roles is incredibly buoyant, particularly for financial controllers and finance managers. In addition, company growth has created new positions at the executive level, which will keep this market active over the coming quarter.

Salaries

Salaries will remain competitive to attract the calibre of candidate sought. For many candidates, salary is an integral element in their decision to accept an offer and while it is not the only factor in successful candidate attraction, most will not change roles without a salary increase.

Once an offer has been made, it is not uncommon for candidates to come back with a request for a higher package before accepting. The response from employers to these requests is mixed. While most employers resist this particular pressure, some are prepared to meet candidate requests, which in turn increases overall candidate salary expectations.

Yet many organisations find it difficult to compete on salaries. SMEs and those competing with the resources and mining sector need to examine their non-financial benefits and find their unique point of differentiation in order to compete.

In addition, further pressure comes from part-qualified accountants receiving typically higher salaries than traditionally received, who then still expect a further salary increase upon qualification.

Temporary rates are expected to increase this quarter as companies have indicated their willingness to pay more to secure their ideal candidate for project roles, statutory reporting or other specific technical accounting roles.

The Hays Salary Survey can be viewed at www.hays.com.au/salary

Candidate trends

In general candidate flow is positive, although there are shortages in the previously mentioned hotspot areas. A steady flow of international travellers from professional practice or commercial backgrounds is helping to alleviate the shortage, while a number of local accountants with three to four years experience are seeking temporary work to broaden their experience before commencing an overseas working holiday.

We have also experienced a healthy supply of Australian candidates returning from three to five years overseas. These candidates typically bring home strong experience in financial services and are seeking work at the executive $120,000 and above level.

In general there has been a steady supply of candidates at the senior levels of $150,000 and above, although this is offset by the shortage of candidates at the $60,000 to $120,000 level. As a result, instances of industry engaging the profession to fill short-term gaps continue.

Graduate and newly qualified candidates continue to be attracted to the financial services, IT and telecommunications industries, which they see as exciting. Manufacturing lacks this reputation and consequently there is a shortage of candidates to work within this industry.

Other trends

Despite market and media commentary, some employers remain unaware that the market is moving very quickly due to the candidate shortage. Employers need to act quickly to secure their ideal staff member since solid candidates are usually available for less than 72 hours. Stretching the recruitment process unnecessarily only leads to disappointment.

More employers are considering international recruitment, such as a campaign to attract skilled candidates from the UK. While companies are more willing to sponsor candidates from overseas, experience and good communication skills remain prerequisites. There are many examples of degree-qualified candidates eligible for permanent residency that are unable secure accounting support work due to their limited practical experience.