By Joanna Pennell, Divisional Manager (Finance & HR), Pineapple Recruitment
If you’re struggling to fill finance and accountancy vacancies, you’re not alone. Put simply, the commercial industry is facing a recruitment crisis, driven by critical skills shortages and a dramatic mismatch between traditional candidate skillsets and the evolving expectations of a modern, tech-driven workforce.
The figures are stark. Around 78% of CEOs report a critical talent shortage, while almost three quarters of accountancy firms admit to turning away clients because they lack the internal capacity to take on more work.
Meanwhile, employers are simultaneously battling an ageing and burnt-out workforce, while younger talent is choosing careers in technology, AI and other sectors where they can command considerably higher salaries.
The industry must rethink how it attracts and retains talent in a rapidly changing world.
Changing long-term thinking to retain employees and attract future talent is key.
Firstly, accountancy firms and commercial finance departments face a range of recruitment challenges, from technical deficits to rapidly changing regulatory frameworks. While these pressures affect in-house corporate teams and public practices slightly differently, several themes are common across the industry.
Burnout is significant. Staff are being stretched to their limits, with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants’ Talent Report warning that mental health progress has flatlined across the profession, as heavy workloads place teams under pressure.
Capacity issues are taking considerable toll on wellbeing, with the AdvanceTrack Accounting Talent Index noting that practitioners are suffering visible stress and anxiety.
Recruitment alone will not solve this problem. While it’s true some organisations excel at attracting talent through smart recruitment marketing, development and retention must become a greater focus.
Modern technology and AI are not “killing off” finance careers – they are transforming them.
We must look at IT innovation. Companies which embrace technology are often more attractive to candidates. However, this shift has triggered a cross-industry salary war. While rates for routine transactional roles remain relatively flat, systems-savvy accountants and data-literate commercial analysts can easily command premium salaries. With the pressures of inflation and the cost-of-living soaring, it’s no wonder highly skilled candidates are jumping ship for better pay packets and incentives.
Conversely, companies that fail to modernise face increasing difficulties recruiting for entry-level and process-driven roles, particularly as younger professionals look for careers that offer development, purpose, and exposure to modern technology.
Demand for technology, software and data specialists within finance remains fierce, forcing traditional employers to compete directly with agile, technology-led businesses. Four in five UK employers report an ongoing skills gap within their finance teams, particularly where investment in modern accountancy technology and automation has lagged.
Despite the challenges, people still want to work in finance – but they want to be treated as people.
Aside from all this, the accountancy and finance sector continues to offer stability, career progression and growing opportunities to develop technology and AI expertise. However, the ACCA Global Talent Trends Report highlights increasing concern among applicants about AI-driven recruitment processes and automated screening tools that make it harder to secure an interview.
At the same time, generative AI has made it easier than ever for jobseekers to submit large volumes of applications, creating challenges for employers and genuine candidates alike.
Hiring managers face a frustrating paradox: overwhelming application volumes alongside a shortage of candidates with the commercial, strategic and technical skills needed to perform the role.
Shifting focus and investing in in-house training pathways, providing structured development and flexible working conditions is the key to closing this gap.
Forward-thinking firms are securing talent early by offering qualification-linked pay increases, modern benefits packages and clearly defined career pathways.
Smart companies currently implementing automation processes are immediately reinvesting any saved capital straight back into their people, funding highly competitive compensation packages, offering robust study support, upskilling tech programmes and mapping out accelerated career progression to prevent their best talent leaving.
Demanding strict 9-5 on-site working is guaranteed to have a negative impact on recruitment.
The ACCA Global Talent Trends Report notes that while younger professionals value in-person collaboration, rigid attendance policies remain a major deterrent, even when accompanied by competitive salaries.
At the same time, salary growth across accountancy and commercial finance is outpacing many other industries due to ongoing talent shortages. With almost a quarter of employers increasing salaries by more than 5% to retain staff, expectations around flexibility, wellbeing and career progression have all risen sharply.
Apprenticeships are becoming an increasingly valuable talent pipeline.
While companies might be fighting over tech-savvy and time-committed graduates, forward-thinking operators are busy building their own talent pipelines.
A staggering 359% surge in modern finance apprenticeships over the past five years highlights a major, sector-wide shift in thinking, and commercial accounting teams are reaping the rewards. More than 70% of UK firms employing these pathways state that apprenticeships are far more cost-effective for onboarding new staff, while actively fostering genuine employee loyalty and driving cognitive diversity. For commercial companies and practices in particular, it’s a proven, stable way to bypass the graduate bottleneck and train accounting staff to fit your exact business needs.
It’s no use pretending that financial recruitment will get easier. It won’t.
Above all else, and taking what I’ve discussed here into account, it’s clear that success will require targeted strategies, fresh thinking, honest conversations and the ability to adapt quickly to changing market conditions.
At Pineapple Recruitment, we recruit across the entire finance lifecycle, specialising in sourcing transactional and strategic talent from Finance Assistants, Management Accountants through to senior-level roles such as Finance Directors and CFOs.
If you would like to find out more about how we can help your organisation please call 0330 0705981 or email info@pineapple.recruitment.co.uk