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Australian businesses that don’t prioritise employee retention risk losing critical finance personnel to more proactive organisations.
The so-called ‘war for talent’ was arguably the business issue du jour in 2022 and all signs suggest it will remain so this year.
Accountants and finance professionals are one of the groups whose unique skills and expertise are in demand. It’s not hard to see why, given the vital role they play in businesses and organisations of all stripes and sizes around the nation.
These days, in addition to balancing the books – their bread-and-butter role, historically – they may be called on to manage business risk and compliance, optimise business processes, advise on corporate strategies, support mergers and acquisitions, ensure financial integrity and guide enterprise resource planning (ERP) upgrades.
A worsening shortfall
In a speech to the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman’s pre-Jobs and Skills Summit Policy Forum in late 2022, CPA Australia chief executive Andrew Hunter gave a compelling summary of the value finance professionals deliver, and the severity of the talent shortfall the country now faces.
“A shortage of accountants has broad implications for the economy. Accountants prepare the financial and non-financial data that businesses and governments rely on to make critical investment decisions. Accountants are critical enablers to the efficient operation of the economy, business growth and job creation,” Hunter stated.
Recruiting and retaining top talent
Against that backdrop, businesses that don’t have an employee retention strategy, to dissuade their finance folk from exploring their many options, may be taking a high-risk gamble – with their enterprise’s health and future.
Because when experienced finance and accounting professionals walk out the door, you don’t just lose their highly valuable and hard-to-replace skillsets.
If they’ve been with the organisation for an extended period of time, you’ll also be deprived of a deep repository of institutional knowledge, about multiple aspects of your operations.
That’s know-how that can’t be replicated or replaced in a hurry and not having it can make it harder for your enterprise to respond to changing circumstances and identify emerging opportunities.
Keeping the accountants satisfied
There are several steps organisations can take, to ensure their finance and accounting professionals remain engaged, onside and on the team.
Re-evaluating their compensation is an obvious one: determining the market rate for individuals with their qualifications, experience and level of responsibility, and ensuring you’re paying on par. More frequent reviews may also be necessary, to ensure their remuneration packages remain competitive. While being proactive may seem expensive, it will always be cheaper and less disruptive to retain than replace good people.
Enabling hybrid working arrangements that make work-life balance easier to achieve is another way organisations can keep their accountants satisfied. The COVID-19 remote-working experiment made it abundantly clear that, equipped with the appropriate tools and technologies, including a Cloud-based, access-from-anywhere accounting platform, finance teams need not work 9 to 5 in the office. Not compelling them to do so may help boost productivity and morale and reduce churn.
Harnessing the power of automation
Spending the bulk of their working week doing repetitive tasks is another turn-off for finance professionals. It doesn’t make them feel challenged, valued or fulfilled and it reduces their capacity to tackle more challenging and strategic business issues.
Having to use legacy solutions and processes, ditto – so much so that many businesses running on old technology are now finding it challenging to attract and retain high-quality candidates.
If this sounds like your business, it may be time to consider modernising your accounting and finance function. You can do so by swapping legacy tools and technologies for a Cloud-based continuous accounting solution. It’s transformational technology that can enable your best people to do their best work. From a professional perspective, there’s little more rewarding than that.
Strengthening your enterprise in 2023
Committed, high-performing finance professionals are assets who can help drive your business forward, in all sorts of times. That’s why investing in measures to retain and strengthen your trusted team is likely to pay dividends in 2023 and beyond.
Claudia Pirko is regional vice president, account management organisation, APAC at BlackLine
Shandel McAuliffe
Shandel has recently returned to Australia after working in the UK for eight years. Shandel's experience in the UK included over three years at the CIPD in their marketing, marcomms and events teams, followed by two plus years with The Adecco Group UK&I in marketing, PR, internal comms and project management. Cementing Shandel's experience in the HR industry, she was the head of content for Cezanne HR, a full-lifecycle HR software solution, for the two years prior to her return to Australia.
Shandel has previous experience as a copy writer, proofreader and copy editor, and a keen interest in HR, leadership and psychology. She's excited to be at the helm of HR Leader as its editor, bringing new and innovative ideas to the publication's audience, drawing on her time overseas and learning from experts closer to home in Australia.
