In Pursuit of Profit
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I discovered many parts of the HR world matched my interests, so I wanted to be a finance leader who had some real HR knowledge. I pursued an SPHR (Senior Professional in Human Resources) designation, which required studying materials and taking an exam. As time passed, I realized recruiting was the part of HR I really liked because I am a lifetime connector. Fast forward to today and I have spent most of the past 20 years as a recruiter.
One topic that is a continual area of consternation within the recruiting world is job titles. Job seekers and hiring companies alike struggle with accounting and finance job titles. I’ll tell you why and what you can do about it when looking for or posting an accounting job:
Either way, they typically come to us with their books in disarray looking for someone that can get them back on track and put the foundational elements in place for them to manage continued growth more effectively.
Their goal is not simply to have clean books for the mere sake of doing so. Their goal is to have the kind of accurate and timely financial information needed for strategic decision-making – enabling yesterday’s growth to fuel tomorrow’s growth as well. They understand that sustainable growth must be built on a solid financial foundation. If done well, your new hires will feel important, supported, and immediately motivated to do their best work for you and your organization. When left as an afterthought, however, new employees may end up feeling undervalued, unsupported, or even ostracized by the rest of your team.
Surprisingly, one of the best experiences that I’ve had with onboarding came from a backpacking trip with my daughter. These are the critical lessons I can take away from my experience. ![]() Originally published: 7/31/2018 When we published this article originally, it was almost two years before the pandemic changed day-to-day accounting activities and the way bookkeepers and accountants work. What we have seen in the years since is an uptick in financial professionals asking questions around the timing for things like reconciliations and reporting. The monthly or quarterly schedules they once leaned on for basic accounting activities seem to have gone by the wayside in favor of more frequent, or even real-time, generation and analysis. Bank reconciliations in particular are becoming increasingly important for organizations in today’s rapidly shifting business landscape. As financial transactions are getting more complex, cyber fraud is becoming more prevalent, compliance requirements are increasing, and timely financial decision-making is more important than ever before, bank reconciliations are at the epicenter of today’s accounting activities.
She knows the ins and outs of the company’s accounting software, which isn’t perfect, but it works well enough for ABC Company’s needs right now. Sharon really doesn’t make mistakes – she is fastidious in the work that she does and has a system for everything. But, even with the quality work that Sharon is doing, ABC Company knows it needs to bring someone else in to help her because there is simply too much work for one accountant to handle anymore. Plus, Sharon is getting close to retirement age, which means that they will need to bring someone in to replace her when she decides to retire in a few years to follow her dream of traveling around the country in an RV.
How does ABC Company bring in help for Sharon without offending her? How do they convey that while they are happy with the work Sharon is doing, they need redundancy in case Sharon gets sick or is out on disability leave? How does ABC Company put the right personnel in place now so that they have continuity when Sharon decides to retire? How do they hire a senior accountant or controller to help implement a new accounting system to grow with them as their needs change and evolve? There may not be a Sharon at every company, but every business can benefit from learning how to tactfully bring in senior accounting staff. Taking the right approach in the hiring process is crucial because it can truly mean the difference between success and failure. When done correctly, a new hire can complement and elevate your existing team. When done incorrectly, a new hire can lead to resentment and distrust, poisoning the team culture and fueling needless turnover.
Employers need to realize that they may not find an accountant that checks every one of their “nice-to-have” boxes, but if they work with an experienced accounting recruiter, they will find someone that fits their “must-have” needs. And, the sooner they can figure this out, the better because having an open role costs an average of $98/day, and rehiring an accounting employee after letting go of a bad hire costs over $50,000 on average! Therefore, to minimize hiring costs employers need to rethink their expectations around work flexibility, compensation, accounting improvements, and training when looking to fill a role.
However, pay for performance based on the achievement of these targets is no longer adequate in the post-COVID pandemic world to acquire and retain skilled financial staff and leaders.
Using a company with a niche financial recruiting focus ensures that they will understand the specifics of what you are looking for and have a pipeline of qualified job seekers to tap into. Furthermore, accounting and finance recruiters are more likely to have access to the right kind of connections to approach candidates that are not necessarily actively looking for a new role but would be open to the possibility of making a change.
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