Off to a positive start 

From a job market perspective, we are kicking off 2022 on a positive note. There have indeed been challenging times over the last two years as result of the global pandemic. When the pandemic surfaced in February/March 2020 there was an initial significant slowing down in the market for a few months which was followed by a gradual return of recruitment activity later in 2020. Then throughout 2021 the market bounced back, and we saw a considerable increase in the demand for talent.  

All the indications now are that this bounce back is set to continue into 2022 and beyond as we appear to be moving out of the pandemic and the economy rebounds. Rachel Tubridy, MD of Finance recruitment firm PeopleSource, feels ‘2022 has had one of the busiest starts to a year in the last 10 years’, which means the good news is that as young professionals you will have a range of opportunities open to you. 

The Institute Careers team has put together the following market information and insights to help you make the right career decisions and to ensure that you are fully aware of the developments and trends in the job market so you can maximise the opportunities and avoid any pitfalls. 

Overall salary trends 

Salary levels are on an upward trajectory which has been driven by demand for talent, a shortage of strong accounting and finance talent and higher costs of living and rising inflation. The Central Bank recently hiked its inflation forecast for 2022 to 4.5%.  This will obviously continue to have a knock-on impact on salaries. Many organisations are beginning to offer salary increases in the range of 5%, with some even offering between 10 and 20% to entice new talent into their organisations.  PeopleSource would caution here not to make a career move for money alone.  Company culture, role content, career progression and benefits should all be considered.      

Benefits packages 

In an effort to retain and recruit top talent organisations have been focussing on building out their benefits packages. This includes not only adding further benefits but also looking at ways in which they can be creative when doing so and putting more thought into what it is exactly that employees are looking for. This can range from more traditional benefits such as health insurance and pension contributions to Deliveroo vouchers and more flexible working arrangements. 

Focus on career progression and development 

Organisations have also now become much more attentive to the employee’s desire to progress, particularly those at an early stage of their career who wish to advance. This is good news for newly and recently qualified Chartered Accountants who are seeking to move their career forward. Employers are increasing their learning and development budgets and investing in leadership development programmes, coaching and mentoring as well as building out training to support the development and growth of new skills in technology, IT, data analytics, sustainability and health and well-being.  PeopleSouce said ‘employers understand candidates are not looking for a job for life, but they should aim to give and get the most out of their time with the company. Companies also hope one day you might even return, there has been an increase in ‘boomerang’ employees who have gone elsewhere, gained further experience and then returned.’  

Hybrid and remote working 

Unsurprisingly, the big topic of conversation between employers and employees at the moment relates to working from home and agreeing hybrid working arrangements. For many organisations this is still being worked through in response to the very dynamic public health situation. Over the coming weeks and months their approach will become clearer and may need to adapt to outside circumstances. However, the overall sense in the market currently is that the vast majority of organisations will land on a hybrid model where employees are typically in the office two or three days a week with the remainder of their time spent at home. PeopleSource mentions, it is worth noting many employers feel a ‘new starter’ with a company would benefit from more time in the office to begin with to learn the ropes and build relationships.  This can be tricky for candidates based a long way from the office, trying to find short-term accommodation.  The more flexible you are the more opportunities you will be able to avail of.  Naturally this goes for employers too, those who do not embrace a flexible approach will run the risk of losing talent to other organisations as employees seek to avail of this more flexible approach to the logistics of work.  

Sectoral review 

The sectors where we have observed growth include: 

Practice  

The practice market is experiencing significant growth and there is strong demand for talent in practices of all sizes, in cities, regionally and in Northern Ireland. There are opportunities to develop your experience across all areas of practice from audit, advisory, tax and other emerging areas too. There are attractive salary and benefits packages on offer combined with a focus on career development initiatives and progression. Similarly, many firms are embracing flexible working arrangements and work-life balance initiatives.  

Industry and commerce 

There has been a strong demand for Chartered Accountants at all levels across a wide range of sectors in the cities, regionally and in Northern Ireland.  However, where demand is strongest is at the recently qualified level, with members with up to five years post-qualification experience being most in demand. This has placed upward pressure on salary levels, and we have seen salaries increase as a result. Typically, increases have been in the region of 5%, however in some cases we have seen double digit increments. 

Financial services and banking

As a result of Brexit, we have seen and will continue to see growth in fund management, insurance and institutional banking. Similarly, the fund administration market has been resilient and is set to grow further in 2022. There has also been an increase in risk and compliance roles in this sector and this is likely to continue. We also anticipate new opportunities arising as a result of a focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives.   

International opportunities – Increased levels of mobility 

With the lifting of travel restrictions across the globe we have already experienced new opportunities arising for young professionals. Organisations in the UK, US and Australia are seeking to recruit Chartered Accountants and are offering attractive packages for those willing to travel. The ACA qualification is well regarded and is your international travel passport. As the world continues to emerge from the pandemic, we can expect to see the pent-up demand to recruit leading to further excellent opportunities internationally and many Chartered Accountants will be looking to travel now that many countries are opening up again. Overall, we can expect greater levels of mobility across the profession. 

Contract roles 

There is a constant demand for Chartered Accountants who are interested in contract roles, and this is the case in practice, industry and financial services. A contract role can be beneficial if you are looking for a stopgap between roles or before or just after you travel. They are an excellent way to gain additional experience, potentially in a new area and can often lead to a more permanent role too. There are interesting contract roles available in the area of projects, business transformation as well as in more mainstream finance roles. These roles can often tend to attract a premium in terms of salary. 

Some examples of the roles we have recruited for recently: 

Financial accountant & Group Reporting Accountant  

Financial Analyst & Finance Business Partner, Financial Planning and Analysis Accountant 

Management Accountant & Commercial Accountant 

Project Accountant/Systems Accountant 

Internal Auditor and Internal Controls Accountant/Analyst, Risk Analyst 

Client Accountant 

Finance Manager and Financial Controller 

Audit Senior and Audit Manager 

Tax Senior and Tax Manager 

Corporate Finance Executive/Manager 

New and emerging areas to watch out for

As you plan your career and consider how best to futureproof your progression, it is worth noting the emerging areas of opportunity. Currently these relate to data analytics, technology, cyber security, risk and internal controls, business partnering and of course, sustainability. New opportunities and roles are increasing in these areas and Chartered Accountants are ideally positioned to drive their careers forward as they continue to grow and evolve. 

Outlook for the rest of the year

The outlook for 2022 is positive and this projection is supported by recent economic projections for the economy. The likelihood is that recruiting and retaining talent will continue to be a challenge for organisations as the economy continues to rebound. When considering your next career move there are many factors to reflect on. Salary and benefits are obviously a significant part of that process, but you should also think about career progression and development opportunities, job satisfaction and fulfilment and work-life balance.  

Thank you to PeopleSource for their support of Young Professionals Careers Week.