Ajilon Finance/Institute of Management Accountants Survey Explores How the Current Economic Uncertainty is Impacting Finance/Accounting Professionals SADDLE BROOK, N.J., Aug. 25
SADDLE BROOK, N.J., Aug. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- In recent years several
acronyms -- SOX, XBRL, IFRS -- have served to make the work lives of
accountants more complicated, but what happens when the economy becomes the
key driver of complexity? Ajilon Finance, one of the nation's leading
accounting and finance specialty recruitment and career advisement firms,
recently polled over 500 finance and accounting professionals as part of the
Institute of Management Accountants' (IMA) Inside Talk Webinar Series to
explore how those closest to the financial state of corporate America see the
current economic uncertainty impacting their companies and the accounting
professional as a whole.
A majority of respondents (65%) think the U.S. is currently experiencing a
recession and just over half (54%) feel the economic uncertainty is making
their jobs more complex. Other key findings of the survey include:
Accounting Job Opportunities Remain Strong: As workload and complexity is
on the rise, the vast majority of respondents (65%) think that compared to a
year ago there are currently more or the same amount of job opportunities
available for accountants, showing strength despite job losses in other
portions of the economy. Further, just over one-quarter of those polled (27%)
find it challenging to recruit qualified candidates for job openings on their
teams.
Soft Skills Increasingly Important: Given the increased pressure on
accountants to take on a more strategic role in their organizations, it's no
surprise that more than 8 out of 10 (82%) respondents cited soft skills as
very important for accounting professionals, with no respondents claiming this
skill set to be minimally important.
Companies Thinking Smarter, Making Strategic Changes: Perhaps learning
from previous economic cycles, more finance professionals (46%) see their
companies implementing strategic changes for long-term benefits to navigate
the current environment versus a much smaller 19% noting their company only
making short-term changes and 21% seeing their company as focused solely on
maintaining the status quo.
Leaders Not Losing Sight of Sales or Hiring: Despite increased attention
on company financials and cost cutting initiatives, a majority of finance
executives (55%) don't think their organization is losing sight of other
strategic goals such as sales or hiring.
"As feelings of economic uncertainty remain strong, it's certainly not
surprising that finance professionals, who are the gatekeepers of their
organization's financial health, find their job becoming more complex," said
Janette Marx, senior vice president at Ajilon Finance. "Our survey revealed a
very positive sign that more companies are making smart, strategic changes to
adapt to the shifting market. The best and most successful accountants will
echo this and take today's complexity and turn it into an opportunity to
improve business processes and increase efficiencies to build a more
successful finance team and organization for tomorrow."
For those accounting and finance professionals looking to further their
value to their organization, Ajlion Finance has the following recommendations:
Be a senior counselor + strategist: Good accountants can no longer be
responsible solely for managing debits and credits. More and more,
organizations are leaning on their finance teams for counsel and guidance on
management and growth initiatives. Be proactive, voice your recommendations
and show your internal stakeholders how you can translate financial analysis
into actionable business improvements.
Think about the big picture: During times such as these, cost cutting is
clearly a big pressure as employers look to do more with less. Rather than
just saying no when investment opportunities arise for your company, it's
important to always be mindful of the big picture and be open to short term
investments (new technologies, marketing spend, etc.) that will pay off and
have real ROI in the long run.
Don't sacrifice quality or standards: Keeping to ethical standards and
maintaining the quality of your work, even if both work volume and complexity
are on the rise, is paramount. Be vigilant and follow through on all
assignments in order to not sacrifice you or your company's reputation and
performance.
ABOUT AJILON PROFESSIONAL STAFFING
Ajilon Professional Staffing is a leader in recruiting and project
consulting, with specialty divisions in finance and accounting, management and
office support, and legal. In North America, more than 200 offices service a
range of clients through an integrated suite of human capital solutions.
Ajilon Finance specializes in the temporary and direct-hire placement of
premier accounting, financial and bookkeeping professionals.
Ajilon Office offers clients specialized administrative and management
professionals on a temporary and direct-hire basis.
Ajilon Legal places highly-qualified candidates in a wide range of
specialized positions including attorneys, paralegals and legal support
professionals.
Ajilon Finance Solutions provides senior-level financial and operations
professionals to companies on a project or interim basis.
SOURCE Ajilon Finance
