Holly Bacon, Manager, Morgan McKinley 

Technology continues to be an area of growth and retail organisations have driven to fill analytical roles throughout the third quarter of 2018.

Trends FromQuarter Three: Hiring A&F Professionals Into Commerce & Industry

Over the past few months, retail organisations have been pushing to fill analytical roles – a large part of that recruitment came as a result of the news that Michael Kors was to acquire Versace. On the property side of things, Theresa May announced she intends to implement a higher taxation for foreign property investors which directly resulted in share prices decreasing by up to 4% for some big businesses, including Berkley Homes and Barratt Developments.

Recruitment into technology has been strong due to a massive increase in startups receiving backing from Private Equity firms within London; this sector constantly strives for new, innovative solutions. The Mayor of London has also provided financial backing to eight of the capital’s most innovative tech firms which further displays confidence in the area, and growth is not expected to relent throughout Q4, or into 2019 for that matter.

Organisations Want Energetic And Driven Individuals

FinTech and technology are areas in which there are vast numbers of startups, especially in London. This has resulted in a massive drive for energetic and ambitious qualified accountants who are looking for hybrid roles that merge FP&A duties with management accounting and reporting. With a number of candidates passively looking for roles, firms can tempt them away from their current positions with attractive salaries.

Away from the capital, the blue chip market in the Thames Valley and Surrey has been driving the recruitment of numerous FP&A analyst and finance analyst roles. Unsurprisingly, all the larger businesses are looking for the best candidates who are either part qualified or newly qualified.

C&I Accounting & Finance Professionals Not Available For Long

A noticeable trend across both retail and technology in London has been the short amount of time candidates are available on the market. Firms with streamlined recruitment processes are able to offer positions within days of holding interviews – if they don’t act fast, they will miss out on securing the best talent.

In the Thames Valley and Surrey, there has been an apparent shortage of top calibre professionals actively looking for new roles. This can be put down to the fact that businesses are paying very high salaries for part qualified and newly qualified candidates, giving them little reason to look for new positions.

Top Accounting & Finance in Commerce & Industry Roles From Q3

• Global Chief Financial Officer – £200k
• UK Financial Director – £130k
• UK Financial Controller – £90k

Fast Processes Key to Securing The Top Talent

Through Q4 and into the start of 2019, companies will be making improvements in various areas of their business. It is going to be necessary to find candidates with the closest matching skill set to what’s on the job description, and as quickly as possible. The longer a process goes on, there is more of a chance that candidates will be progressing with other interviews – time is of the essence.