What can accounting, finance and IT professionals look forward to in Q2 2015?
Spring is a time for revitalization and rebirth. Just as the ground thaws and the trees begin to sprout, so do people, jobs, and businesses as they recharge with the new season.
It’s important to stay up-to-date with the trends and data surrounding your profession, especially with the positive progression that the accounting, finance and IT professions have seen in recent years.
According to the Brilliant™ Q2 2015 Accounting, Finance and IT Hiring Forecast, a quarterly report produced by search and staffing firm BRILLIANT, in conjunction with Dr. Richard Curtin, Director, Surveys of Consumers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, companies are reporting an increased number of open accounting, finance and IT positions going into Q2 2015. Moreover, the hiring companies are planning to fill the vacant roles as quickly as possible – both for permanent and temporary positions.
What does this mean?
This data signals strength in businesses’ activity and the overall labor market. In fact, not only are businesses doing so well that they have a spike in open positions, but there continues to be a strong demand for temporary and contract accounting, finance and IT professionals.
The study’s statistician, Dr. Curtin, explains, “Our research indicates 39 percent (up from 30 percent last quarter) of companies reported vacant accounting / finance positions, and 58 percent (up from 37 percent last quarter) reported unfilled IT positions. Overall, the data indicates an emerging strength in the labor market during 2015 – with an increased competition for top talent likely to result in increased wage offers.”
Below are a few highlights taken from the Brilliant Q2 2015 Accounting, Finance and IT Hiring Forecast:
Types of Unfilled Positions
26 percent of companies in the study reported having the most vacancies in corporate accounting positions i.e. financial analysts, tax, general accounting, internal auditors etc. And, 23 percent of companies reported having the most IT vacancies in Database Administration i.e. help desk professionals, desktop support etc.
Hiring Plans For the Coming Year
9 percent of companies (up from 5 percent last quarter) reported plans to increase the hiring of IT professionals. Additionally, 17 percent (unchanged from last quarter) reported plans to increase the hiring of accounting / finance professionals. However, just because there was no change with regards to accounting / finance professionals does not mean that there will be no new hiring of accounting / finance professionals, simply that the number they had planned to hire would not change.
Intentions to Hire Temporary / Temp-to-Hire Professionals
A substantial amount of companies (35 percent) reported plans to utilize additional temporary or contract professionals for IT in Q2 2015 – almost double the amount (18 percent) reported in the Q1 2015 hiring forecast. For temporary accounting / finance professionals, 15 percent of companies (unchanged from last quarter) reported that they intend to utilize more.
Biggest Skill Gap Among Candidates
One in five companies reported no single skill gap among accounting / finance job candidates. And, 30 percent of companies reported verbal and written communication as a challenge for IT candidates.
To download the entire Brilliant™ Q2 2015 Accounting, Finance and IT Hiring Forecast click here.
For the Top 11 Hiring Trends in Q2 2015 click here.
Do you have other insight to report on the hiring trends for accounting, finance and IT professionals in Q2 2015? Comment below and let us know!