What types of hiring trends can you expect in Q3 2015?
As we approach midyear and the summertime business heats up, it’s smart to look at trends affecting the industry and workforce. With the tightening of the labor markets, specifically the accounting, finance and information technology (IT) professions, it’s clearly a time to lock down top talent before your competition.
Compared to early 2015, businesses are planning a slight steadying in their hiring – albeit still an increased amount over 2014. So, it’s important to know what’s in store for your profession. Q3 2015 is still projected to remain strong, with businesses allocating efforts to grow and expand their accounting, finance and IT functions.
According to the Brilliant™ Q3 2015 Accounting, Finance and IT Hiring Forecast, a comprehensive report produced in conjunction with Dr. Richard Curtin, Director, Surveys of Consumers at the University of Michigan, companies still have a high percentage of unmet needs within their accounting, finance and IT functions. Although slightly down from our Q2 2015 hiring forecast, the number is still significantly up from just two quarters ago for both permanent and temporary positions. Further, the positions haven’t been vacant for very long and the companies plan to fill the roles as quickly as possible.
Why Is this Important?
Dr. Curtin explains, “36 percent of survey respondents reported they plan to fill full-time, permanent accounting / finance positions and nearly 40 percent planned to fill full-time, permanent IT positions. In fact, 12 percent of firms have needs for more than 10 IT positions at once. This represents a significant source of unmet demands for IT teams.”
Below are a few more highlights from the Brilliant™ Q3 2015 Accounting, Finance and IT Hiring Forecast:
Types of Unfilled Full-Time, Permanent Positions
23 percent of companies in the study reported corporate accounting (i.e. financial analysts, tax, general accounting and internal auditors) as having the most unfilled accounting and finance roles. For IT, 19 percent reported the most openings in software and database administration (i.e. data architects and data warehousing.)
Plans to Add Temporary Professionals
Not only are businesses performing so well that they still are looking to grow their workforce, but there continues to be a strong demand for temporary accounting, finance and IT professionals. 15 percent of companies reported plans to hire additional temporary accounting / finance professionals and 16 percent reported plans to hire additional temporary professionals for IT.
Common Skillset Gaps
The primary skillset gaps reported for accounting / finance positions were diverse, including expertise (23 percent), cultural fit (21 percent), problem-solving skills (20 percent), and communication skills (17 percent). For IT, gaps in expertise accounted for 30 percent – taking the number one spot away from communication, reported last quarter.
Have insight to add to the hiring planned for Q3 2015 and beyond? Comment below and let us know!