Quarterly Market Update
Quarterly Market Update July - September 2017
At Moir Group, we look forward to partnering with you and we are very much here to support you in managing your career.
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Market Overview
Quarter Three of the 2017 Calendar year has been a good one at the Moir Group across all levels of accounting/finance. Typically, this is the strongest quarter in the year. This year it has been a bit quieter than in the past few years. We feel this is because there is still a level of caution across the business community and with consumers more broadly. Looking forward we remain optimistic about next year and the medium term.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is disrupting finance teams and this will speed up over the coming months and years. Our view is that this will create good and interesting accounting/finance roles and opportunities. However, it is critical that you are able to demonstrate your commercial expertise, business partnering, leadership and above all your ability to communicate really well with multiple stakeholders and be solutions focussed. If you can do this well the opportunities to progress will be fantastic.
We have recently launched our Learning Portal. This is a new initiative aimed at giving you the tools to take control of your career. In these times of rapid change, the ability to be in control of your career is I feel very important. I would encourage you to visit the new Learning Portal.
I am always very happy to hear from and speak with anyone directly. I can be contacted on 02 9262 4836 or email stephenmoir@moirgroup.com.au
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Market Overview
$200k+ CFO's, Finance Directors, Head of Finance & Financial Controllers
- Financial year end had a slight effect on the number of Executive level opportunities in Quarter 3.
- We have been working on opportunities in the FMCG and Consumer Durables sector at CFO/Finance Director level.
- Culture fit and personality continue to play a key part in the decision-making process. We continue to see organisations move away from ‘sector background’ as a key factor in any decision making.
- The roles we have been working on have seen the expectations of the CFO / Finance Director grow. Finance Executives are expected to play a key part of their company’s strategic decision-making process.
- This is making the securing of high-performing talent a crucial factor in the overall success of the CFO. Having an effective team with strong finance capabilities allows the CFO the time to drive strategic initiatives.
- Networking effectively remains very important at this level. I would encourage candidates to explore ways of tapping into “the hidden job market” via their network.
Market Overview
$120k -200k Mid-Level Accountants
- Having seen a fairly quiet market after year end and audit season, now that this period is over and new budgets are finalised, there is definitely more positive sentiment and new positions being approved and we expect Q4 to be a strong end to the year.
- 2017 continues to remain stable across Group FC, FC and Commercial Business Partnering roles
- Being able to manage demanding key stakeholders and balancing business unit demands within corporate guidelines is crucial and there is a strong focus on this when interviewing candidates
- The candidate market remains competitive with huge focus around the “value add” which can be brought to an organisation
- Strong technical skills are really a “given” at this level with the requirement for change management experience and excellent business partnering being at the core of recruitment needs
- We have seen an encouraging increase in the breadth of industry sectors recruiting at this level with a number of requirements across Education, Healthcare, Aged Care, Technology/Online, NFP and Property
- Effective networking remains imperative at this level of the market and opens doors to uncirculated vacancies
- In the past, companies have been seeking finance professionals who are experts in their industry with a strong understanding of products, distribution methods and customers, previously making it hard to break into a different industry sector with no prior experience. However we are seeing a shift in this industry background requirement as businesses see value in diversity of industry knowledge.
Market Overview
$50k -120k Part Qualified/Newly Qualified plus Operational Accounting Staff
- Q3 has been unusually quiet in comparison to Q1 and Q2 this year, especially for roles at the junior to mid-market level (0 - $120k) on a permanent basis. This goes against trends seen in previous years where Q3 has typically been our busiest quarter of the year.
- This slower period is likely a combination of more drawn out year-end periods and perhaps more caution being shown by both candidates unwilling to jump ship and employers reluctant to increase headcount in advance of finalizing budgets.
- From the recruitment we have been involved with, there has been an even split of more technical financial accounting roles and more commercial management accounting positions.
- There is still a distinct attraction for candidates to move towards roles with more of an analysis and business partnering focus. These opportunities are highly sought after and as a result the most competitive roles at this level.
- Effective communication skills are key! An ability to liaise across a business, engage with stakeholders and communicate highly complex financial information in a clear and concise way is consistently top of the wish list for Hiring Managers.
- In an employer driven market, candidates can find it difficult to differentiate themselves from the competition. Spend more time preparing responses for behavioral based questions and remember being confident in discussing achievements/projects and value-adding experience.
- Q4 will likely remain steady through October and November; those who are actively seeking a role will likely have most success during these months. By December we usually start to witness recruitment starting to fall away in the lead up to holidays with candidate flow also slowing up.
Market Overview
Effective communication skills are key! An ability to liaise across a business, engage with stakeholders and communicate highly complex financial information in a clear and concise way is consistently top of the wish list for Hiring Managers.
Contract
- This quarter, we have seen an influx of transactional roles including Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable and Assistant Accountant. As always interpersonal and communication skills have been a key driver in what is a very competitive market at this level.
- As a result of year end responsibilities, we have also seen demand from our clients for technical financial accounting skills including specific skills in Australian taxation. There has been a focus on CA / CPA qualified Accountants especially those with a chartered background.
- Within Payroll there has been a focus on project experience including system implementation and roll out.
- We have seen an increase in Financial Controller and Finance Manager interim roles where unexpected vacancies in the team have required someone to join our client’s teams quickly and add value managing teams and covering technical reporting requirements with short or no hand over.
- FP&A and Analyst skills have also been in demand with our larger clients, who have complex, matrix structures and need people who can be the link from finance to the business
- Moving forwards, we see continued demand for Commercial accountants with exemplary business partnering and stakeholder management skills
- Organisations are discussing the use of robotics rather than offshore service centers for transactional accounting functions
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NGS (Not for Profit, Government and Services)
- Quarter 3 was an interesting time for NGS – for the most part we were very busy with a range of roles.
- These roles varied from Finance Business Partner, to Analysts, to Financial Control to Internal Audit, with the odd transactional role too.
- Our clients were a diverse mix of NFP and government – with many NFP opportunities becoming fixed term contracts.
- Quarter 4 will see our first specialist NFP event being held. Stephen Penny, Found and Director of Good Foundations will be speaking on “What makes a Not-For-Profit ‘Well Run’?” on Wednesday 18th October. We are excited to welcome many of our clients and candidates to this event. If you are interested in attending please email moirevents@moirgroup.com.au to reserve a seat.
- Looking forward to Quarter 4, it looks like it’s shaping up to be a busy quarter and a strong finish for 2017. October and November tend to be stronger months, but by December we usually start to witness recruitment starting to fall away in the lead up to holidays with candidate flow also slowing up. This picks up again quickly in the new year.
Contract
Contract
Contract
Banking and Finance
Key insights for the Financial Services Sector Quarter 3, 2017:
- Demand for quality candidates at the newly qualified to finance manager level is very high transforming into being a candidate’s market. Multiple offers at this level are now the “norm” and clients are having to work hard in luring them to join their company
- The 3-5-year qualified accountant levels showed the greatest level of turnover which has created increased demand. One factor driving this is that candidates are becoming reluctant to remain in a role for 2 years before being promoted or taking on the next challenge. They are influencing their employers to provide a change of role after 18 months which may come as a secondment rather than a promotion to keep them engaged.
- Financial Services clients are continuing to recruit candidates from outside of financial services and are willing to train up employees if they can demonstrate the right attitude, aptitude and potential
- Finance Manager to Finance Director level roles are fewer in the financial services sector as most roles are going internally. This has also resulted in many candidates exiting the industry which has been a consistent trend for the last 2 years.
- Education, Healthcare and Property are sectors proving popular for many financial services candidates looking to exit the sector
- Leadership & Values continue to be the key drivers for most candidates deciding whether to stay or leave an organisation, this has resulted in various senior opportunities arising as companies look to acquire strong people leaders who can build a high performing culture and also promote the right set of values.
Looking forward to Quarter 4…
- We expect more of the same driven by a strong NSW Economy and companies realising that having a highly engaged work force is critical to achieving success as a business. Values & Leadership are the most critical factors for engagement.
- Networking at the senior level will continue to be a key factor in gaining access to senior roles. Effective networking via Moir Group events, Finance Executive Institute and CFO Forum events is key to exercising your networking skills and building your finance community
- Fixed Term Contract hiring continues to become a preferred option when replacing permanent positions as costs become more of a focus. This gives both the candidate and the client greater flexibility and can be helpful during times of constant change such as with restructures
- Hiring managers will continue to focus on ensuring new recruits match the values of the organisation along with the desired soft skills. Technical skills are a given.
- Candidates who can align with a company’s values and also articulate their key offering succinctly will be best placed to be short listed
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Banking and Finance
Banking and Finance
Banking and Finance
Banking and Finance
To be alerted when we advertise a new job, please set up a "job alert" by visiting us at our website www.moirgroup.com.au
Moir Learning
- Our one on one career coaching sessions continue to very popular, especially the resume, cover letter and LinkedIn sessions. We also offer interview coaching, which includes role playing and behavioural based interview questions.
- In addition, we offer a career planning session that is especially helpful for people who may be very happy with their resume and LinkedIn profile, but may need guidance on creating a career plan and what to do next. Every session is tailored to each person and includes information handouts that you can take away with you after the coaching session.
- In August we completed our third quarterly CFO Networking group for 2017, which proved to be extremely popular with lots of great discussions between the group. Our next CFO networking group will be in mid-November. Please speak with our Executive recruitment team if you are a CFO who is interested in attending one of our CFO Networking groups.
- Our candidate events continue to be very popular. Ensure you keep an eye on our website and the upcoming events page, as all of our candidate events for 2017 and beyond will be listed here. We have two upcoming events, with the next one in September and the topic “Unlocking the Hidden Job Market”. Research indicates that up to 70% of jobs are never advertised. This session will help give you ideas on how to ‘tap’ into this 70%. Following on from this we will have another candidate event in October, this will focus on writing a winning resume and LinkedIn profile.
- If you would like to book a coaching session then please contact our Head of Learning, Angela Farmeary on 02 9262 4836 or email angelafarmeary@moirgroup.com.au. Angela can assist you with your resume and cover letter, LinkedIn profile reviews, interview preparation, how to successfully network and with overall career planning and advice
Please use the left or right arrows for our more detailed market reports.
Moir Learning
Moir Learning
Moir Learning
Moir Learning
Community Involvement
- It was terrific to resume our 5-year partnership with St Vincent de Paul and facilitate a very successful resume and interview skills workshop at the Ozanam learning centre in Woolloomooloo. We had 9 people turn up and had lots of great conversation with plenty of questions and enthusiasm.
- We also continue our partnership with Lou’s Place, which is the only daytime refuge for women in Sydney. It is a unique, community-based refuge for women in crisis, homeless, feeling isolated or in need of support. This has involved working onsite with their clients conducting resume and interview skills workshops. Our next workshop will be later this year, at the Potts Point centre
- For full details on our various community projects you can check out our website www.moirgroup.com.au and click on the “community involvement” tab
Please use the left or right arrows for our more detailed market reports.
Community Involvement
Community Involvement
Community Involvement
Community Involvement
To be alerted when we advertise a new job please set up a "job alert" by visiting us at our website www.moirgroup.com.au.
If you have any questions or would like to refer a friend to us, please call Moir Group on (02) 9262 4836.
We are always keen to hear your feedback on our business and service and we are always very happy to provide career advice. If you would like to contact us please do so on 02 9262 4836 or email me directly at stephenmoir@moirgroup.com.au or follow me on twitter @Stephen_Moir.
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