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Publication: IMA
February 2017
How to Foster Professional Development
at All Career Stages
The motivation to learn is a key factor for career success. The more you know, the higher you can climb on the career ladder. And if you’re a manager, the more knowledge your team has, the better they can make strategic decisions and minimize costly business mistakes. Unfortunately, even though most executives recognize the importance of continuing education, many don’t offer such courses.
Of the CFOs who were surveyed by global staffing firm Robert Half, 86 percent of respondents value strategic-thinking abilities, yet 46 percent do not provide opportunities to help their accounting and finance workers build those skills. This suggests there is ample room for improvement.
Staff development tips for managers
Training helps employees do their job well, while development often focuses on soft skills. By offering professional development courses and opportunities, you encourage personal growth and prepare staff for leadership roles — especially important when managing Generation Z, who value continued learning.
Here are some ways to create professional development opportunities for your staff at all stages in their careers:
No need to wait for your boss to hand you professional development courses on a platter. There’s plenty you can do to improve your interpersonal and strategic-thinking skills, even if you’re between jobs. Here are five ways:
Whether you’re a manager or an employee in the accounting field, it’s time to move professional development from the back burner to center stage.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
December 2016
Office Politics: Diplomacy Always Wins
With the U.S. election now behind us, you probably think you can take a break from politics, but don’t get too comfortable – office politics knows no season and no end date.
In an Accountemps survey, 80 percent of U.S. office workers polled said workplace politics are alive and well, and 55 percent get involved in politicking. What’s more, 76 percent of respondents say playing the game is necessary for professional advancement, compared to just 56 percent who felt the same way in 2012 when a previous survey was taken. It’s clear that politics is playing a bigger role in the workplace these days.
Common office politicians
There are many ways to play office politics. Below is a list of common culprits:
· Gossipmongers. It’s common to talk about others. Why? We gain social bonds from telling interesting stories about our friends and coworkers. The gossip hound, however, takes it one step further with speculations, unfounded theories and even blatant misinformation. Gossip becomes harmful when people share unprofessional or potentially damaging information, especially on social media.
· Flatterers. There may be a few of these in your workplace. If you’re in management, perhaps you’ve experienced it first-hand — employees who frequently praise your decisions and actions. If you’re among the rank and file, this is the person who shamelessly butters up the boss with sweet but insincere words.
· Credit hogs and credit thieves. The hogs demand recognition for their own work, no matter how small or insignificant. At the same time, they downplay the contributions of others. Thieves are worse – they essentially lie about who did what and take credit for other people’s hard work.
· Finger-pointers. The flip side of the credit thief is the finger-pointer. Whenever there’s a mistake or something goes wrong, they’re never to blame. Instead they point fingers.
· Underminers. The world of politics has opposition research — digging up dirt on the opponent and dropping bombshells at opportune times. This can happen in the workplace, where a few bad apples take down their rivals with whispers and accusations. These operatives are skilled in making others look bad.
· Lobbyists. In government, these professionals’ sole job is to sway elected officials’ opinions and consolidate support for their cause. In the financial workplace, these savvy employees have a way with words and know how to persuade their team to go along with their plan.
How to deal with office politics
Some aspects of office politics can be positive. For instance, if you’ve done your research and feel strongly about the merits of moving to a cloud-based financial solution, your lobbying efforts would benefit the company. But whether you choose to play the game or sit on the sidelines, every accounting and finance professional needs to know the basics of workplace politics. Here are some tips:
1. Radiate positivity. Be that person in the office who doesn’t badmouth others. Rather than going along with the tattler and adding fuel to the flame, say something nice or bow out of the conversation. Let fairness be part of your personal brand.
2. Be ready to walk away. When gossip becomes a problem, know when to excuse yourself. Make some noise about how that quarterly report won’t write itself or express you have a pressing deadline.
3. Keep good records. Write down your ideas and accomplishments. That way, when credit thieves pass off your work as their own, you have documentation. If necessary, provide your manager with a paper trail – showing the idea was your brainchild, not someone else’s.
4. Stand up for yourself. When someone spreads nasty rumors about you, say something. Diplomatically confront bullies and let them know their behavior is unacceptable. If necessary, bring it up with your manager.
Office politics is bound to happen in the modern workplace. You may not enjoy the game, but you should at least understand the rules — and be ready to play if necessary.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
February 2016
How to Ask for a Raise with Confidence
Would you rather endure a root canal than approach your boss about a raise? According to a study from global staffing firm Robert Half, the idea of asking for a pay bump causes workers so much anxiety that some would prefer to do almost anything else — even if they believe they deserve more money. Their angst may well be because they don’t know how to ask for a raise.
Employer confidence versus self-confidence
Eighty-nine percent of U.S. workers surveyed for the study believe they deserve a raise, yet only 54 percent are planning to ask for one. Just look at the list of unpleasant things they’d rather do instead:
• Clean the house (32 percent)
• Look for a new job (13 percent)
• Get a root canal (7 percent)
• Get audited by the IRS (6 percent)
In fact, respondents were more certain of themselves when handling other nerve-wracking tasks, such as speaking in public (66 percent) or negotiating salary for a new job (61 percent).
Why the cold feet? It’s not because they feel uncertain about the economy: Eight out of 10 respondents feel secure about the stability of their company, and 65 percent feel more confident in their job prospects compared to a year ago. They also know their worth in the market, as 79 percent have consulted a third-party salary resource at least once in the past year.
It could be that they simply don’t know how to ask for a raise, as this is not something that professionals do regularly. Also, people naturally shy away from the possibility of being turned down, which could easily happen if they request more money. In the case of a rejection, 30 percent said they would ask again during their next performance review, while 24 percent would request more perks. Two in 10 (19 percent) would feel so dejected that they’d look for a new job.
How to ask for a raise
The truth is, now is the time to ask for a raise or promotion. In today’s competitive hiring environment, where accounting and finance salaries are growing each year, CFOs are very concerned about keeping top talent from leaving. Among CFOs surveyed, the top two methods of retaining workers as the economy improves are handing out promotions (63 percent) and raising salaries (52 percent).
Ready to take the leap? Here are a few tips on how to ask for a raise:
• Give quantified reasons. Your boss will want to know why you deserve a raise, and your rationale will have more of an impact if it includes facts and numbers. How many hours did you save your team during the enterprise resource planning implementation? By what percentage did you reduce processing time in the last quarter? Before you sit down with your manager, compile a list of figures.
• Know what you’re worth. This is arguably the most important tip on how to ask for a raise. The most recent Robert Half Salary Guide for Accounting and Finance and Salary Calculator are invaluable tools when it comes to benchmarking the salary for your position and city. If your request is outside of a reasonable range, your chances of being turned down are greater. Ask for too little, and you’ll leave money on the table.
• Schedule the discussion for an appropriate time. Keep in mind the firm’s calendar and your manager’s schedule. Year-end closing and the end of tax season are busy times — not ideal for talks about promotions and pay increases. But don’t wait until right before the holidays or your supervisor’s two-week summer vacation. Ideal moments are after a quick, clean close or when the company exceeds a quarterly or annual goal.
• Be persistent (within reason). If your employer says no or not now, try negotiating for non-wage perks, such as extra vacation days or working from home once or twice a week. Also, don’t forget to ask what you would need to do to earn a raise in the future. Your boss will appreciate your professional drive, and you’ll know what skills to work on.
You may think you don’t know how to ask for a raise, but you do. As with anything, you’ll increase your chances of success when you do your research, practice your pitch and project a picture of confidence.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
September 2016
New Job? 7 Tips to Soar Through Your First 90 Days
Between meeting new people and mastering different software, the start of a finance or accounting job is a busy and exciting time. However, you’re not the only one learning. Your new boss and colleagues are watching and scrutinizing your performance during the first few months to learn whether you’re a keeper.
How long do most employers take to decide whether new hires will make the cut? According to a recent Robert Half Finance & Accounting survey, up to 90 days is common. The majority of CFOs interviewed — 54 percent — give newcomers between one and three months to prove themselves, and 9 percent allot less than 30 days.
This means you have little time to make a solid impression when beginning a new accounting position. Here are seven tips to help you make the best first impression:
1. Get a head start. Your first day on the job may be the official start date, but don’t let that be when you start to learn about the position or the company. You will have already investigated the employer as part of your job search. Now that you’ve accepted the job offer, go further:
2. Be more than prompt. Demonstrate your dedication to the new job by not just showing up on time, but early. Not only will your boss be impressed by your enthusiasm and commitment, but you can use the extra 10 to 15 minutes to plan your day, study onboarding materials, review training notes and jot down questions or comments you have about the position or company.
3. Ask for help. Some new employees think asking questions might make them appear amateurish. While you don’t want to be repetitive or a nuisance, you do need information that veteran employees take for granted.
Take advantage of the leeway you’ll be given at the start of your probation period to learn as much as you can. In most cases, your colleagues would be happy to help and share their knowledge. Asking for help is also a good way to get to know your coworkers and build relationships.
4. Watch your business etiquette. Good manners are always important in a workplace setting, but they’re especially key during when you are beginning a new job. The last thing you want is to commit a faux pas that makes your boss and colleagues think less of your capabilities or question whether you’ll be easy to work with.
Here are a few etiquette tips to keep in mind:
The same goes for discussions about local and federal elections. While a recent Accountemps survey shows some workers feel that talking politics at work could be informative, the majority believe these discussions can get heated and offend others.
6. Be social. Your new coworkers’ feedback plays an important part in letting managers know whether you’re a good match for the corporate culture. One way to quickly fit into your new workplace is to be friendly and outgoing. So accept those invitations for coffee or after-work drinks, even if you’re a natural introvert. Rather than eating at your desk all the time, take a lunch break with coworkers or non-finance colleagues. The deeper your professional relationships, the better you’ll fit in at the new workplace.
7. First adapt, and then improve. One of the reasons you were hired was for your expertise. However, the first few months as a new hire is not the time to be a know-it-all. Rather, this is a time to watch, ask questions, listen and learn. Only after you understand the new employer’s methodologies and culture should you suggest changes.
It’s in everybody’s interests that you thrive in your job and settle in as a valued member of the team. Let your boss and colleagues know you’re a keeper by demonstrating enthusiasm, professionalism and diplomacy.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
August 2016
How to Manage a Multigenerational Workforce
In any company where a wide range of experience exists, chances are you also have a multigenerational workforce. Your finance department likely has baby boomer controllers, Gen X tax managers, Gen Y financial analysts and Gen Z payroll specialists. They may have a lot in common, however being formed by the decade in which they came of age, they also have varying outlooks, values, communication preferences and work styles.
If you’re the manager of this disparate group — and depending on which generation you fall in — you may wonder about how to lead such a wide range of ages. Here are four tips on how to lead a multigenerational workforce.
1. Understand the various generations
To manage a multigenerational workforce, you have to know what makes them tick. The four generations in today’s workforce have unique preferences, from general behavior to decision-making processes.
Of course, not every member of these generations can be neatly categorized; there’s a wide range of behaviors within each group. These are general tendencies that can provide business leaders with useful insights about how to manage a multigenerational workforce.
2. Promote a mutually respectful workplace
For millennials (a term that refers to both Gen Y and Gen Z combined) to work well with older generations, they have to get to know each other on more than just a superficial level. According to Get Ready for Generation Z, a white paper from Robert Half and Enactus, 45 percent of Gen Zers expect working with baby boomers to be difficult. They’re concerned they will be seen as “kids” and won’t be taken seriously. Similarly, boomers may be puzzled by the communication preferences and work ethics of the youngest working generation, and are afraid they will be seen as old-fashioned or irrelevant.
As a manager of an accounting or finance group, one of your roles is to strengthen work relationships and promote camaraderie. Help the generations mix, mingle and learn about each other with team-building activities. Promote the mindset that each generation has much to offer the team. Be generous with your acknowledgement of different cohorts’ contributions. Your employees reflect senior management’s values, so make sure you’re setting a good example.
3. Provide professional development throughout the organization
Your Gen Z workers are eager to learn and rapidly advance their careers. In fact, our research shows that 56 percent of Gen Z respondents want to be working their way up the corporate ladder or managing employees within five years of graduating from college. This go-getting generation of accountants will need some help getting there. Set them up for success by giving them plenty of opportunities and resources to develop their communication skills, office etiquette, customer service abilities and aptitude for leadership.
Gen Z isn’t the only generation that can benefit from continuing professional education and development. Seminars and workshops are effective ways to provide team-wide training. They keep everyone up to speed on the newest developments in the accounting and finance fields. Most survey respondents cited in The People Puzzle, a report from Robert Half and the American Institute for CPAs, said they prefer in-person training opportunities such as on-site workshops (28 percent) and off-site conferences or seminars (23 percent). Encouraging staff to attain professional certifications helps your department gain a deeper knowledge base.
4. Establish mentoring programs
Mentoring is an excellent means of solidifying the bonds of a multigenerational workforce. A recent Robert Half survey found that while 86 percent of CFOs interviewed say it’s important to have a mentor, only 26 percent of workers have one.
If your accounting firm or finance department doesn’t have a mentoring program, start one. If you have one but it’s inactive, it’s time to resurrect it. You should also encourage reverse mentorships, where Gen Yers and Gen Zers teach senior staff a thing or two about areas where they have expertise, such as social media best practices.
Helping members of a multigenerational workforce interact smoothly and productively is a must-do for managers today. Understanding that all employees — from boomer to Gen Z — have much to offer a company will allow you to make the best use of everyone’s talents.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
July 2016
6 Tips for Fostering Cross-Departmental Collaboration
For a tight team of workers with similar backgrounds, collaboration might come easy. But what about projects that bring together professionals from your IT and finance divisions? A recent Robert Half Management Resources survey found that CFOs and CIOs are working together more today than they did three years ago. Cross-functional collaboration is also occurring more often at the staff level.
Working closely with other departments offers many benefits, such as less red tape and more streamlined processes. That’s not to say you won’t encounter differences along the way, such as friction among staff with unique viewpoints on approaches to problems, distinct work styles and skill sets. So how do you, the manager, go about facilitating collaboration between a group that includes an opinionated auditor, an introverted IT professional and a particularly spirited business analyst? Accounting managers can play a major role in fostering cross-departmental collaboration. Here are six ways you can bring a diverse group together:
Collaboration tip #1: Minimize industry lingo
Ask your staff to minimize accounting jargon and industry shorthand. For example, if the finance and tech departments are working on customizing your enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, go easy on potentially confusing terminology like contra accounts and AR/AP. Similarly, if the other department starts throwing around an alphabet soup of acronyms, step up and ask for clarification.
Collaboration tip #2: Strengthen inter-departmental bonds
To promote collaboration, consider including some fun activities so people get to know one another, such as this icebreaker: Have each participant email you a picture of their spirit animal in advance of a group meeting, and then put the images into PowerPoint. As everyone introduces themselves, display their image and have them explain why they identify with that particular animal.
Other ways to foster collaboration:
Offer a brown-bag lunch topic such as, “Everything you wanted to know about accounting but were afraid to ask.”
Plan social events — off-site lunches, bowling nights, catching a baseball game — and invite one department at a time to join you.
Team up with other divisions on company-wide volunteer projects.
Collaboration tip #3: Give all workers a voice
Typically, when you gather people together — some will dominate the conversation while others will hang back. Do your best to encourage more introverted members of the group to contribute to the discussion. You can do this by simply suggesting, “Let’s listen to some ideas from someone we haven’t heard from.” In addition, remind your team that you welcome feedback via email, in person or by phone.
Collaboration tip #4: Show staff the bigger picture
Some of your accountants may have a hard time understanding why they need to collaborate with other departments or how their role factors into the company’s success. Help them break out of this silo mindset. Encourage collaboration by asking a leader from another department to give your team a presentation on what their group does, and include a Q&A afterwards. Or, if a finance staff member needs to work closely with IT, sales or marketing, arrange a job shadowing experience so they can learn firsthand about their colleague’s role.
Collaboration tip #5: Nip conflicts in the bud
Team members are bound to disagree now and then, especially if they come from different departments. Individuals can work out small conflicts on their own, but bigger ones may require management to step in. If you observe a conflict taking root, step in before it escalates. It may require that you reassign teams.
Collaboration tip #6: Celebrate together
A party is a great way to mark major milestones or the end of the completion of a big project. Be sure to recognize the entire group’s efforts and acknowledge their hard work. Give kudos to outstanding staff — from accounting as well as other departments — who went above and beyond. Celebrations and gratitude can boost morale and improve job satisfaction and retention.
With cross-departmental collaboration, your team might include a mix of wallflowers and social butterflies, critical thinkers and creative types, planners and spontaneous decision makers. But they all share one ideal: They’re professionals in their respective fields and they’re here to make the company and its product better. Your job as a manager is to highlight their strengths and foster collaboration that is pleasant, productive and profitable.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
June 2016
Ready to Rehire? How to Bring Back Former Employees
Would you rehire a former employee? If so, you’re not alone: A recent Accountemps survey found that 98 percent of human resources managers would welcome back a worker who had left the company on good terms.
Sometimes called “boomerang employees,” rehired workers come with plenty of benefits. They already understand the company and they don’t need as much hand-holding. Also, you’re familiar with their talents, skill set, personality and corporate fit, minimizing your chances of making a costly bad hire. In fact, boomerang employees can be such an asset that some managers and HR departments choose to keep in contact with their “alumni” as a way to recruit passively.
Here are some questions to ask yourself when you’re considering hiring boomerang employees, along with a few tips for integrating them back into the office:
When to rehire
Of course, you wouldn’t rehire former workers who left on bad terms. But it’s not always the right move to ask top performers to come back, either. Here are a few things to think about when former employees want to return:
Why did the person resign from your company in the first place? If the employee left to take a higher-level position elsewhere, then rehiring him for an even more senior role could be a smart move — he’ll likely have valuable new skills and experience to bring to the job. The same is true if the employee stepped down to further his education or attain a new certification. . Also, if you reluctantly let someone go during downsizing, it’s wise to consider a rehire during a boom period.
However, if the employee resigned because he was dissatisfied with an aspect of the job — the salary, benefits package, management, coworkers or company culture, for example — and the situation has not changed, it’s probably not wise to rehire him. There’s a good chance he’ll soon find himself unhappy on the job again.
Do you need someone to step in right away? Rehiring former employees can be useful when you have a time-sensitive assignment or need to replace a departing worker as soon as possible. They’re a known entity, so you don’t have to spend time checking their references or doing multiple rounds of interviews.
What does your current team say? When you’re considering a rehire, reach out to the employees who worked closely with the person the first time around. They may have insights into the person’s skills and fit for the workplace environment that you weren’t aware of.
How to approach rehiring
Even though boomerang employees can be great additions to your staff, there are right and wrong ways to rehire someone. Keep these do’s and don’ts in mind:
DO meet with other candidates. Even if you think the former worker is the ideal person for the open position, it never hurts to interview other candidates, as well. There might be one who’s an even better fit for the job, or one who’d make a good candidate for another open position at your company.
DON’T skip the formal interview. People change. A former employee may have new professional goals or constraints that prevent him from fulfilling certain job duties, such as traveling or working the occasional late night. Also, if a boomerang employee has been gone a long time, his skills may not be as sharp. Use the interview process to dig deeper, especially if the person is applying for a role that’s different from the one he previously held.
DO clarify expectations. A returning employee may have preconceptions about the role she’s applying for, based on what it was like when she used to be on staff. If the job duties have evolved or new skills are required, make sure to explain that.
DON’T forget about other options. There are many types of work arrangements. If you can’t offer the former employee a full-time position, consider using her talents as a part-time worker, contractor or project professional.
DO keep the door open. Even if you decide against rehiring a former employee, or the person declines the job offer, stay in touch. You never know when circumstances — or minds — will change.
As with any job candidate, it’s important to weigh the risks and benefits when contemplating a rehire. The opportunity to bring back a former top worker might be welcome, but don’t neglect doing your due diligence before you make the hire.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
May 2016
Management Advice:
Time For a Career Path Discussion With Your Team?
Do you spend enough time talking to your staff about their career paths? Probably not, according to a recent survey from global staffing firm Robert Half, which found many employees want to spend more time discussing their future. Of the 1,200 accounting and finance professionals polled, 93 percent said they would like to talk about their career path on a regular basis, yet 40 percent said they never have this conversation with their managers.
The benefits of career path direction
Career planning should be a vital part of any staff retention strategy. Employees are more likely to stay at a company if they feel there is a long-term plan in place for their professional future. Otherwise, they’re liable to take matters into their own hands and look for a job elsewhere.
As a manager, touch base with your staff on a regular basis to ensure they’re satisfied with their position and career path.
Frequency of career path discussions
Many employers will include career progression as part of an annual review. This may not be enough, though: 48 percent of respondents in the survey said they would like to discuss their career path quarterly or even more frequently.
So how often should you have a career path talk with staff? There’s no one-size-fits-all schedule, but the answer may be as often as they want to discuss it.
How to talk about a career path
If you’re among the many managers who have never had a career path discussion with employees, or if you do so irregularly, here are some tips:
You should never experience turnover due to the lack of career planning. With the cost and time associated with recruiting new finance professionals, as well as the even greater toll of losing top talent, it’s in your best interest to prioritize career path discussions.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 330 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
April 2016
The Nonmonetary Perks Workers Want
You realize workers and job seekers appreciate perks, but do you know which ones they value most? A recent Robert Half survey reveals that managers are not quite in sync with their employees. Among the chief financial officers (CFOs) interviewed, 39 percent believe their employees’ top choice would be health and wellness benefits, such as free gym memberships. Office workers, however, prioritize additional vacation days.
However, the two groups are in agreement about one thing: nonmonetary perks are up for negotiation more than they were a year ago, largely thanks to a decline in the national unemployment rate. To recruit, hire and retain the best accounting and finance talent, an employer has to provide the benefits professionals desire the most.
So, which perks are the most in-demand? That depends on your staff. Read on for more about highly regarded benefits and how to discover which ones your workers value most.
Most valued perks
Remote work arrangements followed vacation days as employees’ most desired perks, with nontraditional work hours not far behind. The take-home message is clear: Employees don’t have enough time, and workplace benefits that can help them achieve a better work-life balance can make a big difference in their job satisfaction.
This is not to say workers don’t appreciate amenities like subsidized gym memberships, free parking and on-site cafeterias. They do. It’s just that if given a choice, your employees probably prefer the gift of more time over more material things.
By introducing more work-life balance perks to your organization, you’re telling workers you realize — and respect — that they have a life outside the office. And the benefit is not all one-sided: Employees who can exercise more control over their schedule tend to have greater loyalty to an employer than those who have to stick to set hours.
As for extra vacation days, some managers may feel that the company simply can’t afford the disruption and loss of productivity that comes with this nonmonetary perk. However, more PTO (paid time off) can actually lead to a boost in productivity. By taking longer and more frequent vacations, your workers will be refreshed, more creative and ready to tackle tough projects.
Explaining the disconnect
Why did surveyed CFOs think workers cared about wellness benefits the most when it ranked fourth among employees? Perhaps healthcare is top of mind among executives, what with the Affordable Care Act and its ramifications on health insurance and premiums. It could also be that many employers simply fail to initiate a conversation with their staff regarding the benefits they truly want. Likewise, workers are often reluctant to speak up about their workplace wish lists.
Which perks do my employees want?
There’s no need to be a mind reader. Here are some easy and efficient ways to discover which nonmonetary perks your staff value and which ones they could do without.
Nonmonetary perks are an important but sometimes overlooked part of a company’s recruitment and retention efforts. In an improving hiring market, it’s more important than ever to be proactive with the in-demand benefits that entice and satisfy top accounting professionals.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 330 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
March 2016
Corporate Culture Matters:
Assessing if a Candidate Has
the Right Personality for Your Team
With the limited number of skilled accountants on the job market, many managers know all too well the difficulty of finding candidates with the right mix of skills and experience needed for filling open positions. One criteria you’ll want to be certain to examine when making a hiring decision is a candidate’s fit with your corporate culture.
New employees who lack a few technical skills can be trained. It’s much harder, however, to teach them how to fit in with their new colleagues and office environment. Bad hires not only cost your organization time and money, they can also bring down employee morale and productivity.
As you evaluate candidates, one of the many things you should look for is whether they’ll fit in with your corporate culture and thrive as full-time employees. Here are four tips for finding the right personality type for your team.
1. Ask the right questions. There are the standard questions: “Why do you want to work here?” and “Tell me about yourself.” Those aren’t bad, but you need more information. Asking more targeted questions will give you a glimpse into a candidate’s work behavior such as how they relate to coworkers and react under pressure, and whether they have the determination and professional demeanor to thrive in your company culture.
As an example, you could ask, “Why did you leave your last employer?” If they start badmouthing their boss or colleagues, it may be a sign that they’re not good at collaborating or resolving petty workplace conflicts and might not be a good fit with your corporate culture. Here are a few other interview questions that dig deeper:
2. Check references. This is an important step some managers skip in their eagerness to land skilled finance professionals quickly, especially when they look great on paper and impress you with their interview answers. But disregard reference checks at your own risk. Unlike a resume or interview, references give you independent and objective insights into a candidate’s honesty, work ethic and interpersonal skills. Before you make the job offer, do your company and staff the favor of making a few phone calls to verify that what you see is what you’ll actually get.
3. Mix and mingle with candidates. To better gauge a potential new hire’s personality and fit with your corporate culture, consider meeting outside the office with a few of your team members. Informal settings such as industry mixers and casual gatherings are ideal opportunities to evaluate candidates when they’re not “performing” in the spotlight. It’ll also give your team the opportunity to chime in on your decision. After the gathering, ask one or two team members whether they think the candidate will work well in your corporate culture.
4. Conduct a “working interview.” Sometimes the decision will warrant a longer evaluation. In fact, 34 percent of chief financial officers who responded to a recent survey from Accountemps, a Robert Half company, said they gained the greatest insight into a candidate’s corporate culture fit by having them work on a temporary basis initially. A temp-to-hire strategy allows you to observe a candidate’s workplace fit in real time and is less risky than bringing on a full-time finance worker after only a few interactions in a somewhat artificial environment.
To get the most out of this approach, give these provisional employees challenging assignments so you can see whether they can keep up with the team. Be sure to treat them as you would any full-time worker so they’re comfortable enough to show their true selves.
Unlike college degrees or finance certifications, which are easy to check off, determining whether a new hire will fit in with your corporate culture is more challenging to assess. That’s why even though it takes more effort, a thorough and extended evaluation is a wise investment of your time.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
January 2016
Job Interviews Coming Up?
5 Interview Questions You Should Ask Potential Employers
A job interview is a two-way street. Not only do you, as the interviewee, have to be prepared to answer interview questions, you should also plan on asking your own questions during job interviews.
If you do, you’ll have plenty of company. Eighty-four percent of professionals responding to a recent Accountemps survey said they ask hiring managers questions during job interviews. Here are five productive interview questions to serve up the next time you find yourself in the role of interviewee:
1. What’s a typical day like for someone in this position? The answer to this question will be helpful in at least two ways: You’ll get crucial information about what your day-to-day duties would be if hired, and you’ll gain insight on how well your prospective manager understands exactly what the job entails.
2. Who was in the role before me, and why did they leave? The interviewee should not expect the full scoop on the previous employee’s history, of course, but learning more about why the position is open will provide a better idea of whether you’ll have the tools and support you’ll need to succeed if you eventually accept the job.
3. What qualities do you think would make someone successful in this position? The answer to this question will not only help you get a handle on whether the job would be a good fit for you but also give you a chance to emphasize your skills and traits that match up well with what the company needs.
4. What do you see as the greatest opportunities for the company in the next several years? This question shows that you’re interested in more than just the short term, and the response will shed light on the company’s leadership style and plans for the future.
5. What do you like most about working here? In general, it’s not appropriate for you, the interviewee, to put the hiring manager in the hot seat. But this question brings a human element to job interviews while still keeping the focus on the workplace and how individual employees can gain career satisfaction from contributing to the firm’s mission.
Being ready for questions directed your way during job interviews means being able to respond with informative answers, but it also means being able to recognize when the time is right to pose your own questions. Hiring managers understand this, and they’ll be attuned to how well you seize opportunities to ask what you need to know. The interview questions you ask may well turn out to be as important as the ones you answer.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
Publication: IMA
December 2015
Take a Real Vacation: 5 Tips for Managers When it
Comes to Unplugging From the Office
If you’re like many finance and accounting managers, you may have plans for using up the rest of your PTO (paid time off) before the new year. Though vacations are supposed to be a time for getting away from work and recharging your batteries, many supervisors find it difficult to disengage completely. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try your best. After all, you need to be at peak form for the first quarter of 2016 and tax season. Here are five tips for unplugging from the office while on vacation.
1. Manage expectations. Decide whether you’ll be severing connections completely or checking in on occasion. If you will be responding to emails or taking calls, set aside specific times. Inform your team members of your vacation schedule. Your staff should know whether they can (or should) contact you during your vacation and, if so, when you will respond. Try to keep your check-in times to an hour a day or a few times a week: Remember, you’re supposed to be taking time off!
2. Delegate responsibilities. If you’re totally unplugging from the office, which is what vacations are all about, your staff will need one or two people to turn to for questions and advice. Before leaving, ask a trusted employee to serve as a contact person. If you oversee two or more distinct projects, divvy up the responsibilities among multiple finance professionals. You’ll want to schedule a briefing with your backup team before your vacation so they know what to expect. In the short term, delegating covers the bases during your absence. In the long term, you get to see who has leadership potential as you build a succession plan.
3. Get organized. When you prepare properly before going on vacation, you’ll feel less anxious about tasks dropping through the cra
5. Don’t overdo re-entry. It’s tempting to dive right in and re-establish your groove after a vacation, but leave yourself some breathing room. Aside from a short meeting to get caught up, don’t plan anything major on the first day back. You’ll have a full inbox to sort through and projects to catch up on.
Unplugging from the office can be challenging for managers, but it’s highly doable if you prepare in advance. Keep these tips in mind before taking off for your vacation, and you’ll come back refreshed, recharged and ready to work.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
November 2015
4 Ways to Help Accounting and Finance Employees Stay Up-To-Date with Technology
Technology keeps evolving, which means keeping the team up to date with changes can be difficult for some finance managers. In a Robert Half survey of CFOs, keeping pace with changing technology was the top response when executives were asked about the biggest challenge facing their teams.
Tech tools such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) and big data systems are a critical part of modern accounting and finance departments, making it vital for your team to be comfortable working with these systems. Here are some ways to help your employees grow their tech skills.
1. Start with an assessment
Find out what technical skills and knowledge your team members already have and compare them to your needs. You may find that they have expertise not currently being used but that could come in handy when the need arises.
2. Support education
Many accounting and finance employees are happy to pursue continuing education if they receive encouragement and support from their employer. Give them time to get extra technical training and reimburse them for costs upon successful completion of the program.
Here are some technology training options your team may find helpful:
Establishing mentoring relationships between select staff members and tech-savvy employees is often beneficial. These mentors can be experienced accounting and finance specialists or members of the IT department. A good working relationship with your organization’s CIO can be helpful in identifying the best mentors for your team. Another productive relationship is reverse mentoring, which gives an experienced employee the chance to learn from a junior colleague who may be more savvy about communication via social media. However, beware of reinforcing stereotypes. Less-tenured employees can offer more than just technology expertise; they also bring different perspectives on the world and different approaches to problem-solving the rest of the team may not be familiar with.
4. Give them a chance to grow
Many accounting and finance professionals have not expanded their knowledge of technology simply because they have not had an opportunity to do so. With their daily workload, there isn’t much time left over to stay current with new technology. It’s up to you to make this a priority. Talk to your team and discover who would like to help with a tech initiative, such as migrating to a cloud service or implementing or upgrading an ERP system.
Your support is the critical ingredient to helping employees stay current with new and evolving technology. Those who have the desire and aptitude, in particular, can benefit from your help and direction.
You might find this Robert Half infographic timeline of tech milestones helpful when encouraging personnel to consider a broader technological orientation.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
###Publication: IMA
October 2015
What’s in Store for 2016? Next Year’s Hiring and Salary Trends Revealed
2015 has tried the patience of finance and accounting managers looking to hire highly skilled employees, and 2016 is not likely to be much different. To succeed in recruiting and landing top talent, employers need to know what to expect so they can be competitive with incentives and compensation.
The latest resource for finance and accounting hiring trends is hot off the presses. Here is a peek at what’s inside the 2016 Robert Half Salary Guide for Accounting & Finance:
Business is booming. Many companies are expanding and launching new initiatives to generate revenue, resulting in a need for skilled accountants and business analysts. The current regulatory climate with its increasingly complex mandates is also driving up demand for finance professionals with experience in financial compliance and healthcare.
Good talent is hard to find. Open finance positions outnumber candidates with the necessary skills. As a result, top applicants often have multiple offers on the table, prompting organizations to accelerate the hiring process to increase the chances of landing their top picks.
Good talent is hard to keep. Experienced finance professionals are aware that the market is in their favor. They are confident about exploring other options and do not hesitate to head elsewhere for better pay and shinier job titles. Employers often make counteroffers in an attempt to retain key players, although this retention strategy is usually ineffective and often backfires.
Some positions will be harder to fill than others. Though demand for most finance and accounting employees will continue, the 2016 Salary Guide indicates the following professionals will be especially sought after:
· Accounting managers
· Business, business systems and financial analysts
· Compliance officers
· Information technology auditors
· Internal auditors
· Payroll professionals
· Senior and staff accountants
Starting salaries continue to climb. From entry-level accountants to senior internal auditors, healthy salary increases are likely in 2016. Each of the more than 400 positions listed in the 2016 Salary Guide is expected to see base compensation rise by 4.0 to 5.3 percent. In response, some employers aren’t just matching the starting salaries offered by the competition; they’re exceeding them to attract the best candidates. Use our Salary Calculator to customize the going salary ranges for your city.
Companies are offering perkier perks. Besides boosting starting salaries, many firms and financial institutions are offering sign-on bonuses, merit-based raises and more. They are also enhancing nonwage perks, such as telecommuting options, extra vacation days, relocation assistance, flexible scheduling and tuition reimbursement.
Interim workers can cover staffing gaps. Organizations continue to rely on skilled temporary professionals to maintain productivity while searching for full-time hires. Many finance managers appreciate this flexibility, as well as the opportunity to evaluate potential candidates in real time on a temp-to-hire basis.
The latest hiring trends are clear: Despite wobbles in the global economy, the search for talented finance and accounting employees remains steady and competitive. Consult the 2016 Salary Guide to see what’s in store for the coming year, and position yourself to meet and exceed potential recruitment and retention challenges.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
September 2015
A Counteroffer Might Not Make Fiscal Sense
Here's a Better Approach to Improving Employee Retention
The prospect of losing a valuable employee can be unsettling, especially during accounting-season crunch time when finding a replacement only adds to your already daunting workload. But will making a counteroffer ameliorate the situation?
Most often the answer is no.
In fact, 78 percent of chief financial officers polled in a recent Robert Half survey said they don’t utilize counteroffers as a tool for employee retention. These executives report that money often doesn’t resolve the issues underlying a worker’s reason for resigning, and a counteroffer can often backfire and create resentment or drive up salaries through the department.
It’s helpful to understand what prompts employees to leave their job in the first place.
CFOs and workers in another Robert Half survey cited the following reasons employees quit:
· Inadequate salary and benefits
· Limited opportunities for advancement
· Unhappiness with management
· Overworked
· Lack of recognition
· Bored with their job
Here are two takeaways for developing a smarter employee retention plan:
1. Addressing salary issues
If salary is a primary motive for a worker to take a new job, why not make a counteroffer?
2. Ways to improve employee retention — and head off the need for a counteroffer
Here are some strategies managers can employ to preempt the issues that can cause employee job dissatisfaction and high turnover:
Although a counteroffer might seem like a logical step to improve employee retention, you must first consider the ripple effect and instead develop a long-term management strategy for retaining your best employees. Once you’ve done your due diligence, when valued team members announce their resignation, you can feel comfortable wishing them well on their next endeavor.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
February 2015
Top Finance Priorities and Challenges for 2015
With the new year already here, your organization is likely busy analyzing your business goals and setting priorities. Wouldn’t it be helpful to know what executives at other companies are trying to achieve this year? The 2015 Finance Priorities Survey, conducted by Protiviti and the Financial Executives Research Foundation (FERF), offers an inside look at U.S. executives’ top concerns.
The survey, conducted during the third quarter of 2014, shows that financial managers are incredibly busy. According to the report: “The sheer number of priorities they are addressing is at an all-time high in our four-year study.” Compared to last year’s results, many more areas have moved from “moderate priority” to the “significant priority” range. Here are the top five finance priorities, in order, of chief financial officers (CFOs) and other executives polled for this study:
1. Strategic Planning
Many financial executives are rightly concerned with maneuvering their companies into the best possible position for long-term growth. Strategic planning includes anticipating challenges, gathering and readying the necessary staff and resources to address those challenges, and evaluating the role of the finance function within the entire organization.
2. Budgeting
To facilitate decision-making across the entire organization, a business not only needs accurate budgets, but also sharper, real-time analytics and instant information. A growing trend is holistic budgeting: improving processes in a comprehensive manner and integrating the role of the finance department into the whole enterprise.
3. Domestic Regulations
A continuing trend from 2014, financial managers find it a challenge to follow and adapt to new laws and standards. CFOs and executives need to hire the right people with the expertise and skills to manage compliance issues. In many ways, it’s a perfect storm: At the same time the number of regulations is mushrooming, an aging workforce means organizations are losing a substantial knowledge base to retirements — making succession planning more important than ever.
4. Profitability Analysis
The backbone of any business is bottom-line profitability. To make strategic decisions about which products, channels, customers and markets to pursue, financial managers have to spend more time and resources to analyze data. Among the significant finance priorities of large companies (with annual revenues of $1 billion or more) is big data analytics. The report suggests that small and midsize companies have not yet begun to take advantage of this growing trend.
5. Cash Forecasting
Closely related to budgeting and strategic planning, cash forecasting is one of the top financial priorities of 2015. As the report puts it, “Cash remains king, as does cash clarity.” Sound cash forecasting can allow businesses to adapt to market volatility with greater agility and make better decisions based on anticipated cash shortages or surpluses.
The common thread through all these and other finance priorities is the prerequisite to attract and retain top talent, especially those with well-developed soft skills, such as leadership, change management, conflict resolution and mentoring/coaching. Organizations must hire skilled executives and financial managers who can build relationships (with employees, clients and regulators), analyze data, make accurate projections, recommend strategy and communicate and collaborate with other departments. Without the right people in the right places, companies will find it very difficult to reach their business goals — in 2015 or the years ahead.
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Abstract
Finance executives' priorities for 2015. (Note to writer: Base this piece on Protiviti's Finance Priorities Survey: http://www.protiviti.com/financesurvey.)
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
February 2017
How to Foster Professional Development
at All Career Stages
The motivation to learn is a key factor for career success. The more you know, the higher you can climb on the career ladder. And if you’re a manager, the more knowledge your team has, the better they can make strategic decisions and minimize costly business mistakes. Unfortunately, even though most executives recognize the importance of continuing education, many don’t offer such courses.
Of the CFOs who were surveyed by global staffing firm Robert Half, 86 percent of respondents value strategic-thinking abilities, yet 46 percent do not provide opportunities to help their accounting and finance workers build those skills. This suggests there is ample room for improvement.
Staff development tips for managers
Training helps employees do their job well, while development often focuses on soft skills. By offering professional development courses and opportunities, you encourage personal growth and prepare staff for leadership roles — especially important when managing Generation Z, who value continued learning.
Here are some ways to create professional development opportunities for your staff at all stages in their careers:
- Send employees to industry events. Invest in your staff by paying for them to attend regional or national conferences, many of which include professional development courses.
- Prioritize team building. To inspire innovation in the workplace, do more than just talk shop. Encourage your staff to play, socialize and bounce around ideas. On a regular basis, conduct team-building activities such as going on a retreat or volunteering together.
- Assign research projects. Educate workers and develop their leadership skills at the same time by asking one employee each month to research a topic and give a presentation during staff meetings.
- Break down silos. You want your employees to develop a big picture view of the company. What better way to do that than to have them work with members of other departments? Develop a program where accountants shadow their colleagues in IT, marketing, legal and other divisions.
- Subscribe to a learning platform. Many online education providers’ main focus is on technical skills like Excel or cloud-based finance solutions, but there are companies that offer professional development courses in topics ranging from leadership to time management. By buying a subscription for your entire team, you make it easy for workers to learn what they need at a time that suits them best.
No need to wait for your boss to hand you professional development courses on a platter. There’s plenty you can do to improve your interpersonal and strategic-thinking skills, even if you’re between jobs. Here are five ways:
- Join a professional association. Get involved in the local chapter of an accounting group. When you become a member, you can take advantage of the group’s many educational, networking and leadership opportunities.
- Sign up with a staffing agency. Currently unemployed? You can still gain access to professional development courses by joining a specialized staffing agency, some of which offer free online instruction to registered candidates.
- Hone your speaking skills. If you shy away from the podium, it may be time to confront that fear and join an organization like Toastmasters, which gives members practice speaking in public. The more you use your communication skills, the more comfortable you’ll be when presenting at work or answering interview questions.
- Volunteer. Nonprofit organizations need your accounting skills. When you give back to your community, you’ll not only be assisting worthwhile causes but also gaining business knowledge and enlarging your circle of contacts.
- Offer to lead. The next time your supervisor asks for someone to head up a project, raise your hand. Besides learning how to be a better leader, you’ll gain visibility within the department or firm, which could translate into a promotion.
Whether you’re a manager or an employee in the accounting field, it’s time to move professional development from the back burner to center stage.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
December 2016
Office Politics: Diplomacy Always Wins
With the U.S. election now behind us, you probably think you can take a break from politics, but don’t get too comfortable – office politics knows no season and no end date.
In an Accountemps survey, 80 percent of U.S. office workers polled said workplace politics are alive and well, and 55 percent get involved in politicking. What’s more, 76 percent of respondents say playing the game is necessary for professional advancement, compared to just 56 percent who felt the same way in 2012 when a previous survey was taken. It’s clear that politics is playing a bigger role in the workplace these days.
Common office politicians
There are many ways to play office politics. Below is a list of common culprits:
· Gossipmongers. It’s common to talk about others. Why? We gain social bonds from telling interesting stories about our friends and coworkers. The gossip hound, however, takes it one step further with speculations, unfounded theories and even blatant misinformation. Gossip becomes harmful when people share unprofessional or potentially damaging information, especially on social media.
· Flatterers. There may be a few of these in your workplace. If you’re in management, perhaps you’ve experienced it first-hand — employees who frequently praise your decisions and actions. If you’re among the rank and file, this is the person who shamelessly butters up the boss with sweet but insincere words.
· Credit hogs and credit thieves. The hogs demand recognition for their own work, no matter how small or insignificant. At the same time, they downplay the contributions of others. Thieves are worse – they essentially lie about who did what and take credit for other people’s hard work.
· Finger-pointers. The flip side of the credit thief is the finger-pointer. Whenever there’s a mistake or something goes wrong, they’re never to blame. Instead they point fingers.
· Underminers. The world of politics has opposition research — digging up dirt on the opponent and dropping bombshells at opportune times. This can happen in the workplace, where a few bad apples take down their rivals with whispers and accusations. These operatives are skilled in making others look bad.
· Lobbyists. In government, these professionals’ sole job is to sway elected officials’ opinions and consolidate support for their cause. In the financial workplace, these savvy employees have a way with words and know how to persuade their team to go along with their plan.
How to deal with office politics
Some aspects of office politics can be positive. For instance, if you’ve done your research and feel strongly about the merits of moving to a cloud-based financial solution, your lobbying efforts would benefit the company. But whether you choose to play the game or sit on the sidelines, every accounting and finance professional needs to know the basics of workplace politics. Here are some tips:
1. Radiate positivity. Be that person in the office who doesn’t badmouth others. Rather than going along with the tattler and adding fuel to the flame, say something nice or bow out of the conversation. Let fairness be part of your personal brand.
2. Be ready to walk away. When gossip becomes a problem, know when to excuse yourself. Make some noise about how that quarterly report won’t write itself or express you have a pressing deadline.
3. Keep good records. Write down your ideas and accomplishments. That way, when credit thieves pass off your work as their own, you have documentation. If necessary, provide your manager with a paper trail – showing the idea was your brainchild, not someone else’s.
4. Stand up for yourself. When someone spreads nasty rumors about you, say something. Diplomatically confront bullies and let them know their behavior is unacceptable. If necessary, bring it up with your manager.
Office politics is bound to happen in the modern workplace. You may not enjoy the game, but you should at least understand the rules — and be ready to play if necessary.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
February 2016
How to Ask for a Raise with Confidence
Would you rather endure a root canal than approach your boss about a raise? According to a study from global staffing firm Robert Half, the idea of asking for a pay bump causes workers so much anxiety that some would prefer to do almost anything else — even if they believe they deserve more money. Their angst may well be because they don’t know how to ask for a raise.
Employer confidence versus self-confidence
Eighty-nine percent of U.S. workers surveyed for the study believe they deserve a raise, yet only 54 percent are planning to ask for one. Just look at the list of unpleasant things they’d rather do instead:
• Clean the house (32 percent)
• Look for a new job (13 percent)
• Get a root canal (7 percent)
• Get audited by the IRS (6 percent)
In fact, respondents were more certain of themselves when handling other nerve-wracking tasks, such as speaking in public (66 percent) or negotiating salary for a new job (61 percent).
Why the cold feet? It’s not because they feel uncertain about the economy: Eight out of 10 respondents feel secure about the stability of their company, and 65 percent feel more confident in their job prospects compared to a year ago. They also know their worth in the market, as 79 percent have consulted a third-party salary resource at least once in the past year.
It could be that they simply don’t know how to ask for a raise, as this is not something that professionals do regularly. Also, people naturally shy away from the possibility of being turned down, which could easily happen if they request more money. In the case of a rejection, 30 percent said they would ask again during their next performance review, while 24 percent would request more perks. Two in 10 (19 percent) would feel so dejected that they’d look for a new job.
How to ask for a raise
The truth is, now is the time to ask for a raise or promotion. In today’s competitive hiring environment, where accounting and finance salaries are growing each year, CFOs are very concerned about keeping top talent from leaving. Among CFOs surveyed, the top two methods of retaining workers as the economy improves are handing out promotions (63 percent) and raising salaries (52 percent).
Ready to take the leap? Here are a few tips on how to ask for a raise:
• Give quantified reasons. Your boss will want to know why you deserve a raise, and your rationale will have more of an impact if it includes facts and numbers. How many hours did you save your team during the enterprise resource planning implementation? By what percentage did you reduce processing time in the last quarter? Before you sit down with your manager, compile a list of figures.
• Know what you’re worth. This is arguably the most important tip on how to ask for a raise. The most recent Robert Half Salary Guide for Accounting and Finance and Salary Calculator are invaluable tools when it comes to benchmarking the salary for your position and city. If your request is outside of a reasonable range, your chances of being turned down are greater. Ask for too little, and you’ll leave money on the table.
• Schedule the discussion for an appropriate time. Keep in mind the firm’s calendar and your manager’s schedule. Year-end closing and the end of tax season are busy times — not ideal for talks about promotions and pay increases. But don’t wait until right before the holidays or your supervisor’s two-week summer vacation. Ideal moments are after a quick, clean close or when the company exceeds a quarterly or annual goal.
• Be persistent (within reason). If your employer says no or not now, try negotiating for non-wage perks, such as extra vacation days or working from home once or twice a week. Also, don’t forget to ask what you would need to do to earn a raise in the future. Your boss will appreciate your professional drive, and you’ll know what skills to work on.
You may think you don’t know how to ask for a raise, but you do. As with anything, you’ll increase your chances of success when you do your research, practice your pitch and project a picture of confidence.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
September 2016
New Job? 7 Tips to Soar Through Your First 90 Days
Between meeting new people and mastering different software, the start of a finance or accounting job is a busy and exciting time. However, you’re not the only one learning. Your new boss and colleagues are watching and scrutinizing your performance during the first few months to learn whether you’re a keeper.
How long do most employers take to decide whether new hires will make the cut? According to a recent Robert Half Finance & Accounting survey, up to 90 days is common. The majority of CFOs interviewed — 54 percent — give newcomers between one and three months to prove themselves, and 9 percent allot less than 30 days.
This means you have little time to make a solid impression when beginning a new accounting position. Here are seven tips to help you make the best first impression:
1. Get a head start. Your first day on the job may be the official start date, but don’t let that be when you start to learn about the position or the company. You will have already investigated the employer as part of your job search. Now that you’ve accepted the job offer, go further:
- Read up on the company’s main competitors.
- Familiarize yourself with the accounting platforms you’ll be using.
- Go on the company’s website and start memorizing future colleagues’ faces and names.
2. Be more than prompt. Demonstrate your dedication to the new job by not just showing up on time, but early. Not only will your boss be impressed by your enthusiasm and commitment, but you can use the extra 10 to 15 minutes to plan your day, study onboarding materials, review training notes and jot down questions or comments you have about the position or company.
3. Ask for help. Some new employees think asking questions might make them appear amateurish. While you don’t want to be repetitive or a nuisance, you do need information that veteran employees take for granted.
Take advantage of the leeway you’ll be given at the start of your probation period to learn as much as you can. In most cases, your colleagues would be happy to help and share their knowledge. Asking for help is also a good way to get to know your coworkers and build relationships.
4. Watch your business etiquette. Good manners are always important in a workplace setting, but they’re especially key during when you are beginning a new job. The last thing you want is to commit a faux pas that makes your boss and colleagues think less of your capabilities or question whether you’ll be easy to work with.
Here are a few etiquette tips to keep in mind:
- Say “please” and “thank you.”
- Practice good cubicle etiquette, such as respecting your coworkers’ space and office supplies and keeping noise to a minimum.
- Polish up your conference call etiquette. A good rule of thumb is to pay attention to what your supervisor and coworkers do, and follow their lead.
The same goes for discussions about local and federal elections. While a recent Accountemps survey shows some workers feel that talking politics at work could be informative, the majority believe these discussions can get heated and offend others.
6. Be social. Your new coworkers’ feedback plays an important part in letting managers know whether you’re a good match for the corporate culture. One way to quickly fit into your new workplace is to be friendly and outgoing. So accept those invitations for coffee or after-work drinks, even if you’re a natural introvert. Rather than eating at your desk all the time, take a lunch break with coworkers or non-finance colleagues. The deeper your professional relationships, the better you’ll fit in at the new workplace.
7. First adapt, and then improve. One of the reasons you were hired was for your expertise. However, the first few months as a new hire is not the time to be a know-it-all. Rather, this is a time to watch, ask questions, listen and learn. Only after you understand the new employer’s methodologies and culture should you suggest changes.
It’s in everybody’s interests that you thrive in your job and settle in as a valued member of the team. Let your boss and colleagues know you’re a keeper by demonstrating enthusiasm, professionalism and diplomacy.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
August 2016
How to Manage a Multigenerational Workforce
In any company where a wide range of experience exists, chances are you also have a multigenerational workforce. Your finance department likely has baby boomer controllers, Gen X tax managers, Gen Y financial analysts and Gen Z payroll specialists. They may have a lot in common, however being formed by the decade in which they came of age, they also have varying outlooks, values, communication preferences and work styles.
If you’re the manager of this disparate group — and depending on which generation you fall in — you may wonder about how to lead such a wide range of ages. Here are four tips on how to lead a multigenerational workforce.
1. Understand the various generations
To manage a multigenerational workforce, you have to know what makes them tick. The four generations in today’s workforce have unique preferences, from general behavior to decision-making processes.
- Baby boomers (born 1946–1964) are work-centric, independent, tend to challenge the rules and have a somewhat guarded communication style.
- Gen X (born 1965–1977) grew up in the boomers’ shadows. They’re a little cynical, a lot individualistic and are highly adaptable to change.
- Gen Y (born 1978–1989) came of age as internet technology emerged and dominated their world. They tend to prioritize family, friends and teamwork.
- Gen Z (born 1990–1999) are tech natives. They have never known a world without the internet, are constant communicators and, having seen their parents weather the Great Recession, desire stability.
Of course, not every member of these generations can be neatly categorized; there’s a wide range of behaviors within each group. These are general tendencies that can provide business leaders with useful insights about how to manage a multigenerational workforce.
2. Promote a mutually respectful workplace
For millennials (a term that refers to both Gen Y and Gen Z combined) to work well with older generations, they have to get to know each other on more than just a superficial level. According to Get Ready for Generation Z, a white paper from Robert Half and Enactus, 45 percent of Gen Zers expect working with baby boomers to be difficult. They’re concerned they will be seen as “kids” and won’t be taken seriously. Similarly, boomers may be puzzled by the communication preferences and work ethics of the youngest working generation, and are afraid they will be seen as old-fashioned or irrelevant.
As a manager of an accounting or finance group, one of your roles is to strengthen work relationships and promote camaraderie. Help the generations mix, mingle and learn about each other with team-building activities. Promote the mindset that each generation has much to offer the team. Be generous with your acknowledgement of different cohorts’ contributions. Your employees reflect senior management’s values, so make sure you’re setting a good example.
3. Provide professional development throughout the organization
Your Gen Z workers are eager to learn and rapidly advance their careers. In fact, our research shows that 56 percent of Gen Z respondents want to be working their way up the corporate ladder or managing employees within five years of graduating from college. This go-getting generation of accountants will need some help getting there. Set them up for success by giving them plenty of opportunities and resources to develop their communication skills, office etiquette, customer service abilities and aptitude for leadership.
Gen Z isn’t the only generation that can benefit from continuing professional education and development. Seminars and workshops are effective ways to provide team-wide training. They keep everyone up to speed on the newest developments in the accounting and finance fields. Most survey respondents cited in The People Puzzle, a report from Robert Half and the American Institute for CPAs, said they prefer in-person training opportunities such as on-site workshops (28 percent) and off-site conferences or seminars (23 percent). Encouraging staff to attain professional certifications helps your department gain a deeper knowledge base.
4. Establish mentoring programs
Mentoring is an excellent means of solidifying the bonds of a multigenerational workforce. A recent Robert Half survey found that while 86 percent of CFOs interviewed say it’s important to have a mentor, only 26 percent of workers have one.
If your accounting firm or finance department doesn’t have a mentoring program, start one. If you have one but it’s inactive, it’s time to resurrect it. You should also encourage reverse mentorships, where Gen Yers and Gen Zers teach senior staff a thing or two about areas where they have expertise, such as social media best practices.
Helping members of a multigenerational workforce interact smoothly and productively is a must-do for managers today. Understanding that all employees — from boomer to Gen Z — have much to offer a company will allow you to make the best use of everyone’s talents.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at roberthalf.com/accountemps.
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Publication: IMA
July 2016
6 Tips for Fostering Cross-Departmental Collaboration
For a tight team of workers with similar backgrounds, collaboration might come easy. But what about projects that bring together professionals from your IT and finance divisions? A recent Robert Half Management Resources survey found that CFOs and CIOs are working together more today than they did three years ago. Cross-functional collaboration is also occurring more often at the staff level.
Working closely with other departments offers many benefits, such as less red tape and more streamlined processes. That’s not to say you won’t encounter differences along the way, such as friction among staff with unique viewpoints on approaches to problems, distinct work styles and skill sets. So how do you, the manager, go about facilitating collaboration between a group that includes an opinionated auditor, an introverted IT professional and a particularly spirited business analyst? Accounting managers can play a major role in fostering cross-departmental collaboration. Here are six ways you can bring a diverse group together:
Collaboration tip #1: Minimize industry lingo
Ask your staff to minimize accounting jargon and industry shorthand. For example, if the finance and tech departments are working on customizing your enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, go easy on potentially confusing terminology like contra accounts and AR/AP. Similarly, if the other department starts throwing around an alphabet soup of acronyms, step up and ask for clarification.
Collaboration tip #2: Strengthen inter-departmental bonds
To promote collaboration, consider including some fun activities so people get to know one another, such as this icebreaker: Have each participant email you a picture of their spirit animal in advance of a group meeting, and then put the images into PowerPoint. As everyone introduces themselves, display their image and have them explain why they identify with that particular animal.
Other ways to foster collaboration:
Offer a brown-bag lunch topic such as, “Everything you wanted to know about accounting but were afraid to ask.”
Plan social events — off-site lunches, bowling nights, catching a baseball game — and invite one department at a time to join you.
Team up with other divisions on company-wide volunteer projects.
Collaboration tip #3: Give all workers a voice
Typically, when you gather people together — some will dominate the conversation while others will hang back. Do your best to encourage more introverted members of the group to contribute to the discussion. You can do this by simply suggesting, “Let’s listen to some ideas from someone we haven’t heard from.” In addition, remind your team that you welcome feedback via email, in person or by phone.
Collaboration tip #4: Show staff the bigger picture
Some of your accountants may have a hard time understanding why they need to collaborate with other departments or how their role factors into the company’s success. Help them break out of this silo mindset. Encourage collaboration by asking a leader from another department to give your team a presentation on what their group does, and include a Q&A afterwards. Or, if a finance staff member needs to work closely with IT, sales or marketing, arrange a job shadowing experience so they can learn firsthand about their colleague’s role.
Collaboration tip #5: Nip conflicts in the bud
Team members are bound to disagree now and then, especially if they come from different departments. Individuals can work out small conflicts on their own, but bigger ones may require management to step in. If you observe a conflict taking root, step in before it escalates. It may require that you reassign teams.
Collaboration tip #6: Celebrate together
A party is a great way to mark major milestones or the end of the completion of a big project. Be sure to recognize the entire group’s efforts and acknowledge their hard work. Give kudos to outstanding staff — from accounting as well as other departments — who went above and beyond. Celebrations and gratitude can boost morale and improve job satisfaction and retention.
With cross-departmental collaboration, your team might include a mix of wallflowers and social butterflies, critical thinkers and creative types, planners and spontaneous decision makers. But they all share one ideal: They’re professionals in their respective fields and they’re here to make the company and its product better. Your job as a manager is to highlight their strengths and foster collaboration that is pleasant, productive and profitable.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
June 2016
Ready to Rehire? How to Bring Back Former Employees
Would you rehire a former employee? If so, you’re not alone: A recent Accountemps survey found that 98 percent of human resources managers would welcome back a worker who had left the company on good terms.
Sometimes called “boomerang employees,” rehired workers come with plenty of benefits. They already understand the company and they don’t need as much hand-holding. Also, you’re familiar with their talents, skill set, personality and corporate fit, minimizing your chances of making a costly bad hire. In fact, boomerang employees can be such an asset that some managers and HR departments choose to keep in contact with their “alumni” as a way to recruit passively.
Here are some questions to ask yourself when you’re considering hiring boomerang employees, along with a few tips for integrating them back into the office:
When to rehire
Of course, you wouldn’t rehire former workers who left on bad terms. But it’s not always the right move to ask top performers to come back, either. Here are a few things to think about when former employees want to return:
Why did the person resign from your company in the first place? If the employee left to take a higher-level position elsewhere, then rehiring him for an even more senior role could be a smart move — he’ll likely have valuable new skills and experience to bring to the job. The same is true if the employee stepped down to further his education or attain a new certification. . Also, if you reluctantly let someone go during downsizing, it’s wise to consider a rehire during a boom period.
However, if the employee resigned because he was dissatisfied with an aspect of the job — the salary, benefits package, management, coworkers or company culture, for example — and the situation has not changed, it’s probably not wise to rehire him. There’s a good chance he’ll soon find himself unhappy on the job again.
Do you need someone to step in right away? Rehiring former employees can be useful when you have a time-sensitive assignment or need to replace a departing worker as soon as possible. They’re a known entity, so you don’t have to spend time checking their references or doing multiple rounds of interviews.
What does your current team say? When you’re considering a rehire, reach out to the employees who worked closely with the person the first time around. They may have insights into the person’s skills and fit for the workplace environment that you weren’t aware of.
How to approach rehiring
Even though boomerang employees can be great additions to your staff, there are right and wrong ways to rehire someone. Keep these do’s and don’ts in mind:
DO meet with other candidates. Even if you think the former worker is the ideal person for the open position, it never hurts to interview other candidates, as well. There might be one who’s an even better fit for the job, or one who’d make a good candidate for another open position at your company.
DON’T skip the formal interview. People change. A former employee may have new professional goals or constraints that prevent him from fulfilling certain job duties, such as traveling or working the occasional late night. Also, if a boomerang employee has been gone a long time, his skills may not be as sharp. Use the interview process to dig deeper, especially if the person is applying for a role that’s different from the one he previously held.
DO clarify expectations. A returning employee may have preconceptions about the role she’s applying for, based on what it was like when she used to be on staff. If the job duties have evolved or new skills are required, make sure to explain that.
DON’T forget about other options. There are many types of work arrangements. If you can’t offer the former employee a full-time position, consider using her talents as a part-time worker, contractor or project professional.
DO keep the door open. Even if you decide against rehiring a former employee, or the person declines the job offer, stay in touch. You never know when circumstances — or minds — will change.
As with any job candidate, it’s important to weigh the risks and benefits when contemplating a rehire. The opportunity to bring back a former top worker might be welcome, but don’t neglect doing your due diligence before you make the hire.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 325 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
May 2016
Management Advice:
Time For a Career Path Discussion With Your Team?
Do you spend enough time talking to your staff about their career paths? Probably not, according to a recent survey from global staffing firm Robert Half, which found many employees want to spend more time discussing their future. Of the 1,200 accounting and finance professionals polled, 93 percent said they would like to talk about their career path on a regular basis, yet 40 percent said they never have this conversation with their managers.
The benefits of career path direction
Career planning should be a vital part of any staff retention strategy. Employees are more likely to stay at a company if they feel there is a long-term plan in place for their professional future. Otherwise, they’re liable to take matters into their own hands and look for a job elsewhere.
As a manager, touch base with your staff on a regular basis to ensure they’re satisfied with their position and career path.
Frequency of career path discussions
Many employers will include career progression as part of an annual review. This may not be enough, though: 48 percent of respondents in the survey said they would like to discuss their career path quarterly or even more frequently.
So how often should you have a career path talk with staff? There’s no one-size-fits-all schedule, but the answer may be as often as they want to discuss it.
How to talk about a career path
If you’re among the many managers who have never had a career path discussion with employees, or if you do so irregularly, here are some tips:
- Uncover goals. Some staff members, especially those at the beginning of their professional journey, need guidance in turning their goals into a tangible career plan. As a manager, ask questions to discover what really motivates them such as: which type of work they are drawn to, if they would be interested in supervisory roles in the future and what weaknesses are holding them back. Work with your employees to define a career path that leads to clear, attainable goals.
- Help them along the way. When you outline career path objectives, you undertake partial responsibility for helping employees achieve those goals. This means mentorships, training, on-the-job experience and perhaps another degree or certification. If they’re on a management track, professional development can help staff members acquire the leadership skills and general business acumen they’ll need later in their career.
- Be realistic about opportunities. As with all plans or promises, you shouldn’t make them unless you think you can deliver. It’s best to be transparent and open about the opportunities that will — and will not — be available. For example, if the company won’t be able to offer reimbursement for an MBA, or if there are no senior-level vacancies expected in the next five years, be up front about it. So as to not discourage ambitious accounting professionals, talk about the opportunities you anticipate will become available.
- Mix formal and informal chats. Even if you and your staff discuss their formal career plan only once a year during performance review time, you can have casual talks more often. Go out for coffee and ask how it’s going and whether they feel they’re on track to meet their goals. Take the time to show you’re interested in their career progression.
You should never experience turnover due to the lack of career planning. With the cost and time associated with recruiting new finance professionals, as well as the even greater toll of losing top talent, it’s in your best interest to prioritize career path discussions.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 330 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
April 2016
The Nonmonetary Perks Workers Want
You realize workers and job seekers appreciate perks, but do you know which ones they value most? A recent Robert Half survey reveals that managers are not quite in sync with their employees. Among the chief financial officers (CFOs) interviewed, 39 percent believe their employees’ top choice would be health and wellness benefits, such as free gym memberships. Office workers, however, prioritize additional vacation days.
However, the two groups are in agreement about one thing: nonmonetary perks are up for negotiation more than they were a year ago, largely thanks to a decline in the national unemployment rate. To recruit, hire and retain the best accounting and finance talent, an employer has to provide the benefits professionals desire the most.
So, which perks are the most in-demand? That depends on your staff. Read on for more about highly regarded benefits and how to discover which ones your workers value most.
Most valued perks
Remote work arrangements followed vacation days as employees’ most desired perks, with nontraditional work hours not far behind. The take-home message is clear: Employees don’t have enough time, and workplace benefits that can help them achieve a better work-life balance can make a big difference in their job satisfaction.
This is not to say workers don’t appreciate amenities like subsidized gym memberships, free parking and on-site cafeterias. They do. It’s just that if given a choice, your employees probably prefer the gift of more time over more material things.
By introducing more work-life balance perks to your organization, you’re telling workers you realize — and respect — that they have a life outside the office. And the benefit is not all one-sided: Employees who can exercise more control over their schedule tend to have greater loyalty to an employer than those who have to stick to set hours.
As for extra vacation days, some managers may feel that the company simply can’t afford the disruption and loss of productivity that comes with this nonmonetary perk. However, more PTO (paid time off) can actually lead to a boost in productivity. By taking longer and more frequent vacations, your workers will be refreshed, more creative and ready to tackle tough projects.
Explaining the disconnect
Why did surveyed CFOs think workers cared about wellness benefits the most when it ranked fourth among employees? Perhaps healthcare is top of mind among executives, what with the Affordable Care Act and its ramifications on health insurance and premiums. It could also be that many employers simply fail to initiate a conversation with their staff regarding the benefits they truly want. Likewise, workers are often reluctant to speak up about their workplace wish lists.
Which perks do my employees want?
There’s no need to be a mind reader. Here are some easy and efficient ways to discover which nonmonetary perks your staff value and which ones they could do without.
- Via an anonymous internal survey, ask employees to rank specific perks. Be sure to give them space to add their own suggestions and comments. SurveyMonkey and Google Forms are two online questionnaire tools that are free and easy to use.
- During performance reviews, talk to each worker about which current perks they like and, if they could ask for any nonwage benefit, what that would be. Use this approach especially with top performers you cannot afford to lose.
- Don’t forget prospective employees. In job postings and other recruitment efforts, publicize your company’s nonmonetary perks. Bring them up again during interviews, this time adding specifics. When weighing competing job offers, top candidates may lean toward compensation packages that include flextime, telecommuting options and generous vacation days.
Nonmonetary perks are an important but sometimes overlooked part of a company’s recruitment and retention efforts. In an improving hiring market, it’s more important than ever to be proactive with the in-demand benefits that entice and satisfy top accounting professionals.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 330 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
March 2016
Corporate Culture Matters:
Assessing if a Candidate Has
the Right Personality for Your Team
With the limited number of skilled accountants on the job market, many managers know all too well the difficulty of finding candidates with the right mix of skills and experience needed for filling open positions. One criteria you’ll want to be certain to examine when making a hiring decision is a candidate’s fit with your corporate culture.
New employees who lack a few technical skills can be trained. It’s much harder, however, to teach them how to fit in with their new colleagues and office environment. Bad hires not only cost your organization time and money, they can also bring down employee morale and productivity.
As you evaluate candidates, one of the many things you should look for is whether they’ll fit in with your corporate culture and thrive as full-time employees. Here are four tips for finding the right personality type for your team.
1. Ask the right questions. There are the standard questions: “Why do you want to work here?” and “Tell me about yourself.” Those aren’t bad, but you need more information. Asking more targeted questions will give you a glimpse into a candidate’s work behavior such as how they relate to coworkers and react under pressure, and whether they have the determination and professional demeanor to thrive in your company culture.
As an example, you could ask, “Why did you leave your last employer?” If they start badmouthing their boss or colleagues, it may be a sign that they’re not good at collaborating or resolving petty workplace conflicts and might not be a good fit with your corporate culture. Here are a few other interview questions that dig deeper:
- What did you like best/least about your previous position?
- Tell me about a time when you disagreed with a colleague’s approach to a problem. How did you handle the situation?
- If you could have any job in the world, what would it be? Why?
- Describe an instance in which you had to think on your feet. Were you satisfied with the result?
- What aspects of our company’s corporate culture do you find attractive?
- What qualities do you prize in coworkers, and why?
2. Check references. This is an important step some managers skip in their eagerness to land skilled finance professionals quickly, especially when they look great on paper and impress you with their interview answers. But disregard reference checks at your own risk. Unlike a resume or interview, references give you independent and objective insights into a candidate’s honesty, work ethic and interpersonal skills. Before you make the job offer, do your company and staff the favor of making a few phone calls to verify that what you see is what you’ll actually get.
3. Mix and mingle with candidates. To better gauge a potential new hire’s personality and fit with your corporate culture, consider meeting outside the office with a few of your team members. Informal settings such as industry mixers and casual gatherings are ideal opportunities to evaluate candidates when they’re not “performing” in the spotlight. It’ll also give your team the opportunity to chime in on your decision. After the gathering, ask one or two team members whether they think the candidate will work well in your corporate culture.
4. Conduct a “working interview.” Sometimes the decision will warrant a longer evaluation. In fact, 34 percent of chief financial officers who responded to a recent survey from Accountemps, a Robert Half company, said they gained the greatest insight into a candidate’s corporate culture fit by having them work on a temporary basis initially. A temp-to-hire strategy allows you to observe a candidate’s workplace fit in real time and is less risky than bringing on a full-time finance worker after only a few interactions in a somewhat artificial environment.
To get the most out of this approach, give these provisional employees challenging assignments so you can see whether they can keep up with the team. Be sure to treat them as you would any full-time worker so they’re comfortable enough to show their true selves.
Unlike college degrees or finance certifications, which are easy to check off, determining whether a new hire will fit in with your corporate culture is more challenging to assess. That’s why even though it takes more effort, a thorough and extended evaluation is a wise investment of your time.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
January 2016
Job Interviews Coming Up?
5 Interview Questions You Should Ask Potential Employers
A job interview is a two-way street. Not only do you, as the interviewee, have to be prepared to answer interview questions, you should also plan on asking your own questions during job interviews.
If you do, you’ll have plenty of company. Eighty-four percent of professionals responding to a recent Accountemps survey said they ask hiring managers questions during job interviews. Here are five productive interview questions to serve up the next time you find yourself in the role of interviewee:
1. What’s a typical day like for someone in this position? The answer to this question will be helpful in at least two ways: You’ll get crucial information about what your day-to-day duties would be if hired, and you’ll gain insight on how well your prospective manager understands exactly what the job entails.
2. Who was in the role before me, and why did they leave? The interviewee should not expect the full scoop on the previous employee’s history, of course, but learning more about why the position is open will provide a better idea of whether you’ll have the tools and support you’ll need to succeed if you eventually accept the job.
3. What qualities do you think would make someone successful in this position? The answer to this question will not only help you get a handle on whether the job would be a good fit for you but also give you a chance to emphasize your skills and traits that match up well with what the company needs.
4. What do you see as the greatest opportunities for the company in the next several years? This question shows that you’re interested in more than just the short term, and the response will shed light on the company’s leadership style and plans for the future.
5. What do you like most about working here? In general, it’s not appropriate for you, the interviewee, to put the hiring manager in the hot seat. But this question brings a human element to job interviews while still keeping the focus on the workplace and how individual employees can gain career satisfaction from contributing to the firm’s mission.
Being ready for questions directed your way during job interviews means being able to respond with informative answers, but it also means being able to recognize when the time is right to pose your own questions. Hiring managers understand this, and they’ll be attuned to how well you seize opportunities to ask what you need to know. The interview questions you ask may well turn out to be as important as the ones you answer.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
Publication: IMA
December 2015
Take a Real Vacation: 5 Tips for Managers When it
Comes to Unplugging From the Office
If you’re like many finance and accounting managers, you may have plans for using up the rest of your PTO (paid time off) before the new year. Though vacations are supposed to be a time for getting away from work and recharging your batteries, many supervisors find it difficult to disengage completely. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try your best. After all, you need to be at peak form for the first quarter of 2016 and tax season. Here are five tips for unplugging from the office while on vacation.
1. Manage expectations. Decide whether you’ll be severing connections completely or checking in on occasion. If you will be responding to emails or taking calls, set aside specific times. Inform your team members of your vacation schedule. Your staff should know whether they can (or should) contact you during your vacation and, if so, when you will respond. Try to keep your check-in times to an hour a day or a few times a week: Remember, you’re supposed to be taking time off!
2. Delegate responsibilities. If you’re totally unplugging from the office, which is what vacations are all about, your staff will need one or two people to turn to for questions and advice. Before leaving, ask a trusted employee to serve as a contact person. If you oversee two or more distinct projects, divvy up the responsibilities among multiple finance professionals. You’ll want to schedule a briefing with your backup team before your vacation so they know what to expect. In the short term, delegating covers the bases during your absence. In the long term, you get to see who has leadership potential as you build a succession plan.
3. Get organized. When you prepare properly before going on vacation, you’ll feel less anxious about tasks dropping through the cra
- Write memos for your replacements, telling them where to find files and how to reach you by phone or text.
- To save you time when looking over your messages during vacation, take a few minutes to organize email controls before you leave. For example, if you know pressing matters will crop up while you’re away, set up rules so that emails from specific senders or those containing certain keywords are automatically moved to subfolders.
- Even if you’ll be checking email and voice mail regularly, use out-of-office messages to let people know you can’t respond immediately.
5. Don’t overdo re-entry. It’s tempting to dive right in and re-establish your groove after a vacation, but leave yourself some breathing room. Aside from a short meeting to get caught up, don’t plan anything major on the first day back. You’ll have a full inbox to sort through and projects to catch up on.
Unplugging from the office can be challenging for managers, but it’s highly doable if you prepare in advance. Keep these tips in mind before taking off for your vacation, and you’ll come back refreshed, recharged and ready to work.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
November 2015
4 Ways to Help Accounting and Finance Employees Stay Up-To-Date with Technology
Technology keeps evolving, which means keeping the team up to date with changes can be difficult for some finance managers. In a Robert Half survey of CFOs, keeping pace with changing technology was the top response when executives were asked about the biggest challenge facing their teams.
Tech tools such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) and big data systems are a critical part of modern accounting and finance departments, making it vital for your team to be comfortable working with these systems. Here are some ways to help your employees grow their tech skills.
1. Start with an assessment
Find out what technical skills and knowledge your team members already have and compare them to your needs. You may find that they have expertise not currently being used but that could come in handy when the need arises.
2. Support education
Many accounting and finance employees are happy to pursue continuing education if they receive encouragement and support from their employer. Give them time to get extra technical training and reimburse them for costs upon successful completion of the program.
Here are some technology training options your team may find helpful:
- Certification programs, such as those from SAP or Oracle
- Courses at a local community college or university
- Vendor-provided training programs
- Conferences and other off-site events
- “Lunch-and-learn” seminars and other in-house training opportunities
- Webinars and online courses
Establishing mentoring relationships between select staff members and tech-savvy employees is often beneficial. These mentors can be experienced accounting and finance specialists or members of the IT department. A good working relationship with your organization’s CIO can be helpful in identifying the best mentors for your team. Another productive relationship is reverse mentoring, which gives an experienced employee the chance to learn from a junior colleague who may be more savvy about communication via social media. However, beware of reinforcing stereotypes. Less-tenured employees can offer more than just technology expertise; they also bring different perspectives on the world and different approaches to problem-solving the rest of the team may not be familiar with.
4. Give them a chance to grow
Many accounting and finance professionals have not expanded their knowledge of technology simply because they have not had an opportunity to do so. With their daily workload, there isn’t much time left over to stay current with new technology. It’s up to you to make this a priority. Talk to your team and discover who would like to help with a tech initiative, such as migrating to a cloud service or implementing or upgrading an ERP system.
Your support is the critical ingredient to helping employees stay current with new and evolving technology. Those who have the desire and aptitude, in particular, can benefit from your help and direction.
You might find this Robert Half infographic timeline of tech milestones helpful when encouraging personnel to consider a broader technological orientation.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
###Publication: IMA
October 2015
What’s in Store for 2016? Next Year’s Hiring and Salary Trends Revealed
2015 has tried the patience of finance and accounting managers looking to hire highly skilled employees, and 2016 is not likely to be much different. To succeed in recruiting and landing top talent, employers need to know what to expect so they can be competitive with incentives and compensation.
The latest resource for finance and accounting hiring trends is hot off the presses. Here is a peek at what’s inside the 2016 Robert Half Salary Guide for Accounting & Finance:
Business is booming. Many companies are expanding and launching new initiatives to generate revenue, resulting in a need for skilled accountants and business analysts. The current regulatory climate with its increasingly complex mandates is also driving up demand for finance professionals with experience in financial compliance and healthcare.
Good talent is hard to find. Open finance positions outnumber candidates with the necessary skills. As a result, top applicants often have multiple offers on the table, prompting organizations to accelerate the hiring process to increase the chances of landing their top picks.
Good talent is hard to keep. Experienced finance professionals are aware that the market is in their favor. They are confident about exploring other options and do not hesitate to head elsewhere for better pay and shinier job titles. Employers often make counteroffers in an attempt to retain key players, although this retention strategy is usually ineffective and often backfires.
Some positions will be harder to fill than others. Though demand for most finance and accounting employees will continue, the 2016 Salary Guide indicates the following professionals will be especially sought after:
· Accounting managers
· Business, business systems and financial analysts
· Compliance officers
· Information technology auditors
· Internal auditors
· Payroll professionals
· Senior and staff accountants
Starting salaries continue to climb. From entry-level accountants to senior internal auditors, healthy salary increases are likely in 2016. Each of the more than 400 positions listed in the 2016 Salary Guide is expected to see base compensation rise by 4.0 to 5.3 percent. In response, some employers aren’t just matching the starting salaries offered by the competition; they’re exceeding them to attract the best candidates. Use our Salary Calculator to customize the going salary ranges for your city.
Companies are offering perkier perks. Besides boosting starting salaries, many firms and financial institutions are offering sign-on bonuses, merit-based raises and more. They are also enhancing nonwage perks, such as telecommuting options, extra vacation days, relocation assistance, flexible scheduling and tuition reimbursement.
Interim workers can cover staffing gaps. Organizations continue to rely on skilled temporary professionals to maintain productivity while searching for full-time hires. Many finance managers appreciate this flexibility, as well as the opportunity to evaluate potential candidates in real time on a temp-to-hire basis.
The latest hiring trends are clear: Despite wobbles in the global economy, the search for talented finance and accounting employees remains steady and competitive. Consult the 2016 Salary Guide to see what’s in store for the coming year, and position yourself to meet and exceed potential recruitment and retention challenges.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
September 2015
A Counteroffer Might Not Make Fiscal Sense
Here's a Better Approach to Improving Employee Retention
The prospect of losing a valuable employee can be unsettling, especially during accounting-season crunch time when finding a replacement only adds to your already daunting workload. But will making a counteroffer ameliorate the situation?
Most often the answer is no.
In fact, 78 percent of chief financial officers polled in a recent Robert Half survey said they don’t utilize counteroffers as a tool for employee retention. These executives report that money often doesn’t resolve the issues underlying a worker’s reason for resigning, and a counteroffer can often backfire and create resentment or drive up salaries through the department.
It’s helpful to understand what prompts employees to leave their job in the first place.
CFOs and workers in another Robert Half survey cited the following reasons employees quit:
· Inadequate salary and benefits
· Limited opportunities for advancement
· Unhappiness with management
· Overworked
· Lack of recognition
· Bored with their job
Here are two takeaways for developing a smarter employee retention plan:
1. Addressing salary issues
If salary is a primary motive for a worker to take a new job, why not make a counteroffer?
- For one, counteroffers can create resentment among other staff members. If you decide you need to appease them, you may upset your company’s salary structure. In the first Robert Half survey mentioned above, of the 21 percent of managers who said they do make counteroffers, more than a third of that group said doing so forced their hand to also give raises to other employees in their departments.
- Perhaps most important, recognize that leaving a job often involves multiple issues, and money is only one of them. Your counteroffer may not bring greater stability to the situation and you may only be delaying an inevitable departure.
2. Ways to improve employee retention — and head off the need for a counteroffer
Here are some strategies managers can employ to preempt the issues that can cause employee job dissatisfaction and high turnover:
- The fact that counteroffers are generally not a good idea doesn’t mean that you don’t need to continually ensure your salaries remain competitive. Among professionals polled recently in a Robert Half survey, 83 percent said a bigger salary would be a top factor prompting them to move to another company. You can head off the counteroffer issue in the first place by using a resource like the Robert Half Salary Guide for Accounting and Finance to benchmark your company’s compensation structure and make sure you’re paying your employees at or above market standards.
- Help employees develop a defined career path. Provide progress points for their growth within the company.
- Pay for career development and training to help workers feel more engaged and supported, including, for example, defraying the cost of a valued employee earning a professional certification.
- Every employee has unique strengths, motivations and goals; therefore, customize recognition (i.e. rewards and incentives) to the individual as much as possible.
- Listen, keep channels for communication open and ask for regular input. Act on reasonable recommendations to show your employees you are responsive to feedback
- Consider flexible scheduling, among other perks such as job-sharing, telecommuting, and working part-time, which helps employees find the healthy work-life balance they want.
- Be on the lookout for signs employees may be looking to leave, such as becoming disengaged from their assignment or asking for information about previous projects. Forestall a resignation by involving the employee in a conversation about his or her job satisfaction to get feedback that might help you address any issues that might improve the situation.
Although a counteroffer might seem like a logical step to improve employee retention, you must first consider the ripple effect and instead develop a long-term management strategy for retaining your best employees. Once you’ve done your due diligence, when valued team members announce their resignation, you can feel comfortable wishing them well on their next endeavor.
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.
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Publication: IMA
February 2015
Top Finance Priorities and Challenges for 2015
With the new year already here, your organization is likely busy analyzing your business goals and setting priorities. Wouldn’t it be helpful to know what executives at other companies are trying to achieve this year? The 2015 Finance Priorities Survey, conducted by Protiviti and the Financial Executives Research Foundation (FERF), offers an inside look at U.S. executives’ top concerns.
The survey, conducted during the third quarter of 2014, shows that financial managers are incredibly busy. According to the report: “The sheer number of priorities they are addressing is at an all-time high in our four-year study.” Compared to last year’s results, many more areas have moved from “moderate priority” to the “significant priority” range. Here are the top five finance priorities, in order, of chief financial officers (CFOs) and other executives polled for this study:
1. Strategic Planning
Many financial executives are rightly concerned with maneuvering their companies into the best possible position for long-term growth. Strategic planning includes anticipating challenges, gathering and readying the necessary staff and resources to address those challenges, and evaluating the role of the finance function within the entire organization.
2. Budgeting
To facilitate decision-making across the entire organization, a business not only needs accurate budgets, but also sharper, real-time analytics and instant information. A growing trend is holistic budgeting: improving processes in a comprehensive manner and integrating the role of the finance department into the whole enterprise.
3. Domestic Regulations
A continuing trend from 2014, financial managers find it a challenge to follow and adapt to new laws and standards. CFOs and executives need to hire the right people with the expertise and skills to manage compliance issues. In many ways, it’s a perfect storm: At the same time the number of regulations is mushrooming, an aging workforce means organizations are losing a substantial knowledge base to retirements — making succession planning more important than ever.
4. Profitability Analysis
The backbone of any business is bottom-line profitability. To make strategic decisions about which products, channels, customers and markets to pursue, financial managers have to spend more time and resources to analyze data. Among the significant finance priorities of large companies (with annual revenues of $1 billion or more) is big data analytics. The report suggests that small and midsize companies have not yet begun to take advantage of this growing trend.
5. Cash Forecasting
Closely related to budgeting and strategic planning, cash forecasting is one of the top financial priorities of 2015. As the report puts it, “Cash remains king, as does cash clarity.” Sound cash forecasting can allow businesses to adapt to market volatility with greater agility and make better decisions based on anticipated cash shortages or surpluses.
The common thread through all these and other finance priorities is the prerequisite to attract and retain top talent, especially those with well-developed soft skills, such as leadership, change management, conflict resolution and mentoring/coaching. Organizations must hire skilled executives and financial managers who can build relationships (with employees, clients and regulators), analyze data, make accurate projections, recommend strategy and communicate and collaborate with other departments. Without the right people in the right places, companies will find it very difficult to reach their business goals — in 2015 or the years ahead.
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Abstract
Finance executives' priorities for 2015. (Note to writer: Base this piece on Protiviti's Finance Priorities Survey: http://www.protiviti.com/financesurvey.)
Accountemps, a Robert Half company, is the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Accountemps has more than 340 locations worldwide. More resources, including online job search services and the Accountemps blog, can be found at accountemps.com.