This is probably the *nth* article you’ve come across talking about the shrinking global talent pool.
But this one is different! We have something for you that the others don’t.
There are pressing factors, trends, and elements to the worldwide talent gap — all of which are multilayered and, in many ways, inextricable.
However, most materials out there won’t really bother uncovering these layers, leaving you with half-baked, unsustainable band-aid solutions for attracting and retaining talent.
When facing a crisis of this magnitude, temporary fixes simply won’t cut it. You need proven, research-driven, and tailor-fit strategies to rise above the widening talent gap.
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Scale, expertise level, and longevity be damned.
Your firm is not immune to the threats of a shrinking talent pool.
We’ll tell you right now: Aside from statistical significance, the current talent squeeze is steadily surging. It’s multifaceted and costly, too.
Let’s expound on each of these:
Statistically significant is accurate, as the current crisis hurts most talent pipelines and cuts across industries, including tech, finance, and accounting.
Steadily surging is also true: the patterns are evident year after year.
Multifaceted is spot-on. We're talking mass career choice shifts, generational shifts of attitudes towards work, and relevant cultural trends, all of which exacerbate the talent crunch worldwide.
Costly is an understatement. The global talent gap is an impending multitrillion-dollar loss to businesses like yours.
But however horrific those facts and numbers sound, the talent crisis is not a lost cause.
In fact, forward-thinking firm owners have stepped up to the plate to shield their practice from this scarcity.
For different companies, their approaches to bridging the talent gap also vary accordingly.
Some turn to poaching talent or pressuring their current talent pool to stay as short-term solutions.
However, we prefer taking the more sustainable, longer-term route, which we’ll be diving into shortly.
So, are you ready to future-proof your business from a mass pipeline shortage?
Let’s jump into the numbers.
Is the global talent crisis real? We need numbers!
Some people think that it’s just an exaggeration; that the talent gap is sensationalized and mostly blown out of proportion.
Others might even believe that the talent gap is manufactured, like some myth or scare tactic by corporations that want to milk it for their own benefit.
But the truth is: it’s no gimmick — there’s enough evidence that tells us it’s a serious, large-scale risk to businesses around the world.
So we’ve established that the talent scarcity exempts no industry.
But you still might be wondering how it impacts particular fields in different territories — specifically, the accounting industry.
We’ll crunch the numbers for you and see where your firm falls under.
The United States
As of recent, there has been a 7.8% drop in the number of accounting graduates in the United States, with master’s degree graduates also dipping by 6.4%.
We’ve also witnessed a 34% decrease among university students majoring in accounting, from 2015 to 2019.
On top of this, we’ve also seen the lowest number of CPA exam takers since 2006, with a 33% decline in first-time takers within just a span of 5 years according to AICPA.
But this shortage doesn’t stop among accounting majors — consequently, the corporate world reaps the implications of the talent squeeze.
A recent mass quitting of over 300,000 auditors and accountants in the US left the industry with a 17% decline in registered CPAs.
There’s also the PCAOB-predicted audit risk from the mass exit of external auditors in corporate finance.
This accounting shortage is evident as well in the automotive industry and in biotech.
Canada
Moving away a little from the US, Canada is yet another case of accounting demand outstripping the supply.
According to CPA Canada, there are about 20% more small businesses today since 2011, but the overall productivity gains of the accounting industry haven’t really kept up with the times.
Moreover, the ranks of CPAs have not seen much movement for a long time, amidst an increase in the numbers of tax filers, the labor force, and the overall population.
HR firm Robert Half says that 9 out of 10 accounting hiring managers felt challenged due to a shortage of available accountants, with about half of them expressing concerns for overburdened staff members.
A little less than half also expressed trouble securing tax season accountants.
On top of this, more than 40% of them also believe that the talent crisis has increased delays in financial processes, while 34% also shared concerns over accuracy.
Australia and New Zealand
Going to another side of the world, Australia shares its accounting talent pipeline issue with the US and Canada. A forecast by the Australian Bureau of Statistics suggests that firms would need an accounting workforce of over 340,000 by 2026, which is currently not being met.
Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand executive Simon Grant also cautioned that the Australian accounting industry is dealing with around 9,000 accounting vacancies that span across practices, which hurts the overall smoothness of taxation and revenue collection.
While seeing improvements in numbers among auditors and tax accountants, there’s still a significant shortage of general accountants, management accountants, and external auditors.
These forecasts reflect what recruitment firm People2people found: currently, 46% of accounting teams in Australia struggle with being short-staffed.
Smithink, an Australian think tank partnered with a UK-based talent solutions provider, shared that 45% of firms describe the current staffing shortages as “severe” or “very significant”.
Because there’s a lack of junior-level staff, over 81% of these surveyed firms have seen their salary costs skyrocket in just 3 years as well.
This talent squeeze leaks into neighboring territories like New Zealand: listed as a regional shortage, accountants are currently highly in-demand in New Zealand.
United Kingdom
This is supported by another report: UK accounting businesses that are “feeling the strain” of lack of skilled workers at 74%, and understaffed firms at 22%.
This is supported by reports of accounting firms forced to turn down work due to staffing shortages. As a partial consequence, half of UK accountancy firms report of stunts to their growth.
Based on these numbers, there’s a projected shortfall of 60,000 accountants when 2050 comes around. On top of that, majority of employers in accounting struggle with recruiting the right talent too, as per the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).
Let’s take a break from the overwhelming numbers for now.
Enter motivations: What conditions maintain this shortage? Where did they come from? Why are they happening right now?
To answer it quickly, your accounting firm isn’t really just facing a talent drought — you are at the intersection of major cross-categorical shifts.
We’re talking age groups, gender, levels of expertise, socioeconomic statuses, politics, and the broader cultural influence that directly affects the talent scarcity in accounting.
Let’s unpack these factors bit by bit.
Changing Attitudes Towards Work
People just don't want to pursue accounting anymore, and it's been this way for quite some time now.
Accounting doesn't sound as attractive (or better yet, sexy) right now, which is what some accounting firms are pushing for.
Unfortunately, it's not that easy to do that.
It will take a lot of studying, marketing, and time to execute. But we'd like to be optimistic: It's difficult but it's possible.
And the first step is identifying what's keeping people from pursuing an accounting career.
Lack of Task Variety
Accounting involves highly repetitive tasks. Check, recheck, double check, triple check.
The next day, you do them all over again.
While repetition can be enjoyable, others are looking for more variety in their day-to-day work lives.
A study shows that when task variety is low, your staff is more likely to engage in counterproductive work behaviors, which is unfortunately an entry to a cycle of boredom, inactivity, and dissatisfaction.
It's now up to leaders like you to keep engagement up, bring more variety to the table, and bring out the fun side of accounting.
Stiff Competition
"Finance, trust fund, 6'5", blue eyes," goes the viral TikTok trend.
Compared to currently trendier and higher-paying fields like data analytics and finance, accounting seems to be lagging behind.
After all, data analytics is reported to pay better, while finance's future-focused leaning allows for more task variety.
With many promising industries on the rise, there is pressure on the accounting industry to keep up with the times and stay a relevant career choice.
This brings us to the next factor.
Desire for Work Life Balance
Different generations have different ways of going about things — and these are what makes each cohort unique.
And of course, these differences include views on work setups and everything that comes with them.
For millennials and Gen Z, the priorities are staying active, getting hobbies, and making their work lives healthily integrated with their personal lives.
In the US alone, 63% of millennials and 77% of Gen Zs were actively looking to change their current jobs in favor of other jobs with more flexibility and higher pay, leaving them with more time to spend for their families, friends, and the things that they love doing.
On the other hand, older generations like baby boomers and Generation X are used to traditional work setups.
They tend to follow a strict schedule dedicated to finishing work tasks and responsibilities, which is actually highly helpful to the accounting industry as a whole.
While others believe this level of dedication is about to be a lost art, older generations simply just find value and fulfillment in stable, longstanding fields like accounting.
This leads us to the next point.
The Retirement Boom(ers)
Unsurprisingly, baby boomers make up the majority of the accounting workforce.
It's safe to say that they are currently the backbone of the field.
Sadly, 3 out of 4 will retire in more or less 15 years — but these en masse retirements are bound to happen anyways.
So more than the empty office chairs left behind, it's their legacy that they'll take with them — the younger talent pool simply doesn't have their level of mastery and years of experience.
Overall, the upcoming retirement boom will likely hurt staffing pipelines not just of accounting, but of other industries as well.
Strict CPA Rules and Lagging Education
Speaking of mastery and experience, accounting graduates now find it quite difficult to become CPAs.
Depending on your territory, CPA exams typically consist of a series of specialized tests that require a particular degree and skill sets that could take time to earn and develop.
Suffice it to say, most people could find the standards too cutthroat.
A relevant contributing factor is education: the cost of a degree and traditional education models aren't changing fast enough to accommodate non-traditional students and labor-market needs.
This partially motivates the mass disinterest in accounting.
Related Reading: Why Accountants are Quitting (and How to Stop Them)
Responding Effectively to the Accounting Talent Crunch
Creating Targeted Initiatives
Especially for firm owners, organizations like the National Pipeline Advisory Group (NPAG) are a huge help to attract (and eventually source) talent.
Formed in July 2023, the NPAG hopes to attract more students to the accounting profession.
As a practice owner, it's beneficial to spearhead targeted initiatives and work with partner organizations not only to help your own firm but to boost and enhance the entire accounting industry as well.
We encourage more initiatives like this in other countries and territories, too.
Improving Existing Reward Policies
We all want to feel appreciated!
A study tells us that reward policies perceived to be unattainable significantly and negatively impact most accounting employee satisfaction issues.
Most accountants find it hard to follow reward policies with too many hurdles or restrictions to follow.
Ideally, reward policies must be realistic and achievable to make talent teams stay longer in your practice, or even transition to newer, more industry-relevant roles.
Investing in Your Talent Pool
You have to think ahead to keep your firm out of the red and into the black. Future-proofing is not an option — it's a necessity for your company to live long, and it all starts with looking at your best assets: your company talent. This is best encapsulated in the words of TOA Global founder and chairman Nick Sinclair:
This can be answered by our next response to the talent crunch.
Tapping Talent Solutions Providers
Especially for busy firm owners, your partner provider should tick all your boxes already to save your time and energy scouting, sourcing, and asking around.
Tapping the global market for elite talent allows companies to focus on their core competencies and strategic initiatives rather than getting bogged down by tedious accounting tasks.
Working with the right talent solutions provider can help ensure accuracy, compliance with regulations like GAAP and/or IFRS, and make timely financial reports and statements.
Aside from specialized knowledge in areas such as tax laws, auditing standards, and financial analysis, elite global talent teams work using the latest technology and software — and you don't even have to invest in them yourself.
Choosing the Right Talent Solutions Provider
We believe that talent is money. That’s why they’re worth the investment.
Here’s what TOA Global founder and chairman Nick Sinclair has to say about the current worldwide (and accounting-wide) talent crisis:
“The talent squeeze is probably the worst I’ve seen in nine years. But we’ve been through these cycles before, and good businesses learn how to deal with the challenges. The firms that attract strong talent and weather this storm will need to have the right systems and processes in place, and invest heavily in the management and development of their people.”
For firm owners, who you associate with in business can make or break your practice.
If you’re entrusting your talent pool to a partner provider, choose one with a proven track record, enterprise-grade security measures, elite accounting talent, and incredible work ethic like you’ve never witnessed before.
We believe this is TOA Global.
Beat the Accounting Shortage with TOA Global
Talent solutions providers like TOA Global allow you to improve your bottom line, grow your client portfolio, and focus on higher-value tasks. By tapping into the global market for top talent, you considerably slash costs and allow for scalability too. The best part? You don’t have to sacrifice quality talent or output.
Don’t miss out on elite accounting talent. Be part of our 1,190 satisfied clients and call us for a free strategy session now.
