Grant Thornton LLP Study Finds ‘Soft Skills’ Biggest Challenge in Hiring Accounting Professionals

(From BusinessWire) -- Grant Thornton LLP, the U.S. member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd, one of the six global accounting organizations, today announced the release of a new report titled The Evolving Accounting Talent Profile: CFO strategies for attracting, training and retaining experienced accounting and finance professionals.

The study presents key research findings distilled from interviews with chief financial officers at publicly traded and privately held companies on the state of the accounting employment market, including staff development and job turnover. Building upon Grant Thornton's survey of more than 500 U.S. senior finance executives in 2009, the new analysis presents insights on a range of concerns facing CFOs in the hiring and retaining of experienced finance professionals involved in formulating accounting policy, financial reporting, internal controls and compliance.

Grant Thornton's survey revealed that skill sets beyond technical knowledge are critical when it comes to employing experienced accounting professionals most effectively. For example, 55% of respondents thought that the lack of employees with the necessary "soft skills" - communication, critical thinking and problem solving abilities - was the most significant challenge in recruiting seasoned accounting professionals. Workload and lifestyle were rated as the second most significant obstacles in hiring senior finance employees by 50% of respondents, followed by the dearth in technical skills among experienced accounting staffers.