Work-life balance matters the most.
In a recent joint survey by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, it was revealed that both current audit professionals and prospective entrants stress the crucial need to achieve equilibrium between work and one’s personal life.
Respondents of the study call for improved work–life balance, fair remuneration, and supportive work environments that recognise employees' personal needs and reduce workloads through automation and efficient planning.
Primary factor
The study found that the primary factor impacting the attraction and retention of talent in the audit profession is the perceived impact of working in the profession on individuals' work–life balance.
In the realm of auditing, this translates as the expectation of long working hours, especially during ‘busy seasons’, which induce stress and anxiety, encroaching upon the personal lives of audit professionals.
Defining work–life balance is not a one-size-fits-all concept; for some, it entails ample time with family, for others, opportunities for physical exercise or other activities alongside their audit duties.
Both current audit professionals and prospective entrants into the field emphasise the paramount importance of striking the right balance between work and personal life.
Taking steps
The ACCA-CA ANZ study revealed that audit firms are taking steps to address the work–life balance challenges, although their initiatives may lack visibility.
Audit leaders recognise the existence of these challenges and appeared determined to continue exploring new ways to address them.
However, the survey respondents also suggest there is an urgent need to address unsupportive cultures within firms, which can impair wellbeing and work–life balance
Among the comments the study received include worrying instances of workplace bullying, sexual harassment, racism and a glaring lack of diversity.
In response to some of these challenges, survey respondents advocate sweeping reforms, emphasising the need for a more inclusive and diverse work environment and enhanced mental-health support systems.
These suggestions aim not only at revamping the profession but also at rendering it more inclusive and appealing to younger generations. Such candid insights shed light on the urgent need for change within the audit profession, underscoring the imperative for stakeholders to heed the voices of those within the profession and respond openly and effectively.
Recommendations
With these at hand, the ACCA and the CA ANZ recommends the following:
Individualised flexibility support: work–life balance has a different meaning for each individual and hence audit firms need to embrace individualised flexibility support for their staff. This includes looking at the appeal of working patterns for both existing and future members of staff.
Invest and use advanced technologies to ease workload: with generative artificial intelligence making waves, firms of all sizes can benefit from using generative AI software, whether bespoke or provided via one of the various service providers currently emerging.
Firms should be more transparent regarding busy season working hours in advance: while this approach does not address the challenge of working long hours on its own, such visibility can help employees plan their personal lives around this without being taken by surprise.
Cultural shift: firms’ leadership needs to take purposeful actions to address unsupportive cultures by establishing and enforcing internal policies, where not present, to address issues such as workplace bullying, sexual harassment, racism and lack of diversity. Enhancing mental-health support systems should be considered essential for providing mental health support to their staff.
Firms’ initiatives need more visibility: staff may be unaware of many of the initiatives currently taken by firms to address work–life balance challenges, owing to lack of visibility. Firms should invest more in making such initiatives more visible.
Policy makers and stakeholders in the profession should address the impact of simultaneous reporting deadlines: Stakeholders of the profession should collaborate with policy makers to explore mechanisms for spreading out deadlines throughout the year where practicable.
