Remuneration ranks as the second most critical factor affecting talent attraction and retention in the audit profession across the majority of regions, according to a recent joint survey by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand.
Younger employees are found to be more inclined to leave their organisations for pay-related issues, which have been exacerbated by the impact of inflation on real wages.
It should be noted that concerns about remuneration are not uniform as they vary by jurisdiction.
Some audit firms conduct market studies to benchmark their remuneration against competitors and other professions, helping to ensure competitiveness.
Such analyses are not universally conducted, ACCA and CA ANZ says, and these can lead to disparities in remuneration across markets, even among audit firms within the same network. This inconsistency persists despite efforts to account for factors such as the cost of employee turnover.
Many respondents noted that while their workload intensifies during busy seasons, they are not adequately paid for the extra hours worked. This is demotivating, and if it remains unchecked could further impact the attraction and retention of talent in the future.
No remuneration will ever be sufficient if the impact of poor work–life balance is not addressed. One size does not fit all; in other words, even if the extra hours during the busy seasons attract additional pay, given that work–life balance matters the most, some potential or current audit professionals may not be willing to sacrifice that for the extra money.
Recommendations
With these at hand, the ACCA and the CA ANZ recommends the following:
Perform market salary studies: firms’ remuneration should reflect evidence of comparative salaries from market studies.
Additional working hours should be remunerated: all working hours should be remunerated and where individuals prefer time in lieu, that should be provided.
Pay should keep up with inflation: ACCA’s Global Talent Trends 2024 study found that pay is not keeping up with inflation; firms should address this.
