Fed Finance, a specialized recruitment firm for corporate finance, accounting and payroll position, unveils the results of its annual survey focusing this year on the dynamism of the Montreal employment market for finance and accounting positions. The firm surveyed 137 candidates employed or looking for new opportunities on their views of the sector’s dynamism.
When surveyed about their opinion of Montreal’s employment market, finance professionals judge it mostly positively. Indeed, 61 percent of respondents judge it either “dynamic” or “very dynamic.” Furthermore, 48 percent indicated being contacted by a recruiter or a HR professional more than six times in the past six months to discuss a potential work opportunity.
However, candidates remain selective, as a call for an opportunity does not necessarily translate to a job interview with a recruiter. Indeed, 26 percent of respondents did not continue the recruitment process with an interview following this original solicitation.
When asked about the information they are looking for in priority on a job description, 70 percent of respondents cite compensation. This criterion, unsurprisingly, places first among other criteria like the location of the company (63 percent) and the required experience (48 percent).
“Often, transparency in job description is rewarded by a greater volume of received applications. This is observable for every criterion, but this is especially true when speaking about compensation. Generally, the more candidates can identify themselves in a job description thanks to the given information, the more they are susceptible to apply. This is a rule recruiters should keep in mind,” explained Marian Babin, Fed Finance Director.
When asked what makes the difference between two similar openings, compensation is cited first by a majority of respondents (69 percent). This criterion placed first over the distance between the workplace and the candidate’s residence (57 percent) and the remote work policy of the company (52 percent), a phenomenon accentuated since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis.
“Even though some companies are asking their employees to be on site full-time, a lot of professionals are asking companies to adopt a hybrid model. This is a variable to consider for companies during their recruitment processes: some candidates will turn down opportunities if the team is against remote work/home office, even partially,” Babin said.
Once hired, candidates still place compensation as an important criterion: 66 percent of respondents indicate that a remuneration in line with the market helps them stay within a company. The criterion is placed in third position behind the work atmosphere (75 percent) and the team (70 percent). However, it remains at the heart of the discussion for corporate finance, accounting and payroll candidates.
