In a jobs economy that is increasingly dominated by growth in temporary, part time, contract and casual roles, if you’re an accountant you can count yourself more fortunate than others.

What is the long term outlook for accounting jobs?

Job prospects in accounting continue to defy national trends. There are more Accountants working in full time positions than the national average and workers in accounting jobs earn more than other sectors. If you’re interested in where we get our numbers check out the government’s Job Outlook site.

Where are accounting jobs in Sydney?

We’re in Sydney. We recruit jobs for CA and CPA qualified accountants for professional services across a variety of roles and for all levels beyond graduate.

For people employed in this sector in Sydney, job prospects continue to be relatively solid, although we’ve found employers are taking longer to make decisions and are demanding top quality applicants.

During 2010/2011 we saw steady demand for jobs for Senior Level Accountants. This seems to be a trigger point for career decisions and decisions about exiting this profession. Once someone becomes CA qualified, they have the option of leaving the profession. Many head into commercial jobs within organisations.

As part of the hiring conservatism we mention we are seeing less demand for Supervisors jobs as many firms promote from within.

Demand for insolvency jobs in Sydney

Over the past decade, consistently in demand is insolvency professionals and business services professionals.

Insolvency professionals tend to be in demand when business is going backwards, or people are going bankrupt. While we have not seen a spike in demand for these jobs of late, there is definitely nervousness in the economy.

Demand for Business Services professionals in Sydney

The demand for business services professionals is a by product of the mining boom and the economic recovery. This has had the spin off benefits for business consulting, taxation and auditing type services.  This growth in jobs in Sydney has been primarily for qualified or part qualified professionals who have very strong relationship management and interpersonal skills, and outstanding written and verbal communication skills.

Interestingly we’ve seen clients revisit the incentives offered for staff who are able to bring new clients in the firm. We’ve not seen performance incentives for client retention, which  should be present. This would be an added carrot for attracting well rounded professionals.

Why do we say this?

Accounting candidates focus on the portfolio of clients they are given and the diverse nature of the work they do for these clients.  Gone are the days when firms should expect their staff to do the same thing for the same clients over an extended period of time.

If you would like to discuss your staffing requirements or your next career move please give us a call – (02) 8221 0553. We’re experts in this field!

The start of the employment year (that’s anytime after Australia Day) is always a good time to reflect on the year that was, and put our thinking caps on about where the demand exists for insurance jobs.

If you read the economics headlines you would assume that disaster predicted for Europe spells doom and gloom in our employment market overall. However we all know that headlines are written as extreme attention grabbers and the real employment picture is far more nuanced than that.

In our assessment of the employment market for insurance jobs, the forecast is not all gloomy. We’d say it’s patchy with a few rain showers over the coming year. Here’s why.

What is the long term outlook for insurance jobs?

For insurance jobs over the long term the Australian government’s Job Outlook provides some solid information. This website presents data from various industry sources including the Australian Bureau of Statistics. (Insurance is grouped as a profession in with money market and statistical clerks.) So the picture for just insurance jobs is probably slightly rosier than what they state.

Turnover in these occupations (that’s people leaving the occupation) is about par with other professions. Unemployment is on par with other professions. While they rate prospects for growth for the next five years to be slight, the better news is that the industry is expected to grow at 24.8% over the next 20 years.

Where are insurance jobs in Sydney?

We’d agree with the long term outlook we’ve talked about above.

We recruit mainly in Sydney. Compared to 2010 last year we saw strong growth in insurance claims roles at intermediate level across the general insurance sector and across all product lines with a focus on personal lines and personal injury insurance. By intermediate level we mean the claims decision makers. So that’s the people who accept, evaluate and manage the insurance claims processes for a portfolio of clients.

With climate change predicted to increase the frequency of extreme weather events such as bushfires and floods, we see the demand for insurance claims roles increasing moderately.

Why do we say moderately and not dramatically?

With the recent spate of natural disasters, the cost to the industry has been huge. While companies may not feel the impact immediately as they have reinsurance, the longer term cost as reinsurance arrangements are renegotiated will be in increased premiums. The insurance industry is looking to reduce costs so we are now seeing some large insurers outsourcing administration and claims roles off shore, and some staff freezes.

Is this a long term trend? Who knows!

While there is an immediate cost off the bottom line for staffing costs, companies that have outsourced large scale services have often found that their clients complain. Given that clients who make claims are very often stressed we could reasonably expect that they may receive more complaints. Insurance is a grudge purchase. The only time people evaluate the service they have purchased is when they use it. So a poor experience at claims time could well translate into a higher rate of customer attrition.

While the relationship between customers that insurance companies have and the customers that they want is complicated, any large scale outsourcing may actually backfire and insurance jobs may return to Australia at some point in the future.

Jobs in Workers Compensation insurance claims have increased.

In other insurance sectors we see steady demand in Workers Compensation roles as a statutory insurance class. There has been an increase in the volume of Workers Compensation claims. While insurers are doing their best to provide a manageable caseload for their staff, most candidates are ready to gravitate to another line of insurance, and are prepared to compromise on salary to get the right role.

With the strong demand for outstanding claims professionals and a shortage of candidate supply we suggest that insurers and claims management companies look at both their salary bands and retention strategies to prevent attrition. There is still a demand for insurance underwriters, but the higher demand is for insurance claims staff. Quality claims professionals are finally receiving the attention they deserve in the employment market.

If you would like to discuss your staffing requirements or your next career move please give us a call – (02) 8221 0553. We don’t mind saying it – we’re experts in this field!

Where is the demand for IT Forensics Experts?

We have employment opportunities for many specialists and experts in IT Forensics, including opportunities from many of our accounting clients. Australia is a relatively inexperienced market. As a result we tend to offer very competitive salaries to attract individuals who have gained extensive experience overseas in more sophisticated markets, the UK as an example. Although the existing talent within the Australian market is of high calibre, there is a shortage of experienced professionals who are suited to senior positions.

We are currently experiencing a high demand for experts with the skill and knowledge to identify, analyse and present findings from electronic evidence involving criminal and civil fraud. We are seeing a demand not only with the larger accounting professionals but also the smaller specialist boutique operations as well.

Specific skills shortages for IT Forensic Experts

Australian employers value these skills:

• Civil Investigations
• Criminal Investigations
• Data Analytics
• E-Discovery
• Expert Witness
• Information Security
• Incident Reponses and Intrusion Forensics
• Enterprise Infrastructure
• Public Speaking and court room experience

Potential employers have a lot of challenges to offer an experienced IT Forensic professional. However to say it is a candidate driven market is not true. Candidates need to remember that in a competitive private sector the employer is interested in what the candidate can offer the company, not the other way round. Employees need to add value and bring expertise from their strong technical past in order to be considered as a prospective employee. They need to be innovative and across processes involving overt and covert examination of computers and computer related systems in this rapidly changing and expanding industry.

In addition to the lifestyle and climate, economically we Australia is faring better than most – hence our recent AAA rating. If you possess IT Forensic related skills and are interested in the possibility of pursuing a career in Australia please contact me for further information.

After a successful series of interviews, sponsorship by your intending employer by way of 457 Visa would be the next step in the relocation process for you and your family.

Enigma HR has relationships with providers who can help you with 457 applications.

Case Study:

In the UK summer of 2008 I was contacted by Chris Hatfield. Chris was professional and highly motivated IT Forensic Director looking for a fresh challenge and a dose of international experience. The extensive and diverse range of skills he had gained throughout his career in IT Forensics, placed him as market leader in the delivery of Forensic services. He was a prime candidate for the delivery of IT Forensic services in Australia.

I assisted Chris is gaining an understanding of the Australian market and the players he should consider as potential employers. I arranged telephone, video and in-person meetings which led to an offer of employment.

Since arriving at one of Australia’s leading professional advisory firms in December 2008, Chris has been responsible for creating the IT Forensic service in the Sydney area. His primary responsibilities while creating and developing this new service included client marketing, forensic lab design and case management.

He now returns to the UK as a husband and a father, to pursue his designated field of expertise in Forensic investigation.

Enigma HR

A Senior Consultant with Enigma HR, Nick Capel is an experienced recruiter in Sydney and has been in the industry since 2002. Prior to recruitment he worked in the Banking and Accounting industries and has an extensive contact and network base.

• Specialist in IT Forensic recruitment
• Specialist in Accounting and Finance recruitment
• Known in the industry for an extensive client and candidate network
• Provider of solid industry advice and market conditions
• Provide referral assistance regarding VISA enquiries
• Able to assist with video interview solutions
• Referral assistance on relocation

Contact Nick Capel:
+ 61 (0) 412 158 130
nick@enigmahr.com.au
http://au.linkedin.com/in/nicholascapel

This article was written with the approval and consent of Chris Hatfield. 9 December 2011.

We call Christmas the cranky season, as it is one of the most stressful times of the year. If you’re worried about your career direction, put it on hold during this period. Take a break and give up worrying for a while. – or find something bigger than yourself to worry about. Try volunteering. You’d be surprised at how much perspective the size of other people’s problems can give you about your own.

2) Develop some self-awareness. Do you actually know your strengths, weaknesses, motivations and values?
Most people spend more money on their holidays than they do in evaluating and marketing themselves for their career. Yet your career is where you’ll spend most of your time. You do know the saying, don’t you? “Do something you love and you’ll always feel like you’re on holiday.”

3) Develop some clarity about what you can offer your employer. This comes from the self-awareness we describe in point 1), plus understanding where you sit in your market.

4) Write down a few goals. Make them measurable. Put a time frame to them. This sounds so basic, but you’d be amazed at how well it works. It must be the process of articulating your goals that keeps you accountable.

5) Break down your goals into smaller steps. One huge goal can seem insurmountable. You may find yourself giving up if you feel overwhelmed if you ask yourself to climb the career mountain all at the one time.

6) This next bit is going to sound like dating advice.

Put yourself out there. Make sure people can find you. Put your profile up online. Linkedin is a treasure trove for headhunters. A passive way of being active in your job hunt is to have a very good profile.

7) Look for help. One thing that works for people is an accountability coach. Ask a person to ask you once a week how your job search is progressing. Think of them like your professional nag. They’ll soon irritate you if you have done nothing.

Speaking of professional nagging, if you do find yourself thinking about your next career move, give us a call (02) 8221 0553. We don’t mind doing it. That’s what we’re here for!

This happens all the time when you are looking for a role. Here are five reasons you might experience this.

1) Other agencies are working on the job. So the time you visited the agency the job was almost filled. The consultant did not want to waste your time and has other opportunities they can discuss with you.

2) There was a job, but the job was not that agency’s exclusive property. For example, the agent called that company as part of a business development exercise. The company has talked about the role that they have on at the moment, then said “if you can find someone send them in.” The agency then puts an advertisement up. Enter you.

3) The consultant decided that you were not a good match for the job they had on offer, but decided you were a good prospect for one of their clients. If this is the case, you do have the right to ask the consultants the reasons that they would not put you forward to that role.

4) The consultants want to place you, and are falling all over themselves to get you into their clients. So they’ll talk to you about a few things they have on offer.

5) Scenario 4) but the consultants neglected to talk to each other, so you end up confused. You would be surprised at how common this is.

No matter what the reason for the confusion, the thing for you to remember is that you have a choice about what you do. If you think you’re being sold to, or even if you’re not, you need to do your own due diligence on a role.

We encourage you to ask many questions about the role, to help you make a decision. As an agency it is in our best interest to ensure that you are a solid long term match for that role and that company.
We want to know that you as a candidate are making a solid decision as well.

Our reputation is at stake, along with yours, if you leave a role too early.

Take a look at this article in the SMH – the comments are both depressing and enlightening.

This one is one of the more “reasonable” comments from readers urged to tell their tales:

“I’ve had two really bad bosses. One was disguising her incompetence with severe bullying and buck passing. Everyone hated her. She was rather nice when not under the stress of a job she couldn’t do.

The other one I can’t even think of a reason. He would give you half bits of info and then berate when it wasn’t exactly what he was looking for. He would straight out lie about everything, trash talk former employees and try to get employees to side with him about other employees amongst other things. I left there and was instantly happier. I wouldn’t wish him upon my previous boss.”

Many people jump online when they are feeling super frustrated, angry and just need to vent. But this is not a reason to dismiss such comments as the ravings of the outraged.

Researchers from Florida State University surveyed more than 700 people working in a variety of jobs about their opinions of the treatment from their supervisors on the job. Here’s what respondents reported:

• 31% reported that their supervisor gave them the “silent treatment” in the past year.
• 37% reported that their supervisor failed to give credit when due.
• 39% noted that their supervisor failed to keep promises.
• 27% noted that their supervisor made negative comments about them to other employees or managers.
• 24% reported that their supervisor invaded their privacy.
• 23% indicated that their supervisor blames others to cover up mistakes or to minimize embarrassment.

According to the researchers: “employees stuck in an abusive relationship experienced more exhaustion, job tension, nervousness, depressed mood and mistrust.”

No kidding!

So what’s going on here?

Do we all turn into bullies and ogres when given a little bit of power, or is the question a whole lot more complicated than that?

If we met someone at a BBQ we probably wouldn’t describe them as a “bully”, a “narcissist”, a “self-absorbed control-freak” or a “lazy”, “arrogant”, “buck-passing moron.” Yet if they are someone’s manager, you can pretty much guarantee that someone, somewhere, at another BBQ down town, is describing them in the same way.

It’s ironic that in all of the discussions around what makes a good leader, very few people actually ask this question:

“We’re generally not horrible people, so why do we turn into horrible bosses?”

Are we under too much pressure, and in the pressure of getting the job done we forget the niceties in the way we may ask people to do things? Does that stress mean that the only way to get a job done is the way we think it should be done, regardless of whether that’s the best way of doing things – so we turn out to be controlling.

Does the stress of the job mean that as managers we are so focussed on our own issues that we forget the impact of our behaviour on others or how people may interpret what we do?

Or as human beings do we simply lack a lot of empathy? So when we become bosses we forget what it was like to be bossed? Have we never had good bosses ourselves to witness a positive example?

Are we not good at giving feedback? Or are our employees not good at receiving it? That’s a pretty lethal combination when you think about it. Most people have an ego, varying levels of insecurity and a need to be right. That works on both sides of the management table.

There is not one easy answer to any of these questions. But there is a big cost if we don’t start with some self-examination.

The Australian Human Rights Commission publicised the estimates the cost of bullying in the Australian workplace to be between $6 – $36 billion dollars every year when hidden and lost opportunity costs are considered.

“The effects on a workplace can include decreased productivity, increased staff absenteeism, staff turnover and poor morale. Financial costs can include legal and workers’ compensation and management time in addressing cases of workplace bullying.”

There may not be one easy answer to any of our questions, but some honest self-examination can help. If you need assistance with developing your management team, give our workplace solutions team a call – 02 8221 0553.

Take the word utilize for example. You rarely utilize the word utilize in real life, so why should you utilize it on a resume? Apart from the fact that it sounds pompous and vague, there are other far more powerful words you can use instead of utilize.

Here is a list of action words for your resume.

They’re not ours. They’re yours. Feel free to use them.

Have we just made you crankier as well?

It’s about to get worse.

Does this sound familiar?

“Start your New Year, with a new career?” You’ll see the less creative career copywriters use this line to entice your newly holidayed staff across to their organisation. One of the reasons people want to kick start the New Year with a new career is their last performance review – or in some cases lack of them.

If you are about to run these reviews, or you have never run a review, these tips will help get you started.

1) Have one. It seems that any conversation is better than no conversation – not that we’d encourage you to berate your staff. Read this post on how damaging it is to ignore your staff.

2) Plan the meeting in advance, and don’t reschedule it. If you reschedule, that sends a very strong message that these are not important. Planning the meeting in advance allows your employees to prepare as well.

3) Give specific feedback – nothing vague.  There are a few reasons for this.

Firstly, most employees, no matter how well they have performed throughout the year, will be apprehensive about a performance review. This means people may not process information you provide as quickly as they do normally.

Secondly, be also aware that very few people are self-aware. So you’ll tend to get people who underrate their performance, or overrate their performance.

If you relate feedback to a specific project, incident or series of them, then people can actually process that information and better understand the impact of their behaviour, either positive or negative.

4) Involve your employee in the discussion.

As a reviewer, this is difficult, but essential. But if you are wanting people to improve, or keep doing the things that they are doing – then you need to start from the mutual understanding of where things are at. A good question to ask is “how would you rate your performance in this area?”

Many successful organisations make reviews a two-way process. This is one reason why.

5) Make notes and keep your promises.

Actions speak louder than words. If people know you plan to do something concrete about their career development in the new year, then logic says they’ll be less likely to want to move.

Need help with your performance reviews?

Our experience interviewing job-seekers in the new year suggest that these are a real issue with many organisations.

If you’d like the Christmas Grinch to leave your staff alone in the new year, call our Workforce Management Solutions team now on (02) 8221 0553.

Sound like you? Sounds like everyone at some point in their life.

So how do you find a job when you don’t know where to start?

Well, we’d recommend careers counseling, either informally or formally. In fact if we all had this before we began our careers, say in school, it could have saved us a lot of heartache from careers we feel stuck in and jobs we don’t like.

Here’s what a Careers Counsellor can help you identify:

- Your innate strengths
- Your preferred working style
- Your preferred work environments
- The way you like to be managed
- People whom you like working with
- Any barriers you have to achieving your goals

The next step from there is to look at industries or businesses that are growing and any study you may need to do. Part of that process could be talking to people who are employed in the areas you have identified as being of interest. Ask them how they got their first job in that field, what study they recommend the exciting and not so exciting bits about what they do.

The reason I say this is that many people who successfully change careers have started that journey from seeing a Careers Counsellor and talking to others. They have gained a level of self awareness. This has helped them in the job hunt when they’ve been grilled by an interviewer asking them about their career change. They can say with conviction: “I asked an expert, and this is why I know this new career is the right choice for me.”

This site has a list of Careers Counsellors in Australia.

When you choose a Careers Counsellor you might want to ask their experience, the journey they take you on, what you can expect at the end, and their experience in helping people in your area.

I’d also recommend you read this terrific article by Kate Southam in her blog: Cube Farmer. She writes on talk she gave to school leavers on how to find your first job. It’s actually great advice for people of any age.

The last thing to think about, is that a change is often a journey not a leap. Rarely do you hear of people who’ve gone straight from being acrobats to astronauts. That’s much too much of a jump.

(Lame joke, I’m sorry)

Here’s what we suggest to create a positive first impression, that will last well beyond your new employee’s first few days.

1) Have their desk ready
 

When someone starts a job, that first impression they have about how welcome they are, is vital. If you think about it, first days are stressful enough without having to spend half of it on the phone to an IT help desk sorting out their system access.

2) Be there on day one
 

Directly or indirectly, the person who most influences the employee’s experience is their direct manager. They should be the one that introduces the person around the office. It sends a message to the new employee and a message to the team that they are joining that this person is valued and important.

3) Have a planned induction
 

Again this is a message of value. If a new employee sees that there is structure to their development first up, it sends a strong message about the professionalism of the organization, and what may be likely to come with their training and development..

4) Be consistent
 

No matter how hard we all try, the recruitment is a process of sales on both sides of the table. However, one of the major complaints we hear from candidates is that their new employer has changed the rules after the game has just begun, particularly with things like salary.

With dollars it is critical to be explicit. An example here is super. You may think that it’s obvious that super is part of a package. The candidate may think it’s on top of a package. That small 9% could add up to a whole lot of unhappiness when the next pay cycle comes around.

5) Don’t neglect the basics
 

There’s nothing worse than being a new person and having to figure out how to find the toilet and use the printer and photocopier. We’ve all had stressful days in our first few weeks, with a deadline looming for reports to be printed, and we’ve found that the printer is constantly jamming.

6) Bring senior leaders into orientation
 

Again this makes your new starters feel valued. Senior leaders can give a broader perspective on the history, mission, vision and values of an organization. This can open up channels of communication and let people know that career paths exist.

We all know the cost of replacing a new hire extends well beyond the cost of the initial recruitment. With our workforce management solutions, we’re here to help you manage your employees’ experience from onboarding, induction and beyond.

Contact our workforce management solutions team on (02) 8221 0553.