Marketing For Accountants In Practice

Using The Internet As A Recruiting Tool.

With the recent downsizing of some of our bigger firms, the demise of Arthur Andersen and the volume of new positions being somewhat flat over the past twelve months, you could be forgiven for thinking that the job of that recruiting talent had become easier.

Not so, according to many of our leading CA firms.

Good people are still in high demand, and they’re just as difficult to find as ever.

Just take a look on Workopolis and you’ll see a slew of postings from each of the ‘Big 4’ firms, all mostly directing applicants to their own web site to apply for a specific position.

Meyers Norris Penny have a number of postings for their west coast offices, as they continue to grow, and a number of search firms continue to post what appears to be the same jobs as the month before… and the month before that.

So what’s the problem?

I spoke with a number of firms in my own area, Ontario, to ask them about how they use the Web to recruit talent.

Cinna Faveri, Office Manager, Duffey, Allen & Rutter, CAs in Etobicoke told me that their firm’s web site is being developed at present, so they don’t recruit from there, but they do use the ICAO web site for senior positions with success. In the past they have also used advertisements in The Globe & Mail and have also posted positions on Workopolis.

She found that these generated volume but, generally speaking, the quality of applicants wasn’t what they were looking for. Cinna commented that she found the Institute’s own site far more effective as a place to post vacancies and generate a higher quality of applicant.

According to her, the recruiting process is a little easier now than it was a couple of years ago, but it’s still not easy with the average time taken from start to finish being around two months per position.

Sean Heggarty, Chief Operating Officer at one of Ontario’s fastest growing firms, Scott Batenchuk LLP, CAs in Burlington told me that in most cases they will use recruiters to fill any position requiring a CA. They used to advertise positions to drive traffic up, but again, the question of quality arose.

Own firm’s web site has been very useful as a source of information to prepare candidates before they show up for interview – once again showing the versatility and value of having a web site for your practice.
They still get unsolicited resumes through their web site, but generally speaking they are not of as high a quality as they will get through their search firm.

People are always welcome to submit their resume, and they have their own in-house HR Manager, which is a great help.

Students often look the firm up and use the web site as a research tool before applying for a co-op position. They frequently have returning co-op students, many of which go on the get their CA with Scott Batenchuk, so that’s time and money well spent, in their book.

One of Ontario’s biggest independent firms is Durwood Jones, Barkwell & Co, LLP, with eight offices around the ‘Golden Horseshoe’. One of their senior Partners, Rob Neil, told me that their web site attracts a number of resumes every year.

When recruiting, they use a combination of different types of advertisements such as the professional press (CA Magazine or The Bottom Line) often just before the UFE results come out – a very successful technique for them.

They prefer to grow their own CAs, and have a solid track record in that area. They also benefit from a growing number of referrals of potential candidates from existing staff members and are proud of the fact that they rarely lose staff to their competitors.

“More often than not, a staff member will leave to go into industry, but rarely do we lose anyone to our competition. We’ve even had people return to us after a spell at another CA firm, and we’re very proud of that.” Rob commented.

“We’ve grown from 7 partners 20 years ago, to 26 today, with 3 Principals and 11 Managers, so there are any number of opportunities for bright ambitious CAs.”

So, what are the lessons learned from these comments?

· Experiment with different recruiting techniques – advertising, recruiting firms and web postings and see which method works best for you.

· Ensure that your own web site has a compelling reason to join - why should bright, young, ambitious CAs, CGAs or CMAs send their resume to you?

· Make sure you know the latest market rates for salaries. This will help you to make sure that you recruit and retain the best talent available.

· Encourage your existing staff to make referrals. A $1,000 bonus for a successful introduction is by far the most cost-effective recruiting method

· If you use a search firm, be selective. Interview several to make sure the firm you select really knows the public accounting profession.