More than half (55%) of qualified accountant respondents are motivated by flexibility and a greater work-life balance when considering a new job role, up from 37% in 2015, according to research by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and Global Accounting Network.
The CIMA 2016 salary insights report, which surveyed 3,460 student accountant CIMA members and 4,467 qualified CIMA members, also found that 52% of qualified accountant respondents are motivated by financial reward.
The research also found:
- 42% of qualified accountant respondents cite a good working environment as a main motivator.
- More than half (53%) of student accountant respondents are influenced by financial reward when considering a new role.
- 36% of student accountant respondents are motivated by a good working environment when considering a new role.
Adrian O’Connor (pictured), founding partner at the Global Accounting Network, said: “In the future, it is likely that both accounting professionals and employers will become increasingly open-minded about the benefits of working outside of non-traditional office hours. Good talent is in short supply and [organisations] need to be competitive to secure the best skills. Slow adopters in terms of flexibility risk missing out on the best people.
“It is to be expected that motivators differ between the student accountant and the qualified accountant demographics. Flexible working is arguably more valuable for professionals later in their careers when they are more likely to have caring responsibilities or are just looking to slow the pace. Students, on the other hand, are right to seek out opportunities for development and challenging work to help build their skills and experience for the future.”