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Sharp Consultancy's Salary Survey 2025/26: Resetting the Landscape: Strategic Shifts in Finance Recruitment

​It would be remiss not to start by addressing the elephant in the room — 2024 was a challenging year.While there were many reasons for this and numerous industries were affected, recruitment likely bore the brunt of it, particularly in the 6 months post-election(s).Whilst key roles and critical hires remained unaffected, certain head counts and processes were scrutinised and investment paused with internal restructures and automation utilised to reduce costs, in some instances, at the expense of employees. We subsequently saw an increase in candidate activity, with the talent pool strengthening. As those pressures eased in Quarter 4, recruitment processes saw improvement and green shoots have emerged. Optimism is on the rise in key hiring processes, albeit with a caveat. The cloud of additional cost increases in April, which is still dissipating. The senior finance and C-Suite market remains relatively unaffected, both regarding opportunities and candidates, it is the levels below that we have seen more change. In the evolving landscape of working dynamics, the volume of hybrid working is gradually waning despite sustained interest from candidates, presenting fewer job opportunities. While the blend of office and remote work remains desirable, it is no longer the predominant factor, indicating a notable shift in priorities for clients and candidates’ acceptance alike. Conversations with candidates underscore a growing desire around the importance of having a supportive mentor or manager and many professionals are increasingly open to a full-time return to the office if it guarantees enhanced guidance and avenues for professional advancement. "The salaries throughout transactional finance have stabilised across the region."Throughout the professional practice market, some similar trends have been observed but there have been noticeable differences in the past year. Salaries across the range of candidates in professional practice, from AAT to fully Qualified (ACA/ACCA) individuals are still rising and those firm’s able to offer competitive salaries alongside stronger training contracts are beating out the competition in a candidate market with a growing focus on study support packages and career advancement opportunities for Part-Qualified candidates, indicating an increase in demand from employers and the volume of available job seekers. The salaries throughout transactional finance have stabilised across the region, in what feels like the longest period of stability seen since Q4 2020 and we expect transactional finance salaries to remain stable throughout 2025/26, with anticipated salary increments to be moderate compared to the significant increases observed throughout the last 2 years. AI & Systems (process automation) continues to impact accountancy and finance, in particular, across larger functions but this has increased the need for wider interim support to assist with the transition and implementation especially with large, automated processes. Whilst 2025-26 will not be the same marketplace for recruitment as seen in previous years, there is certainly a growing level of optimism and whilst a more settled market may be seen as a negative in some areas, for those that have weathered the peaks and troughs over a longer period of time, it will feel very normal and a strong setting for both employees and employers to take advantage and thrive, with an increasing emphasis on growth and development.Download the full Salary Survey here!

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SLEEP OUT 2019 – THOUGHTS FROM THE TEAM

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​A team from the Sheffield office will be supporting local charity, Roundabout – which provides shelter, support and life skills to over 250 young people and gives them a chance to turn their lives around by empowering them to break the cycle of homelessness – by taking part in its flagship event, Sleep Out 2019 on Friday 8th November.

They will be spending the night in a warehouse to raise awareness of the valuable work that the charity does to support young people in South Yorkshire affected by homelessness. Ahead of the event, in which the team is hoping to raise more than £1,250 in sponsorship, we caught up with some of them to find out what made them want to take part in Sleep Out 2019.

Ben Graney, Business Director

“Roundabout is a charity that we are proud to have been involved with now for a number of years. I felt it was time for us to take the next step up in supporting the great work they do, and take a more active role in helping to increase Roundabout’s publicity in the local region. I wanted to take myself and our team out of our comfort zones, both in the lead up to the event and by participating in the Sleep Out.”

Caitlin Davidson, Sales Support Administrator

“I’ve never been involved in a charity event like this before. I think it will be an eye-opening experience.”

Matt Civil, Consultant

“Having grown up in Yorkshire, and only finding out about Roundabout in the past couple of years, I wanted to support a local charity that a lot of people might not have heard of. Since signing up to the Sleep Out, my friends and family are asking me about who and what it is for, which in turn will raise the profile of this fantastic local charity.”