Dive Brief:

• Recruitment remains a pressing challenge in the accounting industry, with eight in 10 companies struggling to hire skilled professionals, according to survey results released Wednesday by finance software firm Intuit.
• While the accounting talent crunch has eased slightly — down from 94% last year — the industry continues to grapple with shortages across experience levels, according to a report on the findings.
• “Securing junior level candidates with more than one year of experience proves especially challenging, noted by 42% of respondents, followed closely by hiring talent with five or more years (38%),” the report said.

Dive Insight:

The findings come as the industry has been seeking to reverse a decline in the number of accounting graduates in recent years as some students have snubbed the profession because of comparatively low entry-level pay and rigorous requirements for licensure, among other reasons.

Since late last year, more than 20 states have changed licensure rules for certified public accountants, with most establishing new paths to certification that effectively reduce the number of post-secondary years of education required to four or a bachelor’s degree, CFO Dive previously reported.

“For a younger generation thinking about entering the field, there’s a costly barrier-to-entry in becoming a certified public accountant, from exam and ongoing certification requirements to expensive college programs, which can put accounting as a profession out of reach for many,” Simon Williams, vice president of accountant solutions for Intuit QuickBooks, said in emailed comments. “There’s also the out-of-date perception that accountants are simply number crunchers stuck behind a desk with calculators. And for those currently in the field, there’s often career burn-out with long work days, especially during tax season, that prevent a work-life balance.”

The growing need for talent with technology skills is compounding the problem, according to Intuit’s research. Three-quarters of respondents reported increasing their focus on technology skills in their hiring criteria. “As technology continues to advance the accounting landscape, the profession is adapting — not just to fill roles, but to attract talent capable of keeping firms ahead of the curve,” the report said.

Intuit commissioned an online survey in April of 700 U.S. accounting professionals aged 18 or older.

Keep up with CPA licensure changes with CFO Dive’s tracker on the topic here.