Qualified Finance Market
Overall, the Qualified Accountancy Market within industry remains steady and cautious, particularly from a permanent perspective. Those roles that have been live this quarter have been fairly specialist in nature – with a clear growth in areas including financial transformation, financial systems and tax.
Those with more ‘generalist’ backgrounds, such as Financial and Management Accountants, are finding permanent roles within these areas harder to come by and when they do come up employer expectations are heightened.
Hiring Trends
Conversations with clients in the last 3 months have continually brought up the same thing – cautious hiring. We are seeing the same roles open for longer than average with clients reporting lower numbers of applicants and a decline in the quality too.
For permanent appointments we are seeing our clients take their time, conduct multiple interviews and ensure a candidate is suitably qualified before proceeding to make an offer. There appears to be less of a ‘taking a chance’ mentality – perhaps down to the increased cost to employ staff.
That said there remains room for optimism with intent-to-hire remaining high within finance functions across the major cities.
Salary uplifts across the Central Belt are tracking at around 3.0–3.5%, but professionals who combine a recognised qualification – ACA, ACCA, CIMA – with competency in modern ERP systems or data-driven finance are seeing meaningfully higher offers. Candidates with hands-on experience of platforms such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 F&O, SAP S/4HANA or Oracle Fusion are among the hardest to source and command a clear salary premium.
One structural shift worth noting is the speed at which businesses want to move. Decision-making that was drawn out through 2024 and early 2025 has tightened. Where we are seeing offer-to-acceptance delays, it is almost always because a competing process is already under way. Our advice to clients: if the candidate is right, move decisively.
There remains a desire for candidates to demonstrate commerciality and stakeholder engagement skills, even for the more traditional ‘number cruncher’ roles – a robust interview process can effectively test this – ask us how!
Interim Optimism
Where the permanent market has remained considered and cautious, there is a clear demand for highly qualified, available candidates for interim and temporary opportunities. Where the struggle comes from in this market is finding that high quality and available talent. As businesses look to balance their budgets while still addressing staffing needs, hiring temporary and FTC candidates offers a cost-effective solution, providing flexibility without the long-term financial commitment of permanent staff. Additionally, as companies require extra support to manage the closing of accounts and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, temporary staff help manage these peak periods efficiently.
This is also true of fractional roles at FC/FD/CFO level – businesses are turning to experts for a few days a week / month to support with their strategy rather than committing to a full time permanent employee.
Overall, the trend reflects a strategic approach to workforce management, allowing companies to remain agile and responsive to both opportunities and challenges in the market.
If you are looking for benchmarking we would highly recommend downloading our 2026-27 salary guide and discussing any questions with our consultants. You can find the link here – https://iconicresourcing-salary-guide.carrd.co/
Candidate Trends
Candidates remain keen on roles that offer variety and opportunity. The top candidates in the market tend to passive and have to be enticed into considering new roles, so employer value proposition is key.
Hybrid working remains a must have for lots of candidates and as important to decision making as salary on offer. If you are a candidate who is open to working in an office full time, the opportunities are out there and there will likely be less competition.
A word of advice to candidates interviewing soon – be ready to demonstrate how you add value, support stakeholders and think commercially. We are seeing this being assessed by clients in every interview.
If you are considering moving or what to know more about market trends particularly regarding pay, check out our recently published salary guide. You can find the link here – https://iconicresourcing-salary-guide.carrd.co/
Q1 Market Update – Transactional Accountancy & Finance
It’s been a positive start to the new financial year, and we’re certainly seeing a lot of activity across the Transactional Accountancy & Finance market.
Demand has been particularly strong for Payroll professionals, especially Payroll Managers, alongside an increase in opportunities for part-qualified Management Accountants and part-time Bookkeepers. We’ve also seen a notable rise in temporary assignments, particularly within Payroll and Accounts Payable, as businesses look to bring in experienced professionals to support projects, cover absences, and manage periods of change.
Within accountancy practice, hiring has remained steady for mid to senior-level professionals, with continued demand for Senior Accounts Assistants and part-qualified accountants.
AI continues to dominate conversations across the industry, with more firms adopting cloud-based accounting software and automated processes. However, one trend we’ve noticed is that while technology is transforming the way accountants work, employers still place significant value on candidates who have a solid understanding of manual accounting principles. Candidates who have worked exclusively with cloud-based systems can sometimes find the transition into more traditional practice environments challenging, making strong technical accounting fundamentals just as important as ever.
We’re also seeing a gradual shift back towards increased office attendance. While many organisations are asking employees to spend more time in the office, or return to a fully office-based environment, hybrid working remains highly valued by candidates and continues to be a key factor when considering new opportunities. For many, flexibility is still a deciding factor during the recruitment process.
Salary expectations are also playing a significant role in hiring challenges. As the cost of living remains a consideration for many professionals, candidates are increasingly seeking opportunities that offer meaningful salary progression alongside career development. Employers with salaries that are out of step with the market are finding it more difficult to attract and secure the strongest talent, making regular benchmarking more important than ever.
Finally, study support continues to be a significant attraction for transactional finance professionals. Employers that invest in ongoing professional development remain well-positioned to attract and retain ambitious talent in what continues to be a competitive market.