Filling the Gap – why we need more support for accountancy and finance careers

Greater support for apprenticeships would enable employers to recruit a more diverse range of accountants from different backgrounds and upskill existing staff with the tools they need to help growing companies and fuel the UK economy.

That’s the message from Rachel Harris, founder of striveX, an accountancy and business consultancy firm which works with a wide range of clients including celebrities from Love Island, The Traitors and Dragons’ Den. In five years, Rachel Harris has built a seven-figure accounting firm, worked with Downing Street and landed a regular finance column in Stylist magazine. She is also an AAT graduate who first learnt about financial literacy and business awareness when she began her qualification journey.

Having recruited a team of 22 for her growing business, she says young people also need help in acquiring work skills, especially technical skills, communication and planning. Harris’ experience echoes many of the findings in AAT’s new report Filling the Gap, which found that employers face critical skills shortages in accountancy and finance that are impacting talent pipelines and business growth. AAT apprenticeships help students learn vital technical and power skills and preparing them for real world roles is an important part of the AAT qualification journey.

“When I am recruiting, I go straight to the bottom of people’s CVs,” she says. “Qualifications like AAT set the benchmark of accounting technical skills. I am also looking for people who are driven and passionate and have retail or frontline customer service experience. Those are the jobs and experiences that require good communication, and which build essential transferable skills.”

A shortage of key skills in accountancy and finance

The importance of financial literacy

Coming from a disadvantaged background, Harris decided not to go to university but instead took a business administration apprenticeship in the finance department of Cherwell District Council in Oxfordshire. She wanted to get practical experience of working and studying as she self-funded AAT Level 2, then worked in industry while being funded through Levels 3 and 4.

“I was a free school meals and charity shop kid, so university was not an option,” she explains. She studied for an MBA at Cranfield School of Management in Bedfordshire and set up an accountancy business called striveX and created @accountant_she, which builds her personal brand, attracts new clients and delivers business growth.

She believes that financial literacy is something that should be taught alongside the curriculum to young people.

“Having gone through the journey of understanding finances myself, the content I create is around helping people understanding what life insurance is, the decision around renting or getting a mortgage, and whether you should invest in an ISA or Premium Bonds,” she explains.

“Money gives us a sense of security and makes us feel safe, and it is a tool for us to amplify who we are as people. It is only when you get more than you need, and that you understand it, that you can start spending money in line with your values, whether that’s donating to charity or doing other things.”

Workplace skills – what is needed?

In AAT’s research, employers said the primary technical Skills Gap was budgeting and forecasting (24%) and data interpretation, presentation and analysis (23%). Financial reporting was mentioned by 21% of respondents and payroll and HR is mentioned by 20% of respondents. 17% of respondents mention AI and automation.

Overall, 68% of employers agreed that there was a lack of work readiness in younger generations joining the workforce. Of those questioned, 50% said candidates for accounting and finance roles often have strong technical skills but lack the key transferable skills such as communication, resilience and problem solving needed to succeed in the role.

Harris says that the recruitment process at striveX is designed to help new recruits develop their planning and soft skills.

“We have a quite intense recruitment process where we really interrogate people on soft skills firstly, and then technical skills second. In my experience, digital skills are way more common than financial skills in young people,” she says. “When people come to us, there are some skills we need to teach them, such as how to manage their inbox so they do not get overwhelmed.”

AAT’s report found employers need to recruit people with “power skills” such as AI literacy, leadership and management, planning, and organisation, as well as deep technical skills to run their operations effectively.

Harris sees AI as an opportunity and another tool in her skillset. She wants to champion it as a tool to enhance, not replace, accountants, emphasising the importance of critical thinking and human judgment in financial work.

“As a business, every team member gets six months of personal development alongside any apprenticeship and technical training in order to develop their skills,” she says.

Why apprenticeships still matter

In the AAT survey, employers told researchers that they were ready and willing to help their employees to upskill in crucial areas, but time (41%) and cost (35%) are tangible barriers. As a result, they would like more assistance from government on incentives for apprenticeships (36%), and more practical support for SMEs (25%), and they ask for more clarity on which short courses will be funded by the Growth & Skills Levy (29%).

 Harris says apprenticeship schemes are important when recruiting new members of staff.

“We use the apprenticeship scheme wherever we can, and we will continue to do that while still trying to attract a really diverse workforce.”

This research explores the skills needs of UK employers in accountancy and finance roles, based on a survey of 1,396 UK employers. Conducted by YouGov on behalf of the AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians), it included responses by HR decision makers, senior managers, directors and members of the C-suite. Filling the Gap provides insights into the current and future skills gap, recruitment challenges, and training priorities.

AAT Comment offers news and opinion on the world of business and finance from the Association of Accounting Technicians.