Salary increases and more jobs for accountants in Ireland

What can we expect in the Irish accountancy industry for the rest of this year and beyond?

You’ll be pleased to hear there’s plenty of positive news, particularly for the recently qualified, commercially focused bilinguals amongst you…

Increase in permanent employment

There is now more permanent employment in larger firms since the recession. While in daily survival mode, firms were cautious about adding financial staff to the long term payroll. As growth and stability returns, companies can now look to invest in their financial future by creating permanent accounting roles.

More SME roles

While small and medium sized enterprises are still generally sticking with contract and temp employment for their accountancy needs, there is an increase in overall demand for accountants in the small business sector. There has been a rapid increase in the number of start-ups in Ireland, and as they grow they are looking for qualified accounting professionals to boost their financial success.

Jobs for newbies

If you think fortune lies with those with more experience, think again. It would appear that recently qualified and part qualified roles count for the bulk of accountancy jobs that have become available in the past year, as companies look to train and develop fresh talent in their own mould.

Salary increases

With large Foreign Direct Investment companies entering Irish market, a candidate’s market with more opportunity and movement means talent can command higher salary demands. Candidates who are commercially focused with specialist experience in Irish growth markets (as detailed below) can expect to see anything between 2-5% in basic salary increases.

Growth industry opportunities

Food, energy and information technology are the top growth industries in Ireland, so naturally it is here you will find the most financial job opportunities. If you have experience or even strong interest in these industries then you’re onto a winner.

Shift in job focus

Whatever the industry or company size, the role of the accountant continues to evolve across the board. Financial planning and analysis are becoming bigger focuses in the occupation as growing companies seek a more holistic approach to their account handling.

Demand for project and system accounting skills

With the rise of investment in enterprise resource planning software (ERP) in both SMEs and large companies, accountants will play a big role in the implementation and usage of these systems. ERP creates more streamlined, integrated and automated accounting processes, so the time previously taken doing things manually will now be put to use in system training and maintenance.

Boost for bilinguals

Having a second language is a key advantage for accountants as many large Irish companies have business units in mainland Europe. Language skills are also highly sought after for the European, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)-focused shared service centres. Perhaps it’s time to sign up for an evening class?

With big financial players continuing to invest in Ireland, the upward trend in job availability is showing no sign of slowing.

Kayleigh is a freelance writer based in Ireland who has written numerous articles for Accounting Technician. She writes on workplace wellbeing and likes to tell inspiring stories about people in business. @Kayleigh_Ziolo

Kayleigh Ziolo is a freelance journalist and writer based in Ireland.