Shortage of accountants ‘to worsen’ in 2023
Chartered Accountants Ireland is warning that an acute shortage of qualified accountants will worsen in 2023, as Irish businesses struggle to access talent.
The institute is highlighting the problem ahead of its annual dinner in Dublin tonight.
President of Chartered Accountants Ireland Pat O’Neill said that the shortage is driven by a huge increase in competition for talent from non-accounting roles but also a gap in perception of what accountants actually do.
“Anecdotally, the talent pipeline problem is clear right across the profession, from practices of all size to industry, resulting in attraction and retention challenges, not just in Ireland, but around the world, and we are working with global partners to tackle it,” Mr O’Neill said.
Chartered Accountants Ireland is calling for reforms of accountancy at Leaving Cert level to encourage more students to enter the profession.
“Accounting has remained set in stone, essentially unchanged in 30 years, so it is little wonder that students don’t associate the profession with cutting edge areas like data analytics or sustainability reporting, both of which are huge growth areas for us,” Mr O’Neill said.
“In speaking to students, many pursued accounting at third level despite, not because of, their experience at second level.”
“Anecdotal feedback has been that many are turned off because of rote learning, the lack of breadth of what is taught and the need to unlearn and relearn concepts on transition to third level,” he added.
(Source www.rte.ie)
