Audit Recruitment Market April 2009

April has certainly been an interesting month. Uncertainty at several levels within the ‘Big 4’ across the whole of Europe has crystallised, and this has materially increased the number of applications made from these organisations.

There is greater interest from Senior Audit Managers than one would usually expect to see, and those who have seen their anticipated promotions to Manager and Senior Manager level postponed are entering a market they had no reason to do so only twelve months ago. Many ‘Big 4’ auditors now view a move to a strong internal audit team as an opportunity to continue their career development, join a stable environment and also secure a salary increase.

For employers this clearly creates an opportunity as there are many candidates currently on the market who, in a healthier economic climate, would have had no motivation to explore new roles. Additionally, we are also seeing a number of former auditors who moved into M&A roles now considering a return to their roots, albeit within an internal audit context. With M&A and strategic teams shrinking, auditors in these teams see a move to internal audit as a safe haven.

This month has also seen what may be an easing of the recent uncertainty within the market. Monster’s employment index (which monitors activity in the online recruitment market) has risen in the UK and in most European markets for the first time in months, and it’s clear from speaking with users of our site that whilst companies are recruiting fewer candidates, they are still recruiting quality candidates. The fact remains that internal audit remains a candidate driven area of the market. However, it is also clear that that demand is being met by local supply.

One effect of the recession has been to ‘relocalise’ audit recruitment. Whereas many firms were forced to look to less obvious markets when recruiting auditors in the last few years, there is now very little appetite within Europe to recruit auditors who do not hold an EU passport. Candidates based in the Middle East and Asia who are interested in making such a move are finding very few opportunities.

This article was written by Max Williamson, director of CareersinAudit.com.

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