Battle raging over accountants

Ireland has become a key battleground in the war for accounting talent as an increasing number of multinationals, banks and accountancy compete for staff.

"There are a lot of companies that have brought their accounting processing centres to Ireland, such as Google, Yahoo, Symantec and Baxter," said Susan Cox, managing director of Coxfitzsimons&wilkes in Dublin. "There is a huge demand from big employers for accounting people."

There is an especially high volume of jobs on the market for partly

qualified and recently qualified accountants, and if you have one to two years' experience, "the world is your oyster," says Cox.

"People are actively interviewing these people for five or six jobs at a time," she comments. "If they approach the marketplace, they could expect to be asked to between three and five interviews within a few days."

Naturally, the accountants most in demand are those with experience working for one of the "Big Four" accounting firms, namely PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, Ernst & Young, and KPMG.

However, the shortage in the accountancy market doesn't extend to the top level, where financial controllers and financial directors operate. Ms Cox described that market as having a "steady flow of opportunities" for candidates.

A dearth of qualified accountants in the middle of the jobs market has

helped fuel an increase in remuneration for existing staff. A chartered accountant with three years' experience could expect to earn at least €60,000, according to Ms Cox.