agile recruitment: the key to attracting top finance talent.

AI, robotic process automation and cloud computing are shifting the focus of finance and accounting roles to business and finance strategy. Customers no longer want someone to simply balance their books; today, they’re turning to finance and accounting professionals as business advisors and financial planners as well.

As the focus of finance and accounting skills shift, traditional recruiting methods are becoming

too slow or rigid to keep up with demand. Enter agile recruiting: a dynamic, iterative approach based on the agile methodology originally introduced by software engineering teams.

But what does agile recruiting look like for finance and accounting roles? We’ll cover its principles and benefits for finance and strategies to implement it effectively in your next hiring round.

what is agile recruitment?

In software, agile methodology stands in contrast to traditional “waterfall” approaches where new updates are released in one large batch. Based on The Agile Manifesto, this method emphasizes a focus on the customer, constant collaboration, and early results for iterative software releases that adapt more swiftly to changing demand.

Usually, this is achieved using the Scrum method of agile management. It divides work segments into “sprints” that typically last two weeks and consist of a planning phase, an execution phase and a retrospective phase to break complex tasks into achievable goals.

An agile approach can help recruiters reduce time-to-hire by mapping out the hiring planning, promotion and recruiting stages as agile sprints. This strategy can also be compelling in finding outsourced and non-traditional workers for finance and accounting.

Breaking the process into smaller, more manageable stages allows recruiters to iterate, gather feedback, and adjust their approach accordingly.

the need for agile recruitment in finance and accounting.

If there’s one lesson to be learned from the evolution of finance and accounting, it’s that change is the only constant. Adaptability gets you skin in the game, as new skills, remote work environments and an increasing emphasis on ESG reporting continue to redefine finance and accounting roles.

Since agile recruitment reduces time-to-hire, it also allows the recruiting process to adapt more quickly to new technologies as AI and automation continue to evolve. It can also enhance candidate fit to continuously refine job descriptions and candidate personas to align with market trends.

Finally, feedback from all stakeholders helps fine-tune the process to meet cross-functional needs rather than focusing on one department.

what does agile recruitment look like in finance and accounting?

Agile recruitment focuses on continuous improvement and data-driven decision-making. It leverages collaboration, flexibility and iterative processes that adapt to market conditions. Build strong feedback loops to support your hiring strategy and tackle impromptu bottlenecks.

For example, an agile recruitment strategy might look something like this:

sprint one: research & planning

In the planning phase, all stakeholders involved in decision-making collaborate on what the position should require and what the job offer will include. For finance and accounting roles, this might involve deciding on:

• skills in focus: What finance and accounting skills you’re looking for should be based on skills gaps in your current workforce. This might look like expertise in financial modeling, proficiency with QuickBooks or SAP, and strong analytical capabilities.
• compensation and benefits: What their compensation and benefits package will look like, based on an industry analysis of what competitive candidates are looking for. Alternatively, this could also include deciding on your budget for freelancers.
• career development: Any career development opportunities you can offer new candidates will affect the qualifications you need up front, especially if you’re seeking a permanent hire.
• contract type: Whether the position will be freelance, temporary, contract-to-hire, or permanent, and what the metrics will be to measure the success of your recruiting efforts.

All approvals should be collected at this stage to move forward with a job description that everyone can agree on. In the planning stage, you can also decide to seek talent partners like Randstad to evaluate your organization’s needs.

sprint two: promotion & candidate identification

Once the first sprint is complete, you’ll be able to craft and promote a job description that everyone is aligned on. This may include strategies such as:

• boosting your employer brand: Align your website content with job descriptions to enhance your position in the market. Consider posting images and videos that capture what it’s like to work at your organization.
• targeted social media marketing: To reach top candidates, consider leveraging social media and/or freelance platforms that target your ideal hire.
• collaboration: Industry and educational organizations can widen the pool of available candidates.

During the promotion stage, your hiring team can begin to identify top applicants who will move on to the interview stage. Carefully implemented, an AI-enabled recruitment strategy can help reduce the time it takes to identify the top candidates you want to interview.

sprint three: interviews & hiring

By the time you’ve reached this stage, you’ll have identified the top candidates for the role and be ready to conduct interviews. Key considerations at this stage are:

• Interview and assessment structure: Creating skills assessments, questions, and evaluation strategies which ensure candidate evaluation is unbiased and thorough.
• Consistent communication: Meeting regularly with stakeholders to compare and review candidate responses can help you choose someone that benefits your entire organization.
• Onboarding plan: When you’ve narrowed down your selection, you can develop a targeted onboarding plan that aligns candidate potential with your organizational needs.

Use applicant tracking systems (ATS), AI-driven sourcing tools, and automated screening software to streamline the process. For finance and accounting roles, platforms that can assess technical skills, such as Excel proficiency tests, can be particularly valuable.

sprint four: onboarding & retrospective

After you’ve selected a candidate, the onboarding process will determine their success in the role. This stage should also include candidate feedback on the process to improve your hiring strategies in the next round.

Keep in mind that how you structure sprints will depend on your goals. If your focus is hiring non-traditional freelance and contract workers, you may find that shorter sprints are ideal – however, hiring a permanent worker that you plan to upskill may require a longer planning phase.

future-proof your hiring process with agile recruitment.

Agile recruiting has a number of significant benefits for finance and accounting roles. Shorter hiring timelines, better candidate experiences, and adaptability to industry changes can help keep your process fast, fair, and flexible.

However, agile recruiting isn’t without its challenges. Resistance to change, communication breakdowns, and resource constraints can all contribute to prolonged sprints and disorganization. To address these challenges, start small and scale up as your team becomes more confident in the new approach.

By embracing the principles of agile recruiting, organizations can build resilient, high-performing teams. Whether you’re filling a single position or scaling up for growth, Randstad is your talent partner for agile recruiting in finance. Reach out today to speak to a professional and create a recruitment process that’s as dynamic as your next ideal hire.