The World of Human Capital

Caleb over at Going Concern (a great blog for accountants) was kind enough to reach out to me and get my opinion on what jobs are hot, who is finding jobs, and what the market looks like.  Head on over to read the full article: The Job Outlook Is Good for Accountants…But More Competitive

Just a quick update on the accounting and finance job market in the Denver metro area.  We are half way through the first quarter and it has been a good start to the year.  We started to see a slight increase in hiring activity at the end of Q4 2009 and it has continued into the new year.  While unemployment is still near the double digit mark (9.7%), we are seeing a demand for top performers, CPA’s, and individuals with public accounting experience.

Most of these jobs are being found through networking and word of mouth.  We have not found many job seekers or employers having luck with online job boards, but networking has led to job seekers being able to get their foot in the door.  So continue to build your network before it’s too late.

We expect a reasonable amount of hiring activity to continue through the remainder of the first quarter.  We are unsure what the rest of the year will have in store.  We remain skeptical as companies have hired quite a few individuals in such a short period of time and if the economy doesn’t continue to recover, these companies will put put in a difficult situation.  Looking at the public accounting firms, some of the local and mid-tier firms are staffed appropriately, but we are hearing that a couple of the big-4 firms are bidding on new engagements and don’t have enough available employees to staff these new engagements.  We are curious to see if they will look to hire more experienced auditors or try to hire back some of the staff that were laid off during 2009.

We are in a unique job market that many people have not experienced before.  Over the past two years, employers have been going through layoffs and reducing headcount.  Some of these employees who were let go saw this coming and to others, it was a total surprise.  Currently employers are doing whatever they can to retain their best employees even though they have increased the cost of medical coverage for their employees, or eliminated all bonus, or even reduced salaries.  On the flip side, employees are being recruited now just as much as before and top talent is always in high demand.

Even though many companies might be struggling to grow or business might be down, there is that inherent drive to further one’s career and to be better.  To move up in the corporate ladder and to be challenged.  This has driven employees to consider new opportunities in their career and have an open ear when someone tells them about another possible job.

The difficult part comes when you have to tell your boss that you are leaving for a better opportunity and they lay a guilt trip on you.  And since your boss can’t afford to lose anyone else on the team, they will say and do whatever it takes to get you to stay, including a counteroffer.  They will promise you more money, a promotion, and/or more challenging work.  What should you do now?  Say “NO”.

By accepting a counteroffer, you are only putting a band-aid on a bigger problem.  Now your employer knows that you aren’t happy, they know you aren’t loyal, and they know it is only a matter of time before you will leave.  You should ask yourself, what did it have to come to this in order for my employer to finally give me a promotion or a raise.  If you Ggoogle “Should I accept a counter offer” you will find a plethora of websites instructing you not to EVER accept a counteroffer.

Below I have copied an article from Paul Hawkinson that was originally published in the Fordyce Letter:

Counteroffer Acceptance Road to Career Ruin A raise won’t permanently cushion thorns in the nest

Matthew Henry, the 17^lh-Century Writer said, “Many a dangerous temptation comes to us in fine gay colours that are but skin deep.” The same can be said for counteroffers* those magnetic enticements designed to lure you back into the nest after you’ve decided it’s time to fly away.

The litany of horror stories I have come across in my years as an executive recruiter, consultant and publisher, provides a litmus test that clearly indicates counteroffers should never be accepted…EVER!

I define a counteroffer simply as an inducement from your current employer to get you to stay after you’ve announced your intention to take another job. We’re not talking about those instances when you receive an offer but don’t tell your boss. Nor are we discussing offers that you never intended to take, yet tell your employer about anyway as a “they-want-me-but-I’m-staying-with-you” ploy.

These are merely astute positioning tactics you may choose to use to reinforce your worth by letting your boss know you have other options. Mention of a true counteroffer, however, carries an actual threat to quit,

Interviews with employers who make counteroffers, and employees who accept them, have shown that  as tempting as they may be, acceptance may cause career suicide. During the past 20 years, I have seen only isolated incidents in which an accepted counteroffer has benefited the employee.

Consider the problem in its proper perspective.

What really goes through a boss’s mind when someone quits?

• “This couldn’t be happening at a worse time.”

• “This is one of my best people, If I let him quit now, it’ll wreak havoc on the morale of the department,”

• “I’ve already got one opening in my department. I don’t need another right now.”

• “This will probably screw up the entire vacation schedule.”

• “I’m working as hard as I can, and I don’t need to do his work, too.”

• “If I lose another good employee, the company might decide to ‘lose’ me too.”

• “My review is coming up and this will make me look bad.”

• “Maybe I can keep him on until I find a suitable replacement.”

What will the boss say to keep you in the nest? Some of these comments are common.

• “I’m really shocked, I thought you were as happy with us as we are with you. Let’s discuss it before you make your final decision.”

• “Aw gee, I’ve been meaning to tell you about the great plans we have for you, but it’s been confidential until now.”

• ‘The VP has you in mind for some exciting and expanding responsibilities.”

• ” Your raise was scheduled to go into effect next quarter, but we’ll make it effective immediately.”

• “You’re going to work for who?”

Let’s face it. When someone quits, it’s a direct reflection on the boss. Unless you’re really incompetent or a destructive thorn in his side, the boss might look bad by “allowing” you to go. His gut reaction is to do what has to be done to keep you from leaving until he’s ready. That’s human nature. Unfortunately, it’s also human nature to want to stay unless your work life is abject misery. Career changes, like all ventures into the unknown, are tough. That’s why bosses know they can usually keep you around by pressing the right buttons.

Before you succumb to a tempting counteroffer, consider these universal topics;

• Any situation in which an employee is forced to get an outside offer before the present employer will suggest a raise, promotion, or better working conditions, is suspect.

•    No matter what the company says when making its counteroffer, you will always be considered a fidelity risk. Having once demonstrated your lack of loyalty (for whatever reason), you will lose your status as a “team player” and your place in the inner circle.

•   Counteroffers are usually nothing more than sales devises to give your employer time to replace you.

•   Your reasons for wanting to leave still exist. Conditions may just seem a bit more tolerable in the short term because of the raise, promotion or promises made to keep you.

•   Counteroffers are only made in response to a threat to quit. Will you have to solicit an edict and threaten to quit every time you deserve better working conditions?

•   Correct and well-managed companies don’t make counteroffers…EVER! Their policies are fair and equitable. They will not be subjected to “counteroffer exercises” or what they perceive as blackmail.

If the urge to accept a counter offer hits you, keep on cleaning out your desk as you count your blessings.

We are searching for an Assistant Controller to step into a newly created position of a growing company. The Assistant Controller will be responsible for maintaining the general ledger, preparing of the financial statements, budgeting, and coordinate with external auditors.

To be considered for this position, candidates should possess:

- Bachelor’s degree in accounting

- 4+ years of related accounting experience

- CPA license preferred

- Strong communication skills

We are searching for a Revenue Accountant who can prepare revenue allocations, calculate gas imbalances, MMS reporting, and other ad-hoc projects.

Candidates should have previous revenue accounting experience from the oil and gas industry.

Over the past year I have had several clients and candidates note that the majority of the job boards contain confidential postings, most of which are by recruiters.  They have asked me for recommendations on where to look for jobs on the web and I think that Indeed is a great aggregator, but it will include all the recruiter postings from Monster and CareerBuilder.  So you will need to filter through what is relevant and what is not.

Another site I receive several inquiries about is The Ladders.  They advertise that the search results of their job board are only $100K+ and that all the jobs are pre-screened by their team.  I have not personally used The Ladders and I have never heard of anyone obtaining a new job through them.  So I decided to do some research on what others felt about their job board and resume review/writing service.  I was quite surprised to see that the majority of people out there are infuriated with this site.  If you Google rip-off and scam you will find several sites and comments discussing how inaccurate their job board is and how disappointing their resume service performs.  It appears that many of the jobs on the site are not over $100K and are a waste of time.

Here is one blog (with several comments) that talks about how terrible the job board really is.  And here is another blog that discusses the resume service (also with comments).

If you have any direct experience in using The Ladders services, please let me know.

According to FEI (Financial Executive International) and Baruch College, more than half of CFO’s surveyed don’t plan to replace positions that were eliminated.

CFOZone has posted a summary of the survey results here.

CFO’s in Denver, I am curious to hear if you agree with this sentiment or the Denver market is different.  Feel free to drop me an email or comment below.

Accounting Manager for international publicly traded exploration company. Responsibilities include financial management, accounting and administration for the Company’s offshore holdings, financing and exploration companies. Prepare month end consolidation and group reports on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis. Make recommendations and be pro active in assisting tax, legal, exploration and corporate development in current and future business while ensuring that the quality of accounting work is of a high standard. Preferred 5 +years, and CPA.

We are currently searching for a  Senior Accountant to join a growing publicly traded company.  The  Senior Accountant will be responsible for the day-to-day accounting including reconciliations, journal entries, and financial statements.  This individual will also be responsible for monitoring cash flows, budgeting, consolidations, and working with the internal auditors on SOX compliance.

To be considered for this position, candidates should possess the following:

• - Bachelor’s degree in Accounting
• - Over three years of  accounting experience (public accounting preferred)
• - SAP experience preferred
• - Extraction industry experience preferred, but not required