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​Let’s face it, the market is tough out there right now. But there is still work to be done. Whether it’s getting through to year-end, budgeting for next year, implementing a restructure, or carrying out a new system implementation, there is always a need for skilled and experienced people. While full-time employees remain essential, when uncertainty enters the economic outlook, there is typically a trend towards engaging contractors for the flexibility and agility contractors can provide. In the Accounting and Finance space here at Beyond Recruitment, we are seeing more organisations look for ways to access talent while they carefully manage their resources. The benefits of hiring contractors are tangible and measurable – so we’ll explain in detail the difference they can make to your business. Ultimate FlexibilityOne of the most effective and simple ways to handle fluctuations in your workload is to hire temp staff. There will be times when your organisation needs to quickly build a team to meet demand during peak periods, audits, or new projects – or perhaps after a few resignations. Another underrated aspect of engaging contractors is that you can address issues arising from excess overtime. When your team is short-staffed, you run the risk of decreasing morale and productivity, as well as mental health and wellbeing issues. Adding a contractor to your team could significantly alleviate the workload and aid with the long-term retention of permanent employees.Reduce a Range of Business CostsStaffing expenses like holiday pay, sick leave and parental leave can add up fast – and put a damper on momentum during a critical growth (or survival) phase for your business. Paying temporary workers only for the hours they worked is a sensible way to keep costs under control, more so during periods of uncertainty. If you’re engaging a New Zealand agency to hire temp staff, costs like payroll tax, workcover insurance and administrative expenses will already be covered. Salaries aren’t the only area you can shave expenses from – there are other additional overheads associated with permanent employees in the form of office space, rent and utilities. With a flexible headcount, you can make easier decisions about office leases, equipment and other operational expenses.Access Vetted and Specialised SkillsGaining access to specialist skill sets is among the major benefits of hiring contractors in every industry. Virtually every organisation we encounter has skills gaps, which are often persistent and difficult to hire permanent employees for. Using contractors will bring well-developed skills to your teams and projects that may not be available within the company's full-time workforce.By hiring temp staff, you can bring in people who can work with minimal supervision. For example, a tech company developing a new software product might need a senior cybersecurity expert on board. The Contractor Hiring Process is FasterInstead of undergoing a lengthy hiring process and managing salary negotiations with an agency, you can quickly onboard a contractor at an hourly or day rate. The contractor hiring process has a much shorter lead time and is less likely to involve notice periods. As we carefully screen every contractor, you won’t need to spend time on background checks, such as criminal history, reference checks and work rights vetting.Risk MitigationContractors can help you reduce the risks associated with hiring full-time employees during leaner times when restructuring might be on the horizon. If your business experiences a downturn and redundancies become necessary, downsizing a temporary workforce will result in fewer financial obligations and the potential for legal claims. Additionally, temporary hires allow you to avoid the risks associated with a mistake hire. Hiring an unsuitable employee for a perm role can get quite expensive and time-consuming to rectify – not to mention the paying out of their leave entitlements. Innovation and Fresh PerspectivesContractors can bring fresh perspectives and ideas, having typically worked with multiple companies across different industries. With a fresh pair of eyes, they can identify areas for improvement, enhance process efficiency, and introduce new concepts that can drive innovation and growth. We’ve seen contractors act as catalysts for improved productivity in organisations. Their presence can encourage existing teams to engage in creative problem-solving. By sharing their experiences and knowledge, contractors can help build a more innovative and collaborative company culture.Find Contractors Now with a Premier New Zealand Recruitment AgencyHiring skilled temporary or contract professionals enables you to maintain a high-quality workforce and adapt swiftly to changing business needs, ensuring that you always have the right skills and talent on hand.I regularly work with exceptional contractors, and I'd love to discuss how they could benefit your organisation. Please feel free to reach out to me directly at 021 469 750 or contact the Beyond Recruitment team today.

Published Date: 26th June 2023.​As an industry, recruitment rolls with the punches and adapts to market conditions and world events. Not too long ago, during the peak of the pandemic, we saw a scarcity of candidates because the borders were closed and immigration was paused. That led to talent shortages because we were only working with a limited pool of professionals who were moving around from role to role. There were plenty of jobs, but few qualified candidates.Now, New Zealand is heading towards an election and a new wave of COVID-19. We have open borders and plenty of people arriving, but fewer jobs available and more competition amongst job seekers.It’s times like this that we see frustration from Hiring Managers who are sifting through 50 or more applications to find a handful of people who might be a good match for the role.As a trusted New Zealand recruitment agency, we can help take some of that burden away from Hiring Managers so they can focus on their core functions. In this blog, I’ve listed out my tips for engaging and partnering with a recruitment agency so you secure the best talent in the market with ease.Step 1 - Get to Know Each OtherWe appreciate the working world has moved to online meetings and video conferences, but there’s something still to be said for a face-to-face introduction. If we’re going to be representing your organisation and your team, we like to scratch beneath the surface and truly understand your needs.Kicking things off with an in-person coffee can help build trust and rapport from day one. Hiring someone for your team is not all about matching technical skills. Following many years working in the industry, we know it’s also about matching personalities and ensuring motivational and cultural fit. Step 2 – Take a Deep Dive on the BriefJob titles can be ambiguous and job descriptions often too generic. We will want to take a detailed brief that really gets to the crux of how the new team member is going to spend their eight hours a day and justify their pay cheque.That involves a long list of questions, such as:What does your team look like?What are you all working towards collectively?Are you siloed or collaborative?Are you structured or agile?Do you have a hybrid, in-person or remote model?Which core skills are missing from your team?What do you consider non-negotiable?How much do you want to pay? How much are you willing to pay?What are the progression opportunities for the successful applicant? Do you have internal approval to recruit the role and budget signed off for the salary?How often do you want to be updated on the status of this role? Do you have any DEI quotas in place that we need to consider?These questions will all help us to build a better picture of what you’re looking for, and help match you with your ideal candidate. It also helps us when talking to candidates about your team and the role itself. We can uncover and address any concerns from candidates early on, or decide that an applicant isn’t going to be the right fit for your business.Step 3 – Agreed Timelines In the current market, where there are talent shortages and in-demand candidates, timing is everything. Chances are, if you think a candidate has great experience and is a good fit for your role, other people will too.A recruitment agency can help you reduce your time to hire significantly. Not only do we take the candidate attraction and sourcing off your hands, we will establish timeframes and expectations on your behalf. In our initial briefing stage, we can jointly map out some key milestones in the process such as submitting the first round of CVs, proposed interview dates and a project completion date. From our experience, we generally allow a two-week period for submitting resumes for permanent talent and 24 hours for contractors. We then suggest Hiring Managers aim to turn around interviews and make decisions as quickly as possible to lock in their preferred applicant.Step 4 – Leverage our ExpertiseOnce armed with all of this information, we can get on with doing what we do best. That’s the beauty of working with a recruitment partner ­ we know where to find talent and can do all of the initial groundwork on your behalf. By building a foundation based on trust and mutual respect, we will be able to represent your organisation and team in the best possible way. The same applies to our relationships with candidates, many of whom we support throughout their careers. They know we have their backs and will match them with roles that suit their individual career aspirations and personalities.Partnering With the Right RecruiterAs an employer working with a recruitment agency, there are several models you can explore ­including exclusive arrangements, retained and unretained. From my observations over the years, I believe most recruiters will put in the extra mile when working on an exclusive role because they know they are not competing for the commission or the same candidates.As a Hiring Manager, you are investing your time, energy and money into outsourcing your recruitment and want the best possible outcome. If you don’t find the right person first time around, we know there can be a real impact on you and your current team who feel overworked and under pressure. That’s why at Beyond Recruitment, we are all about building and maintaining trusted relationships with our clients based on a real understanding of their needs. If you’d like to talk to one of our team about your recruitment needs, please give us a call.

​New Zealand’s labour market is constantly evolving as economic factors, business needs and talent supply influence the demand for certain skill sets and candidates. In the Finance sector, specifically, the market is growing steadily, with data from Stats NZ revealing that there were around 65,500 filled jobs in the March quarter of 2022, up from 56,600 in March 2019. So where are we seeing movement in Finance right now, and what trends are currently shaping the industry? Below, Beyond Recruitment’s Accounting, Finance & Financial Services team from across the country break down their key observations to help you stay well-informed and competitive, whether you are looking for a role or want to grow your team. The Evolving Demands in the Finance Job Market The Finance market has changed a lot over the last 5-10 years, with new technologies and the shifting business landscape leading to the demand for different skills and role types. Automation has taken over much of the transactional processes, and many tasks that would have taken a full day to complete now happen at the push of a button. Consequently, a different set of skills is now required for Finance roles, regardless of level. Key attributes employers are looking for in Finance candidates: Soft skills over teachable technical skills Tech-savvy – Experience with reporting tools like Power BI and large FMIS systems (e.g. Oracle, TechOne) Excellent communication skills and the ability to easily translate financial jargon to accommodate stakeholders Innovation and the ability to automate transactional processesThe good news is that technology hasn’t replaced specific jobs, rather it has changed the responsibilities and duties of roles by alleviating the administrative burden and making reporting more accurate. For example, rather than spending time scanning invoices, Accountants have taken a more advisory-based role, allowing them to serve as a business partner rather than just a BAU transactional processer. For those who need to upskill in order to adapt to the changes in the Finance profession, a number of options are available, including CA qualifications, technology training on tools such as Power BI and leadership courses. Key Trends Shaping the Public and Private Finance Sectors Public vs. Private While there are some similarities between the public and private Finance sectors in New Zealand, there are some distinctions that shape the roles within each space. The skills and experience gained from both sectors are transferable, however, the goals of both industries are different, with the public sector, particularly in Wellington, focusing more on spending and specific political agendas, and the private sector focusing on reducing expenses and increasing productivity, revenue and net profit. Auckland differs from Wellington in that the speed to market in the private sector far surpasses the public sector. This means that candidates are being lost to other roles, as the process is lengthy in the public sector, and the salary banding is often too low for market conditions. Meanwhile, public sector employers in the regions are still demanding exact qualifications for roles and are not prepared to look at transferable skills. As a result, the roles are staying vacant, and the pressure is put on the current team to deliver more and more in terms of responsibilities.​Relocation and hybrid working Across the private sector, organisations are looking at how they can be creative with the limited talent pool at their disposal. Many clients are becoming more location agnostic, securing resource from other regions and the main cities with the opportunity to work remotely, especially across contract roles. The trend of candidates relocating to the regions also continues as interest rate hikes and rising housing costs bite, and many regional organisations are looking to the main centres to secure candidates who are willing to relocate for stable roles. When it comes to hybrid working, Wellington employers across both the commercial and government sectors are very flexible on working from home arrangements. In Auckland, however, there is some disconnect, with candidates sometimes asking for more working from home more days than an employer is wanting to provide. Nevertheless, hybrid working is now widely accepted by both candidates and employers for the majority of roles, and finding the right balance between remote and the office comes down to the unique circumstances of the role and negotiation. Find Out More If you’d like to discuss any of the above trends in more detail or find out how we can support you with your hiring or Finance job searching needs, please reach out to our nationwide team of Accounting, Finance & Financial Services recruitment specialists today. ​

Having recruited Payroll professionals for the past four years, I have seen first-hand what a key role they play for an organisation. Payroll is critical function - for those that are seeking more information about this interesting career, read on…. ​From a recruitment perspective, we are currently experiencing an extreme shortage of entry-level Payroll staff – those who earn between $50,000 and $70,000 per annum. This is happening for several reasons, including: Those thinking about employment direction don’t really understand the Payroll career and all it brings Employers are reluctant to take on candidates with little or no experience, but this is slowly changing as transferrable skills and attributes-based hiring becomes more common Employers are often reluctant to hire job seekers from other countries, assuming that they don’t have an understanding of local New Zealand legislative requirementsAnd it’s not just junior candidates who are hard to find. We are also seeing a shortage of quality Payroll candidates at the management level. There are a few reasons for this. From my experience, staff shortages mean senior payroll specialists often spend longer in hands-on roles out of necessity as well as the fact that payroll work lends itself to contracting – so those that are senior/experienced may move into more gig-based work. So what can we do to entice more people into the profession of Payroll? Misconceptions of What Payroll IsPayroll is one of those functions that can be taken for granted – it just “happens” in the background. Therefore there is a often a lack of understanding of the specialist skills, attention to detail, numeric skills and interpersonal qualities that great payroll team members usually have. There have unfortunately been some fairly high profile payroll-centric stories in the media over the last few years – I am concerned this may influence those who are considering a move into payroll. In reality 99% of the payroll work being done is incredibly high-quality with hundreds of thousands of kiwi workers getting amazing, accurate payroll outcomes. It would be great to see Payroll have specific qualifications and industry benchmarks, like, for example, Chartered Accountants. This would provide a regulatory body for Payroll, with regular training and updates to keep processes consistent across the market. It would also help during times of legislative change as Payrollers would have one centralised source to learn from. Finally, it would provide some sort of tiering system to benchmark Payroll roles because job titles are often company-specific and not market relevant. What Can Be Done?In order to overcome some of the talent-shortage challenges facing Payroll professionals and their employers we’d love to see:Employers should be open to looking at candidate applications with international experience or those with less Payroll experience when hiring. Instead, they should look for enthusiasm, transferable skills and the capability to learn on the job with the right support and training.Education providers should open courses to international candidates entering the New Zealand market – providing them with updates in local legislative requirements. This could also be useful for entry-level employees.Industry leaders should develop and distribute a best-practice framework that operates across all businesses to standardise and support people working in Payroll jobs.Working With Beyond RecruitmentHere at Beyond Recruitment, we have a team dedicated to the Accounting, Finance & Financial Services sector. We are passionate about matching professionals working in areas like Payroll with employers who are supportive and value their contribution to the business.Get in touch with one of our team members today to talk more about shifts and trends in the Payroll market, and how we can work together to find your new job or team member.