Finance Archives - SRM Recruitment

October 7, 2026October 8, 2026

The October Hiring Question: Wait for the Budget, or Get Ahead of 2027?

October often feels like a decision point for businesses.

We’re into the final quarter, 2027 budgets and headcount plans are beginning to take shape, and this year there is another obvious consideration: the October Budget.

For some businesses, the instinct may be to wait.

Wait for the Budget. Wait for greater certainty. Wait until next year's headcount is signed off. Or simply wait until January, when new budgets and hiring plans often come into effect.

But when it comes to finance recruitment, is waiting always the best strategy?

A cautious market, but hiring hasn't stopped

There is no question that businesses are being considered about hiring.

The Bank of England's latest regional intelligence describes employment intentions as broadly flat, with recruitment difficulties below normal and increased candidate availability. At the same time, businesses are continuing to recruit where they have specific skills gaps or where growth and investment projects require additional capability. Bank of England

That national picture broadly reflects what I'm seeing across the Home Counties. Businesses are still hiring, but the conversations are more considered. Employers are thinking carefully about whether a hire needs to be permanent, whether an interim or FTC solution gives them greater flexibility, and exactly what additional capability that person needs to bring to the finance team. At the same time, there are good candidates in the market, but the strongest people with the right combination of technical, commercial and stakeholder skills still have options.

There may be greater scrutiny around adding headcount, but business-critical recruitment is still happening.

Financial Controllers still need replacing. Finance teams still need additional capability. Maternity covers and fixed-term requirements don't disappear because the economic outlook is uncertain. Transformation projects still need people to deliver them. And businesses preparing for growth in 2027 still need the finance capability to support it.

What has changed is that many hiring decisions are becoming more deliberate.

January doesn't necessarily need to be the starting line

There is a temptation to think: “We'll pick this up in January.”

For some businesses, that will absolutely be the right decision.

But if you already know there is likely to be a hiring requirement in Q1, October and November can be incredibly useful months.

You don't necessarily need to launch a recruitment process immediately. You can use the final quarter to understand what the candidate market currently looks like, whether your salary expectations are realistic, the notice periods you're likely to encounter, how comparable roles are being structured and whether the combination of skills you want is achievable within your budget.

That means January becomes the point at which you execute a plan, rather than the point at which you start working out what the plan is.

And that can save considerable time when the requirement becomes business-critical.

Candidate availability doesn't follow the calendar

Candidate availability doesn't necessarily align neatly with a company's hiring calendar.

Strong finance professionals are having career conversations throughout the year. Some may be considering their next move now. Others may become more active after year-end, while notice periods can mean that a candidate identified in January may not actually join until several months later.

At senior level in particular, recruitment processes can take time.

If you know you are likely to need a Financial Controller, Head of Finance, Finance Director or another key finance hire early next year, there is value in understanding that talent pool before the requirement becomes urgent.

That doesn't mean rushing into an appointment - it means being informed before you need to make one.

The finance skillset is evolving too

There is another reason why early market mapping matters.

The brief for many finance roles is becoming broader.

Technical accounting capability remains fundamental, but businesses increasingly value finance professionals who can operate beyond the numbers; people who can communicate with non-finance stakeholders, interrogate data, improve systems and processes, support transformation and provide commercial insight.

Technology and AI are adding another dimension to that.

KPMG's 2026 Global AI in Finance research found that 38% of organisations are upskilling their existing finance teams, while 28% are hiring for different skillsets. It identifies data fluency — the ability to assess data quality, interpret outputs and communicate findings the business can act upon — as a critical capability for modern finance teams. KPMG

For employers, that increasingly means thinking about the wider capability required from a finance hire rather than technical accounting experience alone.

And the more requirements added to a brief, the narrower the relevant candidate pool can become.

Understanding that before agreeing a job description and salary can prevent valuable time being lost on a search where expectations and market reality don't quite align.

So, should businesses wait for the Budget?

For some hiring decisions, yes.

If headcount genuinely depends upon the economic or fiscal announcements coming later this month, waiting may be entirely sensible.

But waiting for certainty because it feels safer is different from waiting because the decision genuinely depends upon it.

If you already know there is a gap in your finance team, somebody is leaving, a project requires additional resource or growth plans are likely to create a requirement in early 2027, there is very little downside to understanding your options now.

That could mean hiring permanently.

It could mean considering an interim or FTC solution while longer-term plans become clearer.

Or it could simply mean mapping the market now so that you're ready when approval arrives.

Use Q4 to get ahead

My advice to businesses going into the final quarter is fairly simple:

You don't necessarily need to hire now, but if you think you'll need to hire in early 2027, don't wait until January to start thinking about it.

Use October and November to challenge the brief, benchmark the salary, understand candidate availability and decide whether permanent, interim or FTC is likely to give you the best solution.

Then, when you're ready to move, you can move quickly.

Get in touch

After more than 20 years working in recruitment, one thing has remained remarkably consistent: successful searches tend to start with a clear brief, realistic expectations and a business ready to make a decision when the right person appears.

If you're planning your 2027 finance team, reviewing headcount or have a potential hire on the horizon across the Home Counties, I'm always happy to have an early conversation. Whether that's benchmarking a salary, sense-checking a brief, discussing candidate availability or considering whether permanent, FTC or interim is the right solution, I can share what I'm seeing across the local Qualified Finance market.

Equally, if you're a finance professional considering your next move in 2027, I'm always happy to have a confidential conversation about the market and where your experience may fit.

Liz Hawkins
Business Director - Qualified Finance | Permanent | FTC | Interim
lizhawkins@srmrecruitment.com

September 11, 2026September 11, 2026

The South East Is No Longer Following London — It’s Creating Its Own Finance Leadership Market

The finance leadership market across Surrey, Berkshire and Hampshire is changing rapidly.

With continued growth across technology, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, infrastructure, professional services and private equity-backed businesses, demand for experienced Finance Directors, CFOs and FP&A leaders remains strong. But the profile of the finance leader organisations need is evolving too.

Finance leadership is becoming more commercial

Technical finance expertise remains fundamental, but today's senior finance leaders are increasingly expected to operate as strategic business partners — working alongside CEOs, investors and leadership teams to support growth, transformation and value creation.

Commercial judgement, data-led decision-making, stakeholder influence and the ability to lead change are becoming just as important as traditional financial control and governance.

For businesses across the Southern Home Counties, this is particularly relevant. Organisations are navigating growth alongside increasing operational complexity, systems modernisation and investor expectations — creating demand for finance leaders who can connect financial performance with wider business strategy.

Transformation and technology are reshaping the function

Finance transformation is now firmly embedded within the senior finance agenda.

ERP implementation, automation, improved data visibility, AI-enabled reporting and more sophisticated forecasting are changing how finance teams operate. As a result, businesses are increasingly looking for leaders who can bridge finance, technology and operational delivery — with transformation experience becoming a genuine differentiator in the hiring market.

FP&A moves from reporting to strategic growth

One of the clearest trends highlighted in the report is the changing role of FP&A.

Businesses are moving away from static annual budgeting towards more continuous planning, scenario modelling and real-time forecasting. Strong FP&A teams are increasingly expected to provide commercial insight, understand operational drivers and communicate data effectively — rather than simply produce reports.

Yet many mid-market businesses continue to operate with relatively lean FP&A teams, creating significant pressure around capacity, data quality, systems and recruitment.

A competitive market for senior finance talent

Demand remains particularly strong for finance professionals with a combination of commercial, transformation and leadership experience. This is contributing to continued salary pressure, with the report highlighting significant demand across technology and SaaS, life sciences, PE-backed businesses, advanced manufacturing, engineering, defence and aerospace.

However, salary is no longer the only factor influencing candidate decisions. Flexible working, reduced commuting, strategic exposure and long-term career scope are increasingly important when senior candidates assess opportunities.

For employers, the challenge is therefore becoming broader: how do you attract and retain finance leaders who can not only manage today's financial requirements, but also help shape tomorrow's growth?

What does this mean for employers?

The Southern Home Counties is now a highly competitive finance leadership market in its own right. Businesses looking to secure the strongest talent will need to think beyond technical capability and consider the wider leadership, transformation and commercial skills their organisation will require.

The full SRM Insights: Southern Home Counties Finance Leadership Market 2026 report explores these trends in greater depth, including salary benchmarks, sector-specific demand, the changing CFO and FP&A landscape, and the key talent challenges facing employers across Surrey, Berkshire and Hampshire.

Download the full whitepaper to explore the 2026 market in detail.

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June 19, 2026June 19, 2026

Why Businesses Across the Home Counties Are Turning to Interim Finance Talent

The interim finance market has evolved significantly over recent years. Historically, interim finance professionals were often engaged to cover maternity leave, sickness absence or short-term vacancies. Today, organisations across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex and Peterborough are increasingly using interim talent as a strategic solution to support transformation, growth, change and business-critical projects.

As businesses continue to navigate economic uncertainty, rising costs, evolving technology and increasing stakeholder expectations, demand for experienced interim finance professionals remains strong throughout the Home Counties.

Why Businesses Are Hiring Interim Finance Professionals

The reasons for engaging interim finance talent have become far broader than simply covering an absence.

Many of the assignments I support involve:

Finance transformation programmes
ERP and systems implementations
Acquisition integration projects
Process improvement initiatives
FP&A and reporting enhancements
Leadership cover during recruitment processes
Preparation for audit, funding or investment events
Managing periods of rapid growth, restructuring or organisational change

In many situations, businesses simply cannot afford to wait three to six months for a permanent hire to be identified, onboarded and become fully effective. An experienced interim can often be adding value within days.

The Rise of Project-Based Finance Recruitment

One of the biggest shifts I have seen throughout 2025 and 2026 is the increase in project-driven interim hiring.

Businesses are increasingly engaging experienced Finance Directors, Financial Controllers, FP&A professionals and Finance Transformation specialists on fixed-term contracts or interim assignments to deliver specific outcomes.

Examples include:

Improving cash flow and working capital management
Building forecasting and planning capability
Implementing Power BI reporting solutions
Preparing finance functions for acquisition activity
Enhancing controls and governance frameworks
Supporting finance teams through organisational change
Delivering ERP implementations and finance systems upgrades

The emphasis is no longer simply on maintaining finance operations. Organisations want interim professionals who can improve them.

What Clients Are Looking For in Today's Market

Technical capability remains important, but clients are increasingly focused on a candidate's ability to deliver results quickly.

The most sought-after interim finance professionals typically demonstrate:

1.Speed of Impact

Businesses want individuals who can assess a situation quickly, identify priorities and begin delivering value almost immediately.

2.Stakeholder Management

Interims are frequently operating within complex environments and must be able to influence senior stakeholders, challenge appropriately and build credibility quickly.

3.Systems and Data Expertise

The increasing use of Power BI, SAP, Oracle, Dynamics, OneStream and other reporting platforms means strong systems capability is becoming a significant differentiator.

4.Change and Transformation Experience

Many organisations are seeking individuals who have successfully led change programmes previously and can bring proven experience into a new environment.

5.Commercial Awareness

Today's interim market increasingly favours professionals who combine strong technical skills with commercial thinking and the ability to influence decision-making.

The Current Candidate Market

Interestingly, the candidate market has also evolved.

Many experienced finance professionals who may previously have focused exclusively on permanent opportunities are increasingly open to interim and fixed-term contract assignments. For some, this provides greater flexibility and exposure to a wider range of projects. For others, it offers the opportunity to specialise in transformation, systems implementation or business change.

As a result, organisations are often able to access exceptionally strong talent that may not have been available to them several years ago.

Challenges Within the Current Interim Market

While demand remains strong, the market has become increasingly selective.

Businesses are understandably seeking greater certainty around outcomes and return on investment. As a result, hiring managers are often prioritising:

Relevant sector experience
Proven delivery of similar projects
Strong references and track record
Systems and transformation expertise
Cultural fit alongside technical capability

The most successful interim professionals are therefore those who can clearly articulate not only what they have done, but the measurable impact they have delivered.

Interim vs Permanent: Which Is Right For Your Business?

This is one of the most common questions I receive from clients.

A permanent hire is typically the right solution where long-term stability, succession planning and future leadership development are key objectives.

An interim solution can often be the better option where:

There is an urgent requirement
Specialist expertise is needed quickly
A transformation project requires dedicated resource
A permanent recruitment process is likely to take several months
Additional leadership capacity is required during a period of change
There is uncertainty around future organisational structure

Increasingly, I am seeing organisations utilise both strategies simultaneously, engaging interim talent to provide immediate support whilst conducting a thorough search for a permanent appointment.

The Home Counties Interim Finance Market

Across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex and Peterborough, demand remains particularly strong across:

Interim Finance Directors
Interim Financial Controllers
Interim FP&A Professionals
Interim Finance Managers
Interim Management Accountants
Finance Transformation Specialists
Project Accountants
Systems and Reporting Professionals

Whilst market conditions continue to evolve, organisations that move decisively and engage the right interim talent are often best positioned to navigate periods of change, maintain momentum and achieve their strategic objectives.

How I Can Help

As Business Director at SRM Recruitment, I specialise in interim and fixed-term finance recruitment across the Home Counties, covering Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex and Peterborough.

I work with businesses ranging from SMEs through to large international organisations, supporting the appointment of Interim Finance Directors, Financial Controllers, Finance Managers, FP&A professionals, Management Accountants and Finance Transformation specialists.

Whether the requirement is to deliver a critical project, provide leadership during a period of change, support a systems implementation or bridge a gap whilst a permanent appointment is secured, I help organisations access experienced finance professionals capable of making an immediate impact.

Having built an extensive network of qualified finance professionals across the region, I understand both the opportunities and challenges within today's interim market and can provide honest advice on availability, market conditions, day rates, fixed-term contract solutions and hiring strategies.

If you would like to discuss the interim finance market, benchmark a requirement or simply gain insight into current market trends across the Home Counties, please feel free to get in touch.

Liz Hawkins
lizhawkins@srmrecruitment.com
+44 (0)7508 956587

June 15, 2026June 15, 2026

SRM: The First Decade

There is a particular kind of madness that grips people when they decide to leave perfectly good salaries behind and start something from scratch.

It might include a good helping of self-confidence, a light sprinkling of bravado, and a detailed business plan that doesn't survive initial contact with reality. In the case of Andrew Setchell, Stewart Robertson and Rory MacSween, who between them comprise the ‘S’, the ‘R’, and the ‘M’, of SRM - it also entailed the ability to respond rapidly to an unrelenting decade of events, and emerge smiling at the other end.

After 10 years in business, SRM Recruitment has grown from three men and an idea into one of London's most respected specialist recruitment consultancies - placing senior finance, tax, legal and M&A insurance professionals across the UK and internationally, with offices in London, Guildford and Welwyn Garden City, and a team of over 20 specialised professionals.

Easter 2015. Over the top.

The founding story began, as many good ones do, with a question that needed answering. Andrew Setchell had spent four years as an accountant at PWC before moving into recruitment in 1996, eventually running large teams at Michael Page and Robert Walters. By Easter 2015, he was considering the next decade, and wondering ‘why’? Why had the industry where he’d worked for twenty years traded genuine consultancy for the kind of relentless, funnel-driven, phone-bashing culture that made good recruiters miserable and clients feel like they were being processed rather than helped?

"I always wanted to do my own thing, but I'd never do it by myself," Andrew says. "I needed like-minded people." He found two.

Rory MacSween had come to recruitment via a rather more scenic route; the British Army, then Michael Page and Robert Walters, before carving out a niche in the then-nascent world of M&A insurance. Stewart Robertson, a Modern History graduate from Royal Holloway who had also come through the big corporate recruitment machine, had arrived at similar conclusions independently. "We were all having the same conversations," says Rory. "It felt very transactional, like you were turning a wheel. Hard to put your stamp on something."

What gave them the final push? A developing conviction that there was a ‘better way’ - borne of watching floors empty during the financial crisis, observing management endlessly meddling, and noticing the business become, as Andrew puts it, "all about volumes". "The big corporate firms believed the brand was bigger than the person," says Andrew. "But for a medium-sized player, it's far more relationship-driven.” The new way had to be different. More consulting, less funnel. More relationship, less brand.

They handed in their notices in March 2016, collected their bonuses, and launched SRM just as the country was about to vote on Brexit. "We thought: Conservative majority, remain wins, markets go boom, we catch the wave," recalls Stewart, with a rueful laugh. "Yeah."

The First Year: Hard Lessons and Good Hires

The early days had a certain chaotic energy. For a while Stewart worked from his back garden shed. Rory and Andrew sat at a shared WeWork at Fox Court, where the ping pong tables and complimentary evening beer represented either a wonderful startup ecosystem or a terrible productivity environment, depending on the time of day.

The business plan — built partly on the assumption that blue-chip client accounts would follow them from their previous employer — "was out the window within twelve months." More pressingly, litigation arrived in the form of legal letters from past employers, designed, as Andrew notes, "to take up oxygen." It worked, for a while, but was resolved. "It did take a toll," he says. "But it also tempered the risk. You learn a lot about people. And about each other.”

But the wins came. After ten or eleven months of grind, they had back-to-back strong months. The model was working. Rob McKay and Dave Kingston, two early hires who took a genuine leap of faith, are name-checked with real warmth; "they came when we were literally nothing, and remain central figures in the business today.”

The Decade in Brief: Brexit, Covid, and the M&A Freeze

SRM has been tested by just about everything the last decade could throw at it. Brexit, which was timed with spectacular bad luck to coincide with their launch, initially caused a sharp intake of breath before proving broadly manageable. Covid was different.

"Bar one client, all live mandates were cancelled or put on hold indefinitely," says Stewart. "Overnight." That single remaining client — who happened to complete an acquisition at the exact moment lockdown was announced and needed an entire finance function recruited — thankfully kept things ticking over. Then, almost as suddenly as it had stopped, the market came roaring back. 2021 and 2022 were "by far our most successful years." Brexit had thinned the pool of European talent, demand was surging, and SRM leaned hard into genuine consultancy; helping clients navigate everything from sponsorship licences to employment law.

Then came 2023. The M&A market, which had been running hot, cooled sharply as interest rates rose and deal flow dried up. "Summer 2023 was still pretty good," says Andrew. "Then the kids went back in September and it wasn't the same September as the year before."

They navigated it, as they have navigated everything, by staying lean, diversified — and doing what smaller, more agile ‘boutique’ firms can do better than large ones: pivot fast — "it's rare that every part of our business is pulling back at exactly the same time, and that is a strength not a weakness.”

What Makes SRM Different: ‘Relationship Led. Data Driven.’

Ask the founders what sets SRM apart and you get a consistent answer: they recruit experienced people, give them autonomy, and get out of the way. No KPIs. No call-rate targets. No boiler-room atmosphere. Flexible working was already the norm at SRM, before Covid ever arrived. "The least experienced person in our business has seven years of recruitment experience," says Andrew, "we gladly recruit people with grey hair. With no hair…" he adds with a knowing smile.

The approach — which they describe as closer to search than traditional contingent recruitment — is built on a simple observation: the best outcomes come from relationships, not volume. "You just need really good relationships to get the same return without the flannel," says Andrew. "The big firms didn't work that out because they thought the brand was bigger than the person."

The Next Ten Years

"Everything you hear is how quickly AI is going to change our world", says Stewart, sanguine but clear-eyed about the future. The consensus among the founders is that AI will help them work faster, but that the fundamental value of what they do — human judgment, market intelligence, discretion, the ability to sit over lunch and map out someone's career — is not something an algorithm can replicate. "I had lunch with a client last week," says Rory. "We drew up a list of businesses he was interested in. By 5pm I had him an interview at one of them. I can't envisage a world where AI does that. Human interaction can’t be overrated.”

Andrew has a bolder prediction: as AI takes over junior professional work and graduate hiring shrinks at the big firms, newly qualified accountants and lawyers will become rarer and therefore more valuable. "Supply goes down, price goes up.” As for what comes next for SRM itself: growth, yes. New sectors, possibly. Selling? "We've never seriously sat down and discussed it," says Andrew, adding, “we want to create a space for every employee to earn six figures.”

And the most important thing about the next decade? "If we have a business in ten years that still holds the values we set out with," says Rory, "I'd be incredibly proud of that.”

May 14, 2026May 14, 2026

Joe Bennetts joins SRM’s Finance Recruitment team in Guildford

We’re pleased to welcome Joe Bennetts as a Business Director to SRM Recruitment’s Guildford finance recruitment team. Joe tells us a bit about himself, the roles he’ll be working on, and why hiring managers and job seekers like working with him.

Tell us a bit about yourself?

A proud Devon boy through and through, I’ve been in recruitment since I left university and I realised I was about 2 foot too short to be a rugby player! I had some friends who had gone into recruitment and thought I’d give it a go, and a few years later I’m still giving it a go so I must be doing something right. Outside of work, when I am not chasing 2 kids around, you can find me still pretending I can play rugby (although the body is slowly giving up on me!) playing golf or more recently, following the trend of playing padel.

Tell us about your career to date?

I started in recruitment back in 2011 after finishing university. I didn’t really know what recruitment was to be honest but the idea of building relationships and not being sat behind a desk all day really appealed to me. I joined a large FTSE 250 where I had some amazing training and guidance and went through the ranks pretty quickly. After relocating to the South East back in 2016, I’ve since focused on recruiting finance vacancies across the area. I love the variety of people and businesses I get to work with from P.E carve outs to leading technology companies meaning no two days are the same – it really does fascinate me!

What was it that appealed to you about working for SRM?

My paths had crossed inadvertently with Stewart Robertson and a few of the other people in the team and I had heard amazing things about them which were only reinforced when I met them for a coffee. Stewart, Andrew and Rory share the same fundamentals as I do which is work hard, deliver a good service and to make the recruitment process as seamless as process for everyone.

Their views and the way they see recruitment really aligned with me and it didn’t take much convincing from them for me to join!

Tell us about your remit at SRM?

Working closely with Sam, George and David in our Guildford office, my remit is to offer a top quality, honest, relationship driven approach to recruitment in the area, focusing predominantly on the qualified finance space.

What do hiring managers and job seekers like about working with you?

You’d have to ask them! I do try to be as honest as possible no matter how difficult that conversation can be sometimes though and equally, I won’t promise anything I can’t deliver on.

However, given the length of time I have spent operating in the market, I like to think I can offer a huge amount of market insight, from salaries to competitor analysis. For me, it isn’t about making a quick placement but how I can go about building relationships that prosper for years to come.

What’s your top piece of advice for hiring managers right now?

Act quickly and partner with SRM! The competition for top tier talent in the market is still as competitive as ever. Have you done your internal due diligence? Has the role been signed off, has the interview process been ironed out, do they need to do a case study, testing etc.? Hiring processes are a two-way street and making it as seamless as possible is going to be a great sales tool if you’re expecting to hire the best talent for your role – especially if they have multiple process on the go.

What’s your top piece of advice for candidates right now?

Always keep your CV up-to-date and never stop expanding your network – in this market it is always best to be on the front foot. Keep the CV updated as you go and spend some time networking and keeping in touch with people whilst keeping your personal brand up-to-date and relevant. You never know when you going to need it.

get in touch

Need help to hire or find your next finance role in the South East? Contact Joe on joebennetts@srmrecruitment.com or call +44 7879 497044. You can also connect with Joe on LinkedIn here

April 27, 2026April 27, 2026

What the Northern Home Counties Finance Market Is Telling Us Right Now

By Pat Sommerfelt, Senior Consultant

I've been having a lot of conversations with finance hiring managers and candidates recently. Here's what I'm actually seeing in the market right now.

1. Attitude is the new qualification

The days of rejecting a CV because someone hasn't ticked every box are fading fast. I'm seeing more employers open to hiring on potential - backing the right person and developing the gaps. The data backs this up too, with the vast majority of finance employers now saying attitude and willingness to learn outweighs existing technical skills. For PQ candidates’ mid-studies, this is genuinely good news. The market is more open to you than it might feel.

2. Job ads alone aren't working

If you're a hiring manager who has posted a vacancy and is wondering why the quality isn't there, you're not alone. Candidate confidence is low right now. Finance professionals are cautious. The mindset I'm hearing repeatedly is "it has to be the right move, or I'm staying put."

The result? The best people aren't browsing job boards. In the current market, the overwhelming majority of successful placements are coming from direct headhunting and network referral, not inbound applications. If your role has been live for a few weeks without real traction, the talent you want almost certainly hasn't seen it.

3. Hybrid isn't a perk anymore, it's a filter

This one keeps coming up. A strong candidate, a genuinely interesting role, and then the employer mentions four or five days in the office. The conversation stops there. I'm not exaggerating when I say this is one of the most common reasons a process falls apart before it's even started.

The majority of finance professionals say they simply won't consider a role without hybrid working, and a significant chunk would actually take a pay cut to get the flexibility they want. If you're struggling to attract candidates, the working arrangement conversation needs to happen before the job spec is written, not after the first round of interviews.

4. The skills gap is real and it's reshaping what "good" looks like

This is the one that I think will define the next few years of finance hiring. Nearly half of UK organisations are going through some form of finance transformation right now, ERP migrations, automation, analytics.

At the transactional level, roles that used to be pure process are increasingly requiring comfort with systems and data. At the PQ level, the newly qualified who can model, interpret data and act as a genuine business partner are getting multiple offers. Those who haven't developed those skills alongside their studies are finding it tougher. The gap between a good profile and a great one is increasingly a digital one.

So, in summary

What I'm taking from all of this is that the finance recruitment market in 2026 rewards specificity!

Be specific about what you need, honest about what you're offering, and proactive in how you go to market for talent.