The talent shortage among accountancy practices continues to batter the sector. However, there is some evidence of the stress easing.
According to the Accounting Talent Index 2025, 44% of practitioners in Australia and the UK have seen salary/remuneration costs leap in an attempt to mitigate the talent shortage, but this is down from 80% in 2024 (possibly because those salaries were hiked last year as a one-off measure).
AI bright side
Although 48% say the talent shortage is worse than three years ago, this is significantly lower than the 74% of respondents who stated this last year. The one service line that shows tougher conditions this year compared with 2024 is tax, with slightly more respondents (55%) saying the service line is severely affected by talent shortage, up from 54% last year. Other talent pressures, while remaining high, appear to be easing.
But this easing is small comfort. Some of the effects of the talent crisis include losing clients and limiting service offerings.
Retention levers
The research, showcasing the views of 169 businesses in the UK and Australia, reveals that firms are using a broad range of levers to manage the retention of staff, while improving operational effectiveness.
Over 60% of accountancy practices globally say they are forced to outsource work overseas to expand capacity while a further 33% are offshoring.
AI bright side
As for how staffing requirements will be affected by the use of AI, interestingly very few (13%) said they’d need fewer accountants to manage processes, and an almost equal number of respondents said they’d need more accountants as said they’d need the same number.
