Are You Offering Enough PTO to Your Finance Employees?

As the manager of a finance team, how much paid time off (PTO), you offer your employees matters. Providing a fair amount of PTO with opportunities for more helps you attract and retain the best talent. It shows you prioritize work-life balance and want your employees to have as much flexibility as possible.

Determination of how much PTO to offer can be difficult. The following suggestions can help.

Use these tips to determine whether you are offering enough PTO to your finance employees.

Defining PTO  

PTO consists of a block of time that employees can draw from throughout the year. Rather than creating categories and assigning a number of days for each, such as 7 paid holidays, 6 vacation days, 5 personal days, and 4 sick days, all of the days can be used however the employee sees fit.

For instance, most companies offer 30 days of PTO that each employee can divide up as needed. So, one of your employees might decide to take 12 days of paid sick leave, 12 days of paid personal leave, and 6 days of paid vacation. Another employee could decide on 5 days of paid sick leave, 12 days of paid personal leave, and 13 days of paid vacation.

Determining the Amount of PTO

Certain variables should be considered to decide which amount of PTO is right for your employees. For instance, you may want to offer different amounts of PTO to different types of employees. You also need to determine whether your employees should be required to use all of their PTO each year, be able to roll it over to the next year or get paid extra for the unused days.

You may want to start your new hires with less PTO and award more PTO based on the number of years your employees remain with your company. You also might want to let your employees roll over their unused days as a reward for good attendance.

Deciding How Much PTO Is Right for Your Employees

The amount of PTO you provide your finance employees depends on your business needs. It may be best to start each new hire with 30 days of PTO and provide opportunities to increase over time. This might be linked to job performance, years of loyalty, or other criteria.

Ensure your standards for awarding PTO are fair, clear, and included in the employee handbook. This helps your employees understand how much PTO they start out with and how they can earn more.

You can change your program over time to remain aligned with changing employee needs. This helps your finance team attract and retain top talent.

Want Help with Hiring?

The amount of PTO you provide your finance employees impacts how long they remain with your organization. Starting your new hires off with a fair amount of PTO and opportunities to increase helps attract and retain the best talent. This can help lower your recruitment costs.

When the time comes to hire additional employees, turn to Casey Accounting & Finance Resources for help. Find out more today.

4 Updates You Can Make to Job Descriptions to Gain More Applicants

Your job descriptions provide managers with clear guidelines for hiring, developing, and managing employees. The descriptions also clarify the job expectations for employees and support compensation, performance standards, and development decisions.

Your job descriptions are an important part of your job postings. They let candidates know the duties and responsibilities of a role and the requirements to be successful in the position.

Because your job descriptions serve multiple purposes, they need to be current. The following are four ways to can make sure the information is updated.

Implement these four tips to update your job descriptions to increase your applicant pools.

1. Position Summary

Summarize the main job duties and responsibilities.

  • Make the role attractive to job seekers.
  • Share information about your department.
  • Include who the employee reports to and whether any employees report to them as well.

2. Minimum and Preferred Qualifications

Clarify the qualifications that candidates must have to apply for the role. Include the qualifications that make candidates even more attractive to the hiring manager. Focus on the major end results of the role.

  • The minimum requirements are a shorter list of your objective criteria.
    • Include the minimum education and experience required for success.
  • The preferred qualifications are nice to have if applying for the position. A candidate without the preferred qualifications still may be hired.
    • These qualifications are on a longer list of more subjective criteria that can be discussed in more detail during an interview.
    • Examples of preferred qualifications include soft skills such as communication, attention to detail, and organization.
    • The preferred qualifications set candidates apart from those with the bare minimum qualifications.

3. Duties and Responsibilities

Include the main job functions in order of importance.

  • Be as specific as possible about the job duties and responsibilities.
  • Explain whether the employee makes recommendations to a decision-maker or makes the actual decisions.
  • Use clear action words and specific adjectives for each task. For example, “Create Excel sheets from raw data, including pivot tables and formulas such as if/then. Perform data entry to update, sort, analyze, and summarize in reports for leadership.”

4. Physical Requirements

Clarify whether there are any physical requirements to complete the work. Include whether accommodations can be made for candidates who need them.

Want Help Hiring Accounting and Finance Professionals?

Sharing clear, updated information in your job descriptions lets candidates know what would be expected of them in the role. Clarification of the position summary, minimum and preferred requirements, duties and responsibilities, and physical requirements help candidates decide whether to apply for a position. This narrows down your options when deciding who to contact for an interview.

If you need help with crafting your job descriptions or recruiting candidates that best meet the hiring qualifications, contact the experienced recruiters at Casey Accounting & Finance Resources. Reach out to discuss your needs today.

Give Thanks to Your Team! 5 Ways to Show Employee Appreciation

Expressing gratitude to your accounting and finance team should be an everyday occurrence. Letting them know how much you value their contributions and results promotes feelings of respect and loyalty. This results in increased engagement, productivity, and retention.

Choose among these five ways to show you are grateful for your accounting and finance team.

1.     Thank Your Team Members

Always express appreciation for the work your staff put in each day. They likely are doing their best to finish tasks and reach objectives. Knowing your team members’ efforts are noticed provides encouragement to continue to perform at top levels.

2.     Encourage Professional Growth

Opportunities for learning, coaching, and cross-training help your team reach their career goals. This may involve participation in an industry-related seminar, conference, or networking event. Or, it could include membership in a professional organization, a role on a special committee, or job shadowing for additional career opportunities. Any chance to grow professionally likely is welcome.

3.     Share Your Team Members’ Accomplishments

Let everyone in the organization know when your employees attain something big. This may include sharing their successes with the rest of your team, senior leaders, and the rest of the company. Or, it could include mentioning the accomplishments during team meetings, in the company newsletter, and on social media platforms. Your employees should appreciate the public recognition and continue to give their all going forward.

4.     Write a LinkedIn Recommendation

Share each employee’s successes by writing recommendations on their LinkedIn page. This shows you care about your team members’ career development and want to help them grow professionally. Endorsing their skills also can lead to a greater impact on your organization down the road.

5.     Give Praise for Attaining a Goal

Whether big or small, let your employees know you appreciate their hard work and dedication to accomplishing business goals. This may involve completing a project, working for a new client, or reaching a long-awaited milestone. Be sure to point out specifically what the staff member did that you admire. Give sincere praise for taking action to attain what they set out to do.

Do You Need Accounting and Finance Talent?   

Expressing appreciation for your accounting and finance team every day leads to increased engagement, productivity, and retention. This encourages your staff to work hard, stay connected, and perform their best.

When you are looking to add skilled members to your team, turn to Casey Accounting & Finance Resources. We match you with the accounting and finance professionals who can help achieve your business goals.

Top Talent Aren’t Getting Just One Offer! Here Is How You Should Approach a Counteroffer

When hiring accounting and finance professionals, your choice candidates likely will receive counteroffers from their current managers. Because employers do not want to lose their best talent, many will provide incentives for their staff to stay with their team. This is why you need to proactively address the issue with your shortlisted candidates. Providing reasons why applicants should turn down counteroffers increases the odds of having your top candidate decide to join your team.

Follow these guidelines to encourage your top accounting and finance applicants not to accept a counteroffer from their current employer.

Reinforce Each Candidate’s Reasons for Leaving

Remind your top applicants why they decided to look for a new job in the first place. Most of the time, it has nothing to do with making more money. This is why accepting a pay increase through a counteroffer likely will not retain the employee long-term. If the staff member does not get along well with their manager, they are not being challenged in their work, or there is no room for advancement, the issue is likely to remain.

Question Whether Staying Would Make Things Change

Ask each of your shortlisted candidates whether anything would improve long-term if they remained with their current employer. In most cases, the applicants began seeking new jobs because they felt restricted or unappreciated. They may have been passed over for a promotion or not given other opportunities to grow. Although the candidates may have expressed their concerns to their manager, the issues likely went unaddressed. Odds are these problems will remain even if the applicants decide to accept a counteroffer.

Point Out the Job Insecurity of Staying

Remind your best talent that once they submit their resignation, they damage the relationship with their employer. Even if your candidates accept a counteroffer, things will remain tense at work. Their manager may wonder how loyal they really are and whether they would accept an even better offer if it came along. Their employer also may begin making plans to replace the employee as soon as possible. Or, if the company wants to eliminate positions, the team member who tried to resign likely will be let go first.

Are You Looking for Top Accounting and Finance Professionals?

When adding skilled accounting and finance professionals to your team, they are likely to receive counteroffers from their current employers. One of the best ways to discourage your potential team members from accepting these offers is by pointing out why they decided to leave their jobs in the first place. You also can ask whether things truly will change by staying. Plus, you can point out how insecure the potential hires’ jobs may be once their managers know they want to leave.

When you need to add top talent to your team, get in touch with Casey Accounting & Finance Resources. We have the skilled professionals you need to reach your business goals.

Ways to Push Employees Outside Their Comfort Zone and Set Them Up for Success

Everyone needs to step out of their comfort zone to be successful. The more education, skills, and experience we gain, the more value we have to give employers. As an accounting manager, this is one reason why you should encourage your team members to regularly take on new challenges. The more progress they make, the more your company benefits.

Follow these guidelines to encourage your accounting staff to continuously expand their comfort zone and reach their full potential.

Get to Know Your Team

Have ongoing conversations to learn all you can about your employees on a personal level. Find out their work styles, communication preferences, professional goals, strengths, and interests. Use this information to determine which tasks to delegate to each team member, who should lead a project, and specific ways to help each employee earn a promotion. Showing commitment to your team’s professional growth helps them advance in their careers.

Provide Stretch Assignments

Give your team stretch assignments and other challenges that promote growth. Provide guidance and advice as they work to solve problems and overcome obstacles. Having space and responsibility to work independently and collaboratively develops independence and self-reliance. These skills are important for career development.

Offer Support

Demonstrate confidence in your team’s ability to independently handle their work. Your staff members need to know they can accomplish their tasks using their knowledge and skills with little oversight. This promotes the belief that they can build on their strengths and abilities to get the desired results. Being available to provide support when needed increases team trust and cohesion.

Provide Feedback

Give feedback in real-time to enhance your employees’ performance. Share what they are doing well, what can be improved, and specific ways to do so. Understanding what, how, and why change is needed encourages your team to continue to do better.

Recognize Achievements

Point out when your employees attain success on their way to reaching individual or team goals. Because reaching each milestone is important, privately and publicly acknowledge what the team member accomplished and how their results benefitted the organization. Be sure to provide bonuses, raises, and promotions when appropriate. The more you praise and reward your team, the more likely they are to continue to add value to the company.

Hire Top Performers

Encouraging your accounting team to continuously move beyond their comfort zone helps set them up for success. Getting to personally know your employees, providing stretch assignments, and offering support show you trust them to be self-reliant in solving problems and overcoming obstacles. Giving feedback and recognizing accomplishments encourages your team to continue to improve their performance.

When the time comes to add top finance professionals to your team, get in touch with Casey Accounting & Finance Resources. Contact us for more information today.

Tips for Reducing Employee Conflict on Your Team

As a manager, you are responsible for overseeing the work and interactions of your employees. Because your staff members have different personalities, they will not always agree on everything. This is why you need a plan to help them listen to and learn from each other. Such actions can lead to greater productivity and team cohesion.

Implement these tips to lower the amount of conflict on your accounting and finance team.

Talk About Conflict Resolution

Let your team know they are expected to professionally resolve their disagreements. For instance, clarify how you will and will not get involved with conflicts. Also, explain that you are available to coach your employees through a disagreement, but they need to resolve it together. Further, encourage discussion about your staff members’ working styles and communication preferences. Understanding and respecting these characteristics can resolve potential problems in the future.

Encourage Independent Discussions

Let your employees resolve their issues as much as possible. Otherwise, they will expect you to step in as a referee. If a conflict becomes noticeable but is not being recognized or solved by the involved staff members, you should step in. For instance, separately and privately let them know their conflict is noticeable and affects the workplace. Then, think about how you can serve as a source of support and coaching without becoming overly involved in the resolution. This may involve helping both employees develop empathy for each other. For instance, consider asking what they think could be going on with their teammate and what they might want from the situation. Then, help each staff member brainstorm potential solutions to the problem. Keep in mind that if harassment, lying about work, or another inappropriate action is involved, you must discuss why the behavior cannot recur.

Hire Solution-Oriented Employees

Bringing aboard diverse staff members who focus on resolving problems helps keep the peace among your team. During interviews, you may want to ask candidates to describe a conflict they had with a coworker and how they resolved it. This provides insight into how potential hires think about conflict and move past it.

Partner with a Recruiter

Because conflicts will happen among your team members, you need a plan to resolve them. Although it is best for the involved parties to resolve the issues, you may have to step in at times to coach them through the process. Setting expectations for professional conflict resolution is an effective way to reduce the number of disagreements among your team.

When you need help hiring solution-oriented accounting and finance professionals, turn to Casey Accounting & Finance Resources. Get started with us today.

Will Relocation Packages Be Obsolete in the New Remote World?

With many relocation packages costing $25,000 – $100,000 per employee, employers are reevaluating whether remote work options make the packages necessary. In fact, some companies now are offering de-location packages for employees who want to move from an expensive city to an area with a lower cost of living and work remotely. Paying staff members to move away from their offices can provide significant benefits for both the organization and its workers.

Find out why employers are starting to offer employees de-location packages and why they can be a win for both parties.

Financial Savings

A de-location package offers substantial savings for employers and employees. Companies that have a mostly/completely remote workforce have significantly reduced/eliminated expenses related to real estate and overhead. They also have substantially lower operating costs and a greater ability to scale their workforce. All of this frees up money to pay down company debt, expand the organization, or fulfill other business objectives. Similarly, staff may be able to save thousands of dollars a month by working remotely from a less expensive location. They can pay down debt and put away more money for vacations, retirement, or other needs. This increases job satisfaction, engagement, and retention.

Competitive Edge

Offering employees a de-location package is an attractive addition to remote work policies. Although many staff enjoy living in major cities such as New York or San Francisco, the cost of living is high, and the area does not suit everyone’s lifestyle. Many employees would be happy to work for a top employer without having to live in a high-cost area. Likewise, many employers are happy not to provide the salary adjustments, housing allowances, moving expenses, real estate commissions, orientation programs, and family and spousal support involved with relocation packages. With a de-location package, they write a check for a set amount of money, such as $10,000, and let the employee handle the rest. Because this may be 10-50% of the cost of a typical relocation package, HR could de-locate 10 employees for the price of one relocation and potentially have a higher recruiting success rate.

Government Advocacy

Many local and state economic development councils offer incentives to attract remote employees. This may include compensation in the form of a tax credit, housing allowance, cash payment, coworking allowance, grant, or relocation support. This shows that many remote staff are willing to relocate under the right conditions.

Hire Accounting and Finance Professionals

The rise of remote work is shifting the need to offer relocation packages. Instead, employers are beginning to pay employees to move to lower-cost areas and work remotely. These de-location packages save the companies and their staff significant amounts of money that can be used for other purposes.

When you need to add accounting and finance members to your team, partner with Casey Accounting & Finance Resources. We have been consistently recognized for client satisfaction, winning ClearlyRated’s Best of Staffing award.  Find out more about our services today.

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Your Ultimate Guide to Year-End Reviews

A year-end review assesses an employee’s performance over time, recognizes achievements and goes over areas for development and improvement. When properly set up and approached as an ongoing conversation, year-end appraisals become part of the continuous performance management system throughout your organization. Your employees and you can reflect on their self-evaluation and your assessment and plan for future development. Here’s your ultimate guide to year-end reviews.

Topics

Talk about a variety of topics in year-end reviews. For instance, discuss how each employee displays company values in their approach to work. Focus on subjects that matter most to your team. Bring up role-related questions that evaluate job-specific competencies relevant for each employee’s level in the company. Discuss company goals to see what was planned and achieved and what went off course. Focus on whether the goals were too easy or difficult, which coaching is needed to improve development and whether the context of the goals is clear and relevant for the business.

Self-Assessment

Provide each employee with a self-assessment well before year-end reviews. Share the information on the self-assessment so employees have time to prepare. They need to know which topics will be addressed so they can add to the discussion.

Collaboration

Encourage an open conversation with each employee. They should have completed a self-assessment that considered peer feedback and recognition received over the last period to provide a balanced picture of performance. Promoting discussion about an employee’s self-assessment encourages autonomy and responsibility going into the talk. You provide coaching and suggestions from your experience to help the employee develop.

Honesty

Allow each employee to acknowledge what they improved without fearing punishment. You’ll promote trust in both you and the company. Point out what’s been going well and specific ways the employee can improve. Celebrate employee wins to show support.

Action Plan

Determine what action each employee should take to improve performance. For instance, share company goals and how they apply to individual staff. Outline steps to achieve them. Offer training and support. Provide clear measurements for success.

Outcomes

Establish what will happen with each employee’s information after year-end reviews. Include who will see the review and what each employee is expected to do. Being transparent about the process and following up on the actions you agreed to take promote trust and respect.

Hire Through a Leading Chicago Employment Agency

Hire top accounting and finance workers through a leading Chicago employment agency. Casey Accounting & Finance Resources has an in-depth understanding of accounting and finance functions and competencies to accurately assess candidates’ backgrounds, ensuring that only highly qualified candidates are presented for review. Reach out to us to get started today!

Strong Economy, Robust Hiring, and 8 Staffing Trends!

As recruiting for talented staff becomes more difficult, Casey Accounting & Finance Resources is experiencing record levels of placements for accounting and finance talent.  Our secret to success?  Dedicated recruiters with an average of over 10 years recruiting accounting & finance talent.

As the demand for increasing workforces continues, Staffing Industry Analyst has identified eight trends affecting staffing including the following:

  • The global economy is doing OK
  • Technology/automation
  • Skills shortages
  • Legislation
  • Gig economy
  • Public perception
  • Procurement sophistication
  • Rise of Asia

For additional information on these 8 trends, please click here: Read More