The competition to attract and retain top finance professionals is intensifying — the rules of the game have changed.
Today’s finance candidates no longer evaluate opportunities based solely on salary or job title. They’re looking for real flexibility, authentic recognition, and clear opportunities for growth.
This trend touches every finance function — from FP&A and financial reporting to ESG analysis, digital transformation, and CFO positions.
To stay competitive, employers must rapidly adapt their employer value proposition, work models, and career paths — or risk losing top financial talent to more agile organizations.
A Candidate-Driven Market
Several indicators confirm this candidate-driven market. In many regions, unemployment among accounting and finance professionals is at historic lows, and most hiring managers admit they struggle to find qualified profiles.
This tension is raising the bar on what finance professionals expect — clarity on compensation, meaningful work, and an engaging employee experience. Attractiveness can no longer rely solely on brand reputation or a competitive salary grid; it depends on how the company enables people to work effectively, feel valued, and develop their skills.
Why have expectations shifted so quickly? Three main forces are at play:
- The technological transformation of finance, with automation, data analytics, and cloud platforms redefining roles and required skills. Finance is moving from pure reporting to a business-partner mindset, creating demand for professionals who can model, interpret, and advise.
- Increased competition for hybrid finance-data and finance-tech profiles, which raises market standards.
- New generations entering the workforce with different values — emphasizing impact, autonomy, and well-being.
In this context, flexibility has become decisive when choosing a finance job. Recent studies show that professionals now favor hybrid work structures that align with their personal commitments. They expect clear objectives, autonomy in how to reach them, and digital tools that make collaboration seamless. Salary transparency has also become a key factor influencing talent attraction.
Flexibility and the Rise of Remote Finance Jobs
Remote and hybrid work are now firmly established in finance. Many teams have found that two days of remote work per week can be a productivity sweet spot — provided that secure systems, clear processes, and results-based management are in place.
The benefits are significant for both finance professionals and employers:
- Better work-life balance
- Reduced commuting time
- Greater focus for analytical work
- Lower travel and facility costs
- Access to a broader, geographically diverse talent pool
To make remote finance roles successful, organizations must address three pillars:
- Security and compliance: strict data-access policies, encryption, traceability, and adherence to financial regulations.
- Collaboration: shared environments for planning, reporting, closing, and scenario analysis to maintain workflow efficiency.
- Management by objectives: measurable outcomes, regular syncs, and frequent feedback rather than presence control.
It’s now common to see a CFO managing distributed teams, coordinating complex projects, and ensuring governance through a mix of on-site collaboration and remote work.
Recognition and Growth — Two Key Retention Levers
Recognition is not a perk — it’s a basic need. Research shows that over 80% of employees consider recognition a key factor in job satisfaction. Companies that build structured recognition programs see quick gains in motivation, retention, and performance.
In finance, recognition should go beyond annual bonuses. It should be immediate and contextualized:
- Highlighting a streamlined closing process, a financial insight that shaped a business decision, or a well-executed internal control.
- Providing quick feedback after key milestones in budgeting or transformation projects.
- Offering visibility to contributors in cross-functional committees (investment, governance, steering).
- Encouraging peer-to-peer recognition for collaboration, documentation, or innovation.
- Assigning leadership roles on high-visibility initiatives to accelerate learning and strengthen employability.
As for career development, finance roles are evolving fast. Skills in data modeling, analytics, visualization, automation, performance management, change leadership, and business partnering are now in high demand. Professionals who can translate financial data into actionable insights for marketing, sales, or operations teams are especially valued.
A structured continuous-learning framework is becoming essential — with personalized learning paths, mentoring, cross-functional projects, and finance-data skill exchanges. Companies that allocate annual budgets for certifications, conferences, or micro-learning send a clear message: you won’t stagnate here.
Compensation and Benefits — Transparency, Customization, and Fairness
While salary in finance remains a powerful attraction lever, it’s no longer enough to win the talent war. Transparency, frequent reviews, and personalized compensation packages are now the norm.
Companies benefit from balancing fixed and variable pay, aligning bonuses with tangible results — both individual and collective. Offering visibility on bonus criteria fosters trust, especially in volatile environments.
Differentiators such as RRSPs/pension plans, transformation project bonuses, or margin-improvement incentives help strengthen engagement — particularly for CFO and FP&A positions.
Benefits are expanding to include flexible hours, hybrid work arrangements, parental support, well-being and mental-health programs, equipment allowances, extra vacation days, internal mobility options, sabbaticals, and training budgets. These advantages lead to higher engagement, lower absenteeism, and a stronger employer brand.
For scarce or highly specialized roles, regular market alignment is essential. Salary guides consistently confirm that profiles combining financial expertise with analytics or tech skills command a premium — notably in financial data analysis, multi-system financial control, IFRS consolidation, treasury, and risk management.
The Expanding Role of Finance and CFOs
Finance teams are no longer just producing accurate statements — they drive strategy, assess scenarios, secure compliance, and lead digital transformation.
Modern CFOs now oversee areas beyond traditional finance:
- Digital program leadership
- ESG and sustainability reporting
- Financial cybersecurity governance
- Organizational restructuring and performance improvement
As the CFO role expands, so do the expectations for finance teams — business acumen, communication clarity, and cross-functional collaboration are essential.
An attractive finance job in 2025 includes meaningful responsibilities, exposure to decision-making, modern tools, simple collaboration rituals, ongoing learning, and real career mobility. For CFOs, this means a clear mandate as change sponsors, with authority to evolve organizational practices accordingly.
What Finance Candidates Expect — and How to Align
Based on current market trends and candidate feedback, here are six key expectations and how companies can respond:
- Real flexibility: a clear hybrid framework with defined on-site days by team, proper tools and equipment, and results-oriented objectives.
- Frequent recognition: regular feedback, visibility, and appreciation — structured at multiple levels or through peer programs.
- Transparency and fairness: publish salary ranges and clear bonus criteria.
- Growth and learning: create bridges to data, operations, or transformation projects; allocate a dedicated training budget.
- Purpose and impact: show how financial analysis influences strategy, ESG, and profitability; involve finance early in decisions.
- Respectful recruitment: keep timelines short, use relevant case studies, and give visibility on daily realities.
These levers are especially powerful in a competitive market. Strategic recruitment — anticipating needs, clarifying job DNA, and designing a thoughtful candidate experience — becomes a true competitive advantage.
For Candidates — How to Stand Out
Expectations are evolving on both sides. Finance professionals can greatly increase their market value by demonstrating:
- The ability to turn data into actionable decisions using analytics and visualization tools
- Business understanding — how a P&L line is managed and which levers to activate
- Clear communication for non-financial audiences
- A mindset for continuous improvement — automation, standardization, documentation
- Flexibility in work modes and familiarity with remote-work best practices
Quantifying achievements remains the most effective way to stand out in a finance job process: show how you improved margins, reduced risk, or optimized a process.
What This Means for CFOs
CFOs are at the center of this transformation. They’re now expected to:
- Drive performance beyond reporting — positioning finance as a business partner.
- Lead modernization initiatives — from planning platforms to financial data automation.
- Shape culture and organization — empowering teams, promoting collaboration, and investing in talent development.
A CFO’s credibility depends on a clear roadmap for team growth — a balanced mix of discipline and innovation, transparent career paths, and rewards aligned with key financial cycles. This is also the best way to attract scarce profiles and retain top performers.
How Kenova Can Help
If you’re looking to attract, recruit, or retain top finance talent, Kenova can help.
Our team specializes in recruitment and development for finance and accounting professionals, with a focus on long-term alignment between people, roles, and culture.
Explore our services and insights — and let’s discuss your hiring, internal mobility, or team-building challenges. Whether you need to recruit a CFO, attract a rare FP&A analyst, or optimize your remote finance hiring process, Kenova’s expertise will help you achieve your goals.
