Accounting talent shortage surges | Accounting Today

The average number of open accounting and finance roles per company has skyrocketed to 17, up from five in 2025 and just two in 2024, according to a new report.

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The study, released by outsourcing provider Personiv, surveyed a group of 203 finance and accounting leaders and received responses from 171 of them to the above query. The company conducted a similar survey last year and in recent years, and found the percentage of senior leaders who agree there’s a talent shortage rose from 63% in 2020 to 87% last year and 84% this year, indicating an overall 21% talent shortage increase over the past six years despite the slight decrease this year.

Among the roles that have proven to be most difficult to hire are senior accountant (43%), staff accountant (26%) and tax accountant (11%), according to the respondents. Over half (51%) of leaders ranked increased salary expectations as their biggest hiring challenge.

Artificial intelligence has been helping fill the gap, as has outsourcing. Last year, only 23% of leaders used AI to reduce pressure to fill roles. But this year, that number has spiked to 63%. AI has been having a wide-ranging impact on hiring, with over 90% of finance leaders saying AI, automation and outsourcing have reduced their current or future headcount needs. 

“When we see that 93% of finance leaders say that AI is reducing their headcount and 94% are utilizing outsourced talent, it is abundantly clear that workforce strategy is evolving,” said Megan Weis, vice president and general manager of FAO services at Personiv. “The future of success for finance teams will rely on building hybrid teams that are designed for agility, resilience and long-term scalability.”

The percentage of companies that need 60 days or more to fill open roles has declined somewhat over the past year, from 49% in 2025 to 42% in 2026. The largest organizations require much more time to fill open roles, according to the report, and tend to have the biggest responsibility for value creation, while looking for data to drive their decision making.

“The future of finance puts CFOs in a unique position to create an entirely new design for how work gets done,” said Weis. “Those who build hybrid organizations that combine AI, specialized talent and flexible delivery models for strategic decision making will be best positioned to scale, adapt and thrive in an increasingly complex environment.”

Bennett Thrasher, a Top 75 Firm based in Atlanta, has adapted to attract more accounting talent. 

“Unlike most firms, what we do is we actually have talent acquisition sit under growth,” said Michael Hoover, chief growth officer at Bennett Thrasher. “We view that really as a key differentiator for us. Historically, talent acquisition will sit under human resources. For us, the reality is finding the best people will keep us independent and growing like we have over the last couple of years with double-digit organic growth, 10% plus. And so, as PE and AI continue to really redefine our space, my belief is finding the best people and acquiring the best talent out there is going to be equally as important as some of the technology tools. With all that in mind, what we did about two years ago is we pulled talent acquisition away from traditional human resources and actually into the growth function itself, so it sits right alongside business development for us.”

The firm has resisted private equity investment so far and ramped up its use of artificial intelligence, but not at the expense of recruiting new talent.

“For any firm, AI is a game changer for this industry,” said Hoover. “I think AI is a good thing for accountants. AI can be a bad thing for those accountants that don’t have the right mindset for growth and client service. A lot of the softer skills that may not have been as important in years past really become important now. They’re critical for success, so being a technician in the back room, just cranking through returns or understanding general areas of code, just is not going to be sufficient anymore, not with AI.”

The firm has been recruiting students at campuses in Georgia, Texas and Colorado as it continues to expand its footprint.

“As of right now, we have not changed our entry-level hiring practices,” said Hoover. “What has changed, though, is really our expectation, and that expectation is we want you to have the ability to use AI and to have the intellectual curiosity and desire to really embrace and leverage AI. If you’re coming off campus, for example, in one of those traditional kinds of staff level roles, chances are you’ve worked with AI. We want to make sure that you’ve got the right mindset to leverage AI, but the reality is you’re not ever going to get away from having that core accounting knowledge that you’re going to gain in an undergrad or graduate program.”