Treasury recruitment: What is happening in the treasury recruitment market?

One of the treasury labs at the Annual Conference 2022 focused on the recruitment market and consisted of three treasury recruiters discussing recent trends and the effects of COVID on recruitment. This session was organized by the Future Leaders in Treasury group, and Courtney Huggins, chair of the group, facilitated the panel discussion.

What’s the market like following COVID and the great resignation?

Treasurers have upskilled as a result of the pandemic, not only in terms of technical skills but also with regard to business and behavioral skills, most notably people management. The need to look after the team, the focus on well-being, the requirements to help the team to transition to home working etc. all contributed to a significant upskilling. This has been coupled with greater visibility for those working in treasury with the Board/senior management, in part due to the increase in focus on cash management as a result of the pandemic.

COVID has therefore increased the profile of treasury and treasurers. Candidates with treasury skills are in demand and using this when negotiating. It’s a busy time in treasury recruitment!

Is there an area of the market that is more in demand?

The mid-level treasurer is most in demand right now – most notably at the treasury analyst and treasury manager level. Having an analytical skillset is key.

In terms of progression and building out your CV to achieve that next role, have the requirements for this changed?

When looking to recruit, a company will look at two elements: the technical skillset and business/behavioral skillset.

The requirements for the technical skillset have remained similar to what they have been in the past. You need solid experience in treasury operations and funding as well demonstrable evidence of being able to run high-level projects.

What’s been interesting in the last couple of years is that there has been a greater focus on the emotional intelligence or EQ side and that business and behavioral skills have become more important. In the interview processes, CFOs want emotionally intelligent and empathetic leaders, not just technical specialists, especially as we continue to work in a hybrid world. This is a key differentiator, and all-rounded individuals are more in demand.

Flexible working is increasingly important post-COVID but how does this work in ‘real life’?

We learn so much by listening in to the group treasurer talking on the phone or just general discussions we may overhear with other members of the team. Now that we are working from home how is this impeding development?

The new normal needs to provide balance. Candidates will undoubtedly have had their development hampered as a result of not being able to learn from others in the office, and this is especially true for more junior members of the team. It’s often much quicker to get things done when you can walk around the office and can have a 5-minute conversation to move things along instead of having to book a Teams call or Zoom meeting.
Having said that, many organizations are adopting a hybrid model to ensure that they provide the opportunity for the team to come together, while also providing increased flexibility. This can mean anything from two to four days in the office.

Recruiters are seeing a split between candidates who are opting for more flexibility by working predominantly from home and those who want to be in the office more frequently. The number of jobs available for those who want more flexibility is lower than for those who want to work in an office, but this does come down to your skillset.

Has the general salary level changed due to COVID?

It is a candidate short market and those with treasury skills are at a premium. The recruiters have found that treasury teams have got a bit bigger over the last few years and this had led to a shortage of good candidates.

The panel are seeing that analyst and manager level roles are having speedier salary uplifts. This may be partly due to a salary rectification as candidates haven’t moved roles during COVID and so haven’t been able to increase their salaries simply by moving to a new company.

For those working at an assistant treasurer/treasurer level, salary tends to depend on experience. At this level, a number of organizations have opted to give individuals retention bonuses to ensure that they remain in their roles.

How are salaries in vs outside of London differentiated given many people are working from home for some of the week?

Treasury has always had to pay to attract the best candidates and London weighting has not tended to be a large differentiating factor. Organizations have often paid a ‘London’ salary as they needed to compete with London pay in order to attract the right candidates. This has therefore not been much of an issue for treasury and is unlikely to be an issue even with a hybrid working environment.

This article is reproduced from The Association of Corporate Treasurers.