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The president of Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI), Pat O’Neill has warned that an acute shortage of qualified accountants will worsen throughout the course of the year, as firms struggle to hire the talent they need.
While the numbers of those pursuing accounting at second level have grown in recent years, in the decade following the 2008 recession the number of those opting for accounting at third level have slumped by over a quarter.
The Leaving Certificate syllabus dates back to the 1990s, and while major reform of the syllabus at-large has been announced, accounting as a subject has yet to be addressed.
In his speech at the Institute’s annual dinner in Dublin on Friday night, O’Neill will address over 650 members, guests, members of government and other elected representatives on the role of accountants in industry and practices in the economy, as well as the work the institute is doing to highlight a stronger pipeline of homegrown talent.
O’Neill said: “Anecdotally, the talent pipeline problem is clear right across the profession, from practices of all sizes to industry, resulting in attraction and retention challenges, not just in Ireland, but around the world, and we are working with global partners to tackle it.
“In speaking to students, many pursued accounting at third level despite their experience at second level. Anecdotal feedback has been that many are turned off because of rote learning, the lack of breadth of what is taught, and the need to unlearn and relearn concepts on transition to third level.”
He added: “Accounting has remained set in stone, essentially unchanged in 30 years, so it is little wonder that students don’t associate the profession with cutting edge areas like data analytics or sustainability reporting, both of which are huge growth areas for us.”
