Survey: accountants need better training
Training for accountants in business is often rationed, according to a global survey by ACCA
Companies are restricting training for accountants and are often failing to
assess the effectiveness of ‘continuous professional development’, new research
has found.
Almost one in five companies said they only offered training to qualified
accountants, while one in three restricted their training to finance staff at
the head office, according to a global survey of 400 companies by the
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
One in five companies questioned said they were not recording the
effectiveness of training.
‘Although the level of financial resources being allocated to professional
development programmes does not appear to be diminishing, investment returns are
likely to suffer unless better practices are adopted,’ said Jamie Lyon, senior
manager of professional development at ACCA and author of the report.
He added that a lack of career development opportunities is typically cited
as the key reason why organisations fail to retain staff.
‘Whilst there may be short term imperative for organisations to cut costs and
staff, we know that over the longer term, proper investment in people yields
longer terms benefits. It’s about targeted spending in the right areas.’
The majority of companies surveyed (60%) said they had seen an increase in
their training budgets over the past three years, although the impact of the
economic crisis is not yet fully known, ACCA said.
The most common professional development activities are further
qualifications, coaching and mentoring.
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