The Finance Hiring Landscape is Changing—Are You Keeping Up?
Once upon a time, finance hiring was straightforward.
- Post a job.
- Get a pile of CVs.
- Pick the best-qualified candidate.
- Job done.
Not anymore.
- Top finance professionals are in demand—and they know it.
- The best candidates have multiple offers before you’ve even scheduled a second interview.
- Salaries, expectations, and the entire hiring process have shifted.
If you’re still hiring the way you did five years ago, you’re already behind.
Here’s what’s changing in finance hiring in 2025—and what you need to do to stay ahead.
1. Salary Expectations Are Skyrocketing (And Employers Have to Keep Up)
Finance professionals aren’t just looking for a raise—they expect one.
With rising living costs and increased competition, salary inflation is real.
👎 What companies are getting wrong:
- Offering “market rate” salaries from three years ago.
- Assuming candidates will take lower offers for “career progression.”
- Trying to lowball offers and “leave room for negotiation.”
🚀 What works better:
- Use real-time salary benchmarking (hello, We Do Benchmark!) to stay competitive.
- Be transparent about salary ranges in job ads—stop making candidates guess.
- Make your first offer your best offer—great candidates won’t wait around.
📢 Rule of thumb: If your salary isn’t exciting, they won’t even consider the role.
2. Flexibility is Now Non-Negotiable
Finance professionals expect hybrid working—and if you’re not offering it, your competitors are.
👎 What’s making candidates reject offers?
- Companies that demand 5 days in the office.
- Rigid policies with no room for flexibility.
- Old-school leadership that believes “real work happens in person.”
🚀 What top employers are doing instead:
- Offering flexible hybrid working as standard.
- Providing real autonomy—trusting employees to manage their time.
- Focusing on results, not hours spent at a desk.
📢 Rule of thumb: If your competitor offers more flexibility, your best candidates will go there instead.
3. Companies Are Hiring for Potential, Not Just Experience
The best finance professionals aren’t always the ones with the longest CVs.
Hiring only based on past experience means you’re missing out on high-potential talent.
👎 Old-school hiring mistakes:
- Demanding 10+ years of experience for mid-level roles.
- Rejecting candidates without specific industry experience.
- Overlooking finance professionals who have the skills but not the “traditional” background.
🚀 What smart hiring managers are doing instead:
- Looking for commercial acumen and problem-solving skills—not just technical ability.
- Hiring high-potential candidates who can grow into leadership roles.
- Using real-world case studies and assessments, not just CV screening.
📢 Rule of thumb: The best hires aren’t always the ones who’ve already done the job—you need to spot future leaders.
4. Hiring Processes Need to Be Faster Than Ever
If your hiring process takes too long, your best candidates will be gone.
👎 Common hiring delays that are costing companies talent:
- Too many interview stages.
- Waiting weeks for internal approvals.
- Slow contract and onboarding processes.
🚀 How to speed things up:
- Keep it to two interview stages for most roles.
- Give feedback within 48 hours.
- Make offers within 24-48 hours of the final interview.
📢 Rule of thumb: If your competitor makes an offer first, you’ve already lost.
5. The Rise of ‘Portfolio Careers’ in Finance
Not every finance professional wants a traditional 9-5 anymore.
👎 What businesses aren’t ready for:
- More finance professionals opting for contract, freelance, or fractional roles.
- A growing preference for project-based work instead of full-time employment.
- Candidates turning down roles because they want variety, not just one company.
🚀 How to adapt:
- Consider fractional or part-time finance hires instead of full-time roles.
- Offer contract-to-perm options for candidates who want flexibility.
- Be open to non-traditional career paths—some of the best finance minds are now working differently.
📢 Rule of thumb: The best finance talent might not want a full-time job—are you open to alternatives?
6. Finance Teams Are Becoming More Commercially Focused
The best finance professionals aren’t just number-crunchers—they’re strategic advisors.
Hiring based purely on technical finance skills won’t cut it anymore.
👎 What outdated hiring approaches miss:
- Ignoring commercial acumen in favour of pure technical ability.
- Hiring finance people who only report on numbers instead of influencing decisions.
- Not testing for problem-solving skills in the hiring process.
🚀 What smart companies are doing instead:
- Prioritising finance professionals with a commercial mindset.
- Looking for strategic thinkers who can guide business decisions.
- Involving finance in key leadership discussions—not just reporting after the fact.
📢 Rule of thumb: The best finance hires don’t just report numbers—they shape the business.
Final Thought: Stay Ahead or Get Left Behind
The finance hiring landscape is shifting fast. If you’re not adapting, you’re losing talent to competitors who are.
The businesses winning in 2025 are:
- Benchmarking salaries regularly to stay competitive. (We Do Benchmark!)
- Offering hybrid and flexible work as standard.
- Hiring for potential, not just past experience.
- Speeding up hiring processes to secure top talent first.
- Recognising that finance professionals want more than just a paycheck.
Want to make sure your finance hiring strategy is ready for 2025?
We Do Benchmark helps ensure your salaries are competitive—so you don’t lose top talent before you even start hiring.
We Do Group finds and secures the best finance professionals—before your competitors do.
