Finance and accounting professionals are stressing out over their mounting responsibilities, according to a survey of 1,400 finance chiefs by staffing firm Accountemps. Not surprisingly, this trend is stressing out CFOs.
“There is an overwhelming feeling by CFOs that their duties are now far greater than they have been during traditional accounting cycles and traditional projects than at any time in the recent past,” says Susan Afan, senior regional manager for Robert Half International, Accountemps' parent company. “And they worry that as the increased work trickles down the corporate ladder, team members are becoming overburdened with responsibilities.”
Indeed, one in three CFO respondents (35%) said team members worry more about their increasingly heavy workloads than other troubling issues. Job security came in a distant second at 19%; corporate governance was third, with 17%, followed by personnel issues, 14%, and work/life balance issues, 11%. The remaining 4% didn't know or didn't consider any of these their top concern.
Afan attributed the escalating anxiety to several factors, including increasing regulation, a shortage of skilled workers and an uncertain economy. With concern over morale mounting, CFOs must, more than ever, become experts at prioritizing projects, eliminating less important plans and putting critical tasks on the front burner, says Afan.
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