By Eric R. Elmore, PICPA Vice President, Marketing & Member Experience

Accounting, like many other professions, is experiencing a well-documented talent shortage. Fewer university students are pursuing accounting degrees; fewer accountants are pursuing their CPA licensure; and more experienced professionals are leaving the job market or changing careers. This means firms and businesses in need of CPAs are all pulling from a shrinking pool of professionals who have the ultimate advantage of deciding where their next career move will take them. For small and midsize firms, it has always been hard to compete with larger firms with national reach and deep financial resources. If you want to gain the upper hand in the recruiting game, the only solution is to make your firm stand out.

A simple and integrated 3-2-1 communications campaign can help keep your firm top-of-mind among candidates for current or future positions. The plan can also provide insight into the job-seekers market, which can help with both future recruiting efforts and enhancements to firm culture. Here’s how a 3-2-1 campaign works.

The three primary ways to contact candidates are in-person (including video conference), via phone, or by email/text. Once you identify the candidates you wish to pull into your organization’s pipeline, schedule a campaign to consistently connect with them:

• Three (3) times a year via a phone call.
• Two (2) times per quarter via email.
• Once (1) per quarter in person or via video conference.

A 3-2-1 campaign could be employed even if a desired candidate has taken a role at another company, particularly one you are not competing with. For example, if a candidate chooses to work for a manufacturer, but you are recruiting for a casino. If they are a candidate today, usually they are an even stronger candidate tomorrow. But, for the most part, this method works especially well with university students.

To make this method even more effective, make sure your firm’s recruiting and human resources departments are involved. In fact, they should lead this effort as they will have the information needed to personalize messaging. In-person and phone connections should be conducted by recruiting and/or human resources or the hiring manager, but should be consistently the same person in order to build a personal relationship. Consider meeting for coffee, lunch, or dinner. Think of it like courting a client. When scheduling in-person meetings, involve others beyond recruiting and human resources. Give the candidate exposure to those they would be working with should they become a team member. It can make a transition decision easier.

Emails should be drafted with the marketing department’s input and should be personalized to each candidate. Here is an example:

“Hello, Susan. I hope all is well with you and your new role at Blaze Construction Company. Starting a new career is very exciting! When last we spoke, you and your family were traveling to Italy. My wife and I are planning an Italy trip, and I’d love to get some tips from you when you have the chance to talk. On another note, we’ve debuted our forensic accounting department, and we are having some great success with it. I recall you mentioning an interest in forensic accounting. I’d love to talk to you about that, too. Do you have about 15 minutes for a catch-up call in the next two weeks?”

In the email example, you’ll notice a more personal route was taken to help ensure engagement, but the author does not lose sight that this is a recruiting effort. Emails should come from an individual in the firm with whom the candidate is familiar, not automated email software. Avoid that at all costs.

While the recruiting and/or human resources team should lead this effort, remember this is a pseudo marketing campaign and should be managed as such. Metrics must be tracked, and the collected information put into a CRM or spreadsheet so you and recruiting/human resources can review the success of the campaigns together and adjust as needed.

Conceptually, it is a simple process, but it must be consistently worked on and personalized to ensure success. Even the smallest firms can employ a 3-2-1 campaign. In fact, it could be a game changer for your firm’s recruiting team. Just remember two things:

• Recruiting a candidate does not end when/if they choose another employer.
• Recruiting campaigns are marketing campaigns and an extension of your brand and culture.

I hope this works for you!

Read more about strategies for addressing the talent pipeline shortage in PICPA's Insights white paper, The CPA Pipeline: Crisis and Opportunity.

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