Let’s face it. All firm owners and leaders know that to attract accounting talent in 2019 is no easy feat. In fact, it’s damn hard. The traditional ways of doing so would be through annual recruitment job fairs where each firm has their own booth and candidates get the same old run-down of why each firm is better than the next. If this is still your primary way of reaching out to the new generation of candidates, millennials and Gen Z, you are in for a world of hurt.
By the same token, I love seeing firms who really get how to connect with their intended audience to help attract accounting talent (in a free weekly email I write outlining the coolest things I’ve come across in the profession, I specifically mention 1 awesome recruitment tactic example – see #3 on the list). Which is why I wanted to unpack Armanino’s, a Top 25 firm in the US, recent video targeting, most likely, to the millennials and Gen Z candidates of the world.
Millennials and Gen Z are the largest segment of the workforce according to Pew Research and these generations think different and act differently. So when I saw Armanino’s latest recruitment video to attract accounting talent, I wanted to unpack the parts of it that I think does a good job.
Check the video and my comments below.
Minute 0:39 – Casual Work Attire
The days of suits and ties are long gone for everyday work attire at firms and is something that mostly doesn’t resonate with the younger generations. This point was most likely subtlety included here based on the 2 younger employees walking through the reception area in casual clothing.
Minute 1:18 – The CEO Hitting All The Right Notes… Through Video
The CEO talks of a few things important to these generations, all delivered through a modern communication style (video rather than a long boring email):
- Talking about the firm’s purpose (here I note the importance of making your firm’s purpose center stage based off of a Deloitte report on millennials – see takeaway #1)
- The CEO talks about diversity and societal impact at the firm, which these generations greatly value, again, according to that same Deloitte report that surveyed 10,000 millennials
Note that at 1:38, the “main character” states that it was cool to get a video from the CEO rather than an email that someone else probably else wrote. I agree.
Minute 2:03 – Getting Staff At All Levels Involved In The Business
You can see that the main character of the video is sitting on the sidelines during the staff advisory board meeting and then the presenter motioned him to join in at the table. Most firms don’t involve employees at all levels to be involved in the direction of the firm and instead they are relegated to just file work. These generations, more than ever, want to make an impact at their job and they want to speak up on ways to help improve the business (if they believe in its purpose). A lot of employees are frustrated with not having their voices heard and the main character comments specifically on this.
Minute 3:14 – The Google Office
Blame Silicon Valley for this one, but now that people know that “fun” offices exist, it’s pretty much been a trend among more traditional companies as well. The popcorn machines, etc, and common areas where people can socialize are selling points for many (though I would argue not nearly as important of a perk as offering flexible, remote work arrangements as I wrote about here).
Minute 3:40 – Innovation Talk
The girl on screen talks about blockchain, AI and cannabis, all emerging fields, which show that innovation and technology is important to the firm. Future candidates want a firm that is future-oriented.
Minute 4:03 – Societal Impact Helps To Attract Accounting Talent
The video references teaching English to kids in other parts of the world and volunteering at an elephant sanctuary. Again, working for a company that brings a societal impact is a key consideration for millennials and Gen Z according to the Deloitte report referenced above.
Minute 5:21 – Transparency At The Office
There was talk about transparency of how to make partner at the firm. The word “transparency” and the phrase “unveiling the curtain” were used, in a very deliberate attempt to show candidates that there are (hopefully) no closed doors, which many despise.
A Good, Modern Attempt To Attract Accounting Talent
Overall, the video was a great job of understanding and attacking many points that are not only important to all candidates, but in particular, millennials and Gen Z. I will say that there was a bit of a cheese factor throughout the video (the taco theme, meh), but it was not detrimental and the video likely succeeded in serving its purpose of demonstrating that the firm is modern enough to the generations that they are targeting.
