THE CLIENT
HW Fisher is a top 25 accountancy practice with two offices based in London and Watford. With over 30 Partners and 300 staff. Founded in 1933 HW Fisher supply a range of services spanning audit, corporate taxation, private client services, VAT, business recovery and forensic accounting, together with a range of sector groups offering specialist industry knowledge.
THE CHALLENGE
When I started working with HW Fisher the role had been open for a period of time. Audit Senior and Supervisor positions are historically difficult to fill due to the extremely candidate short nature at this level. The challenge is not just sourcing a good quality candidate but also managing the candidate correctly as at this level they will often have a number of offers not only from other accountancy practices but also roles in industry.
OUR SOLUTION
As a result of a long-standing relationship with Pro-Tax, and several successful placements made, I was invited to meet with Michael Fraser the HR Manager to assist with a vacancy in their Audit and Accounts department. We discussed immediate needs in their audit department, HW Fishers unique selling points, future growth and advised on the current salary and benefits benchmarking in the marketplace. This investigative meeting allowed me to fully understand the needs of HW Fisher and what they would identify as a stand out candidate. I know knew what they needed and how I was going to find this unique profile. Just as important as knowing what HW Fisher needed was knowing what their interview process would be. Armed with all this information and a freshly drafted job specification I knew my task. From my initial discussion with Michael a few profiles popped into my head so first and foremost I worked through a shortlist of my active candidates that I felt would be a good match in terms of skill set and company fit with HW Fisher. I then conducted a more thorough and exhaustive database search of our database, following up with targeted advertisements, and reaching out to candidates that are not yet in the marketplace but match the skill set required for this role.
THE RESULT
Following this targeted approach, I was able to create a long list of suitable candidates for the role. I then used the criteria discussed with Michael to identify a shortlist of three candidates which I presented to the client. All three were invited to interview and following the initial interviews and feedback, I was able to pass on current and up to date advice to the later stage interviews. Following a successful first stage process, there was a clear stand out profile. However, as expected this candidate was in high demand. With three other second stage processes on the week in question plus a full working week, we managed to arrange a final stage process at 7am on a Monday morning. This enabled me to follow on from an initial meeting with interview preparation to have a call on Saturday, running through some mock questions and I felt that my candidate was in a great position for the interview. Subsequently, my candidate was offered the position and delightedly accepted.
FOLLOW UP
I have a great working relationship with Michael. When I identify a suitable candidate, I will email Michael in the first instance and then we will discuss in greater detail on the phone. We regularly catch up and I am confident that this relationship will continue moving forward. “This was the first time I had worked with Callum on a role. He kept me informed throughout the process and was quick in coming back with candidate availability and feedback, and ultimately we successfully secured a strong candidate for our audit team. I would have no hesitation in working with Callum again” - Michael Fraser, HR Manager.
