Should You Hire a Temporary or Full-Time Accountant?

This is an intriguing question. To find the answer, you have to ask a few additional questions such as: What are your most important long- and short-term goals? What departments are in need, and will that need be sustained? What does management think? 

Finalizing hiring needs requires dialogue; and with most fiscal years wrapping up, this is a good time to start that dialogue. So let’s dig a bit deeper and explore the benefits of both temporary and full-time staff. 

Why hire temporary staff? 

Companies turn to temporary accountants to serve a specific purpose, project, or goal. Maybe there are individuals out on maternity leave or maybe you have valued employees out on extended disability. Perhaps there has been a sudden departure or a last minute project has come in requiring the extra help. Or, maybe your management team would just like to get to know someone’s work ethic and skill level before making a full-time financial commitment. 

Temporary staff can help in all of these capacities and more.  Temporary staff affords you the option to easily increase capacity or add unique skills sets without long-term cost and overhead.  

When full-time candidates may be the right approach.

While temporary support can add a lot of flexibility and cost savings into your workforce model, there are cases in which full-time hires are the more appropriate approach.  When examining current needs, project out over the next year.  If you feel there is a sustained need/demand that requires long-term support, a full-time hire might be needed.  You may also want to consider a full-time hire for positions that require extensive training and in-depth insider knowledge.   If the position will require building or strengthening a relationship with outside clients, you may also want to consider a full-time hire to establish consistency and build a stronger rapport.

Still unsure?  Consider temporary-to-hire.    

If you’re still unsure whether a temporary or full-time hire is needed, you might want to consider temporary-to-hire as an approach.  This model combines that best of both worlds. An accounting or finance professional is brought on in a temporary role at first.  This allows you time to evaluate a candidate within a work setting. For some employers, judging a candidate’s fit among their staff can be hard to determine in just a few short interviews. This option provides extra time to see if your initial judgment was correct and also to determine if a full-time hire is actually needed.   

At PrideStaff Financial, we take great care in finding the best fit for your hiring needs. Whether you are looking for full-time, temporary, or temporary-to-hire support —we can help. Contact us today.