2025 Canada Finance and Accounting Job Market Outlook

3.8% August 2025 unemployment rate

Finance and accounting leaders continue to face challenges from budget constraints and technical debt to change management and skills gaps. Ongoing challenges in finding the skilled talent required for critical projects is also raising the stakes for teams already navigating complex regulatory and reporting demands.

Many firms are turning to contract professionals, both to support project-based or short-term needs and to close skills gaps, and are embracing flexible workforce planning. Others are implementing more AI and automation tools to boost efficiency, which is leading to demand for professionals with relevant experience. Blending digital tools with specialized expertise can help companies maintain compliance, manage workloads and client expectations, and sustain momentum on priority initiatives.

Finance and accounting leaders report it takes roughly 5 weeks to hire candidates for permanent roles.

said evaluating applications and determining which candidates to interview is their greatest hiring challenge. said evaluating applications and determining which candidates to interview is their greatest hiring challenge.

Hiring for strategic priorities: permanent and contract staff

Finance and accounting leaders shared their top priorities through the end of the year for hiring permanent employees and engaging contract talent.

Improving planning, budgeting and forecasting processes

Financial reporting and compliance

Refining data and analytics strategies

AI implementation

Refining data and analytics strategies

Financial reporting and compliance

Budget
constraints for
headcount Technical
debt Change
management Cross-
functional
collaboration Skills gaps
on the team Employee
engagement Budget
constraints for
headcount Technical
debt Change
management Cross-
functional
collaboration Skills gaps
on the team Employee
engagement

65% of finance and accounting leaders reported skills gaps within their department, and 57% said the impact of those gaps has increased in the last year.

Tax Audit Payroll Financial
reporting Finance
and FP&A Tax Audit Payroll Financial
reporting Finance
and FP&A

Make sense of shifting job market dynamics

Our Labour Market Overview puts the latest reports from Statistics Canada in context. Get data on employment trends and unemployment numbers, as well as our exclusive analyses of job posting data. 

Get the latest info

Almost all finance and accounting leaders said they need to add new staff or at least maintain current headcount to deliver on top business priorities. Yet 87% of those hiring said it’s challenging to find the talent they need in the current market.

of leaders are hiring for new permanent positions. 

are hiring only for vacated permanent positions. 

Hiring plans for the second half of 2025: contract professionals

67% of finance and accounting leaders said they’re increasing their use of contract talent. They also shared what they view as the greatest value in engaging these professionals.

Cost savings compared with permanent hiring

Access to specialized skills or expertise 

Flexibility in scaling workforce

Faster staffing for critical roles

Finance and accounting professionals in highest demand

The following positions are in the top 10% of finance and accounting roles in demand, according to an analysis of thousands of job postings and Robert Half placements.

Accounting manager

Collections/credit analyst

Cost accountant

Director of finance

Financial analyst 

Manager of financial planning and analysis

Payroll administrator

Procurement manager

Senior accountant

Tax manager

Learn more about the top roles in demand

At Robert Half, we know talent

Our mission: Bringing great companies and skilled talent together to help build successful businesses and rewarding careers. Innovation and high ethical standards have taken us from a small operation to the world’s largest specialized talent solutions and business consulting firm with offices across the globe. Hire Talent Schedule a walk-through

Looking for a job? Search open roles now

*Statistics Canada, seasonally adjusted, September 2025.

The surveys cited were developed by Robert Half and conducted by an independent research firm. Results may not total 100% due to rounding or allowing for multiple responses. Respondents included executives and hiring managers from small (10-99 employees), midsize (100-999 employees) and large (1,000-plus employees) businesses in private, publicly listed and public sector organizations across Canada.

Over 420,000 new positions from more than 5,400 unique independent job boards and company websites provided by TextKernel are represented in our analysis of in-demand roles, including 6,300-plus placements from Robert Half. This dataset includes roles across the finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, legal, administrative and customer support, and human resources professions.