Spending enough time with family, prioritising personal goals and managing stress and fatigue are the most challenging aspects of managing work-life balance for accounting and financial services professionals, according to industry research by Macquarie.
Macquarie’s 2015/16 Accounting and Financial Services Benchmarking Report (AFS) recently surveyed 355 small to mid tier accounting and financial services firms nationally, looking beyond business performance drivers to consider what principals and partners are striving for on a personal level.
David Clatworthy, Division Director for Macquarie Wealth Management said that while confidence remains high among accounting and financial services firms, with 83 per cent positive about their future business prospects, challenges in balancing work and personal life are a common theme for many.
“Finding time to prioritise their own goals while also developing their business is the biggest personal challenge for accounting and financial services principals and partners, regardless of the size of their firm,” Mr Clatworthy said.
“Work-life challenges also centre on spending quality time with family, particularly for principals and partners of larger firms. For example, 45 per cent of leaders at firms earning more than $2 million per year in revenue reported not having enough time with their family as a major concern, compared to 35 per cent of smaller businesses.
“Effectively managing stress and fatigue at work and home is also a key concern for principals and partners, particularly for those leading smaller firms.”
Mr Clatworthy said that while work-life balance was still elusive for the majority of principals and partners across the industry, those leading the highest performing firms more actively utilised the resources at their disposal to help manage competing priorities.
“Owners of larger firms reported having more challenges in freeing up their time, with 48 per cent saying they don’t have enough time to do what they want to do for the business. This was also a concern for 44 per cent of smaller firms, suggesting greater business efficiencies and internal cohesion is needed to help win back more personal time.
“Indecision is a leading obstacle in the pursuit of work-life balance for smaller firms, which may be a reflection of the increasing complexities which come with a growing business.
“Ultimately, the principals and partners of the highest performing firms are less likely to see work-life balance and fatigue as solely personal challenges, and are more willing to leverage their firm’s resources in order to find more time for the things that matter – time with family, for themselves and on their business,” Mr Clatworthy concluded.
