Making Money from Accountancy Practices.
Probably the most stable and easy to work market.
1. How to Make Money from Accountancy Firms.
2. The Accountancy Practice Market
3. Main Job Titles and Seniority Levels.
4. How to Source Good Placeable Candidates
5. Ten Tips from Experience of Top Billers
6. Preparing a Candidate For Interview.

How to Make Money recruiting for Accountancy Firms

ACTION 1. Source Your Data
You will have been given an exclusive geographical area to work. To maintain that exclusivity, you must generate sales within that area within three months. Everything that follows is designed to make that straightforward and quick.  Yu should have clients on day one and interviews to follow in month one.

The Market You Are Working In
Accountancy firms (often called Public Practice firms) range from small local practices to medium‑sized firms and large multi‑office groups. Larger firms may have branches across the UK or even internationally.

A few important points about this market:
• The profession consistently has more vacancies than suitable candidates, which makes it commercially attractive.
• Unlike their counterparts in commerce and industry in practice they are mostly charged out to clients thus providing a profit for the firm not an additional cost. This makes it a much easier market to sell to.
• Each partner in an accountancy firm is effectively a franchisee within the business. Every partner is therefore a potential client.
• Recruitment responsibility varies:
• Some partners recruit individually.
• Some firms nominate one partner to handle recruitment for the whole practice.
• Larger firms may have an HR manager or a central head office that manages recruitment, which may sit outside your exclusive area.
• The hit rate on phone calling is quite high. Expect about one client at least with then contact calls.
• If you her when calling anything negative of a firm it could be a good source of headhunting candidates looking for a move.
•Contact the firms Partner of any candidates employer that applies to your jobs. They are clearly going to have a need soon!

Separate articles on this website explain the roles these firms recruit for and the details you need to understand them.

The Four Main Sources of Data
There are three primary data sources that make it easy to identify every relevant firm and partner in your area.

A. Online Directories (e.g., Yell.com)
• Search by location and “accountancy firms.”
• Results typically include websites, phone numbers, and indicators of firm size.
• Because incorrect details would stop enquiries, these listings tend to be very up‑to‑date.

B. LinkedIn
• Provides comprehensive information on firms and the individual partners within them.
• When you have the Lusha.com browser extension installed, LinkedIn will also reveal mobile numbers and personal email addresses, which are essential for outreach.

C. Professional Institutes
• Bodies such as ICAEW (Chartered Accountants) and ACCA (Certified Accountants) maintain complete listings of:
• Firms
• Individual members
These lists allow you to confirm firm size, partner names, and sometimes contact details.

D. Firms own websites
usually have a profile and contact details of each partner.

Key Principle: Every Partner Is a Potential Client
Because partners are business owners within the practice, each one can make recruitment decisions. Your data‑sourcing process must therefore identify:
• All firms in your area
• All partners within those firms
• Who is likely to handle recruitment (partner, nominated partner, HR manager, or head office)

This ensures you always speak to the correct decision‑maker.

Here is a clean, structured, recruiter‑ready version of your instructions, written in clear British English and organised into a logical sequence someone can follow without confusion.

ACTION 2: Find a Hot Candidate To Sell
The purpose of this stage is simple: you contact partners only when you have something valuable to offer. A strong candidate in their area. This dramatically increases your success rate and removes the need for long introductions or gatekeeper battles.

Start With Your Data
Once you have sourced all the firms and partners in your exclusive area, your next step is to contact them with a specific candidate. This approach consistently works because you are offering something immediately relevant. Bear in mind this stage is a one off. Once you have a list of say 6 clients you will then move your attention to recruiting for them ongoing.

How to Get a Hot Candidate
To find a strong candidate to present:
• Speak to your Team Leader. They will post an advert on one of our job boards for your area
• Candidates will apply directly to you
• You may also have candidates from other sources
• Later, you will learn headhunting techniques using LinkedIn and Instantly

Your goal is to always have at least one strong, relevant candidate ready to present.

Information You Must Gather About the Candidate
Before you call any partner, you must know the key facts a partner might ask for. These are:

• Notice period. The shorter, the better. Immediate availability is ideal.
• Location. Within your area, or willing to relocate.
• Current and expected salary.
• Main experience. Accountancy practice recruitment is driven by technical experience. Audit, Accounts, Tax etc
• Career goals. What area do they want to work on.

You must be able to summarise their experience in one clear sentence.

Ready to Go? Once you have:
• A hot candidate
• Their key details
• Your partner contact list
• Mobile numbers via Lusha

…you are ready to start calling and generating live vacancies.

ACTION 3: The Exact Phone Approach
When the partner answers, keep it short, direct, and commercial:

“Hi, Alex, here Success Moves Recruitment. I have a qualified accountant who lives in your area looking for a move. Might you have a requirement at the YYYYYYY level currently?

That is all you need.

It works because:
• You are offering something specific and valuable
• You get straight to the point
• They can answer immediately with “yes,” “no,” or “tell me more”

This is the fastest way to uncover live vacancies.

Call them on Their Mobile.
You should always contact partners directly on their mobile number.
You will usually have this from:
• Their LinkedIn profile
• Their firm’s website
• Your Lusha browser extension, which gives you mobile numbers and personal emails

Avoid switchboards and receptionists. They slow you down and add no value.

ACTION 4: All Their Responses and your follow on.

A. “No, we’re not recruiting.”
Typical variations:
• “No, nothing at the moment.”
• “We’re fully staffed.”
• “Not right now.”

Your response:
“Ok, noted, thank you. Are there any typical roles you hire for, so I know what to look out for in the future?”

B. “Yes, we are recruiting.”
Typical variations:
• “Yes, actually we are.”
• “Possibly — what have you got?”
• “We might be.”

Your response:
• “Great — let me give you a quick snapshot of the candidate…”
• Give a 20–30 second summary.
• Then ask: “Would you like to see their CV?” or if they are very warm and interested go straight for, “Would you like me to arrange an interview. As you know good candidates go quickly”

C. “You need to speak to someone else.”
Variations:
• “Speak to my partner.”
• “HR handles this.”
• “Head office deals with recruitment.”

Your response:
• “Of course/ Who is the best person to speak to, and what’s is their number?”
•Always get the name, direct line, and email.
• Never accept “send it to info@.”

D. “Send it to HR.”
Your response:
• “Happy to send it over — who specifically in HR should I address it to?”
• Push for a named individual.
• If they resist: “I’ll copy you in so you can see what we send.”

E. “Tell me about them.”
Your response:
• Give a crisp summary
• Experience level
• Key technical skills
• Location
• Notice period
• Salary expectations
• Then ask: “Would you like to see their CV?”

F. “What’s their salary requirement?”
Your response:
• Give the range confidently.
• Then pivot: “Does that fit roughly where you’d expect someone at that level?”
If they respond that is too much for us or something similar, Great you now have a requirement for someone at a slightly lower level. Probe for all details.

G. “What’s their notice period?”
Your response:
• Give the notice.
• Add a benefit: “They’re flexible on start dates if needed.”
This response indicates they have an urgent need.

H. “What’s their experience?”
Your response:
• Give a short technical summary.
• Then ask: “Is that the type of profile you usually look for?”

I. “We only use agencies on our PSL.” or “We don’t use agencies.” (PSL= Preferred Supplier List)
Your response:
• “Understood. This is just someone who matches your area well. Also we have found that firms who don't use agencies it's because of the high immediate cash flow and the very high risk of a drop out of the failure of the person we have a GRIP contact contract which will spread the fee with the replacement guarantee over 12 months does that sound of interest does not need to mind”, Remember they charge the person out and get the recruitment fee back.

J. “Call me back later.”
Your response:
• “Sure, when’s best for you?”
• Book a specific time.

K. “Send me the CV first.”
Your response:
• “Absolutely, what’s the best email for you?”
• Confirm they will review it.

L. “We might be hiring soon.”
Your response:
• “Perfect, what roles are likely to come up?”
• Gather future hiring needs.

M. “We’re fully staffed.”
Your response:
• “Good to hear. What roles do you typically hire for when things change?”

N. “We’ve had bad experiences with agencies.”
Your response:
• “I understand. That is why we offer our GRIP terms which means the recruitment fee is spread over 12 months with a replacement guarantee for the whole period . That way you will know we will focus on the best long term fit not a quick buck. How does that sound?”

O. “We’re not interested.”
Your response:
• “OK, noted. Is there anything else specifically you would be interested in?” This response often gets an interesting and positive result.

P. “We’re only looking for juniors/seniors.”
Your response:
• “Understood. What is the ideal background exactly you are seeking?”

Q. “We’re restructuring.”
Your response:
• “OK What roles are likely to be affected or needed afterwards?”
Note of they are making redundancies or moving office this may present good new candidates opportunities.

R. No answer to phone call.
Send an email and make a note to call the next day. If there is a voicemail do leave a message.

ACTION 5: Discussing and Agreeing terms
A. “What are your terms?”

Our GRIP terms are very popular with public practice accountants. Accountants like to reduce risk and manage cash flow. GRIP offers both of those needs. We offer GRIP Retained and GRIP Contingency.  The only difference is that retained starts with one payment upfront and Contingency after placement. GRIP retained is cheaper and includes extra services like ai headhunting of passive candidates.  When you are ring with a candidate.

“We offer our special GRIP terms which mean you can spread the fee over 12 months  and have a full replacement guarantee for that whole period, repeated if necessary. GRIP retained has one payment upfront and includes priority and ai passive headhunting services.  For this deal I can offer you GRIP retained terms and lower prices for Contingency payment. For example, a £40,000 salary would equate to £700 per month. Anything else pro rata to that. How does that sound? “

YOUR CLIENT STRATEGY
The Core Strategy: Build a High‑Quality Portfolio of 6 Clients. Your goal is to secure six, strong accountancy‑firm clients in your exclusive area. This should be completed within month one. That number is ideal because:
• It gives you more than enough ongoing work.
• It keeps your workload focused and manageable.
• It allows you to deliver excellent service to each client.
• It ensures you always have repeat business without spreading yourself too thin.

Win the First Client at Any Reasonable Terms
When you are starting out, the priority is to secure your first client quickly. To do that:
• Accept any reasonable deal from your first prospective client.
• The aim is to get them on board, build confidence, and generate early activity.
• This first client becomes your proof of concept and gives you momentum, experience and income.

Once you have your first client:
• Continue prospecting using hot candidates.
• Add clients until you reach six.

This becomes your core client base.

Upgrade Strategy: Replace Problem Clients With Better Ones
Once you reach your target of 6 clients:
• Identify which ones are not ideal (slow, unresponsive, low hiring volume, poor interviewers, etc.).
• Replace weaker clients with higher‑quality firms as opportunities arise.
• Over time, your portfolio becomes stronger, more profitable, and easier to manage.
• As you build your own team you can pass the less than perfect clients to new team members.

Here is a list of what makes an ideal client

The Accountancy Practice Market

Why accountancy practice recruitment is a lucrative sector. 

1. Inflation. Firms can't keep increasing staff salaries. So candidates get rises by moving.

2. Firms of a similar size do pretty much same thing makes transfers easy.

3. Shortage of candidates to go around.

4. Accountant drop outs are less than 3% in first year.

5.Competition relys on advert responses alone. No innovations, USPs.

6.In turbulent economic times the profession is secure and always has demand outstripping supply. Commerce and industry will seem attractive but actually pays less overall and if course often downsize. So easy to blow that option out.

7.Not perfect fits mean skilled sales people can  really thrive. 

8.As salaries are good recruitment fees are always high.

9.Accountants in practice are fee earners in commerce and industry they are overheads. As they make a profit for their employer easier to sell especially attractive. 

10.GRIP offers better cash floow adn less risk. The two biggest moivatgioisn of Chartred Accouytnats.

11. Unlike commerce and industry practice accountants are business owners and easier to close on decisions.
 

Background on the Accountancy Profession.

British accountancy practices, laws and standards started with the setting up of ICAEW Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.  Scotland to this day has its own body.

Originally in a very class ridden society an aspiring accountant would sign ‘articles’ with a registered firm of Chartered Accountants.  They had (and have) to pass exams over three years and received no salary. So understandably it was only open to members of the Upper Class. There was no real middle class in those days. When qualified they have ACA after their name or sometimes FCA Fellow which means they have senior experience. This allows them by law to sign a set of accounts following a company audit.

Limited Liability companies were set up with usually Ltd after their name. This makes them a separate legal body to the directors or shareholders. A company can sue or be sued. This was a move to stop entrepreneurs becoming bankrupts and being put in jail for debts. This resulted in no one wanting to start a business. In return for that Limited liability of debts a company had to make its annual accounts public at Companies House.  To verify that report and accounts as a ‘true and fair view of the state of the business’ they must have “An Audit” by an independent firm of registered Chartered Accountants. So great news for the profession. Accountants like other professional firms must trade as a partnership and cannot form a Limited company. This makes them fully and personally responsible for their professional advice.  Each branch of a practice is a different business enterprise owned by the Partners.

What is a Partner?

The Partners are the leaders and owners of an accountancy firm. (Note firm, they are not a company).  They usually have a profit share on the portfolio. A Partnership deal though can be anything the partners wish to write up. Very different to being a director or a shareholder of a company.  Partners are liable for debts any one of them incurs in the business.   

As the industrial age grew there was an increased demand for accountants but a very short supply of upper-class wealthy types.  Hence was born the Institute of Certified Accountants.  Here much the same training qualified personnel could sign an audit of a company but rules and salary more supportive of newcomers to the profession. Ironically the latter received a Royal Charter and are the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

They have ACCA or FCCA after their name. It is effectively the same qualification as ACA but still a lot of snobbery about ACA being superior.

Later with factories developing became a whole new accounting need for costing and management accountancy. So was formed the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants. They qualify over three years and are called ACMA or FCMA. These people never work in accountancy practices and are found in commercial and industrial roles. Lage company accountancy departments are typically split into Financial and Management sections.

There is also an Institute of Accounting Technicians, a lower-level profession.  AAT.  Or MAAT.  Once qualified they cannot sign accounts, but they can continue with exemptions to become ACCA qualified.

There is also CIPFA Chartered Institute of Public Finance Accountants. These work entirely in government departments.

All commonwealth countries will adapt British qualifications, laws and standards. This is great because most of accountants in UK practice are Asian.
 

Job Roles in an Accountancy Practice.

Tax experts are very difficult to find and as such often an esy way in to a new client and also for very high fees.

 

Why we Focus our Recruitment in Accountancy Practice

The easiest money is in Practice not Commerce and Industry.  Accountants are more secure and well paid, so fees are high.

Accountancy Practice is a Candidate led market. Commerce and Industry is client led, so very different.

This means firms competing for candidates. Therefore, he who has the candidate as sole agency is king.

We are building clusters of Accountancy Practice (Chartered and Certified) firms by location. We only want accountants with practice experience. Always for audit and general accountancy roles. Similar size and sector of audits is important. You cannot go from auditing small firms to auditing the likes of BP, or vice versa. Also, some people have all their experience in a sector which has some unique operations. Charities for example is a big sector and quite specialist.
 

Work the candidates not the client vacancies.
You nurture and build your own candidate community. Then when someone is ready to move. You always say just leave it with me I have contacts in all the firms in your area at a more senior level than most agencies. You get these candidates before they apply to adverts. If they are already with even two agencies drop them. Obviously for a GRIP Retained deal you work for the client knowing you have no concerns about competition.

Then it is all about.
1. Finding exactly what they will move for.
2. Set up. If I get you an interview that offers what you want will you do an immediate interview. Any "think about it" types drop them. You MUST get sole agency of candidates. Two agencies halves their value.

3. Be sensitive to
a) Tire kickers. Those using you for free to negotiate a better deal with their boss. Or just check their value
b) Those who are already paid more than they are worth.

c) Unemployed. Best type of candidates they will interview immediately and take offers.

d) Less than perfect candidates can be good fee earners becasue most agencies will ignore them.

4. Move very fast.

5. Blow out a move to commerce and industry.
“Ooh very high risk now. Profession is secure and you can always transfer your skills to another firm.

How to get practice accountants coming to you.
1. Give them time on phone with career advice etc even if not moving now. Nurture their network.

3. Capture emails for a newsletter and connect with them oln LinkeDIn.
4. Offer to review their cv for free but only with sole agency. You tweak it to match client. Emphasising what they want.

Target working on at least 6 candidates at a time. And also keep your client portfolio to 6.

Client side.
1. When calling emphasise urgency. "This top candidate will be gone by Monday. How about seeing him tonight".
2. Learn quickly which clients.
A) Have a boss that sells himself and his firm well.
B) Interviews and offers quickly.
C) Offers premium salaries.

3.Working from home policy. Popular with candidates but difficult due to confidentiality of client papers.
 

Sources of Practice Accountants.

Networking is key.  Persuade one person to refer their friends and repeat process 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 34, 68, etc.  Good networkers are masters at getting people they call to let them into their networks.

Excellent but consider that if someone is applying to your advert, they are looking at other adverts and poor chance to have sole agency. The company gives priority giving advert credits to our Partners who take more action.

We have advertised for over ten years on CVL for Accountancy practices jobs and all the CVs of people who applied are still there.  Ring them and ask them how they are doing.  Much better chance of getting candidates at early stages considering a move and therefore sole agency.

a) Connect and build a network on LinkedIn.

b) Join groups which will have Accountants in and message them directly. Candidates often post their CVs in groups and ask if anyone has the job they are looking for.

c) Post free jobs on Linkedin.

d) Pay for premium services, Sales Navigator, Recruiter Lite or Recruiter Professional are the three worth considering. 

e) Post a blog on Linkedin about Practice Accountancy career opportunities.

We can buy this in, but we need to be convinced it is going to be worked regularly and thoroughly. We can also use this and employ a telemarketer support to make first contact for anyone who is clearly delivering results.

Talking to anyone in your grape vine of contacts you will pick up when a firm is in trouble, relocating or has a bad boss. Or a company that says they have enough recruiters and does not want to use us.  Search on Linkedin for staff in these firms and approach them directly.

Networking vs Selling

Selling is ringing a candidate and asking them if they would like a better job with more salary and convincing them of the merits of a move now.

Networking is the art of making a new friend and giving them free career advice relevant to them at the time. To win credibility and trust and encourage them to refer and recommend you to their contacts and give you information about anyone in their current firm. And if the current firm is in fact recruiting and some insider facts about working there. Soon you build a community of trust, and you are increasingly approached by accountants selling advice long before they are active on the job market. Most struggle with networking as not instant gratification.
 

Selling Your Candidates

Because there are more vacancies than candidates the market lends itself to a skilled salesperson selling the benefits of a not perfectly matched candidate. Someone who is willing to learn the skill shortage area.  Someone that is not ideal but lives local and can start immediately with a keen attitude. Someone who is not qualified but got relevant experience. The money goes to the sensitive and skilled persuaders who can talk them into the candidates you have rather than endlessly looking for their ideal profile.
 

The biggest earners are.

Candidate Interview Essential Questions Checklist

Main Job Titles  and Seniority Levels in UK Accountancy Firms

Trainee Accountant
Typically AAT, ACCA or ACA students doing basic accounts, bookkeeping, admin.
Salary (London): £22k–£28k

Junior Accountant / Junior Auditor
Early career, doing accounts preparation, audit testing, bookkeeping.
Salary: £26k–£32k

Semi‑Senior Accountant / Semi‑Senior Auditor
Part‑qualified, handling sections of audits or full accounts jobs with supervision.
Salary: £30k–£38k

Senior Accountant / Senior Auditor
Qualified or nearly qualified, leading assignments and reviewing juniors.
Salary: £40k–£50k

Assistant Manager
Supervises teams, reviews work, supports managers.
Salary: £48k–£58k

Manager
Manages a portfolio of clients, leads audits, handles client relationships.
Salary: £55k–£70k

Senior Manager
Oversees multiple teams, handles complex clients, supports partners.
Salary: £70k–£90k

Partner / Equity Partner
Business owner; responsible for revenue and firm strategy.
Salary/Drawings: £120k–£250k+ depending on firm size
 

Main Functional Areas (Departments)
Accounts & Outsourcing
Accounts prep, management accounts, cloud accounting (Xero/QuickBooks).

Typical salaries:
• Junior: £26k–£32k
• Senior: £40k–£50k
• Manager: £55k–£70k

Audit
Statutory audits, fieldwork, leading audit teams.
Typical salaries:
• Junior: £26k–£32k
• Senior: £42k–£52k
• Manager: £60k–£75k

Tax
Personal tax, corporate tax, mixed tax, VAT.
Typical salaries:
• Assistant: £28k–£35k
• Senior: £45k–£55k
• Manager: £60k–£80k

Bookkeeping & Payroll
Bookkeeping, VAT returns, payroll processing.
Typical salaries:
• Bookkeeper: £28k–£35k
• Senior Bookkeeper: £35k–£42k
• Payroll Administrator: £28k–£35k
• Payroll Manager: £40k–£55k

Advisory & Specialist
Corporate finance, forensic, insolvency, R&D tax, trusts.
Typical salaries:
• Analyst: £35k–£45k
• Senior: £50k–£65k
• Manager: £70k–£90k

For a more up to date and local salary statistics just look on either Reed or CVLibrary jobs.

Summary 

• Trainee → Semi‑Senior → Senior → Manager → Senior Manager → Director → Partner

• Accounts, Audit, Tax are the three main departments.

• London salaries are 10–20% higher than the rest of the UK.

• Audit and tax specialists usually earn slightly more than accounts.

• Newly qualified (ACA/ACCA) typically land at £45k–£55k in London.

How to Source Good Placeable Candidates

First let us look at why accountants in public practice might be looking for a new role. This will give a clue as to where to find them.

A public‑practice accountant changes jobs for a surprisingly wide range of reasons, and the more you understand these motivations, the easier it is to place them and gt them to accept offers. Find out their top three reasons in order. Then when it comes to sell them and in fact to close on them when offered you will have the information at hand to make it easy.

Career Progression and Ambition
• Limited promotion prospects. Stuck at Senior, Supervisor, Assistant Manager, or Manager level.
• Seeking partnership track. Wants clearer or faster progression to equity or salaried partner.
• Wants broader experience e.g, moving from accounts to audit, audit to tax, or into advisory.
• Wants more responsibility. Managing a team, leading audits, handling bigger clients.
• Firm too small to grow. No room to move up because partners never retire or leave.

Salary, Benefits, and Financial Drivers
• Wants a higher salary. Current firm not keeping up with market rates.
• Poor bonuses or no bonuses, feels undervalued financially.
• Better benefits elsewhere, pensions, study support, hybrid working, overtime policies.
• Cost‑of‑living pressures, needs a role closer to home or with better pay.

Work–Life Balance and Lifestyle
• Long commute, wants to stop travelling into a big city and work locally.
• Long hours culture, especially in audit-heavy firms.
• Wants hybrid or remote options, current firm is old‑fashioned or rigid.
• Returning to work after children, needs flexibility or part‑time options.
• Relocating, moving house, moving back from abroad, or joining a partner in a new area.

Job Security and Stability
• Unemployed, redundancy, returning from abroad, or contract ended.
• Firm losing clients, instability, poor management, or shrinking portfolio.
• Merger or acquisition, uncertainty, culture change, or role duplication.
• Toxic environment, bullying, poor leadership, or high staff turnover.

Culture, People, and Management
• Poor relationship with manager or partner, personality clash or lack of support.
• Firm culture doesn’t suit them, too corporate, too small, too informal, or too rigid.
• Lack of training or mentoring, especially for part‑qualified staff.
• Wants a more modern, tech‑driven firm, cloud accounting, automation, digital-first.

Personal Development and Professional Goals
• Wants exposure to larger clients, more complex work, bigger audits, or advisory.
• Wants to specialise, tax, corporate finance, audit, R&D, forensic, insolvency.
• Wants to leave a specialism, e.g., too much audit, wants mixed practice.
• Finished exams, now wants a role that reflects their new qualification.
• Wants to escape a niche, e.g., only doing bookkeeping or only doing small audits.

Environment and Firm Structure
• Firm too old‑fashioned, paper-based, slow, resistant to change.
• Firm too chaotic, no processes, poor systems, disorganised partners.
• Firm growing too fast, pressure, lack of structure, burnout.
• Firm not growing at all, stagnation, no excitement, no new opportunities.

High‑Value Sources for Headhunting Accountants in Public Practice
A strong headhunting strategy in public‑practice accountancy relies on multiple overlapping talent platforms.

Job boards,
Quick, effective and automated. Downside is other agencies have the same candidates so need to get them early and move fast.

LinkedIn,
Personal connections and more importantly group memberships. Uss Lusha.com for personal mobiles and em ails on each profile.

Instantly/email
Lead scrape a list of accountants in your area and set up scheduled headhunt emails.

These are the main three but others include:

Professional Institutes and Membership Bodies
Bodies such as ICAEW, ACCA, AAT, CTA, ATT, maintain directories, student lists, and event attendance records. These contain large numbers of qualified and part‑qualified accountants who are active in the profession.

Referrals From Existing Candidates
Accountants often know others at the same level.

Competitor Firm Websites
Many firms list their staff. These names can be cross‑checked on LinkedIn and contacted directly.

Networking Events and CPD Sessions
Accountants regularly attend: CPD workshops, Tax update seminars, Audit regulation briefings, Local ICAEW/ACCA branch events

These environments are full of people open to new opportunities.

Ten Tips from experience of top billers on How to Make Placements & Maximise Your Income in Public Practice Recruitment

This is your fast‑track guide to making placements, earning serious commission, and building a reputation in public practice accountancy recruitment.

Public practice is one of the most lucrative recruitment sectors, if you know how to play the game. It is also a market destined to increase recruitment needs in the age of AI.

So, here are the core behaviours, tactics, and habits that will make you money.

1. Only work with serious candidates

You need candidates who are genuinely ready to move — not people testing the market at your expense.

The best candidate is exclusive to you, unemployed or immediately available, and not interviewing with other agencies.

2. Ask every candidate what interviews they have already done

This gives you instant leads.

If they have interviewed somewhere, that firm is hiring — call them.

3. Ask for three referrals as a standard step

Make it part of your process, not a favour.

Every candidate knows other accountants.

Referrals are the fastest way to build a pipeline.

4. Prospect the candidate’s current firm

Even if they say the firm is not recruiting, they clearly have someone leaving.

That means they will be recruiting soon.

Get in early and position yourself as the solution.

5. Improve your candidates’ interview performance

Accountants are not natural salespeople.

They are not always strong negotiators.

Send them to the coaching and support materials on our website — it increases their success rate and your placement rate.

6. Ask candidates if you can take up references

Reference‑taking is one of the best ways to break into new clients.

The call is not blocked, and previous managers are happy to talk.

This is a warm introduction to a hiring decision‑maker.

7. Secure exclusivity with every candidate

Tell them clearly:

“If you apply directly, it weakens your position. I will personally market you in a professional way that positions you for a higher‑level role and salary.”

Check they have not already applied anywhere.

Exclusivity gives you control — and control makes placements.

8. Speed wins in recruitment

He or she who moves the fastest makes the most money.

Call candidates quickly.

Submit CVs quickly.

Book interviews quickly.

Follow up quickly.

If clients are slow to see people replace them with clients that move fast and the longer, they wait the more they will lose the candidate.

Public practice recruitment is a speed game.

9. Celebrate every placement with your candidate

When you place someone, take them for a celebratory drink.

It locks loyalty, reduces counteroffers, and opens referral conversations.

It also gets you into the accountant community — which is where future placements come from.

If they are working a notice period, check they have resigned, agreed a start date, and pre‑empt the “What if your boss offers you more money to stay?” conversation.

10. Use GRIP — our strongest selling point to firms recruiting.

GRIP stands for Guaranteed Replacement Interview Programme.

We can spread fees and offer replacement guarantees over 6, 12, or even 24 months, with one month upfront.

This effectively becomes a retainer — and it locks out the competition.

Accountants love risk‑free hiring.

GRIP is your competitive advantage.

Final message

If you follow these steps, you will make placements faster, earn more commission, and build a strong reputation in your niche.

Public practice recruitment rewards speed, discipline, and smart commercial behaviour.

Use these tactics daily and you will see results quickly.

Preparing a Candidate for Interview

Accountants are typically not good at interviews they are not natural salespeople so you can considerably improve their performance at interview and therefore get more offers by preparing them with a few short tips and some motivation and confidence boosters. You may also like to redraft their CV with copilot. Also, in preparation is to find out their goals and set them up to accept offers.

Partners in public‑practice accountancy tend to ask a very predictable set of interview questions. They focus on technical competence, client handling, work ethic, and career motivation. A new recruitment consultant only needs to understand the patterns to prepare candidates properly, so that they are prepared. Ask these questions yourself, rather than email them. This way they will gain experience in a real interview situation. It will lift their confidence, and they will have good answers. It also gives you the opportunity to probe their answers. You may detect a weak response which you can coach.

The Most Common Interview Questions in Public‑Practice Accountancy

Technical and Work‑Based Questions

1. Can you walk me through your experience in accounts/audit/tax?
2. What size and type of clients have you worked with?
3. What software do you use? (Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, CCH, CaseWare, etc.)
4. How confident are you preparing year‑end accounts?
5. What parts of an audit have you led or completed independently?
6. What tax returns have you handled? (Personal, corporate, VAT, etc.)
7. How do you manage deadlines during busy season?
8. How do you ensure accuracy and reduce errors in your work?
9. What is your experience reviewing juniors’ work?
10. How do you handle multiple clients at once?

Client‑Facing and Communication Questions
11. How do you explain technical issues to non‑technical clients?
12. Tell me about a difficult client and how you handled it.
13. How do you build long‑term client relationships?
14. Have you ever spotted an issue in a client’s accounts and how did you deal with it?

Motivation and Career Questions
15. Why are you looking to move from your current firm?
16. What are your long‑term career goals?
17. Are you looking for progression to Senior/Manager/Partner in the future?
18. What do you enjoy most and least about your current role?

Practical and Fit Questions
19. What is your notice period and availability?
20. What salary are you looking for?
21. Why do you want to work for our firm specifically?
22. How do you handle pressure and tight deadlines?
23. What are your strengths and weaknesses?
24. How do you stay up to date with accounting standards and tax changes?

Why These Questions Matter
Partners ask these because they want to quickly understand:
• Can they do the job technically?
• Can they handle clients professionally?
• Will they fit into the team?
• Are they ambitious or stable?
• Will they stay long‑term?
• Are they worth the salary they are asking for?

How Consultants Should Coach Candidates
• Keep answers structured: Situation → Action → Result.
• Avoid negativity about current employers.
• Emphasise client handling and communication.
• Highlight progression, responsibility, and technical competence.
• Prepare one strong example for each major area: accounts, audit, tax, deadlines, teamwork.

Salary negotiation that works in public practice

1. Anchor expectations early
Candidates should state a reasonable range when asked about salary, not a single number. This gives flexibility and avoids boxing themselves in.

2. Link salary to market value
Partners respond well when candidates show awareness of London market rates and explain their expectations based on experience, qualification, and responsibilities.

3. Emphasise value, not cost
Candidates should talk about what they bring: client handling, audit leadership, tax expertise, software skills, mentoring juniors. This reframes the conversation from “price” to “return on investment.”

4. Avoid negotiating too early
Candidates should not discuss salary until the partner raises it, which is clearly a buying signal. Early negotiation weakens their position and distracts from selling themselves.

5. Use competing interest subtly
If the candidate has other interviews or interest, they should mention it lightly, not as pressure, but as context that they are in demand.

6. Stay flexible on structure
If the firm cannot meet the top of the range, candidates can negotiate on:
• Job Title. This is quite powerful as it gives status and that is a key motivator.
• Progression reviews. Review in three months is a very practical way to come to terms on a salary negotiation.
• Study support if relevant.
• Hybrid or remote working
• Bonus scheme.

Closing techniques that help secure the offer
7. Show clear enthusiasm for the role
Partners want people who genuinely want to join. Candidates should say something like:
“I really like the culture here and the type of clients you work with. I can see myself fitting in well.”

8. Ask closing questions
Strong closers ask questions that move the process forward:
• “Is there anything in my experience you’d like more detail on?”
• “Do you feel I’d be a good fit for the team?”
• “What are the next steps?”

9. Reinforce fit at the end
Candidates should summarise why they match the role: technical skills, client handling, progression goals, and cultural fit. This helps the partner visualise them in the job.

10. Make it easy for the partner to say yes
Candidates should end with a confident, positive close:
“I am very interested in this position. If you feel the same, I would be delighted to move forward.”

Why this works
Partners in public practice are busy, commercial, and decisive. They respond best to candidates who are:

• Clear about their value
• Confident but not arrogant
• Flexible but not weak
• Enthusiastic but not desperate
• Professional and commercially aware

This combination dramatically increases the chance of an offer.