Steve Carter

Now, it seems, is not the time to be finance professional. Really? OK, the City is having a bad time, but despite recent hype around downsizing, most organisations have long memories.

The lack of recruitment at trainee level coupled with downsizing programmes during the last recession manifested itself in a shortfall of qualifieds coming out of the system at the right time.

Those organisations have since suffered upward pressure on salaries, a scarcity of talent and a need to make extensive use of temporary staff - they won’t want to go through that pain again.

Larger practices, for instance, are developing their staff further and are giving them opportunities to take secondments in other business areas or to work in more buoyant markets overseas.

This is developing their future business leaders in ways that would have never arisen without the current market conditions.

So accountants - take heart - finance is about more than just the City.

Steve Carter is Managing Director of Nigel Lynn