Creating a Career Destination: Why Top Finance Talent Should Want to Work for You

In today’s talent market, offering a good job isn’t enough. Especially in finance. The professionals you really want — the ones who understand both compliance and strategy, who can hold their own in front of auditors, and who aren’t afraid to challenge the numbers — they’re in demand. They can work anywhere.

So why would they choose you?

The companies attracting (and keeping) top financial talent aren’t just paying well. They’ve become what we call career destinations — workplaces that offer more than a role. They offer a future. And if you’re serious about building a strong finance team, you need to build that kind of destination — one that professionals want to join, stay in, and grow with.

What Do Finance Professionals Actually Want?

Let’s cut through the fluff. Financial professionals — especially the good ones — don’t need beanbags or ping pong tables. They want three things:

A sense of purpose. They want to work for a company that stands for something and operates with integrity.

Room to grow. They’re ambitious. If they can’t see a path forward, they’ll look elsewhere.

Relevance. They want to work on meaningful problems, with up-to-date systems, alongside people who challenge and develop them.

They’re not looking for a job that just pays the bills. They’re looking for a place that helps build their credibility, stretch their skills, and give them a seat at the table when decisions are made.

If you’re not offering that — someone else is.

What a Career Destination Actually Looks Like

This is not about ticking HR boxes. It’s about how your business feels from the inside.

Are junior team members encouraged to ask questions, or are they expected to keep quiet and do as they’re told?

Do people in your finance team feel heard when they raise concerns — or like they’ll be labelled “difficult”?

Are you investing in systems and processes that make their work better, faster, and more accurate — or are they still juggling spreadsheets and patchy ERP data?

Are your people attending CPD, industry webinars, or technical updates — or is professional development treated like a nice-to-have?

You don’t need a big budget to build a strong employer brand. You need clarity, consistency, and credibility. If you want to attract top-tier professionals, they need to see that your company is a place where:

Good governance is a non-negotiable.

Ethics isn’t just a policy; it’s embedded in how you do business.

Financial input is valued at the highest levels, not just at year-end.

The Role of the CFO in Employer Branding

Here’s the part most people miss: this isn’t just an HR function. Your employer brand — especially in finance — starts with you.

Your finance team looks to you for more than technical leadership. They look to you to see what kind of future is possible here. If you don’t invest in their development, why should they invest their long-term future in you?

CFOs who are winning the talent war are doing a few things differently:

They speak openly about the challenges and opportunities facing the business — and invite their teams into those conversations.

They mentor and coach, especially the mid-level professionals who will become tomorrow’s finance leaders.

They modernise systems and processes, reducing the manual grind so people can focus on analysis and insight.

They champion continuous learning, making CPD, technical development, and industry exposure part of the job, not a bonus.

And perhaps most importantly: they listen. The best way to retain great people is to create an environment where people feel seen, heard, and supported — not just as employees, but as professionals building careers.

Why This Matters for CFOs

As a CFO, you’re not just managing numbers — you’re managing risk, reputation, and the long-term resilience of your business. And in a world where financial scrutiny is rising from every angle — SARS, audit committees, regulators, boards — the strength of your team is a strategic asset.

You don’t just need people to fill roles. You need trusted professionals who understand the complexities of compliance, who can speak the language of strategy, and who won’t flinch when pressure hits.

When you build a finance team that sees your company as a career destination, you:

Spend less time and money on recruitment because your team stays longer and performs better

Hold on to institutional knowledge that would otherwise walk out the door

Improve audit readiness and compliance outcomes with a stable, well-trained team

Ensure leadership continuity by developing talent from within

Elevate the perception of finance across the business — from back-office to strategic partner

This isn’t just about looking good on LinkedIn. It’s about building a department — and a business — that can withstand change, attract excellence, and deliver consistent results when it counts. Your people are your edge. Make sure they’re choosing to stay.

Building It from the Inside Out

You don’t build a strong brand by saying “we’re a great place to work.” You build it when your team says it for you. When your junior accountant tells her friend, “They really invest in us here.” When your finance manager chooses to stay, even when recruiters come calling. When your finance intern becomes your next senior analyst — and then your future FD.

That’s what a career destination looks like. And it starts with leadership.

Creating a Career Destination: Why Top Finance Talent Should Want to Work for You