tax professionals - latest salary guide and tax recruitment trends

Market & salary surveyTax market report 2014/15 - UK

Brewer Morris | MARKET & SALARY SURVEY @brewermorris2

Great news!

Since this time last year we have seen sustained growth throughout the taxation market.

As you will see many times in our market report all sectors have shown significant increases in recruitment capacity, either through hiring already undertaken or in expected hiring needs over the coming months.

The market has become more fluid, with a number of employers understanding that there is not enough talented candidates to go round, resulting in a higher degree of flexibility to hire individuals “out of sector”. Further to this we are experiencing improved appetite to seriously consider overseas candidates, either from across the EU, or those from technically robust tax jurisdictions such as Australia, New Zealand and North America, work Visa’s permitting.

At the senior end of the market we have assisted with a number of high profile moves as a result of either restructuring or retirement, both in-house and in the profession.

The restructuring of in-house functions to align tax resources to an appropriate balance between tax risk and supporting business needs and objectives is starting to result in multiple hire exercises being undertaken by corporates.

The Big 4 has by and large come through a difficult period, evidenced by a surge in demand nationally across all tax specialisms, with the Tier A market extremely active with firms vying for market share.

I’m pleased to say that this upward trend has by and large had an understandably positive effect on remuneration, with rises in base salaries and/or bonuses almost consistently across the board. The surge in confidence and renewed appetite for employers to build their taxation teams means that there is an ever-increasing gap between the availability of talent and the demand for these individuals.

As a result we are witnessing a return of enhanced remuneration packages on offer that present a real premium and uplift in current salary, with occasional sign on or guaranteed bonuses which we have not really seen since before the global financial crisis.

This is especially prevalent for those individuals with technical expertise in M&A, TP, Expatriate Tax or certain areas of VAT, where demand is highest.

It is therefore a great time to be a taxation professional looking for a new role.

INTRODUCTION

Mark PryorBrewer Morris

Mark is the Global Lead Partner for Brewer Morris. With over 18 years’ experience in taxation recruitment he has been personally responsible for some of the highest profile hires and campaigns in the UK and internationally.

brewermorris.com Brewer Morris | MARKET & SALARY SURVEY 3

Market Overview

Since the second half of last year, market sentiment across the vast majority of our commerce & industry clients has been positive. There has been a significant increase in not just the volume of roles, but also the breadth of skills sought and the variety of levels they are being sought at. We have been encouraged by the return of significant team building exercises where Heads of Tax have been adding to their teams and growing the function. This has been in addition to an increase in the number of tax planning and strategy roles coming to the market which have supplemented the continued focus on tax compliance, reporting and forecasting and the subsequent recruitment in this area.

We have also seen a number of firms looking to grow their specialist tax offering through hiring into indirect tax and employment and expatriate tax positions. This positive feel to the market also extends to the majority of our clients across banking and the broader financial services sector which we elaborate on over the next few pages.

The Year Ahead

The majority of our clients who responded to the survey saw their teams either growing or maintaining size with 30% of the Heads of Tax anticipating growth in at least one specialist area of the team. This further supports the general trends we have experienced over the last 12 months and paints a bright picture for the year ahead. Having spoken with a number of different Heads of Tax we have also been encouraged to hear that there is a growing appetite for roles

which focus on commercially driven tax planning and the return of a sensible balance between managing tax risk and adding tax value.

Remuneration & Recruitment Trends

Our survey focussed, in the main, on the change in salary levels, bonus awards, overall remuneration packages and recruitment trends. We found that the positive market trend continued when considering salaries, with 91% of those who responded looking to award a salary increase, with the majority of those being in the 1 – 3% scale. Also, 95% of Heads of Tax are looking to award a bonus with the majority of those greater than 20%. The desire to recruit and to award staff with competitive salary increases and bonuses is often tempered by the reality of recruiting. Most clients have cited that once getting clearance to recruit, it is really the highly competitive nature of the tax market which is the biggest problem.

Benchmarking & Structure services

At Brewer Morris we take a great deal of time to work with our clients in providing a more rounded advisory service, not just the hiring process. As a result, we are able to provide an invaluable insight into the workings of tax functions across a number of territories and businesses, with differing business priorities and of various sizes. We are often asked to provide our clients with a view on how other teams are structured and the draw-backs and benefits of building their teams in a certain way, as well as on specific remuneration structures.

COMMERCE & INDUSTRY

Matthew GravelleBrewer Morris

Matthew joined Brewer Morris in 2004 having previously qualified and worked as a solicitor. Matthew is the Partner who leads the BM Commerce & Industry & Financial Services recruitment team.

23% ....... 1 to 5 24% ....... 6 to 1023% ....... 11 to 20 17% ....... 21 to 507% ......... 51 to 996% ......... 100 +

Size of Tax TeamGlobally

35% ....... FTSE 10016% ....... FTSE 25027% ....... Overseas ............... Multinationals

11% ....... Private Company11% ....... Other

Type of company


Since Q4 2013 and throughout 2014 we have experienced increased recruitment activity across all industry sectors. Encouragingly this activity spans across all levels and we have facilitated a number of high profile moves at the senior level that have been a combination of strategic team expansion and replacing those leaving. More and more we are seeing companies taking the decision to replace leavers rather than to use it as a means of downsizing and saving headcount costs. This natural churn is most evident at the Assistant Manager, Manager and Senior Manager levels where you expect to see highest volume.

We have been involved in several team and multiple hire campaigns for clients who are restructuring and up-skilling tax teams. These have included Heads of Tax, in addition to roles from Senior Director down to Manager level and is representative of economic confidence and the value placed on tax within the large corporates. With reputational risk high on the agenda, we have recruited a number of senior leadership roles heading up compliance and

reporting teams as well as strong candidates at Assistant Manager and Manager levels in compliance and reporting roles. Demand has been consistent for specialists in VAT, customs, transfer pricing and supply chain.

Bonuses continue to be an important aspect of overall remuneration and benefits packages with 58% of high performers receiving over 16% in bonus and only 5% of respondents not receiving a bonus at all. Salaries continue to rise moderately with 95% of Tax Directors intending to award pay rises.

With such a strong start to the year, the figures suggest a more conservative outlook for the second half of the year in terms of increasing headcount with only 16% of Tax Directors stating their intention to increase headcount. However the movement we have seen in the market already this year will continue to cause companies to recruit to replace outgoing candidates even if they do not increase headcount.

Title Base (£,000) Cash Bens. (£,000) Bonus %

Head of Tax £110 - £300+ £50 - £100 20 - 100+

Senior Manager £85 - £180 £5 - £20 10 - 100

Manager £45 - £80 £5 - £15 10 - 20

Tax Accountant £38 - £65 £2 - £5 5 - 20

FTSE 100

90% ....... 1 to 3 %5% ......... 4 to 7 % 5% ......... No percentage............... increase

% salaryincrease in 2014

16% ....... Yes, 1-10%21% ....... Yes, 11-15%26% ....... Yes, 16-20%32% ....... Yes, 21+%5% ......... No

Do high performersreceive a bonus?

16% ....... Yes84% ....... No

Team Growth in next 6-12 months

25% ....... Corporate Tax12.5% .... International Tax12.5% .... Transfer Pricing25% ....... VAT12.5% .... Employee ............... / Expatriate Taxes

12.5% .... Operational Taxes

Areas forrecruitment


2014 has shown some encouraging signs in this area of the market where we have seen solid levels of activity. With an increasing focus on transfer pricing, BEPS and international tax we have seen demand increase for senior candidates who offer a broad knowledge across these areas. For this reason interest has been particularly high in candidates coming from the Tier A firms to take on either stand-alone roles or fitting into established teams. We have seen this trend mirrored at the junior level in compliance and reporting roles. In previous years clients have traditionally favoured candidates coming from Big 4 firms, however as the Big 4 continue to outsource compliance to centralised compliance centres, those candidates from Tier A firms who can demonstrate hands on experience in these areas have been dominating demand.

Given the diversity of companies across the FTSE 250 market it is difficult to comment on and identify specific sector trends. We have been involved in recruiting a number of tax professionals for

companies with no previous tax teams or presence; typically these have targeted those at the Senior Manager and Director levels.

Salaries continue to rise moderately with 50% of tax professionals receiving a pay rise of up to 3% and a further 12% being awarded pay rises of between 4-7%. Bonuses continue to be consistent with 88% of high performers receiving a bonus, 50% of whom receiving between 11-15%.

Companies who are expecting to recruit have focused in corporate tax although given the size of many teams, the area of “corporate tax” will very often stretch across international tax and transfer pricing. Encouragingly 20% of companies are planning to increase headcount; naturally a greater number will need to recruit to replace those who leave as a result of on-going movement within the market.

FTSE 250


Head of Tax £90 - £220 £10 - £50 5 - 100+

Senior Manager £70 - £120 £5 - £20 10 - 60

Manager £40 - £95 £5 - £10 5 - 30

Tax Accountant £35- £65 > £2.5 5 - 15

50% ....... 1 to 3 %12% ....... 4 to 7 % 38% ....... No percentage ............... increase


13% ....... Yes, 1-10%50% ....... Yes, 11-15%25% ....... Yes, 16-20%12% ....... No0% ......... Yes, 21+%


20% ....... Yes80% ....... No



The results of our survey suggest that there will continue to be a steady and sustained demand for tax professionals within financial services. 40% of respondents have increased the size of their tax function in the past 12 months and a further 24% of respondents expect to grow their team in the next 12 months.

Demand for risk and reporting Senior Managers and corporate tax professionals with up to four years PQE continues to remain high. As a result of certain legislative changes, we have seen a significant increase in demand for transfer pricing (TP) professionals in financial services and 33% of predicted recruitment in the next 12 months will be in TP. Although we have experienced an increase in recruitment for commercially focused international tax professionals, this has not reached the levels witnessed before the downturn in 2008. More prominent is the ever-increasing demand for operational tax professionals, in particular those with FATCA and FTT, which is set to continue with the introduction of EU FATCA.

We have seen some in-house tax functions outsource or offshore some areas of their tax functions, usually the more junior or process led work. This might explain the fact that 17% of respondents have decreased the size of their tax function. However, the general consensus seems to be that tax teams within financial services groups are not having to make the forced headcount cuts that they have had to in past years.

One area that we have seen have a knock-on effect is the demand from the Big 4 and Tier A accountancy firms for senior tax professionals from financial services organisations. We have not seen this since 2009 but with this resurgent hiring activity across practice, we should see a number of senior roles open-up within financial services groups as senior level people move into the sector from in-house positions.

fINANCIAL SERVICES


Head of Tax £100 - £300 £10 - £18 10 - 100

Group Tax Manager £75 - £150 £4 - £12 10 - 50

International Tax Manager £75 - £110 £5 - £10+ 10 - 50

Tax Manager £50 - £75 £4.5 - £5.5 5 - 30

Tax Accountant £35 - £50 £4.5 - £5.5 5 - 15

87% ....... 1 to 3 %7% ......... 4 to 7 % 6% ......... No percentage............... increase


13% ....... Yes, 1-10%31% ....... Yes, 11-15%31% ....... Yes, 16-20%25% ....... Yes, 21+%0% ......... No


24% ....... Yes76% ....... No


33% ....... Corporate Tax17% ....... International Tax33% ....... Transfer Pricing17% ....... Operational Taxes0% ......... VAT0% ......... Employee ............... / Expatriate Taxes

Areas forrecruitment


As we had hoped, 2014 has seen a marked upturn in the demand for qualified tax professionals within the commercial market. Inbound multinationals have been very much part of this increase in activity, with talent being sought at all levels from Tax Accountant to Regional Tax Director.

A combination of factors has contributed to this increase in demand for high quality tax professionals within the finance functions of large international groups. From a tax perspective, the UK continues to be a desirable destination for overseas multinationals to base their European operations. Indeed, much of the recent M&A activity within, particularly, the pharmaceutical sector demonstrates that for many groups Britain is an increasingly attractive jurisdiction in which to base a group’s global HQ. When coupled with the increased focus on BEPS and tax transparency, both from a government and a public perspective, it is easy to see why the volume and complexity of work being carried out by inbound tax departments continues to grow.

Areas of expertise that are particularly in demand have included: corporate tax compliance; tax reporting (under US GAAP and IFRS); strategy and tax planning; and indirect tax. It is also worth noting that the predicted dramatic increase in transfer pricing roles has so far failed to materialise. Transfer pricing is seen as a key skill, but is usually one that a senior tax professional would develop alongside other responsibilities, rather than as a sole focus.

General market conditions have dictated that, in this area of the market, as with every other, salaries, bonuses and total remuneration have all increased over the last year. 85% of respondents are expecting to pay a bonus of more than 10% this year and 100% expect salaries to rise in 2014/15. There is also a general expectation that departments will either remain stable or grow in size during this period. Overall, the next 12 months look very positive in this sector of the tax market.

OVERSEAS MULTINATIONALS


Head of Tax £80 - £200 £10 - £50 10 - 100

Senior Manager £70 - £120 £10 - £20 10 - 50

Manager £50 - £70 £5 - £15 10 - 20

Tax Accountant £40 - £60 £2 - £5 5 - 10

86% ....... 1 to 3 %14% ....... 4 to 7 % 0% ......... No percentage............... increase


50% ....... Yes, 11-15%14% ....... Yes, 16-20%21% ....... Yes, 21+%14% ....... No0% ......... Yes, 1-10%


31% ....... Yes69% ....... No


Biggest recruitment challenges

“Increased competition for good candidates”VP of Tax

Overseas multi-national


Overview

The interim tax market has remained buoyant. Without temporary and interim finance professionals, crucial projects may not be staffed sufficiently, long-term absences may not be covered and valued permanent employees would struggle to cope during extremely busy periods. For this reason, there tends to be a constant demand for interim and temporary tax professionals across most sectors and regions in the UK.

Legislation changes

In the last few years, many predicted that the bureaucratic red tape and pressures on temporary employment would have a significant impact on demand for temporary staff with the working time directive initiative, holiday pay and Agency Workers Regulations (AWR) coming in to play. The reality is that the legislation has not significantly impacted temporary staff in the tax sector as it was targeted at protecting low paid non-office workers. A lot of the burden quite rightly sits with the supplying agency rather than the employing organisation.

Quick turnaround

Hiring an interim takes days as opposed to weeks or months. This is essential when time constraints are paramount in an organisation that require change and to regularly bring in the best available talent for short-term projects.

Sought after tax areas

There has been relatively little change in the status quo with regard to transfer pricing, VAT and partnership tax specialists. These areas are still highly sought after in the interim market with these specialists being paid above market rate. Many companies are taking advantage of the increased interim candidate pool by hiring temporary candidates as a way of trialling staff for a permanent vacancy.

Conclusion

The return on investment when hiring the right interim for your business can be substantial. When a company is in crisis, often the cost of failure to deliver change far outweighs the cost of hiring an interim. Their skills and experience can be applied to many different scenarios. Their use is increasingly being considered as an effective and positive way for companies to achieve their business objectives and obtain highly specialised skills at crucial times.

INTERIM

Commerce/FS rates

Title Range per day

Tax Accountant £200 - £300

Tax Manager £300 - £400

Senior Tax Manager £400 - £500

Director £500+

Practice and law firm rates

Title Range per day

Semi Seniors £120 - £160

Tax Seniors £160 - £240

Managers £240 - £320

Tax Senior Managers £350 - £450

Biggest recruitment challenges

“Recruiting in a period where the employer does not wish to pay market rates, yet the economy is recovering”

Head of European TaxFinancial Services

“Recruiting quality candidates within the permitted budgeted cost”

Director of TaxFTSE 250


At this point in 2013 it was obvious that the market was starting to show a sustainable pick up for the first time since 2007. But the sentiment with clients remained one of real caution and fear that this might just be a flash in the pan. The market was also characterised by a pickup in only a number of specialisms and locations predominantly in and around London.

Thankfully the pickup has been a great deal more durable and now only 5% of firms have had a hiring freeze over the last year as opposed to 18% the previous year. The market is now characterised by demand across the full range of tax specialisms right across the UK, with a particular hotspot across Scotland. Although the market is a lot more positive as a whole, 21% of teams saw a decrease in numbers this year and this reflects a rapidly changing tax market. Clients are proving adept at investing in potential growth areas but also not afraid to restructure business streams they consider to have little future. This is likely to become a permanent

feature of the tax market.Managing reputational risk around tax, although still very prominent, has been superseded by other big issues which inevitably will or are already having impacts on the tax recruitment market, including: the new audit rotation rules (for the Big 4); competition for business and resource between the accounting and law firms; the severe shortage of quality staff at the NQ to manager grades; and the concern that salaries are about to rise substantially – although the fact that 68% of accounting firms and 86% of law firms expect to increase salaries by 1-3% would suggest. This last point is not yet a major threat.

The biggest immediate challenge for all markets is how to satisfy the huge demand for resource at the NQ-5 years PQE level. As all indications are that this improved market will last in 2015, (with 73% of all clients expecting to increase headcount over the next 6-12 months), firms will have to find innovative ways to try and plug these gaps.

Professional Services

Mark GlubbBrewer Morris

Mark first worked for Brewer Morris in 1989 for a few years, before returning in 2003. Mark runs the professional services team across EMEA and is fluent in Arabic.


The early stages of 2014 have seen a continuation of the trends from our 2013 survey – with an increase of hires in transfer pricing, international tax, and VAT. This is leading to a more positive outlook across tax, with a number of firms anticipating growth over the next 12-18months.

The Big 4 and Tier A firms have broadened their needs to other tax specialisms in London and nationally, while corporate tax, private client, and employment tax remain hot areas for quality hires. Positivity can be seen as nearly 50% of firms have increased team size, with just over 20% showing unchanged headcount. The optimism continues as less than 6% are going through hiring freezes or a formal redundancy programme.

This growth can be linked to the recovery of the economy and a confidence once again in the job market, meaning the appetite has returned for high calibre tax professionals, specifically at the Assistant Manager and Manager grades. However, the recent economic downturn has created a shortage of tax professionals at those particular levels due to the smaller graduate intake at that time. This has led to more of a necessity being placed upon the relationships with recruitment firms, with nearly 70% of external hires across the accountancy market in the past year coming through recruitment agencies.

The shortage of candidates at this level has meant that international candidates are now being more seriously considered, especially those from strong tax jurisdictions such as Australia and New Zealand, as well as North America. This is true of transfer pricing, VAT, M&A and expatriate tax. Work permitting, it is likely that we will see a growing trend of international candidates coming to the UK as the need for growth in these areas becomes increasingly necessary.

Conversely there has been an increase in overseas opportunities for UK tax professionals, with a particular pick up in Australia and the Middle East.

The key difference between 2014 and last year is that demand in the Big 4 is now across all tax disciplines and whereas last year this was centred in the London market this has developed now into significant demand in the Midlands, North of England and Scotland. A vast increase in hiring activity in the regions is most apparent within the Tier A firms, with Birmingham and Reading being key areas of growth. Here, recruitment has focussed on personal, corporate, and international tax.

The new audit rotation rules are a hot topic although at the moment are only having a direct impact on hiring decisions for director and partner candidates. The imperative to hire leaders who are market facing and able to pitch for new work as well as develop client relationships is even more important. It is likely that the demand for quality director and partner hires will continue to strengthen as firms look to respond to the challenges of audit rotation by hiring people with the right skills for this new environment. The demand is also being driven by a general market pick up, increased investment and the need to finally replace retiring partners, as evidenced by a substantial increase in partner promotions in 2014. Following on from a number of mergers among the Tier A firms last year, we are now beginning to see more of an appetite to hire at all grades within areas such as corporate and personal tax. However, the cyclical movement between Big 4 and Tier A firms has now slowed due to the volume of hiring going on amongst the Big 4 firms. This is starting to affect hiring strategies within Tier A as we are now seeing more of an increased flow of tax professionals moving across to their larger competitors.

It is encouraging to see that nearly 40% of firms are rewarding high performing employees a bonus, with a majority also offering promotion as a way of retention. It is expected that this pattern will continue into 2015 as the market and economy maintains its pick up.

big 4 & tier a

Job titleLondon (£,000)

The South (£,000)

Midlands (£,000)

Scotland & The North (£,000)

South West & Wales (£,000)

Commerce/FS rates

Director £85 - £220 £75 - £180 £70 - £160 £65 - £160 £70 - £160

Senior Manager £68 - £95 £50 - £90 £48 - £85 £48 - £80 £55 - £85

Manager £50 - £70 £45 - £65 £38 - £58 £38 - £56 £38 - £56

Tax Senior £40 - £54 £35 - £48 £32 - £42 £28 - £37 £24 - £35

Assistant £24 - £38 £20 - £35 £18 - £30 £16 - £26 £16 - £26

Personal & Expatriate Tax

Director £80 - £180 £75 - £160 £65 - £140 £60 - £140 £65 - £140

Senior Manager £65 - £92 £48 - £85 £45 - £80 £48 - £78 £50 - £80

Manager £50 - £70 £45 - £62 £35 - £55 £38 - £56 £38 - £56

Tax Senior £40 - £52 £35 - £48 £32 - £42 £28 - £35 £24 - £35

Assistant £24 - £38 £20 - £35 £18 - £30 £16 - £26 £16 - £26


Continuing the optimism found in the latter half of 2013, we have seen higher levels of recruitment activity return to the mid-tier and boutique market so far in 2014.

Throughout Q4 2013 and Q1 2014, as prevailing economic conditions continued to improve, we saw an increase in demand for partner and rain maker candidates within the mid-tier and boutique market. Many of the Top 50 firms which had not recruited at senior level throughout 2013 returned to the market in 2014.

From trainee right up to manager level the main focus throughout the year has been on personal and corporate tax roles. Over the first half of the year, we saw roughly 65% of vacancies fall into these two categories (~35% and ~30% respectively). On the private client side candidates with non-domicile advisory and international skills are particularly sought after and can command a premium on salary to those with a more mainstream UK private client skill set, while on the corporate side demand for Big 4 trained corporate tax professionals reached high levels. Throughout the year we also saw an increase in demand for candidates with trust and indirect tax skills.

At partner level, candidates with a particular tax specialism and/or followings have been in most demand. A lot of this growth has been seen particularly in traditional Top 20 practices with a solid recurring compliance fee base. Areas such as R&D have seen growth as opportunistic hires were made by firms keen to ensure

that ambitious growth targets were met. As we approach the third quarter of 2014 it is clear that the demand for quality candidates continues and those particularly with specialist skills such as investigations will be ever increasingly sought after.

An active boutique market continues to show strong appetite for Big 4 trained corporate tax professionals with individuals with private equity, transactions and real estate tax experience in most demand.

Salaries across the sector have had some upward momentum throughout 2014 with over 95% of firms planning on increasing salaries, although the majority of these pay awards (68%) will still be in the 1-3% range. Partner remuneration levels span a wide range according to the firm’s profitability and it can be difficult to get complete visibility for partners here. Many firms making opportunistic hires preferred to reward partners based on delivery for example giving bonuses on set billings.

It is clear that the mid-tier and boutiques market is a dynamic and evolving space with firms often vying for market share. Throughout 2013 there were a number of consolidations (some high profile ones!) with this continuing into 2014. We would expect a similar appetite for consolidation and anticipate continued demand for partners particularly those with followings and with specialist tax skills, as we move towards the back end of 2014 and into 2015.

Mid-Tier & Boutique Firms

Job titleLondon(£,000)

The South(£,000)

Midlands(£,000)

Scotland & The North(£,000)

South West & Wales(£,000)

Personal Tax & Expatriate Tax and Trusts

Senior Manager £60 - £85 £50 - £80 £46 - £65 £50 - £65 £50 - £62

Manager £45 - £65 £42 - £60 £36 - £55 £35 - £46 £35 - £48

Tax Senior £35 - £45 £28 - £42 £24 - £38 £22 - £35 £24 - £38

Assistant £25 - £32 £20 - £35 £20 - £24 £16 - £23 £18 - £24

Corporate Tax and VAT

Senior Manager £65 - £90 £60 - £85 £50 - £70 £48 - £70 £48 - £70

Manager £45 - £65 £45 - £60 £38 - £52 £36 - £48 £38 - £52

Tax Senior £35 - £48 £32 - £45 £26 - £40 £22 - £36 £25 - £38

Assistant £24 - £38 £22 - £28 £19 - £25 £14 - £23 £19 - £24


In our survey last year the clear sentiment was that the market was showing the first signs of a pick-up and that 2014 was looking to be a better year for the tax legal market. So far the year has not disappointed as evidenced by a six fold increase in associate vacancies and 64% of firms in our survey stating that they have recruited in the external market over the last 12 months. The vast majority of these hires have been at the 1-5 year level. This has resulted in firms finding it increasingly difficult to hire in tax at these levels and we are now seeing some clients taking over 6 months to fill roles.

This shortage is likely to become more severe as more tax work feeds through from the transactions teams. This will force firms to look at one, or more, of the following solutions:

• Taking an even more flexible approach to the level they will consider • Consider employing tax lawyers from overseas jurisdictions • Employing tax specialists from accounting firms

The tax newly qualified (NQ) market has returned for the first time for many years with both a good flow of candidates and roles. This is a clear indicator that medium term confidence is returning to the market shown by our survey findings with 79% of firms anticipating a growth in the number of tax associates they will employ over the coming year.

The senior associate grades and partner level hires are also showing signs of improvement but this part of the market tends to react later to an upturn. However, there are good signs that more senior end recruitment will become a bigger feature as we end 2014 and enter 2015.

The key for any senior associate/partner looking to make a successful move is to be able to demonstrate an ability to generate work over and above being reliant on the internal market.

One of the key trends of 2014, and one which is playing out in the legal press, is the competitive threat of the accounting firms. Many in the Big 4 are now focussing on building large tax litigation businesses with all of them now investing significantly in hiring good tax litigation talent.

More of a threat to the wider tax legal market is the focus of the Big 4 accounting firms to hire tax lawyers across all grades including partners. Lawyers now view this as a serious alternative to a continued career in the law because it offers good progression in a growing tax business and the opportunity to develop a wider skill set.

In view of these pressures it is somewhat surprising that 86% of law firms have or will increase salaries by between only 1-3% in 2014. A smaller, although an increasingly significant, part of the market is the in-house tax departments in law firms. With the continued firm mergers, ongoing focus on cutting costs and increasing internationalisation of law firms these teams are growing and more law firms are setting up in-house tax teams. We are starting to see an increasing demand here for people with corporate tax experience coming from either accounting or commercial in-house teams.

the Legal Tax Market

Type of FirmMagic/silver circle

(£,000)Mid-sized city

(£,000)West End

(£,000)US firm(£,000)

NQ £60 - £67.5 £56 - £58 £40 - £55 £70 - £105

1 PQE £67 - £77.5 £59 - £65 £45 - £60 £70 - £105

2 PQE £72 - £87.5 £63 - £69 £50 - £63 £80 - £111

3 PQE £77 - £100 £64 - £76 £55 - £68 £90 - £125

4 PQE £85 - £107.5 £72 - £84 £60 - £72 £100 - £140

5 PQE £92 - £115 £75 - £93 £65 - £76 £110 - £138

6 PQE £97 - £135 £78 - £97 £70 - £80 Discretionary


The Tax Recruitment Market across Australia & Asia

Elspeth McAinshBrewer Morris

Elspeth has focused exclusively on tax recruitment since 2010 and on global moves since 2007. She has seven years’ experience recruiting in Australia and four years’ experience in the UK. Elspeth has a passion for global tax recruitment and has a successful track record in cross border recruitment in EMEA and ASIA PAC.

Australia

Over the past 12 months there has been a significant increase in recruitment activity for the majority of tax teams across Australia. Movement between the Big 4 global consulting firms to law firms, in-house commercial teams and overseas has resulted in a busy recruitment market. An increase in deals in the past six months has kept the transactions and M&A teams busy and meant growth for transaction tax as well as corporate tax teams. Candidate confidence in the Big 4 global accounting firms has attracted key talent from law firms as well as from each other. The cities that remained buoyant throughout the global financial crisis, Brisbane and Perth, have been quiet where we have tended to see replacement recruitment only and, particularly in Perth, less in-house opportunities. Melbourne is the Asia-Pac headquarters to many desirable in-house tax teams in non-financial services sectors such as FMCG, manufacturing, sport, resources and retail. Recruitment has been steady with the larger commercial law firms which typically have partnerships at 10-15% below the size of their Sydney counterparts. With highly coveted in-house teams and Big 4 steadily recruiting, this location is attracting more candidates interstate than ever before. The Sydney market has been busy and in certain tax areas has become candidate driven. The Big 4 have been open to international candidates from major markets such as the UK, Canada and US in areas such as tax technology, expatriate tax, financial services corporate tax and US tax. Transfer pricing recruitment has been quiet for 6-9 months however we have had a recent spike in demand for supply chain transfer pricing professionals at all levels. Tax technology has proved to be an excellent career path for those seeking an international career or relocation. The flow of Australian experienced candidates returning to Australia has continued and recruitment activity is busy nationally. Brewer Morris is currently recruiting in all major commercial centres across Australia.

In terms of in-house roles (or roles with commercial groups), there has been a strong demand for tax professionals at senior tax accountant and manager level. The movement from in-house back to practice has slowed as a result of hesitancy from the firms and the candidates.

The more senior / head of tax recruitment activity has been to replace leavers rather than grow teams, and alongside this we have also seen an increase in popularity of internal promotions. The in-house roles, particularly in foreign owned companies and those with a heavy compliance focus are less attractive than the Australian listed, outbound global investors. Outbound global investors attract high calibre candidates and are desirable in the market. In terms of the next 12 months, there is a strong consensus that the tax market is increasingly competitive for high calibre candidates. Australian experienced candidates now based overseas will continue to be attractive to the Australian market. The law firms, Big 4 and mid-tier tax practices will be busy in Sydney, Melbourne and we have some signs

of growth in Brisbane.

Asia

The Asia market has been strong with the introduction of GST in Malaysia and China, and offers a viable alternative to running costly tax teams in Australia. Singapore has a demand for tax professionals and can offer, within Big 4, international relocations and a career path to Partner within a shorter timeframe than in markets such as the UK and Australia. Corporate tax, transfer pricing and tax technology have been busy in professional services. Hong Kong has also been busy however we have noticed a move of transactions previously run out of Hong Kong to Shanghai, creating some uncertainty in this market. Mandarin skills are increasingly sought in Hong Kong, which limits the options for expatriates. Transfer pricing in South East Asia has been a growth area at a junior / early manager level and is an avenue for those early on in their career to make an international move. Oil and Gas experienced tax professionals can consider moves to Indonesia and Papua New Guinea at senior consultant and manager level. The coveted regional Asia-Pac roles have been filled by candidates from the local market rather than expatriate moves from markets such as Australia and the UK. This is a result of the increasing requirement to speak an Asian language and a decrease in expatriate packages offered. Also noticeable, is the move of Asian candidates to the Middle East and Africa.


Brewer Morris was established in 1987 as the UK’s first recruitmentconsultancy to focus exclusively on the recruitment of taxation professionals. We are firmly established as a market leader and take great pride in the enormous number of long-term business relationships that we have developed throughout the tax world. We work with many Partners and Heads of Tax that we first placedon qualification.

Brewer Morris has also expanded our remit into the recruitment of treasury professionals. This enables us to better serve our clients’ needs in niche areas and we firmly believe this business line complements the tax specialist recruitment that the industry has come to know and trust.

From offices based in London, Melbourne and Sydney we recruit across the UK, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand. Our clients range from all of the international and national accountancy and law firms through to FTSE 100 and 250 companies, major multinationals, financial services organisations

and global investment banks.

Our approach

Our methodology encompasses a combination of search, advertised selection and networking in addition to the strongest database of tax specialists in the market, and also harnesses the power of digital and social platforms.

How we combine these methods depends on the nature of the assignment. Although our methodology is flexible, our total commitment to successful delivery remains the same on every assignment.

What makes us different?

Over nearly 30 years we have built a specialist tax recruitment firm with a blend of experience and knowledge that no other recruitment firm can match. With backgrounds in the accounting profession, law firms and commerce & industry, our consultants continue to add to that unique blend. They are handpicked for their professionalism and integrity and their commitment to providing the highest level

of service.

Our teams

Our professional services team recruits tax specialists at all levels, from tax assistant through to tax partner in London, throughout the UK and internationally (encompassing all areas of specialisation). Our client list spans all of the leading accountancy firms including the Big 4, plus a wide range of national, regional and local practices and national and international law firms.

Our in-house team recruits for UK plc’s, financial institutions and a broad range of multinational companies. We handle assignments at all levels, from tax accountant to head of tax, and also deal with a broad spectrum of specialist roles such as employee tax specialists, indirect tax advisers, tax managers and tax-based structured financiers.

Our interim team provides the same level of Brewer Morris quality of service, offering considered solutions that meet your temporary and contract recruitment needs exactly - and quickly. From the Big 4 and national practices through to the world’s largest companies and financial institutions, we’re well versed in placing people across all tax disciplines and levels in a complete cross section of clients.

Our treasury team recruits for UK PLC’s, financial institutions, a broad range of multinational companies, Big 4 treasury advisory teams and other consultancy firms. We particularly focus on senior manager recruitment helping candidates at treasury manager andsenior analyst level through to group treasurer.

BREWER MORRIS


the BREWER MORRIS management team

Lead partner

Mark PryorPartnerE: [email protected]: +44 (0)20 7332 2128

LEGAL & ACCOUNTING FIRMS

Mark GlubbGroup ManagerE: [email protected]: +44 (0)20 7332 2126

commerce & FINANCIAL SERVICES

Matthew GravellePartnerE: [email protected]: +44 (0)20 7332 2123

Asia-Pacific

Elspeth McAinshAssociate DirectorE: [email protected]: +61 (0)2 9221 0099

Contact a member of the Brewer Morris team to discuss any aspects of this report; hiring tax talent for your team or making your next move.

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