Strategic decision-making is a key skill for would-be seniors to demonstrate. We look for people who can stand back and take a commercial overview. It's important to have had exposure to different business sectors too - blue chips, small companies, public practice etc. We're also looking for people who are team players, not just accountants who work in isolation.
Clare Keniry, consultant, Hays Personnel, an accountancy recruitment firm

The key to senior potential is the ability to influence situations affecting the business. We ask candidates to tell us about situations where they've exercised their interpersonal skills or had to make tough decisions. The FD is often the person who has to make the toughest management decisions, and that's particularly true in the current climate. We also want to know what they've learned from their experiences and how that knowledge will affect their future decisions.
Nigel Milford, director at Michael Page, a leading recruitment agency specialising in accountancy and finance

The key lies in proving you're a business winner, that you understand business development, and you're able to sell. We look for people who proactively initiate proposals, people who are alive to the whole range of services that KPMG offers. To reach senior level, you need to demonstrate value-added skills, as well as technical area expertise.
Bridget Allen, HR director, KPMG

Recruitment is 90% art and 10% science. The 10% is the credentials and qualifications and the rest is how they've coped in the field. Do they know how to think on their feet? Are they flexible? How do they deal with seemingly insurmountable obstacles, which can be guaranteed to spring up in any business? Accountancy allows you to get at least some experience of other departments, and candidates should use that to get an understanding of the whole business and the way it works.
Steve Carter, MD, Robert Half International

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