KPMG lifts salaries to fill Aberdeen vacancies

One of the big four accountancy firms is being forced to raise salaries and fast-track staff promotions in order to fill vacancies in booming Aberdeen.

KPMG, which is planning to expand into the city, said relocating staff to the north of Scotland was not easy and rival firms would offer higher salaries to prevent staff being poached.

Craig Anderson, senior partner for Scotland, said: “We want to ramp up considerably the team in Aberdeen. We have vacancies but it is hard getting people to move, particularly if they have children in school. The cost of living is higher there and we are accelerating promotions and increasing salaries. Competition for staff is an issue and we need to get more people into the market.”

He said the firm was now looking overseas to second staff to Aberdeen, where a lot of workers stay in rented accommodation during the week and return home at weekends.

KPMG wants to add about 20 to the 100 it employs in the city. Anderson, pictured right, said one member of staff had been charged £400 for a one-night stay in a discount hotel that wasn’t even in the city centre. He said staff numbers at the new tax compliance centre in Glasgow would grow from 100 to 180 by next year. Profits across Scotland were described as “encouraging”, but Anderson said the firm was focusing on building revenue. “We can only go so far on costs and efficiencies,” he added.

Figures released today show a 27 per cent increase in group profits from £358 million to £455m for the year ending in September. Overall revenues increased marginally by 0.4 per cent to £1.8 billion.

Average pay for its 583 partners has increased by 23 per cent from £580,000 to £713,000. The employee bonus pool has risen by 20 per cent to £73m.