Attracting accounting and finance graduate talent - beyond the Big Four

This study responds to ongoing challenges with recruiting quality graduate talent in the accounting/finance industry, critical given transforming labour market needs. Drawing on Person-Organisation-Fit theory, we explore what attracts 475 Accounting/Finance students to graduate roles, their preferences for different organisation types, and influences on career decision-making. Supporting earlier work, we evidence dominating preferences for the ‘Big Four’ firms yet decipher appealing features of other organisational types and important intrinsic and extrinsic factors in decision-making. Findings inform stakeholder strategies to support students for sustainable careers in different accounting/finance contexts, and improve the recruitment outcomes of all organisation types in the industry.