How alternative labour market models could increase future readiness and achieve CFO priorities

Adaptive working (remote, hybrid)

C-suite and board

Workforce transformation

Labor Market Trends

Labour market

Finance and accounting

Thought leadership

Management tips

Research and insights

By Clive Davis – Enterprise Optimisation, Europe Robert Half and Protiviti

CFOs and finance leadership are caught in a challenging balancing act. They must reduce costs and boost output while economic growth slows, regulation increases and the labour market tightens.

According to Deloitte’s CFO Survey, CFOs expect labour costs to remain elevated, leading to a sustained investment in new technology. Recruitment difficulties and skills shortages were reported by 44% of CFOs, with 16% believing their talent pool did not have the necessary knowledge to deliver their digital transformation strategy.

An alternative labour market model could offer the ideal solution for achieving CFO priorities now and into the future. On a contract basis, specialised, skilled talent delivers strategic consulting solutions that can give fast ROI and ensure the agility and future readiness of today's finance function.

Whether non-financial reporting, adopting a new ERP platform, or overhauling business models, times of extreme change benefit from outside eyes and immediate experience.

Alternative labour market models gain new traction

Alternative labour models, such as contract consultants and professionals, exist to support in-house teams with niche skills and valuable experience. They are typically brought in for a set period, giving quick, reliable access to skilled talent and extra headcount as and when required.

Contracting labour models aren't new, but this challenging and uncertain economic landscape has seen the use of specialist contractors or consultants rise in popularity.

New research for the Robert Half 2025 Salary Guide shows a distinct appetite for more flexible hiring approaches — 45% of UK businesses plan to maintain contract talent, and 42% plan to maintain project-based management this year. The same research shows plans to expand both areas (24% and 32%, respectively).

Alternative labour models allow CFOs to reach new levels of agility and productivity despite the ongoing systemic skills shortage, giving them access to the skills and talent needed for digital transformation and productivity initiatives that 44% plan to achieve this year.

Examples of labour force models in finance teams

In today’s complex and lean business models, finance teams require labour force strategies beyond a traditional permanent headcount.

While core permanent staff provide stability and institutional knowledge, modern organisations increasingly rely on a mix of temporary, contract, and project-based professionals to meet fluctuating demands and specialised requirements.

Flexible resourcing models enable businesses to address peak workloads, implement change initiatives, and access niche expertise without long-term commitments.

Additionally, leveraging automation and technology further complements human resources by streamlining repetitive tasks, allowing finance teams to focus on strategic activities. This blended approach ensures agility, cost-efficiency, and resilience in an ever-evolving market landscape.

Improving processes by using implementation talent in a blended model

It’s not uncommon for CFOs to engage expert consultants and their plethora of change-driving tools and practices to improve processes. Experienced consultants have plenty of practice streamlining finance operations and reducing waste. Their ability to quickly and objectively analyse the efficacy of operations, identify adjustments, and lead change can transform productivity and dramatically reduce costs.

While some consultants are great at root cause analysis, you may need an implementation team or partner to prevent the change process from getting in the way of business as usual. It’s a beneficial option if your existing team don't possess the new skills needed to get things up and running.

Consultants are well-versed in the opportunities, limitations, and potential pitfalls of tech implementation for enhanced productivity. A combined Protiviti and Robert Half model adds delivery resources to ensure you can scale up without affecting BAU. The synergy between Robert Half and Protiviti lies in their complementary strengths, offering businesses a unique combination of staffing expertise and consulting solutions.

Robert Half's vast network provides skilled professionals across various industries for project-based implementations. It’s a seamless approach to addressing organisational needs, from identifying and recruiting talent to driving strategic initiatives and operational improvements. As a result, businesses can acquire those best-in-class process improvement frameworks and use them long after the contractors have left, creating long-term value for the workforce, higher product quality, and better customer experience.

Encouraging data-driven BP&A

Business planning and analysis (BP&A) is a set of processes critical to rock-solid business decision-making and sits at the core of a CFO's responsibilities. It's become so vital that today's businesses often dedicate full-time resources to continual data and trend analysis, resulting in an incredibly competitive hiring market.

Contract experts and consultants can seamlessly integrate with your own BP&A teams and come equipped with specialised tools and platforms to streamline and refine processes. Moreover, they can employ more advanced modelling tools to simulate what-if scenarios and carry out stress testing to strengthen strategic planning.

Enhanced data analytics, integration, and management

The introduction of AI and advanced tools like predictive analytics have changed what it means to be 'data-driven' in the finance function. Finance leaders and their teams are now facing a mammoth task — efficiently extracting meaningful, actionable insights from ever-growing structured and unstructured data pools.

Contract professionals can be engaged as part of an alternative labour model to provide access to cutting-edge analytical tools capable of extracting insights from huge quantities of data. They can also support integrating and managing disparate data sources to help give leadership a cohesive overview and better reporting accuracy. Finance leaders could also enjoy a more transparent, responsive work environment by hiring providers to integrate data analytics into decision-making processes through machine learning and AI capabilities.

Migrating legacy systems to cloud-based platforms

CFOs increasingly rely on cloud-based systems to provide the scalability and flexibility needed to meet the future of work. Skilled consultants offer a reliable, fast way to migrate legacy systems to the cloud while maintaining data integrity and preserving BAU efforts.

Consultants use experience gathered over many migration projects to support leadership in evaluating which solutions align best with business needs, budget, timelines, and IT infrastructure. Their experience with security, data privacy, and compliance is also essential for a smooth transition to cloud-based environments.

For example, Protiviti supported GBST, a global financial services technology company, in divesting part of its product suite by segregating and migrating both on-premises and AWS cloud-based infrastructure into a well-architected AWS environment. Collaborating closely with GBST's team, Protiviti identified the necessary components, designed a secure and scalable cloud solution, and utilised automation to streamline the migration process.

Protiviti's in-house experts led the engagement and integrated flexible staffing solutions when required, including leveraging contractors or project-based resources, to ensure that all necessary skill sets were covered. The result was a seamless transition that ensured business continuity, enhanced system performance, and positioned GBST for greater flexibility and innovation in its operations.

Consulting solutions: custom-built teams ready to tackle any business challenge

Ultimately, an alternative labour market model allows CFOs to deploy custom-built teams capable of tackling the toughest business challenges at a time when agility is critical but talent is scarce.

With the latest Robert Half Jobs Confidence Index hitting 52.3 (its third quarterly rise), indicating favourable market conditions, the shift towards flexible talent is attractive. External consultants bring fresh skills to your existing teams and provide a scalable solution in a notoriously tight labour market in the UK.

Whether you hope to improve processes, enhance BP&A, migrate to the cloud, or improve data analytics, the key to better business outcomes and a more future-ready finance function may be a contract away.

The combined solution from Protiviti using Robert Half’s vast database of skilled talent is a flexible labour model that ensures access to the right expertise at the right time. You’ll optimise resources, reduce costs, and enhance agility to address complex project demands effectively.

To learn more about building your own custom team of experts through managed solutions or contract talent, contact our experts today.

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