Only 26 percent of chief financial officers said their companies allow all their employees to fulfill continuing professional education requirements while at work, according to a new survey.
The survey, by Robert Half Finance and Accounting found another 24 percent of the 2,200 CFOs polled said it depends on the employee. Half of the companies surveyed indicated they rarely or never let any staff members take classes during business hours.
Robert Half believes more companies should be open to letting their accounting and finance employees take CPE classes, as required by the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy.
“Businesses do themselves a disservice by prohibiting employees from taking CPE courses during company time,” said Robert Half senior executive director Paul McDonald in a statement. “Webinars, seminars and online courses, some as short as 10 minutes, allow professionals to earn the needed credits and help their employers by staying on the cutting edge of industry trends. The better informed your employees are, the fewer technical, compliance and ethical mistakes they’re likely to make. Moreover, a generous training program that includes allowing staff to obtain continuing education during work hours shows support for professional development and is a powerful recruitment and retention tool.”
