Australia’s leading mid-sized accounting firms say they are being forced to offer salaries 10 per cent higher than the big four, increase bonuses and speed up promotions to stave off attempts by the top end of town to recruit experienced staff.

Pointing to skill shortages as the single biggest challenge facing their firms going into 2023, a slew of the firms on The Australian Financial Review Top 100 Accounting Firms list said Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC had ramped up efforts to poach their staff.