{"schema_version": 1, "id": "provo-orem-ut-msa/finance/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 423, "label": "Provo-Orem, UT MSA", "slug": "provo-orem-ut-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "finance", "slug": "finance", "label": "Finance"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T05:47:55.495895+00:00", "headline": "Provo's FP&A pay surges while Controller pay cools.", "headline_summary": "FP&A Manager advertised pay climbed to $123,459 locally even as Controller pay slipped to $116,284, against a national backdrop where 85% of CFOs report finance talent shortages.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Utah County unemployment", "value": "3.5%", "context": "vs 4.1% national rate"}, {"label": "FP&A Manager advertised pay (metro)", "value": "$123,459", "context": "Up, significant \u2014 outpaces Controller, Senior Accountant"}, {"label": "CFO turnover rate (national)", "value": "18.3%", "context": "Highest since pandemic, per Crist|Kolder"}, {"label": "Utah average weekly wage", "value": "$1,196", "context": "Down 2.6% YoY despite job growth"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "FP&A talent is being priced as a scarce asset locally.", "body": "Metro FP&A Manager advertised pay rose to $123,459, a significant increase that outpaces Controller and Senior Accountant movement in the same market. Budget cycles built on flat finance-wide wage assumptions likely understate planning-role cost growth specifically."}, {"headline": "Controller pay is softening locally while rising nationally.", "body": "Metro Controller advertised median sits at $116,284 and trending down/moderate, compared to a national median of $115,420 trending up. Finance leaders recruiting Controllers in Provo may find local market conditions more favorable than national benchmarks suggest \u2014 an opening for targeted hiring before national pay pressure migrates west."}, {"headline": "Tax Specialist pay signals a tightening compliance talent pool.", "body": "Local Tax Specialist pay is up moderately to $67,262, while national pay is up significantly to $69,556 \u2014 both directions point to the same scarcity story heading into year-end close and tax season staffing decisions. Organizations planning Q1 close cycles should factor this into contract-versus-FTE tax support decisions now."}, {"headline": "Finance headcount growth is real but selective.", "body": "Utah's financial activities sector added roughly 2,000 jobs through March 2026, yet employers statewide have adopted a more selective hiring approach amid housing-driven labor supply constraints. Expect longer time-to-fill for mid-level finance roles even where budget approval exists."}], "local_conditions": "Provo-Orem's labor market continues to run tighter than the national picture, with Utah County unemployment near 3.5% against a national 4.1%, even as computer and mathematical occupations \u2014 the metro's signature high-wage cluster \u2014 carry a local wage discount of roughly 8% versus national averages ($53.30 vs $57.73 hourly). Statewide, financial activities added jobs through early 2026 but employers have shifted to a more selective hiring posture, a pattern consistent with Utah's broader wage deceleration (weekly wages down 2.6% year-over-year per BLS/USA Facts) despite continued headcount growth.", "implications": "Local FP&A Manager advertised pay climbed to $123,459 (up, significant), outpacing the metro's otherwise stable-to-soft wage trend and signaling that forecasting and planning talent is being priced at a premium even as broader compensation growth cools \u2014 a divergence Finance leaders should factor into separate headcount cost models for planning roles and broader finance staff. National CFO turnover at 18.3% and 85% of CFOs reporting finance talent shortages (MAVI) raise succession and audit-readiness exposure that Provo's tighter-than-national labor pool does little to offset. Consider reviewing budget assumptions for FP&A and controller-level roles separately from broader finance staff, given the uneven pay trajectory across levels.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Early indicator", "body": "National data shows 70% of finance leaders increasing contract talent use in H2 2026; watch whether Provo's tight 3.5% unemployment rate pushes local finance teams toward the same contract-staffing shift, which carries audit documentation and control implications."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "CFO turnover nationally sits at 18.3%, the highest since the pandemic, with 37.5% of replacements hired externally. Provo's shallower senior-finance bench relative to larger metros may extend search timelines if a departure occurs during close or audit windows."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Utah's average weekly wage fell 2.6% year-over-year even as job counts grew, a divergence worth monitoring for signs it reaches finance-specific roles beyond the FP&A Manager outlier already visible in metro data."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "Information sector job losses statewide (-1,700 YoY) and continued WARN filings (13 notices, 1,861 workers in 2026) could loosen adjacent talent pools \u2014 including finance systems and FP&A analytics hires \u2014 worth tracking for sourcing opportunities over the next two quarters."}], "roles": [{"role": "Controller", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 98358.5, "metro_p50": 116284.0, "metro_p75": 129774.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 115420.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Senior Accountant", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 78606.0, "metro_p50": 84507.0, "metro_p75": 87500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 87731.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Financial Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 71064.0, "metro_p50": 92500.0, "metro_p75": 95689.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 94646.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Billing Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 37258.0, "metro_p50": 45343.2, "metro_p75": 49920.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 49000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Tax Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 42352.0, "metro_p50": 67262.0, "metro_p75": 86749.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 69556.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Credit Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 52500.0, "metro_p50": 69010.0, "metro_p75": 72023.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 71397.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "FP&A Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 104401.0, "metro_p50": 123458.8, "metro_p75": 155561.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 130000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "Bureau of Labor Statistics", "source_url": null, "statement": "Utah County unemployment near 3.5% vs national 4.1%"}, {"source_name": "BLS Occupational Employment and Wages", "source_url": null, "statement": "Computer/math occupations local wage of $53.30 vs national $57.73"}, {"source_name": "Crist|Kolder / MAVI", "source_url": null, "statement": "CFO turnover at 18.3%, 85% of CFOs report talent shortages"}, {"source_name": "AFP FP&A Forum", "source_url": null, "statement": "70% of finance leaders increasing contract talent use in H2 2026"}, {"source_name": "USA Facts / BLS", "source_url": null, "statement": "Utah average weekly wage down 2.6% YoY"}, {"source_name": "Utah WARN Act tracker", "source_url": null, "statement": "13 WARN notices in Utah in 2026 affecting 1,861 workers"}], "methodology": "Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay.", "edition_label": "November 2026", "files": {"html": "provo-orem-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "pdf": "provo-orem-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:28:38.991200+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/provo-orem-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/provo-orem-ut-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}