First published in 1992, the Robert Half International Financial Hiring Index is a tool to measure the optimism of chief financial officers (CFOs) regarding the coming quarter's hiring outlook in accounting and finance and is conducted by an independent research firm. The numbers represent the percentages of CFOs expecting to hire accounting and finance staff and those planning personnel reductions. To calculate the net increase, the percentage of CFOs expecting to reduce staff is subtracted from the percentage planning to hire.

The national study is based on more than 1,400 telephone interviews with CFOs from a random sample of U.S. companies with 20 or more employees. For the study to be statistically representative and ensure that businesses from all segments are represented, the sample is stratified by geographic region and employee size. The results are then weighted to reflect the proper proportions of employee size within each region.

View the most recent national Financial Hiring Index.

The local results reflect a two-quarter rolling average based on interviews with 200 CFOs in each area from companies with 20 or more employees. The two-quarter rolling average takes into account data trends for two consecutive quarters, weighting most heavily on the current quarter's data. Each quarter includes responses from 100 CFOs (for a total of 200 respondents). This method of reporting data serves to smooth out potential large fluctuations and minimize sudden dips or spikes that may not be typical of the local trends.