CHICAGO—According to a just-published survey by the staffing firm Robert Half, most CFOs in the metro region are either somewhat or very confident in their companies' prospects for growth in the next six months. And some of that growth will translate into employment gains. The Chicago Professional Employment Forecast from the Menlo Park, CA-based firm indicates 11% of Chicago CFOs expect their companies to create new jobs in the next six months. This is up 2 points compared to the previous six-month period. Another 76% of CFOs plan to hire as positions are vacated. Only 11% plan to freeze hiring and 2% plan to eliminate positions.

"The intensified demand for highly skilled professionals is resulting in a shortage of accounting and finance candidates in Chicago, particularly within the real estate, manufacturing and professional services industries," says Marilyn Bird, district president for Robert Half in Chicago.

The forecast was developed by Robert Half, but conducted by an independent research firm. The interviews were done with about 200 CFOs from a random sample of companies in the Chicago area with 20 or more employees. Executives were asked about their hiring, business outlook and plan to add professional-level employees in accounting, human resources, administrative, legal, marketing and information technology.