We read every business services and tax job ad running in Adelaide this month. Forty eight of them. Fifteen used the phrase "market-competitive salary", nine promised flexible working, five offered a pathway to partnership. You could swap the firm names between them and nobody would notice.
So here's a different one.
Cornerstone Consulting Group is an HR and recruitment consultancy in Adelaide. An established firm here has asked us to find their next Manager, and we'd rather tell you something useful than describe their culture back at you.
If you're an Assistant Manager ready for the step up, you're exactly who they have in mind. You don't need the title already.
There's some flexibility on level. If you're close but not quite at Manager, the conversation is still worth having. We'd rather find the right person and shape the role around them than hold out for a title match.
The roleBusiness services and tax, around five to seven years in. Client management, hands-on work as well as review, and coaching the accountants coming up underneath you.
A real SME portfolio that's yours to own rather than a slice of something much bigger.
The Partner you'd report to needs a Manager rather than already having three,



which is why the progression conversation here is a real one.
What it pays$120,000 to $145,000 plus super depending on experience. We'll tell you where you'd sit before you meet anyone.
Who it won't suitIf you're set on listed clients and big four scale, this isn't the right move. These are private, owner managed businesses where you'll know the client properly and they'll know you. That's the trade, and it suits some people and not others.
If you're not in Adelaide right nowSome of the best people for this won't be. If you're in Melbourne or Sydney, five or six years in and starting to think about home, get in touch anyway. We're happy to talk through what a move actually involves well before you'd need to commit to anything.
How to applyOr rather, how not to. You can apply through LinkedIn if that's easiest, but you don't need a CV to start. Message me and we can have a quick chat. Nothing goes to the client until you tell us to send it, and your current employer won't hear about this from us.
Riley KirkpatrickDirector, Cornerstone Consulting Group

📌 Business Services Manager (Adelaide)
🏢 Cornerstone Consulting Group
📍 Adelaide