Strategic Finance articles from June 2004

Strategic Finance archives from June 2004

It's time to get rid of LIFO conformity: IASB's move to ban LIFO deserves a thoughtful response.(Accounting)(International Accounting Standards Board bans last-in, first-out conformity rule)
June 1, 2004... Now that we're in the 21st Century, shouldn't we be uncomfortable with a significant tax provision that originated before World War II? You might think so, but the last-in, first-out (LIFO) conformity rule has been at work for so long that...

Locating top job candidates.(Careers)(employee recruitment methods)
June 1, 2004... One of the greatest challenges in the recruitment process is locating qualified candidates. Employment ads in today's business environment often generate a large number of responses, but usually only a handful are from applicants who meet all...

2004 IMA's 85th Annual Conference & Exposition: best practices for a competitive advantage.(Calendar)
June 1, 2004... SATURDAY, JUNE 26-WEDNESDAY, JUNE 30 HYATT REGENCY CHICAGO CHICAGO, IL CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS: * Earn up to 38 CPE credits * Over 30 broad-based Track Sessions * Brown Bag Luncheon * Exhibit Hall Networking Reception ...

Property and the future.(End Note)
June 1, 2004... Described by The New Yorker as "the most important thinker on intellectual property in the Internet era," Professor Lawrence Lessig of Stanford University has published his third book on property and the Internet. Free Culture wastes little...

Is ethics awareness enough?(Ethics)(in securities industry)
June 1, 2004... WE CAN READILY AGREE THAT LORD ACTON'S axiom, "Power corrupts those who wield it, and absolute power corrupts absolutely," certainly has been applicable to political dictators over the years. It also may be easy to agree that this axiom likely...

Measuring up ... consistently.(Best Practices)
June 1, 2004... AS WARREN BUFFETT FAMOUSLY SAID, THERE is no more powerful force in nature than the power of compounding returns. For example, a 10% return on a $10,000 investment for 10 years will create nearly $26,000 in value. Increasing the return to just...

IMA's new enthusiasm and pride are showing.(Perspectives: message from the Chair)
June 1, 2004... As you probably know, the theme of my term as Chair has been "Rekindle the Spirit of IMA." My desires have been to see IMA enter a new level of service to members and the business world and to spark a new enthusiasm in members for our...

Strategic Finance Self-Study Quiz.
June 1, 2004... EARN CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION CREDIT-3 CPE Credits ANNOUNCEMENT: The Strategic Finance Self-Study Quiz is a program in which financial professionals can earn CPE credits for passing a test based on what they have learned about...

Implementing strategy: tap into the power of four key factors to deliver success.(Strategic Management)
June 1, 2004... IF YOUR COMPANY HAS SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTED A STRATEGIC PLAN, then you're definitely in the minority. The real success rate is only 10% to 30%. This low rate is discouraging, especially since a growing number of companies in recent years have...

Members' salaries still increase.(Annual Career Issue And Salary Guide)(Institute of Management Accountants)
June 1, 2004... There has been good news and bad news regarding the economy during the past year, and the same can be said for IMA salaries. The bad news: Those IMA members reporting salary increases have dropped from 88% in 2001 to 66% and 65% in 2003 and...

The ERP vendor/world-class finance connection.(News)(evaluation of Enterprise Resource Planning software)
June 1, 2004... MOST ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING (ERP) SOFTWARE VENDORS WOULD have you believe that you could achieve world-class finance performance with their system and not their competitors', but this isn't the case, according to new research from the...

Greener buildings.(street wise)(environmental issues)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2004... If you are concerned with any environmental issue regarding building materials, energy use, facility management, waste management, water use, and more, you may want to visit www.GreenerBuildings. com. This free website was launched recently...

Ethics.(Readers' Input)(Letter to the Editor)
June 1, 2004... I enjoyed reading the ethics column ["Will Sarbanes-Oxley Improve Ethics?"] in the March issue of Strategic Finance. I agree that the "tone at the top" is critically important regarding ethical behavior in organizations. The recent...

FASB proposed rule on stock option accounting.(Government)(rules concerning securities industry)
June 1, 2004... THE FASB PROPOSED RULE ON STOCK OPTION ACCOUNTING WAS EXPECTED and unsurprising, as were the quick statements of opposition from members of Congress who had been opposing the FASB on this. Both Sen.Mike Enzi (R.-Wyo.) and Rep. Richard Baker...

How CFOs can survive--and prosper.(Books)(for Chief Financial Officers)(Book Review)
June 1, 2004... * WRITING A HANDBOOK ABOUT CFOS amidst the wreckage of Enron, WorldCom, and Arthur Andersen can be a daunting challenge for even the most skilled business writers. In their book, CFO Survival Guide, published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.,...

A money management reference book.(Books)(The Guru Guide to Money Management)(Book Review)
June 1, 2004... * IN THE GURU GUIDE TO MONEY MANAGEMENT, authors Joseph H. Boyett and Jimmie T. Boyett state that there are more than 8,000 personal finance and investment books in print, with over 300 published in 2002 alone. What exactly is the advice that...

Constructive receipt and the substantial restrictions limitation.(Taxes)
June 1, 2004... THE GENERAL RULE FOR INCOME INCLUSION is found in IRC Sec. 451(a). For a cash-basis taxpayer, items of income should be included in the gross income total for the year that the taxpayer receives that income. Treas. Regs. Sec. 1.451-2 explains...

Hands-free, clutter-free.(tools of the tools trade)(headset introduced)
June 1, 2004... The allways[TM] hands-free headset can be worn around the ear or suspended from eyeglasses for extended periods with no discomfort. It uses Bluetooth[TM] technology, so there are no wires, and you can be as far as 30 feet away from your phone...

The disc that would have cost $7 million.(Tech Forum)
June 1, 2004... * JUST LIKE THE KEYBOARD POUNDERS who sit in front of them, computers need both short-term and long-term memory to function. Luckily, the machines even have a third way to remember with removable floppy, flash, CD, and DVD devices. These...

Power by proxy.(Trends In Financial Management)
June 1, 2004... * AUDIT COMMITTEE MEMBERS have been particular targets of "withhold" votes this proxy season. The California Public Employees' Retirement System (Calpers), the largest U.S. pension fund, has been withholding its vote for directors who...

Get ready! As financial professionals, you'll need to explain pension issues and reporting to executives and directors.(Pension Plans)
June 1, 2004... WITH THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT and other regulations calling for executives and directors to become more financially sophisticated, controllers and CFOs will be expected to educate the nonfinancial officers in their companies. Getting these...

The case for SEC use of XBRL.(XBRL)(Extentionable Business Reporting Language)(United States. Securities and Exchange Commission)
June 1, 2004... CONVENTIONAL WISDOM IN THE EXTENSIBLE Business Reporting Language (XBRL) circles is that the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) will wait for the marketplace to adopt XBRL before requiring companies to send their SEC filings in the XBRL...