Accounting Today articles from December 2007

Accounting Today archives from December 2007

Gearing Up For Tax Season: Staffing, tax law changes shaping 2008 filing season.
December 17, 2007... While friends and family are more concerned with the holidays at hand, tax practitioners are taking last-minute steps to ensure that they and their clients have a successful tax season. Training people to be able to staff the offices...

In Brief.(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... FASB DELAYS FIN 48 FOR PRIVATE COS. Norwalk, Conn. - The Financial Accounting Standards Board has decided to defer the effective date for FASB Interpretation No. 48, Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes, for nonpublic entities. ...

House votes for AMT patch.(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... Washington, D.C. -- The House has voted to approve a $78 billion bill that would provide a temporary fix to prevent the alternative minimum tax from spreading to about 23 million more taxpayers this coming tax season. Congress was under...

Despite shake-up, Sage retains focus on customer.(Sage Software Inc. )(Conference news)
December 17, 2007... Chicago -- 'So, what do you use?" That was one of the frequently asked questions floating around Sage Summit, the recent annual customer conference organized by Sage Software. More than 2,200 attendees met here to discuss and dig deeper...

EU mulls easing firm ownership rules.
December 17, 2007... Brussels -- Creating opportunities for mid-tier audit firms to enter the international market could include relaxing ownership rules to permit investment from outsiders - non-accounting professionals - according to an independent study prepared...

In Brief.(United States. Securities and Exchange Commission's rule for multinational companies)(audit of United States. Internal Revenue Service by United States. Government Accountability Office)
December 17, 2007... SEC REMOVES RECONCILIATION REQUIREMENT Washington, D.C. - The Securities and Exchange Commission voted in mid-November to remove the requirement for non-U.S. companies to reconcile their financial statements to U.S. generally accepted...

Editor's Desk: It's a 'mother,' all right!
December 17, 2007... 'Subtle" has never been an adjective used to describe Charles Rangel. The outspoken Democrat from New York has historically expressed his rather candid opinions on a number of issues - usually at several decibels higher than everyone else. ...

Commentary: CPAs I have known - Pt. 7.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' Marvin L. Stone)
December 17, 2007... MARVIN L. STONE The only word to describe Marvin Stone is "unique." He is six-foot-three, handsome, smart and witty - that's all. When one meets Marvin, one smiles expectantly; in return, Marvin smiles because he is about to deliver a...

New York CPAs 'SET' on fixing AMT.(alternative minimum tax)
December 17, 2007... The current wrangling over the alternative minimum tax is a symptom of the larger problems with having a Tax Code built on patchwork over nearly a century, to the point that it resembles a Rube Goldberg contraption, according to David A....

In Brief.
December 17, 2007... IRS EXTENDS DEFERRED-COMP DEADLINE After repeated pleas from tax practitioners, lawyers and others, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service announced that they would extend the final deadline for compliance with new rules...

Tax Strategy: A tax bill that may pass Congress in 2007.
December 17, 2007... One week after Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., introduced his massive, dream tax reform proposal, and after acknowledging that that proposal had no chance of passage this year, Chairman Rangel introduced a more...

Are auditors Patriot Act-ready?
December 17, 2007... Shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, America's financial institution auditors - internal and external - were called to the trenches of the war against terrorism. Under Section 352 of the USA Patriot Act, they have been required to verify that...

Change of Auditors.(appointments)
December 17, 2007... GRANT THORNTON DISMISSED AS MANNATECH AUDITOR Dietary supplement developer Mannatech has fired Grant Thornton as its auditor and appointed BDO Seidman in its place after a dispute over the company's chairman. Grant Thornton gave...

The Spirit Of Accounting: CIFiR: Five more points to ponder.(Column)
December 17, 2007... Our previous two columns addressed the Securities and Exchange Commission's recently appointed Committee on Improvements to Financial Reporting, which has been charged with suggesting things that can be done to strengthen the system. ...

Software Survey: Asset allocation software helps clients find the right mix.
December 17, 2007... Financial planning isn't magic, but it is an art as much as it is a science. Different planning practices deal with different kinds of investment vehicles. But regardless of the vehicle, financial plans are rarely static. That's because...

In Brief.(briefs)
December 17, 2007... FIDELITY LAUNCHES WEB-BASED FP TOOL Fidelity Investments has introduced the Fidelity Retirement Income Evaluator, a Web-based planning tool designed to help advisors create and manage retirement income plans for their clients, as well as...

Pricing and partner compensation.
December 17, 2007... A shortage of quality people, commoditization and increased regulation result in what Harvard economist Joseph Schumpeter referred to as a depleted industry in need of transformation. These are scary times for accounting firms that don't...

Sage boosts Network.(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... Sage Software has enhanced its Accountants' Network with new incentives for members. Through a partnership with LeapFile, Accountants' Network members can sign up for a service called Sage AssuredSend, a secure file-transfer service that allows...

CCH Intros Online Version of ProSystem fx Document.
December 17, 2007... CCH has begun selling its document management system, ProSystem fx Document, in an application service provider version that allows accounting firms to access it online. The service, ProSystem fx Document ASP, is hosted by CCH instead of the...

Paisley Upgrades GRC Software.
December 17, 2007... Software developer Paisley has announced an updated version of its governance, risk and compliance software, Paisley Enterprise GRC. Version 3.5 includes compliance management features that support the documentation and management of laws and...

The Long Rise Of SaaS.
December 17, 2007... In the comics, all you have to do is get exposed to some radiation, don some tights, and everyone knows you're ready to take on the world. With accounting software, it's not that easy. Take the ongoing saga of "Software as a Service" -...

Unmasking the Top 100.(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... Our nostalgic cover aside, and despite the fact that the SaaS segment is evolving more rapidly than anyone could have envisioned even five years ago, hosted solutions still represent only a small fraction of the vast quantity of software...

Ones to Watch.
December 17, 2007... In addition to those products named in our Top 100 List, each year our editors spotlight a number of products that caught our attention - and deserve yours. * 1040Scan (SurePrep LLC): Scanning software that automatically inputs data from...

Top 100 Products 2007.
December 17, 2007... HIGH-END/ MID-MARKET ACCOUNTING ACCOUNTMATE 7 FOR SQL AccountMate Software Corp. AccountMate 7 provides a stable and modifiable solution for the mid-market. It is sold by the module, and the availability of source code makes it...

Category to Watch: SOX Compliance.
December 17, 2007... In the last year or two, the fog surrounding Sarbanes-Oxley software was finally starting to clear, with a number of vendor offerings focused specifically on compliance, primarily with Sections 302 and 404, on management's responsibility for...

Vendor Directory.(Directory)
December 17, 2007... Contact information for the vendors of the Accounting Today 2007 Top 100 Products and Ones to Watch. AccountantsWorld Accounting Relief; Payroll Relief AC; PFP Relief Hauppauge, N.Y. (888) 999-1366 www.accountantsworld.com ...

Have you assessed your firm lately?
December 17, 2007... Periodically, the partners of all accounting firms should pause and assess the strategic direction of the firm. Strategy and tactics are easily confused, and I've worked with many firms that hold a strategic advance only to get bogged down in...

New Poducts.(accounting software)(books on accounting)
December 17, 2007... Software ELBOW ROOM CCH has created a hosted version of its ProSystem fx Document document management solution, so your firm can have paperless workflows, manage document retention, offer client portals - and save even more space,...

People.(RSM McGladrey Inc. appointed Sam Mascareno)(Bond Beebe appointed Frank Blaser)(Brown Smith Wallace L.L.C. appointed Shannon Wiese )
December 17, 2007... CALIFORNIA Sam Mascareno has been named a managing director at RSM McGladrey Inc., San Diego, while Darcy Wilson-Jones has been named a partner in the Pasadena office of McGladrey & Pullen LLP.... Maier Rosenberg has been made a partner...

Firms.(Glen Thomas and Chris York launched ThomasYork LLP)(Carr Riggs and Ingram LLC acquired Cuthill and Eddy)(Jefferson Wells International's new office in Hong Kong)
December 17, 2007... CALIFORNIA Glen Thomas and Chris York have launched ThomasYork LLP, San Ramon. Both were formerly with Jones, Henle & Schunck.... Reznick Group has expanded its strategic partnership with Bedford Capital Consulting to offer...

Coming Events.(Calendar)
December 17, 2007... DECEMBER 17-18: Crystal Public Training: Business Enterprise - Administering Users & Content, Kolb & Co. Brookfield, Wis. Contact: www.kolbco.com. 17-21: IIA Public Seminars, Institute of Internal Auditors. New York City. Contact:...

A tax-planning checklist.(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... Individuals and business owners should be advised to take advantage of the following opportunities, according to Alan Willinger, CPA, JD, a partner in New York-based CPA firm Rosen Seymour Shapss Martin & Co. LLP: * Make annual gifts up to...

Advertiser Index.
December 17, 2007... Advertiser Page AccuFund 37 ADP Small Business Services 21 Blackbaud 29 BNA Tax Management 27 CaseWare International 19 ...

Editor's Note: Making Your Life Better.(Editorial)(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... "Drive thy business or it will drive thee," said Benjamin Franklin, who must have forecast what we see today. A 2007 Litchfield Readership Survey of the Accountants Media Group found that 61 percent of our readers offer small business...

Supporting Accountants Who Support Small Businesses.
December 17, 2007... Accountants understand the complexities and pressures of running a small business. In addition to payroll and tax compliance, which can be hard enough, they know that small business owners also have to manage a wide variety of HR, worker's...

Challenges for Your Clients; Opportunities for Your Practice.
December 17, 2007... Like so many smaller accounting firm professionals, you're likely to be on the lookout for ways to diversify and grow your practice-as well as better serve the clients you have. Operational and resource issues, increasingly complex...

Web Portals Compliment Accountants Serving Small Business.
December 17, 2007... The difficulty shared by all accountants and businesses in general is the challenge of transferring information securely. Accountants work with sensitive data daily, and are supposed to know how to handle client information to keep it secure....

Financially Sound Strategy for Firms and Their Clients.
December 17, 2007... The single-service firm is quickly becoming an endangered species in the profession. Today, many professionals have adopted a full-service philosophy, offering their clients an array of services including tax prep, payroll, write-up,...

Financial Benchmarking for Small Businesses.
December 17, 2007... Put yourself in the position of your small business clients and ask: "What is the most beneficial service my CPA can provide to my company?" The answer is continuous improvement in the creation of wealth, in both the short term and long term,...

Easy and Profitable.
December 17, 2007... For decades, offering payroll services typically required a part or full-time staff member who was well-versed in managing payday entries, paying taxes, and filing forms. This hands-on payroll management approach was tedious and time-consuming....

Workflow Automation Software Powers Paperless Office.
December 17, 2007... CPA firms moving toward a paperless, technology-driven environment have learned that doing so effectively means implementing the right tools and re-engineering existing paper-based and paperless processes. Adopting technologies to scan, store,...

Optimizing Business Operations.
December 17, 2007... Document management technology has many benefits and they are applicable to accounting firms and by extension their clients. Some of key benefits include: Once documents are electronic, backup is relatively simple * Finding documents...

A Tool That Makes Sense of Financial Numbers.(SageWorks Inc's ProfitCents software)
December 17, 2007... Most people who run small businesses have a good understanding and working knowledge of the operations side of a business. They understand their customers, they know how to sell, and they know how to deliver good products and services. However,...

Real Savings Integrating Documents and Workflow.
December 17, 2007... Just storing documents or changing the way we work: Things to consider when combining a workflow and document system. Document Management has many known benefits promoting cost savings, but is going paperless enough in an effort to save...

Playing Well With Others.
December 17, 2007... Just as today's accounting firm provides an array of services to small businesses-everything from tax compliance, payroll, consulting, and financial statements, to bookkeeping and beyond-so too, should today's firm require more than a single,...

Doing All My Heavy Lifting.(online payroll service)(Personal account)
December 17, 2007... Three years ago, after years of working as a CPA in public accounting and insurance, I ventured out on my own and started a small tax and accounting practice. I am a sole practitioner that built my practice through word of mouth, serving...

Managing Documents in an Occasionally Connected World.(Colligo Networks Inc.)
December 17, 2007... As professional services firms move towards completely paperless engagements, several key questions arise. How can they meet increasingly stringent document and email retention requirements? How do they manage documents and workflow seamlessly...

Late Breaking News.(Intuit Inc. have launched new software)(AccountantsWorld L.L.C's new accounting software)(ProStor Systems' new removable disk archive system )
December 17, 2007... INTUIT COMING UP STRONG FOR 2008 Intuit QuckBooks is delivering a full set of solutions designed to help small businesses succeed. These include payroll, checks and supplies, training, credit cards acceptance, point of sale, and financial...

Editor's Note: The Year Ahead 2008.
December 17, 2007... Hardly anyone who has gotten through elementary and secondary school has not seen the fortune-telling 8 balls, the ones that have brief answers floating around that come to the one clear area of the ball's surface after it has been shaken. ...

Staffing Leads Concerns for 2008.
December 17, 2007... Jobs, jobs and jobs. Unless the economy goes south in 2008, it's clear that tax, accounting and technology consulting firms continue to see a shortage of qualified job seekers as the leading barrier to growth. Not everyone is looking for...

IT Staff in Short Supply.(Information technology workers)(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... Kevin Turner, COO Microsoft "We think it's a crisis, quite honestly. We can't hire enough people. You know, we see a third of the graduates coming out of the technology field that we saw in 2000 right now. And we're short. The second thing...

Defining the Top Issues. A Glossary of Hot Topics.(Brief article)(Glossary)
December 17, 2007... Those who live, breathe and talk technology can toss out a variety of terms with ease. But it's clear that a lot of the topics that get tossed around by those in the know are a foreign language to many users of everyday technology. Here's...

Remember the Top 10 Technology Issues.(American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... The American Institute of CPAs will be releasing its Top Ten Technologies for 2008 after the first of the year. But those thinking about what's ahead may want to review the issues that were expected to be the major issues for this year. ...

People to Watch in 2008.
December 17, 2007... The roster of People to Watch in 2008 isn't just one of new faces. In many cases, it's a story of old faces in new places, people who have found themselves in new roles, some willingly, some less willingly. There are others who are...

Products to Watch in 2008.(ADP)(AVALARA )(GoFileRoom)
December 17, 2007... First of all, this is not a list of top products in the tax and accounting market. It is a list of interesting products, products that have taken a different approach, some of which are new to the market. Most have provoked user interest. ...

Looking Ahead: Leaders Look at Trends.
December 17, 2007... Everyone would like to have a crystal ball to predict the future, and anyone buying technology services and products wants to know the direction these services and products will take. Accounting Technology asked four leaders in the...

Vendors Foresee a Healthy 2008.
December 17, 2007... There aren't a lot of publicly held companies that break out meaningful details about the outlook for the tax and accounting market each year as the numbers are buried in large companies and aren't material to results. But the numbers that...

Forget Accounting. There's Gold in Them Thar Medical Bills.(software companies are investing in health care companies)(Brief article)
December 17, 2007... In a few years, some of the companies that have been historically thought of as playing in the tax and accounting market may be something completely different. That's because as the players look for faster-growing markets, some of the...

Some Exits of Note of 2007.(Intuit Inc's Steve Bennett)(Microsoft Corp. Business Solutions Div's Doug Burgum)(Sage Software Inc's Jim Foster)
December 17, 2007... Every year brings change and 2007 has been no exception as executives who make decisions affecting the tax and commuting move on, some to better jobs in the same company but outside of the market. Others left for other opportunities, whether...