Accounting Today articles from March 2009

Accounting Today archives from March 2009

Stimulus may stimulate accountant; Experts say the sweeping law may create major opportunities for the profession.(Crisis Center)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Roger Russell Washington, D.C.-Provisions in the recently signed $787 billion economic stimulus package - the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 - will have a ripple effect across all industries, according to experts....

Trends to Watch.(News)
March 16, 2009... Marketing guru Michelle Golden, president of Golden Marketing in St. Louis, named three trends that she's observed in CPA firms. * Internal focus. "I'm seeing firms - from massive, big firms to little, tiny, solo firms - turn their...

Government may be the answer! A more-active federal government means opportunities for engagements.(Crisis Center)
March 16, 2009... Byline: David Alexander Is your firm interested in entering the federal government market? In an uncertain economy, the federal government can be a reliable source of revenues, often with good margins. A terrible economy, ironically, might...

IN BRIEF.(Crisis Center)(McGladrey & Pullen L.L.P.)(SS&G Financial Services Inc. )
March 16, 2009... McGladrey Sued in Madoff Case New York - McGladrey & Pullen has been sued by a hedge fund for failing to detect red flags in Bernard Madoff's investment schemes, leading the hedge fund to lose $280 million. The lawsuit states that...

Testing your tax-time temps.(Tax Practice)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Mary Clarke Despite the current economic slowdown, the busy season is well underway as firms across the country are preparing the onslaught of returns that roll in during the weeks and months prior to April 15. The increased...

IN BRIEF.(Tax Practice)(electronic tax filing drop)(Internal Revenue Service )(Earned Income Tax Credit)(Report)
March 16, 2009... IRS Sees Less e-Filing Kennesaw, Ga. - In early February, the Internal Revenue Service reported a nearly 10 percent drop in electronic tax filing from tax professionals, despite a push by the agency to encourage more e-filing. This...

TAX STRATEGY: Finding the silver lining to capital losses.(Tax Practice)
March 16, 2009... Byline: George G. Jones and Mark A. Luscombe 2008 was a tough year for investors and 2009 so far is shaping up to be more of the same. Nevertheless, investors should not lose sight of the value of capital losses for tax purposes. ...

How much should financial reports tell?(Assurance)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Glenn Cheney One of the many problems the ongoing financial crisis has brought to light is the fact that generally accepted accounting principles do not necessarily give investors all the information they need to foresee the perils...

IN BRIEF.(Assurance)
March 16, 2009... COSO Issues Guidance Altamonte Springs, Fla. - The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission and Grant Thornton have collaborated on Guidance on Monitoring Internal Control Systems to help companies comply better...

THE SPIRIT OF ACCOUNTING: Escaping the minimum GAAP compliance syndrome.(Assurance)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Paul B.W. Miller and Paul R. Bahnson We have a perennial puzzle we just can't explain to our satisfaction. Here it is: Why are managers so willing to go overboard in product development and promotion, yet so blissfully content...

Clients, advisors urgently seek answers, strategies.(Financial Planning)(Viewpoint essay)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Howard Hook As the economy worsens and unemployment continues to rise, many people who have stayed invested may be asking themselves if they made a mistake by not selling out and remaining in cash. Conversely, those who have...

Smarter marketing; Tough times call for smarter strategies, innovative ideas.(News)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Liz Gold Don't cut that marketing budget - or at least think twice before you get out the scalpel. That's the mantra (or plea) of many accounting firm marketing directors these days, whose departments are often among the first...

IN BRIEF.(Financial Planning)
March 16, 2009... Seniors Lack Economic Security Three out of four senior households are said to lack the economic security needed to sustain them through their lives, according to a new study from the Senior Economic Security Index, a research project...

SOFTWARE REVIEW: Making documents go with the flow; Document management and workflow are increasingly inseparable.(Technology)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Dave McClure A year ago, the emphasis in document management systems remained on the core areas of scanning, storing and retrieving documents. But the emphasis has changed in the past year, making it clear that document management...

IN BRIEF.(Technology)(Chuck Gossett has been appointed at Cougar Mountain Software )(sales tax automation solutions has been introduced by Avalara)(Stephen Royal has been named at Copanion )(Brief article)
March 16, 2009... Cougar Mtn. Names New Prez/CEO Cougar Mountain Software has appointed Chuck Gossett as the accounting software company's new president and chief executive, succeeding his father, Bob Gossett, who is retiring from the company he founded in...

BOOMER'S BLUEPRINT: Perception - reaction - result!(Technology)
March 16, 2009... Byline: L. Gary Boomer Knowing what the future may hold for you and your firm is tremendously valuable in these uncertain times. While I can't provide every answer, I can offer some tools that will improve your thinking and the...

Achieving partner accountability.(Practice Resources)
March 16, 2009... Byline: August Aquila Accountability, according to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, is "the obligation or responsibility to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions." Let's explore what this definition means. ...

Tomorrow's Look Today.(Practice Resources: Accounting Tomorrow)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Liz Gold Are intergenerational issues within your firm stressing you out? You're not alone. That's why we launched Accounting Tomorrow, a new Web site that deals with the changing dynamics of a multi-generational workplace. ...

PEOPLE.(Practice Resources)
March 16, 2009... California Laura A. Peckham and Christopher J. Grodell have joined Hedman Partners, Valencia, as an audit manager and a senior tax manager, respectively.... Donella Wilson and Farshad Yashar have been promoted to partner at Green Hasson &...

FIRMS.(Practice Resources)
March 16, 2009... Alabama Barfield Murphy Shank & Smith, Birmingham, has formed its TurnAround Services Committee, or TASC Force, to deliver turnaround services to restructure struggling companies. It will be led by shareholders Keith Barfield, Don Murphy...

Coming Events.(Practice Resources)
March 16, 2009... March 17: Controllers Conference: The Changing World of Corporate Finance, Illinois CPA Society and the Center for Corporate Financial Leadership. Rosemont, Ill. Contact: www.icpas.org or (800) 993-0393. 18: Stress Management, Boomer...

Clarifications/Corrections.(News)
March 16, 2009... The 2009 Top 100 Firms report that accompanied this issue went to press before cbiz/Mayer Hoffman McCann released its revenue figures for 2008. The firm reported $553.1 million in revenue, a 10.46 percent increase over 2007, and slightly higher...

Parente Randolph merges in Lazar Levine.(News)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Mike Cohn Philadelphia-based Parente Randolph has combined with Lazar Levine & Felix in a $16 million merger, expanding its footprint in New Jersey and New York City. As part of the deal, Lazar Lipton Valuation Services, an...

Small business to face closer audit scrutiny.(News)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Ken Rankin Washington, D.C.-The nation's small businesses are squarely in Washington's crosshairs - targeted for more rigorous, more painful scrutiny by both federal tax enforcement officials and the nation's accounting...

IN BRIEF.(News)
March 16, 2009... Crowe Horwath Combines with Hays & Co. Oak Brook, Ill. - Crowe Horwath is expanding to New York City by combining practices with Hays & Co. LLP. David Lifson, a former president of the New York State Society of CPAs, and Ed Kuzmarski...

FASB staff fills gap in SPE disclosures.(News)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Glenn Cheney Norwalk, Conn.-As the Financial Accounting Standards Board tinkers with amendments to its Statement 140 and Interpretation 46R, the FASB staff has issued a staff position that expands disclosures about corporate...

EDITOR'S NOTE: Salary caps: A mixed bag.(Opinion)
March 16, 2009... Byline: Bill Carlino, Editor-in-Chief Several years ago in this space, I chastised Disney Corp. for awarding a severance package of $140 million to its former president, Michael Ovitz, after his disastrous tenure at the entertainment...

LETTERS: Obama column spot on.(Opinion)
March 16, 2009... I found editor-in-chief Bill Carlino's letter to the then-president-elect right on the money (Dec. 15, 2008-Jan. 4, 2009, page 6). I would not venture to guess that he even thought he was uniformly representing your readership - as no editor...