Key Strategies Include Building Competitive Intelligence, Reading Trade Media, Innovation and Response to Trends,  and More.   Bruce Marcus at CPA Trendlines offers a guide to trend-spotting for accountants: ...

Survey Shows Half of Respondents are Considering Cloud Solutions, and Three Quarters Believe Cloud Strategies Will Be Important for Their Firm's Success Within 12-18 Months Christine Camara at Accounting Web reports that a majority of top finance executives in US companies foresee Cloud computing lowering costs and helping their businesses succeed in the near future, according to a new survey - The Business ...

Recommendation Framework Paper Available; Comment Period Ends October 31st.       Late last month the FASB released its initial staff recommendations on whether and when it will be appropriate to adjust financial reporting requirements for private companies, the Journal of Accountancy reports.  The recommendations are contained in a paper, Private Company Decision-Making Framework: A Framework for Evaluatin ...

Beyond Deal Price, Consider Deal Structure, Earnouts, and Appropriate Standard of Value    When one company is acquiring another, the deal price is often the primary factor considered. Too many times, however, critical issues are overlooked, explains Sean R. Saari, CPA/ABV, CVA, MBA.  Smart Business spoke with Saari about five questions any business valuation any acquirer needs to consider:   ...

In Berquist v. Commissioner, Judge Swift Finds a Company’s Pending Liquidation is Relevant and Foreseeable. Brand valuation is becoming an ever more critical business as intangible assets are increasingly being recognized as highly valued property, writes Sophie Roberts in Intellectual Property.  Consider: A vast majority of work your business is already doing today almost certainly affects brand value. Whe ...

In Berquist v. Commissioner, Judge Swift Finds a Company’s Pending Liquidation is Relevant and Foreseeable. The Tax Court valued closely-held stock in an anesthesiology practice donated to a hospital for charitable contribution purposes at its liquidation value since the anesthesiology practice would no longer exist after the physician-stockholders were consolidated into a newly-formed umbrella physician ma ...

In Nebraska, Judge Considers: Should Damages be Limited to the Length of a Non-Compete Clause? The Supreme Court of North Dakota prefers the testimony of an accredited appraiser, a Tennessee court asks an expert witness to stick to the topic rather than allowing him to recommend an alternative legal remedy, and a Nebraska court considers whether damages should be limited to those incurred during the period ...

Here’s How To Understand the Set-Up and Then Make Pre-Valuation Adjustments Valuation gets tricky when it involves complex ownership structures. Rand Curtiss explains how to approach the appraisal of companies that own interests in other companies, companies that charge fees to affiliated companies, and groups of companies that have several owners each holding different ownership percentages. ...

Plan for Death, Disability, and a Partner Wanting Out.  Here's Why.    John P. Napolitano,  CEO of U.S. Wealth Management in Braintree, Mass., and 2012 president of the Financial Planning Association of Massachusetts, explains why it's critical to think about the future, even if you're overwhelmed with work today: ...

Regular Marketing is Important, and Existing Clients Are One of the Best Sources of Referrals.  Here's How to Get the Best Return on Marketing Investment.  Ed Mendlowitz regularly fields questions from readers at CPA Trendlines.  Recently he opined on the importance of regular marketing.  One tip:  leverage your existing clients for referrals.  Specifically, he adds:   ...

Relative Levels of Equity and Debt Affect Risk and Cash Flow.   This Has Substantial Impact on Amount Investors Will Pay.     Matt Stelzman notes in the Chattanooga News TimesFreePress that the question that often arises in connection with a business valuation is whether the valuator should use the company's actual capital structure or its anticipated future capital structure. A valuator might also use a pr ...

Today Individual Federal Gift Law Exemption is $5.12M.  In Months it May Drop to $1M.  Result: Surging Demand for Appraisals.    Lou Carlozo at Reuters reports that faced with the possibility of the lifetime gift tax exemption dropping precipitously next year and the estate tax rate rising, wealthy individuals are rushing to transfer their assets to family members. More: ...

This Long Term Plan Is of Particular Use to Owners of Illiquid Privately Held Companies Consultants can help business owners planning a sale by helping them understand how a charitable remainder trust might help. These trusts can significantly reduce owed taxes and ensure owners receive regular income in return for donating cash, securities, or real estate to a charity. It’s of particular use for owners of ...

Shared Values and Employee Practices Drive Increased Productivity, Loyalty, and Best Customer Service The shared values and practices of employees in a company have real value that can be just as critical to a company’s success as its physical assets and market potential. Employees who passionately enjoy their work tend to be more productive, have increased employer loyalty, and offer better customer servic ...

The Best Experts Increase Odds of Winning by Devising Strategy, Guiding Discovery, and Enhancing the Quality of Daubert Challenges Donald M. May at Claims Journal explains how the best expert witnesses increase odds of winning by devising strategy, guiding discovery, and enhancing the quality of Daubert challenges.  Here are the sort of queries—about specific topical expertise, testimony record, exclusion h ...

Intangible Assets, Switching Costs, Network Economies, and Cost Advantage Provide a Critical Edge Ron Stacey contends the answer is not a dominant market share, efficiency, or even a talented management team. Companies with lasting advantage tend to be strengthened by intangible assets, switching costs, network economies, and cost advantage. Find out why.  ...

Restaurant Chains Have Managed to Combine Quality Control, Cost Control, and Innovation. Can Health Care?   Physician and writer Atul Gawande publishes an essay in the New Yorker today that discusses how the Cheesecake Factory delivers good food at reasonable prices while meeting rigorous metrics (it throws away only 2.5% of all its groceries, for instance), and explores whether and how the lessons of Chees ...

Of an Estimated $72B Raised by U.S. Buyout Sponsors Through Mid-Year, 43% Has Gone to Mega-Funds  PE Hub opines that while many LPs claim they favor small- to mid-sized business investments, that this year the numbers are beginning to tell a different story.   There is increased investment in buyout funds doing deals of $1 billion or more in size.   It may be that mega-funds  while less are simply the only ...

Six Initial Public Offerings Seek to Raise $1.1 Billion  The IPO market is set for its biggest week since Facebook Inc.'s FB +4.98% troubled offering in May, with Manchester United Ltd. and the operator of Outback Steakhouse among those scheduled to hit the tape, reports the Wall Street Journal.   More: ...

Bond King Says Stocks are Dead:  Believes Consistent, Annual Returns Are "Thing of the Past."  On the Horizon?  Inflation. “The cult of equity is dying,” Bill Gross wrote in his August Investment Outlook, the Wall Street Journal's Market Beat blog reports.    “Like a once bright green aspen turning to subtle shades of yellow then red in the Colorado fall, investors’ impressions of ‘stocks for the long run’ ...