CPAs around the United States are raising alarms about a recent wave of deregulatory legislative proposals that are endangering the profession. While these proposals have not affected the profession yet, CPA profession leaders warn that the danger is far from over. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: States’ Deregulatory Push Threatens CPA Licensure. ...

On Nov. 24, 2014, a woman named Diana received a menacing phone call in Hernando, Miss., a small city nestled in the northwest corner of the state. A caller purporting to be an IRS agent claimed she owed back taxes and told her that agents were waiting to arrest her unless she paid up immediately. The caller was insistent, threatening, and urging her to act quickly. To read the full article in the Journal o ...

of the Current Marijuana Business (Part I of II) In November of 2018, there are some 28,000 marijuana/cannabis businesses in operation, employing about 150,000 people in the U.S., and they manage and control some $9 billion in essentially cash revenues. This industry continues to grow. In this two-part article, the author provides a brief overview of the history of this industry and tax issues CPAs and cons ...

to Your Differentiation Strategy Among executives in the accounting and finance firms, creating and implementing a relevant differentiation strategy continues to be a struggle—however, this does not have to be the case. At its simplest, creating and implementing a differentiation strategy is a five-step process. In this article, Dr. Frederiksen describes these steps. ...

As a trusted adviser, a CPA is often the first resource clients turn to for many financial issues. While often these questions are in the context of a service the CPA may already be engaged to provide (tax compliance, estate planning, etc.), it is not uncommon to receive other requests that seem simple but can carry unique challenges. To read the full article in The Tax Adviser, click: Third-Party Verificat ...

Blockchain is forecast to transform many industries by providing fast, verifiable transfer and tracking. At its core, blockchain is a distributed ledger that records transactions between every user in the chain. Although it’s commonly regarded as a single technology, there are different types of blockchain: public and private. To read the full article in In The Black, click: What’s the Difference Between a ...

CPA candidates in Europe will no longer have to undertake intercontinental travel to sit for the CPA Exam. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Launch of CPA Exam in Europe Provides Convenience for Candidates. ...

Alexa Voice AI Makes Conversational Valuation Possible What if your valuation reports could have a two-way conversation with your clients? How would that improve the usability of your work product? Could it increase the value of your firm’s intellectual capital? In this, the author discusses how Alexa Voice AI can deliver a calculation report to a client. ...

and Communications If readers accept the premise that technology is here to stay, then the flip phone is our reminder of what can be lost without complete and comprehensive communication. In this article, the author shares five reasons for regretting the loss of the “flip phone” to newer technology and cautions readers to the perils that new technology pose to our ability to communicate. ...

A newly released international auditing standard for auditing accounting estimates and related disclosures is designed to help auditors keep pace with changes in accounting standards for loan provisions and insurance contracts. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: International Audit Standard Addresses Estimates. ...

As public company auditors prepare to deliver new information in auditors’ reports, firms need to develop consistent processes for determining what should be disclosed. As auditors prepare for a new auditing standard requiring the disclosure of critical audit matters (CAMs) in their reports, they are traveling in uncharted territory and contemplating new information that they will be providing to investors. ...

Hermann Sidhu, CPA, global assurance digital leader at EY, walks us through EY’s exciting new project to use drones to help audit large warehouses and outdoor inventories. The goal of the project is for drones to autonomously scan bar codes, QR codes, and other labels and transmit that data to EY’s online auditing platform. It has the potential to make audits faster and more seamless for both auditors and c ...

SSFS 1 Announced at AICPA FVS Conference The AICPA just announced the upcoming Statement on Standards for Forensic Services (SSFS 1) engagements. In this article, C. Zachary Meyers offers readers a sneak peek into the three key areas of interest. ...

Obtaining Adequate Information in Small Business Valuations As valuation professionals, one of the challenges we face in valuing small businesses is the quality of the financial information provided by the subject company. The NACVA professional standards require members to exercise due professional care and obtain sufficient relevant data to prepare a conclusion, recommendation, or position. In this articl ...

The Expert Witness Exchange In this article, the Expert Witness Exchange discusses expert witness employment opportunities for CVAs and how to get noticed by attorneys. ...

Our firm bills clients in six-minute increments, so I've started tracking my beginning and ending time for each job in Excel. Is it possible to round my time calculations to the nearest six-minute increment (a 10th of an hour) in Excel? To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Microsoft Office: Rounding Time in Excel. ...

What is the best choice when faced with an array of choices for finding specific data in a financial model? Consider this vector analysis. Conspicuous by its absence, LOOKUP may seem a less versatile function upon first glance, but it is quite useful for modelling. To read the full article in Financial Management, click: Things Are Looking Up With This Excel Function. ...

Can you recommend a file-naming strategy that would make files easier to find on my computer—not just for me, but for others in my office in case I get hit by a bus? To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Microsoft Windows: How to Best Name and Search for Files. ...

Be a Trusted Advisor Valuation analysts are in a unique position to help their clients. Most business owners have never looked at their business the way a valuation professional does. If the valuation analyst does a yearly check-up or checks in with their clients but does not include a discussion or a strategy to build value in their business, perhaps it should. This is an opportunity to expand the work bas ...

Five Signs That We Need to Part Ways With a Client How do we know when it’s time to cast off a client or referral source? In this article, Rod Burkert shares five tell-tale signs that suggest it is time to have a break-up talk. ...