Accountants and business experts agree—if you want to create a stronger team, make a more substantial contribution to your company, and expand your sphere of influence, then you need to think outside the silo. Eddie Huffman describes how CPAs need to focus more on connecting with and influencing their management peers, not just the people above and below them. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Seven Tips for Managing Sideways.
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Challenging and Defending Compensation and Use of the Independent Investor Test C corporations and S corporations should pay shareholder/executive compensation based on the fair market value of the executive services rendered—or risk being audited and possibly penalized by the Internal Revenue Service. Forensic analysts can help companies determine reasonable shareholder/executive compensation using free or fee-based compensation data, with consideration of statutory authority and judicial precedent. This discussion (1) summarizes the federal income tax statutes and judicial precedents related to shareholder/executive compensation, (2) provides a list of frequently relied upon executive compensation data sources, and (3) reviews important issues presented in…
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Medical Director Compensation This article is the fourth in a series involving current healthcare management issues. An in-depth article on this issue was published in The Value Examiner’s September/October 2017 issue. In that issue, the authors discuss issues setting forth medical director services and establishing defensible compensation arrangements.
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We have all had those cringe-worthy moments on videoconference calls when a colleague or customer forgets that we can see and hear everything they are doing. It is hard to be our best selves all the time on screen, especially with videoconferences becoming more common as remote work arrangements and widespread teams become increasingly common. Lori Sexton, CPA, CGMA, provides you with four considerations for proper etiquette during a video or any other type of conference call. To read the full article in CGMA Magazine, click: Four Etiquette Tips for Videoconference Calls.
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What is the purpose of audit planning if the audit may not ultimately follow the carefully thought out plan? As may be inferred from Dwight D. Eisenhower’s words—”Plans are worthless, but planning is everything”—the value of audit planning is not derived solely from the resulting audit plan. Daniel Gartland, risk control consultant at CNA, describes the importance of detailed planning. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: The Importance of Audit Planning.
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Accountants should focus on providing niche areas of service such as business valuation and retirement planning and move away from tasks including bookkeeping and financial reporting because automation and technological advances will take over much of their work. Dominic Diongson, deputy editor for AccountingWEB, explains. To read the full article in AccountingWEB, click: CPAs Should Shift to Niche Services as Automation Takes Over.
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The Case of the Delayed Real Estate Development In a situation where there is a claim of wrongdoing and one party suffers pecuniary damages, it is incumbent on the economic damages expert to precisely define the period of such claimed damages to properly quantify them. The outcome is largely dependent on the expert’s processes for determining damages, the components of the Expert Report, and the ability to remain unbiased and issue opinions independent of the client’s interests.
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Know What You are Doing Creating or renovating a firm’s website is often a major undertaking. Because years can pass before a website is redone, it is easy to overlook key steps or strategies—and to underestimate the amount of time and effort it will require.
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Fair value measurement has been a hot topic during the last few years, increasingly attributable to PCAOB identified audit deficiencies and heightening scrutiny over the existing fair value framework and related auditing standards. In this post, we take a look at the causes of attention and recent responses from professionals and professional organizations. To read the full article in Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Blog, click: PCAOB Inspection Scrutiny of Fair Value Measurement Continues. This article is republished from Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Blog. It is reprinted with permission. To subscribe to the blog, visit: http://mercercapital.com/category/financialreportingblog/.
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Regulation from 1995 requiring companies to set up representative offices in China scrapped, as vice-premier warns of new challenges ahead. As Washington prepares to unveil a corporate tax-cut plan, Beijing has scrapped cumbersome requirements on foreign businesses that have been in place for 22 years in its latest bid to woo investors. To read the full article in South China Morning Post, click: Beijing Cuts Red Tape for Foreign Firms as it Vies for Investors.
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The college selection process can have significant financial implications, so the entire family should be involved in the decision. The difference in cost between public and private universities is substantial, and the impact on a family’s future wealth will be even larger as a result of compound growth. To read the full article in the Financial Advisor, click: Helping Clients Understand the ‘Real Cost’ of College Planning.
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Identifying Gaps and Risks Valuation and financial forensics professionals and their firms often provide other services. In this article, the author discusses Anti-Money Laundering (AML) actions and which industries are at risk for violating Bank Secrecy Law and AML provisions. Many kinds of businesses are at risk for money laundering and for penalties if AML programs do not meet regulatory standards. Financial institutions—banks, credit card companies, investment brokers, etc.—are under scrutiny to comply with AML requirements as are casinos and dealers in hard goods such as automobile, boat, and airplane dealers, and jewelers. Certain industries, such as insurance and real…
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Fraudulent Payroll and Expense Schemes (Part III of III) This article represents the third installment of a three-part series discussing the potential for embezzlement within an organization by its Accountant Bookkeeper Office Manager (ABOM). Part one discussed how the ABOM could mishandle incoming cash receipts to commit fraud. Part two discussed how the ABOM could mishandle outgoing cash disbursements to commit fraud. This article will be discussing how an ABOM can alter payroll data to embezzle cash. There are two types of payroll schemes that a law organization can fall victim. An ABOM can engage in a ghost employee scheme…
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The Appraisal Foundation’s forthcoming VFR Valuation Advisory #3, The Measurement and Application of Market Participant Acquisition Premiums (Advisory #3) sets forth best practices for measuring and evaluating the reasonableness of valuation premiums applied in (or implied by) fair value measurements of controlling interests in business enterprises. Travis Harms, Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Valuation Group lead, explains this topic. To read the full article in Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Blog, click: New Market Evidence Confirms Control Premium Best Practices. This article is republished from Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Blog. It is reprinted with permission. To subscribe to the blog, visit: http://mercercapital.com/category/financialreportingblog/.
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Seemingly overnight, the internet of things (IoT) has become a technology buzzword, challenging businesses to embrace a technology in its infancy before they can firmly grasp the pitfalls and opportunities involved. Sylvia Edwards Davis explains this concept and what to do to propel your business forward. To read the full article in CGMA, click: How to Stay Ahead of the IoT Curve.
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Business travelers who incur expenses while traveling away from home have new per-diem rates to use in substantiating certain of those expenses (Notice 2017-54). The new rates will be in effect from Oct. 1, 2017, to Sept. 30, 2018. Sally Schreiber, Journal of Accountancy senior editor, explains. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: IRS Updates Special Per-Diem Rates for Business Travel.
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Don’t be a Victim of Fraud Fraud can affect virtually any organization and fraud costs can be far more than just monetary losses. The author discusses the recent Wells Fargo fraud investigation and shares her views regarding what makes for an effective risk identification program. The effects of fraud can go beyond simple dollar losses and include harm to the organization’s reputation, employee morale, legal costs, and erosion of confidence by investors among other negative effects.
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Perils of Selling to Family Members and Delaying a Sale Now to Third Parties Are the increases in market multiples and the access to capital a sign of the impending surge of business exits? In this article, the author shares his views on selling to family members vis-à-vis to a non-heir third party, the perils of waiting to sell a business, discussing the valuation gap and seller’s expectations, and delaying a sell.
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The first three quarters of 2017 were active for U.S. markets. Major indices were characterized by low volatility and upward momentum against a backdrop of tightening monetary policy and strong economic indicators. Private equity saw steady deal flow despite challenging market conditions, and record levels of venture capital deployment were seen amidst declining deal volume as capital continued to gravitate to the unicorns. With one quarter left, we take a look at market activity during the first three quarters of 2017. To read the full article in Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Blog, click: Market Trends: 3Q17 Update. This article is…
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FASB and the International Accounting Standards Board designed their converged revenue recognition standard to enhance comparability across industries. But the standard has presented different implementation challenges to the various business sectors. Ken Tysiac, Journal of Accountancy editorial director, explains. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: How Revenue Recognition Changes are Affecting Preparers Like GE, Microsoft.