Q. We receive Excel-based reports from our European operations with the daily temperatures of our electrical generators and other equipment recorded in Celsius; what's the best way to convert these data to Fahrenheit in Excel? To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Microsoft Office: Excel's Versatile CONVERT Function. ...

There’s an acronym few financial advisors are familiar with—but they absolutely should get to know.  DAPTs, the abbreviation for self-settled domestic asset protection trusts, can play an important role in planning for both income and estate taxes. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: The Vital Tax Planning Tool Few Advisors Know. ...

As the financial planning industry nears a fee-only, fiduciary world, we are finally outgrowing our profession’s roots—and for the better.  In the process, though, independent broker-dealers will face some important choices about their future business models. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: As Planners Outgrow Their Roots, Hard Choices Lie Ahead. ...

Saying yes is killing your productivity.  Chances are, you’ve agreed to take on a request from a colleague or client only to soon regret it because: you’re already on the edge in terms of capacity or stress; you have no time to recharge; it has a domino effect, making you late for remaining appointments and depleting your energy in the process.  Sound familiar?  If so, you need to say no more often. To read ...

Amazon is finally revealing its designs to enter the financial industry.  Should advisors worry?  There’s no immediate threat.  But there is one detail that advisors should pick up on. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: What Amazon’s Flirtation with Checking Means for Wealth Management. ...

If your firm is considering making any changes to your existing partner compensation plan, from a minor tweak to a major overhaul, there are some basic concepts that you should keep in mind. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: How to Compensate Partners to Keep Your Firm on Track. ...

Three in five affluent Americans (63%) said they are very or somewhat likely to change their personal financial plans based on the new federal tax law, according to a poll conducted on behalf of the AICPA. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: How the New Tax Law Will Change Wealthy Americans’ Financial Plans. ...

No financial technology innovation has saved advisors more time than when custodians began transmitting data files to firms.  Prior to this change, client data was updated by taking statements and keying them into the portfolio accounting system.  At the end of each quarter, statements were stacked thick and the data entry sprint began so that client reporting and billing could be completed. To read the ful ...

The key to implementing this suggested strategy is establishing auto-IRA plans to workers who lack a 401(k) option with a preset percentage of wages to be contributed to the plan.  This would create a retirement nest egg that would not be linked to any one employer, but rather would stay with the worker throughout a career. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: Could this Simple Social Secur ...

Taxpayers with income that flows to or from a country that has a tax treaty with the United States should understand how that treaty's provisions can affect their U.S. taxes. To read the full article in The Tax Adviser, click: Tax Treaty Benefits for U.S. Citizens and Residents. ...

Offering constructive criticism is an essential part of being a manager.  Thoughtful feedback improves communication with staff members while encouraging them to grow.  Show how small changes can be part of the big picture. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: How to Give Constructive Criticism That Gets Results. ...

In a tighter labor market for advisors, compensation is rising, as are firms’ efforts to make work more enjoyable. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: Pay Day—Breakdown of Financial Advisor Salaries and Perks. ...

As a risk management professional at CNA, professional liability insurance carrier for nearly 25,000 CPA firms, I am often asked if engagement letters are worth all the effort.  The answer, based on my personal and CNA’s claim experience, is a resounding YES!  I’ve experienced firsthand the value these letters bring to the table. To read the full article in AICPA, click: Engagement Letter Stories—When They ...

Soon after President Trump signed the bill, some wealthy clients who owned businesses needed to know if they could save on taxes by buying manufacturing equipment in 2017.  Others needed advice on whether to pay state income tax by Dec. 31 if they were not subject to the alternative minimum tax. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: New Tax Law, More Business for Financial Advisors. ...

Under the new FASB rules, financial statement preparers are provided an option to reclassify stranded tax effects within accumulated other comprehensive income in each period in which the effect of the change in the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (or portion thereof) is recorded. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: FASB Addresses Stranded Incom ...

The accounting profession sits on the cusp of unprecedented change.  Transformative technologies will reshape virtually every corner of the accounting world.  For CPAs to survive and thrive, they will need to learn—and unlearn—on a scale and at a pace that can seem overwhelming.  To help CPAs prepare, the JofA gathered three of the profession’s top technology experts for its annual accounting technology rou ...

This article highlights a broad, industrywide study of the impact and implications of sexual harassment across professional communities, including banking, payments, mortgages, financial advisory, accounting, health care, employee benefits and capital markets (including municipal finance and M&A advising). To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: Ten Key Findings: Sexual Harassment in the P ...

Congressional Republicans created a juicy new tax break for clients when they rewrote the U.S. tax code late last year.  Three months later, hundreds of thousands of them still do not know if they qualify.  The IRS has said it will provide guidance detailing exactly who is allowed to take the so-called pass-through deduction.  With billions of dollars at stake, business groups are lobbying for the agency to ...

Day in, and day out, how do you stay inspired?  We asked nine accountants what inspires them and what advice they would give to help others in the profession find that inspiration. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Accountants Reveal What Inspires Them Every Day. ...

FINRA has launched a helpline to provide firms with direct assistance and answers to general and routine FINRA related questions, as well as direct callers to the proper regulatory staff and other departments. The effort is part of its FINRA360 organizational improvement program. To read the full article in FinancialPlanning, click: FINRA Helpline Aims to Aid Smaller Firms, but Concerns Arise. ...