If you are feeling stressed and overworked, it is time to re-evaluate your choices.  This article offers three tips for adding more balance to your day. To read the full article in Inc., click: 3 Tips to Stop Feeling So Overworked and Overwhelmed. ...

When helping clients claim Social Security benefits, past planning strategies may act as the best guides.  Over the last several months, we published dozens of stories including insight from advisers and analysts on Social Security planning tips and strategies.  Some of these include insight related to long-term funding issues, clients working abroad, evaluating the impact of taxes as well as tips for deali ...

When and how do externally-driven events affect company value?  What certain events constitute meaningful data points from a valuation perspective?  And are they benchmarks or outliers?  Lucas Parris, senior member of Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Valuation Group, explains. To read the full article in Mercer Capital's Financial Reporting Blog, click: Amazon, Whole Foods, and Value Implications. This ...

Unproductive meetings are unpopular with workers and costly for businesses.  Experts advise companies to treat meetings as a last resort and to focus on making the meetings they do have more efficient. To read the full article in InTheBlack, click: Is it Time to Ban Meetings? ...

Self-directed IRAs and 401(k)s are increasingly popular.  CPAs are well-positioned to help clients ensure their retirement savings in these accounts do not fall into a prohibited transaction trap. To read the full article in AICPA, click: Don’t Let Clients’ Retirement Fall into this Trap. ...

Acknowledged king of the unicorns, Uber has raised over $8.8 billion of private funding since its founding in 2009, most recently at an equity value reported to be on the order of $70 billion.  In the wake of a highly-publicized internal investigation of the culture at the ride-sharing firm and a recent personal tragedy, founder Travis Kalanick is reportedly contemplating a three-month leave of absence from ...

Knowing what to do when your client receives a notice from the Internal Revenue Service can be a useful skill.  Here are 13 pointers, from what to do when the IRS sends a notice of deficiency to whether to extend the statute of limitation. To read the full article in The Tax Adviser, click: IRS Notice Response Tips Everyone Should Know. ...

Having a holistic understanding of your company's financial situation and value drivers is necessary to assess the organization’s performance, risks, challenges, and opportunities and drive long-term growth.  Learn three ways finance professionals can manage environmental, social, and governance risks. To read the full article in AICPA Insights, click: Three Tips to Manage Sustainability Risks and Drive Val ...

The stock market rallied in the first five months of the year, with the Dow Jones and S&P 500 reaching record highs and continuing to climb.  Megan Richards, financial analyst with Mercer Capital, explains though, that IPOs remain scarce compared to prior years. To read the full article in Mercer Capital's Financial Reporting Blog, click: IPO Supply and Demand. This article is republished from Mercer Ca ...

The Internal Revenue Service issued a revenue procedure stating that it will once again issue letter rulings to taxpayers on whether a corporate reorganization in which debt is issued before a spinoff qualifies for nonrecognition treatment, which it has not ruled on since 2013.  Sally Schreiber, senior editor for Tax Adviser, explains. To read the full article in The Tax Adviser, click: Leveraged Spinoffs R ...

Whether it be retiring, shift in life path, or just moving in a different direction, Financial Planning presents a video on what to discuss with your clients and their all-important decision to sell. To read the full article in Financial Planning, click: How to Talk to Your Clients About Selling a Business. ...

In October 2015, the SEC adopted final rules governing the crowdfunding of startups and Regulation Crowdfunding was issued in May 2016.  The new rules allow non-accredited investors to invest directly in startup (and other) companies that can raise up to one million dollars every twelve months through crowdfunding.  Now, a year after Regulation Crowdfunding came into effect, Samantha Albert, senior financia ...

Fraudsters target people of all ages, but older adults with retirement savings are particularly lucrative targets.  And the consequences of fraud and exploitation can have a devastating impact on older adults who depend on their retirement savings after they leave the workforce.  Steve Vernon provides some very helpful tips towards preventing this despicable crime. To read the full article in CBS Money Watc ...

FASB is considering making changes to the U.S. GAAP financial reporting taxonomy that would be intended to improve the taxonomy's usability and the processes that support taxonomy-related activities.  Ken Tysiac, JofA editorial director, explains. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: FASB Assessing Efficiency, Effectiveness of GAAP Taxonomy. ...

How do you get buyers and sellers to execute an M&A transaction when the prospects of an industry are extremely uncertain?  Part of the answer may be to structure the deal in a way that defers payment of a (significant) portion of the purchase price in the form of contingent consideration.  In this blog post, Sujan Rajbhandary, vice president, interviews Travis Harms, who leads Mercer’s valuation for fi ...

How to Form a Sound College-Savings Plan Early preparation is key for handling children's college expenses.  This article offers three pieces of advice for families, regardless of where they are in the savings process.  Kelli Grant, personal finance and consumer spending reporter, offers some wise and helpful tips. To read the full article in CNBC, click: 3 Tricks to Crush College Planning and Save Big. ...

Practices usually associated with startups have helped these seven employers of CPAs establish welcoming cultures and retain employees.  From virtual workplaces to vacation stipends to having employees set their own hours, these innovative practices are helping employers drive productivity.  Lea Hart, AICPA associate editor, explains. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Innovation ...

New rules from the FASB regarding how entities will have to measure certain equity investments  may lead to increased earnings volatility and additional fair value complexities.  Lucas Parris, senior member of Mercer Capital’s Financial Reporting Valuation Group, discusses five things to know about the new rules and some questions to consider. To read the full article in Mercer Capital's Financial Reporting ...

An unfamiliar number, an unnatural pause after you say hello…another day, another irritating robocall.  If it feels as if your cellphone has increasingly been flooded with them, you’re right.  Christopher Mele explains. To read the full article in The New York Times, click: Robocalls Flooding Your Cellphone?  Here’s How to Stop Them. ...

Learn the formulas, functions, and techniques that enable efficient Benford analysis of data sets.  J. Carlton Collins, Journal of Accountancy contributing editor, looks into this issue and provides some very useful tips and insights. To read the full article in JofA, click: Using Excel and Benford’s Law to Detect Fraud. ...