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 Verification Requests.
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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 Private and Public Blockchain?
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Critical Audit Matters Coming into Focus.
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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 clients. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Using Drones to Enhance Audits.
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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.
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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 article, Michael Bankus lists several suggestions to obtain adequate information to complete the engagement of a small business.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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 base with existing clients and establish good or better relationships. Coming into this year-end, now may be the perfect time to discuss the steps to take today.
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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.
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The Big Four firm announced that it will drop the final interview stage of its student recruitment process and replace it with an assessment event. To read the full article in Economia, click: EY to Scrap Final One-to-One Interviews.
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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. The new rates are in effect from Oct. 1, 2018, to Sept. 30, 2019. The IRS provided the 2018–2019 special per-diem rates, including the transportation industry meal and incidental expenses rates, the rate for the incidental-expenses-only deduction, and the rates and list of high-cost localities for purposes of the high-low substantiation method. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: IRS Issues 2018–2019 Per-Diem Rates.
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The IRS issued guidance clarifying that taxpayers may generally continue to deduct 50% of the food and beverage expenses associated with operating their trade or business, despite changes to the meal and entertainment expense deduction made by the tax law known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. According to the IRS, the amendments specifically deny deductions for expenses for entertainment, amusement, or recreation, but do not address the deductibility of expenses for business meals. To read the full article in the Journal of Accountancy, click: Meals Continue to be Deductible Under New IRS Guidance.
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For Financial Services Firms Finding ways to differentiate your firm from competitors may be one of the most vexing challenges you can face. After all, it may well be that there are more similarities than differences. But with a little focus and some self-inquiry, it is possible. In this article, Dr. Frederiksen shares seven effective differentiators for financial services firms.