The Institute’s vice-president for small firm interests describes AICPA programs for small firms and their small business clients. mall businesses—the fastest-growing sector of the U.S. economy—rely on their CPAs for business advice, making them a core practice area for many practitioners. In recognition of this important relationship, the AICPA provides
March 2006 - Journal of Accountancy
SPECIAL: BOOK EXCERPT
Planning for Trouble
From Smart and Simple Financial Strategies for Busy People by Jane Bryant Quinn. Copyright 2006 by Berrybrook Publishing, Inc. Reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster, Inc. Jane Bryant Quinn is the voice of personal financial planning for a generation of Americans. On the following pages the author of a
M&AS
Two-Stage Deals
A sequenced transition can smooth a firm’s ownership transfer. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Although it’s not the only way to go about succession planning, a two-stage deal offers a transitioning CPA an opportunity to imbed a practice into a successor firm’s infrastructure while maintaining a considerable amount of autonomy for an agreed-on
SOFTWARE
Small Business Software Grows Up
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Microsoft’s introduction this year of its small business accounting software is challenging the two leading competitors—QuickBooks and Peachtree—to step up their efforts with products that are ever-more technologically powerful. The competition will be intense because “Microsoft Small Business Accounting (MSBA) is technologically more advanced than either QuickBooks or
CASE STUDIES
Section 404 for Small Caps
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In 2005 about 3,700 large-cap ($75 million or more) companies underwent the first wave of Sarbanes-Oxley section 404 audits. Here, a firm experienced with Sarbanes-Oxley section 404 audits for accelerated filers shares its best practices to help with compliance for nonaccelerated filers (companies with market capitalization under $75
FINANCIAL REPORTING
Options and the Deferred Tax Bite
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any more complicated. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Implementation of FASB Statement no. 123(R) goes beyond selecting a method to value employee stock options. CPAs also must help companies make the necessary tax accounting adjustments to properly track the tax benefits from stock-based compensation. Statement no.