Source: Survey of 972 employees, The Creative Group, Menlo Park, Calif., www.creativegroup.com , 2005.
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Identify Files with Customized Information
We have something like 75 different spreadsheets containing various studies and reports circulating in the office at any one time. While it’s usually possible to identify each author because of the subject, I’d like some easy way to label each file without putting the information directly in the worksheet. Any
Top PFP Contributor Named
Steven I. Levey, CPA/PFS, received the 2005 Distinguished Service Award from Michael M. Eisenberg, Personal Financial Specialist (PFS) Credential Committee chair, and Joel H. Framson, Personal Financial Planning (PFP) Executive Committee chair, at the 2006 AICPA National PFP Conference in San Diego. The award recognized Levey’s contributions to the profession
Should You Leave Your Computer Running 24/7?
Should you turn off your computer at day’s end? This question is being hotly debated in my office. The split seems to be between those who drive gas guzzlers and those with economy cars. You are raising a much bigger issue than energy conservation. You surely save electricity by turning
Too Much of a Good Thing
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Companies that allow employees to invest their 401(k) accounts in company stock face a serious risk if the stock declines precipitously. Faced with large losses, employees can take legal action to recover their retirement savings. To head off trouble, companies should consider limiting how much 401(k) money employees
Add Extra Text Box to a Chart
Key to Instructions To help readers follow the instructions in this article, we used two different typefaces: Boldface type is used to identify the names of icons, agendas and URLs. Sans serif type shows the names of files and the names of commands and instructions that users should type into
Need a Hand?
SIGN OF THE TIMES ole practitioners tearing their hair out as April 15 approaches can Google virtual assistants (VAs) and find cyberoffice help for all types of support services. Paid hourly or on retainer, a VA can manage your Web site, assist with newsletter development, schedule and confirm appointments or
Dividends-Received Deduction From Portfolio Stock
ne of Congress’s goals is preventing taxpayers from taking undue advantage of the tax rules. To that end it passed IRC section 246A, which prevents corporations from claiming a dividends-received deduction against dividends from stock purchased using debt that generates an interest expense deduction. To make its insurance subsidiary a
The Composite Sole Practitioner
NUMEROLOGY The typical, independent practitioner is a 56-year-old male, in practice for 22 years, in a sole proprietorship with three full-time, one or two part-time, and two or three seasonal employees. Source: The “12th Income and Fees Survey of Accountants in Public Practice,” National Society of Accountants, www.nsacct.org , 2005.
Think Marketing
For example, CPAs can track the source of sales leads; if more leads come from the sales staff rather than from marketing, that’s often a sign the marketing program is not effective in pulling in live leads. Or, if the marketing department regularly uses deep price discounts as a sales
ep_ex2
Exhibit 2 Examples of Metrics USEFUL YARDSTICKS Inputs Performance measures Corporate strategy Number of IT projects in the strategic plan Corporate structure Level of empowerment to strategic business unit and functional managers Corporate systems Percentage of business processes documented and measured Resources Dollars available for IT staff training and
Financial Reporting
The SEC staff advised the AICPA Center for Public Company Audit Firms (CPCAF) that it will not object if public companies retrospectively modify the presentation of discontinued operations within their statement of cash flows to correct an error as long as such changes are made in the next periodic report
Auditing
For news from the AICPA and state societies, visit www.cpa2biz.com , which also offers online CPE, AICPA professional literature, practice management aids and links to state society Web sites. The SEC approved on February 6, 2006, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board’s (PCAOB) Auditing Standard no. 4 ( www.sec.gov/news/digest/dig020706.txt ;
Keith A. Fry Quote
AS QUOTED “Copying the competition ensures that one will not achieve a competitive advantage.” —Strategic Planning—Why Plans Fail and What You Can Do About It by Keith A. Fryw Hill
Are Your Clients Bad at Budgeting?
Source: FindLaw.com Household Budget Survey, 2005.
Time for a Change
BUSINESS TRENDS HR managers, beware! You’ll be seeing more open positions in your companies’ futures. Of more than 100 employees interviewed in a 2005 Yahoo! HotJobs survey, 40% planned to start new job searches this year, and 21% were already on the prowl. Almost all were looking for better pay
Smart Stops on the Web
EMPLOYEE BENEFIT SITES Know the Law www.dol.gov/ebsa Firms shopping for health insurance will want to read up on the potential pitfalls at the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration Web site. Focus on Health Care Fraud has fact sheets on how to protect your employees when purchasing health insurance
ep_ex4
Exhibit 4 Does IT Pay Off? CALCULATING MONETARY BENEFITS FROM IT INITIATIVES Outputs Examples Monetary Benefits Increased productivity An IT infrastructure upgrade improves productivity of a manufacturing operator whose labor costs are tied to operating hours. Calculate the unit labor cost of the operation. The increase in output multiplied
ep_ex3
Exhibit 3 Examples of an IT ROI Calculation 1 Calculate the monetary value of IT initiative benefits Outputs Benefits Monetary value Increased productivity Increased profits from new customers (number of new customers (50) X average customer profitability ($1,200)) $60,000 Time savings (2 hours per week 3 50 work weeks
Big Business Audits…
Source: IRS, www.irs.gov .
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How to find the right CAS clients
The key to success with CAS is selecting the best clients. Tools like ideal client profiles (ICPs), buyer personas, and even artificial intelligence can help identify the businesses that best fit each CAS practice.
From The Tax Adviser
March 31, 2026
Current developments in taxation of individuals: Part 1
March 31, 2026
Current Developments in Taxation of Individuals: Part 1
March 6, 2026
