- Column
- Smart Stops on the Web
Smart Stops on the Web
BY MEGAN PINKSTON
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| SMALL BUSINESS
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SOX ASSISTANCE
www.sec.gov/info/smallbus/404guide.shtml
This site features content from the SEC’s
Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404—A Guide for Small
Business, a publication for small public
company managers and their auditors as they begin
to assess internal control over financial
reporting. Sections such as “What Constitutes
Effective Internal Controls?,” “Identifying
Financial Reporting Risks and Controls That
Address Them,” and “Do Your Controls Work in
Practice?” guide small business managers through
the assessment process for the first time. The
complete guide is also available in a printable
version.
FOCUS ON SMALL FIRMS
http://pcps.aicpa.org
Visit the AICPA’s PCPS Firm Practice Center
for the most recent installment of Small Firm
Solutions, a new e-newsletter for small firms
and sole practitioners. The quarterly publication,
part of the Institute’s “Small Firm Advantage”
initiative, features “Hot Topics for Small Firms”
from James Metzler, CPA, AICPA vice
president–Small Firm Interests. The site hosts a
collection of helpful resources from the Small
Business Administration on startup businesses and
on managing existing businesses. PCPS members can
also access the “Risk Assessment Standards
Toolkit” for SAS nos. 104–111, as well as small
firm marketing brochures.
LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE
www.smallbiztrends.com/resources/the-experts
Here, dozens of small business experts share
their wealth of knowledge in articles, interviews
and book reviews. A pull-down menu lets you choose
information in your area of interest or by
specific expert. These business owners and guest
columnists offer information on topics such as
globalization, Web design, employment trends and
sales. You can also link to other small business
resources, subscribe to the twice-monthly
Small Business Trends newsletter and
comment on articles.
SMALL BIZ SUPPORT
www.sba.gov/advo
Stay current on federal regulatory policies
and proposals—including Sarbanes-Oxley compliance
deadlines for small public companies—that could
affect your small business clients at this Smart
Stop from the Small Business Administration. You
can electronically subscribe to the Office of
Advocacy’s newsletter, The Small Business
Advocate, or sign up for RSS feeds of
regulatory news and research, such as state
economic profiles and banking and financial
research. There is even a complete chronology of
the organization’s Sarbanes-Oxley activities at www.sba.gov/advo/laws/comments/sarbanes_oxley.html.
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GENERAL INTEREST |
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WORD OF MOUTH
www.automatic-referrals.com
Written by Miriam Lawrence, director of
Horsemouth, a business-building resource for
financial advisers, the site provides tactics and
tips for professionals who use referrals for
business development and growth. Find articles
such as “Five Great Times to Ask for Referrals”
and “Keep a Referral Scorecard,” or catch up on
Lawrence’s “ABCs of Automatic Referrals” series,
which starts with “A is for Action” and works
through the alphabet, including “K is for K.I.S.S.
(Keep It Simple and Specific).” The site also
touches on topics such as client service and
relationships, marketing and communicating value.
FINANCIAL REPORTING PORTAL
www.financialexecutives.org/blog
Find news highlights from the SEC, FASB and
the International Accounting Standards Board on
this financial reporting blog from Financial
Executives International. The site, updated daily,
compiles regulatory news, rulings and statements,
comment letters on standards, and hot topics from
the Web’s largest business and accounting
publications and organizations. Look for
continuing coverage of SOX requirements, fair
value reporting and the Alternative Minimum Tax,
plus emerging issues such as the subprime mortgage
crisis, international convergence, and rules for
tax return preparers.
GETTING A CLUE
http://10qdetective.blogspot.com
The mission statement says it all: “It is
the job of the 10Q Detective to dig through
businesses’ 8-K and 10-Q SEC filings, looking for
financial statement ‘soft spots.’ ” The blog, run
by David Phillips, a financial statement analyst,
features several posts a week, including
investment news, opinions, trading alerts and
stock alerts. There are also links to financial
Web sites, corporate governance news, educational
sites and other investment-related blogs. | |