May 2011 - Journal of Accountancy

Anyone who has taken the Uniform CPA Examination, prepared for it, or been involved in the CPA licensure process knows that the passing score is 75. But very few understand what that 75 means. In January, the exam structure had its biggest overhaul since the exam switched from paper and

Many firm leaders think that young CPAs lack the necessary business development skills to move to the next level or become a future leader of the firm. However, young CPAs are often not given the opportunity to develop those skills on a daily basis. Business development is a difficult thing

Continuing its work of engaging the broad accounting community in accounting education, the Pathways Commission held a public meeting Feb. 26 in Atlanta. The commission invited the public to comment and make recommendations about future paths through higher education to accounting practice. The commission is a joint project of the

Before enactment of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (SBJA), amounts held in section 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans could be converted to a Roth-type retirement plan only by taking a distribution and rolling it into a Roth IRA. This put plan sponsors in a difficult position, because in-service

FASB Chairman Leslie Seidman, in an exclusive JofA interview, explained how the board plans to finish priority convergence projects on financial instruments, revenue recognition and leases. She also shared how the board intends to reprioritize remaining projects, better serve the needs of private companies, and how its role could change

With U.S.-China trade at record highs and China as the world’s second largest economy, the JofA asked Timothy J. Hilligoss, CPA, MST, partner in charge of Asia for Southfield, Mich.-based firm Clayton & McKervey PC, to share some basics on what U.S. companies face when investing in Chinese ventures. LEGAL/REGULATORY

The AICPA and the London-based Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) are proposing forming a joint venture to develop and promote a new global management accounting designation. The joint venture is designed to give management accounting a higher profile in the United States, advance the science of management accounting worldwide,