EXECUTIVE SUMMARY NOT EVERY CPA FIRM that tries its hand at consulting can report financial success, and although there’s no such thing as a single universal cure for an unhealthy consulting business, the one that comes closest is strategic planning. IF CONSULTING FIRMS WITH LOW PROFITS have one thing
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Firm practice management
For Better Direct Mail
full-color mailer with a tired approach is no more a promotion than a Volkswagen Beetle painted red is a Ferrari. Think creatively to grab your readers’ attention; focus on a key idea; and make it worthwhile. “Mailings that offer a special promotion encourage a response,” says John Schulte, executive
Confronting Retirement
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ALTHOUGH MOST CPAs HAVE their own personal retirement accounts, a surprising number of practitioners don’t have formal retirement plans for their businesses. AS RETIREMENT PLANS ARE DEVELOPED, senior partners may have doubts about whether their successors can honor future obligations, intend to stay with the firm or
Overnight to India
t sounds like magic: Send your back-office chores away at night and find the finished work waiting with your e-mail in the morning. Believe it or not, some CPA firms are doing it: e-mailing tasks to accounting and programming personnel in India, where the workday begins just as Americans head
Profitable Communication
hat a difference a decade makes: Just 10 years ago, most managing partners didn’t consider marketing key to their business plans. Now firms not only employ marketing professionals but also expect them to deliver value beyond traditional functions. Yet many firms need to realize that one area still requires their
Practice Management
CPA Firms Profit From Alliances, Says Survey CPA firms short on time and staff, but eager to meet their clients’ varied and extensive needs, are building up their service offerings and profits through alliances with organizations savvy about investments, insurance and regulatory compliance. This is according to a 1999 survey
Start Your Own Firm
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY IF YOU PLAN TO START YOUR OWN FIRM, it is imperative that you take steps ahead of time to ensure you start off on the right foot. WORK FOR A SMALL PRACTICE BEFORE you leave a large firm. Learn the profession, sharpen your skills, and learn how to
Sophisticated Web Design
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY MOST CPA FIRMS HAVE STATIC WEB SITES with fixed content. Practitioners can not easily change this data without prior knowledge of a Web programming language, such as html. DATABASE-DRIVEN WEB SITES allow practitioners to change Web content without knowing a Web programming language, thus saving CPAs the cost
Tips for the Valuator
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FOLLOWING BASIC TENETS will provide business appraisers in both industry and public practice enhanced understanding and skills to comply with business valuation standards. FIRST, FULLY UNDERSTAND THE NATURE of each BV assignment. CPAs WHO OFFER BV MUST CONFORM with several standards on professional competence, due professional care, planning
Is Business Appraising for You?
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BV IS A VERY CHALLENGING BUSINESS that requires an unusual set of skills. CPAs SUCCESSFUL AT OFFERING BV tend to: — Function well under intense pressure. — Communicate well, both orally and in writing. — Integrate quantitative and subjective data coherently. — Be unfazed by ambiguity and uncertainty.
Measuring Public Companies
PRACTICE DEVELOPMENT/BUSINESS VALUATION Skills you need to value businesses. Is Business Appraising For You? BY ELIZABETH DANZIGER EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BV IS A VERY CHALLENGING BUSINESS that requires an unusual set of skills. CPAs SUCCESSFUL AT OFFERING BV tend to: — Function well under intense pressure. — Communicate well, both
Lawyers and CPAs: How the Landscape Is Changing
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FIFTY STATES AND THE American Bar Association currently prohibit lawyers from sharing fees with nonlawyers, such as CPAs, effectively barring multidisciplinary practices (MDPs). The ABA’s rule-making body, the house of delegates, shows signs it may reverse this ruling and allow lawyers and CPAs to share fees and be
By The Numbers
Managers Play It Smart in Tight Labor Market It’s harder than ever to find and retain good employees, so managers have been using every resource at their disposal to maintain the quality and strength of their workforce. Two surveys indicated managers relied more and more on recruiting firms, executive assistants
The CPA As E-Consultant
FEBRUARY 2000 VOLUME 189, NUMBER 2 Editorial Staff Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Colleen Katz Executive Editor Barbara J. Shildneck Managing Editor Elizabeth Uva Senior Editors Katharine W. Coveleski Peter D. Fleming John von Brachel Michael Hayes Emily S. Plishner Stanley Zarowin Senior News Editor Robert Tie Associate News Editor Mavis C.
International Associations
There are more than 130 associations of accounting firms, 30 of which are international. However, fewer than 1,000 U.S. firms belong to some kind of accounting association. David Albrecht, professor of accounting, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio. he world is our horizon! How can we—a midsize accounting firm
Stopping the Brain Drain
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SMALL CPA FIRMS ARE FEELING THE PINCH from a shortage of qualified staff. It is important for firms to do what they can to keep the best and brightest employees from leaving. FIRMS CAN ASK STAFF WHAT THEIR SALARIES should be and work with them on an annual
About the Publisher
July 1999 Vol. 188 No. 1 Highlights Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Colleen Katz ExecutiveEditor Barbara J. Shildneck Managing Editor Elizabeth Uva Senior Editors Katharine W. Coveleski Peter D. Fleming John von Brachel Michael Hayes Emily S. Plishner Stanley Zarowin Senior News Editor Robert Tie Associate News Editor Mavis C. Allen Assistant
Winning Over Mrs. Fisher
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY THE CONSOLIDATION OF CPA FIRMS has taken the profession by storm. American Express, the first to start acquiring CPA firms, has since been joined by Century Business Services and HRB Business Services, formerly H&R Block Inc. TOGETHER, THE THREE CONSOLIDATORS have purchased just under 90 CPA firms. Other
Just Say No to Costly Clients
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SEPARATING BAD CLIENTS FROM YOUR FIRM is not as easy as picking up the phone and telling them they must find a new CPA. First, you must clarify your firm’s long-term goals. Second, you must decide which clients will be most profitable as your firm prepares to meet
Make Your Firm A Household Name
(ILLUSTRATION BY: KELLEY GRAPHICS) The CPA designation already sets you apart from other service professionals, but it alone will not position your firm ahead of other firms and the many new full-service companies, such as American Express and HRB, that invest millions of dollars each year in marketing and brand
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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.
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