Q: We produce financial statements from Excel, but typing the footnotes at the bottom of the financial statements is a headache because Excel does not offer word wrap, outlining or other word processing features. We have tried using different solutions such as Excel’s Justify command, and pasting from Word, but
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Information management and technology assurance
Accounting Enrollment, Hiring Increase
CPAs looking to hire talented young accounting grads as well as students preparing to graduate need to know what their competition looks like. The AICPA’s 2011 Trends in the Supply of Accounting Graduates and the Demand for Public Accounting Recruits, which was released in May, identifies key trends in accounting
Windows Shortcuts
1. Windows key+M: This keystroke combination will instantly minimize all open windows. (Note: This shortcut differs slightly from Show Desktop. While both options will minimize all open Windows, Show Desktop allows you to maximize all Windows as a group, whereas Windows minimized using Windows key+M must be maximized individually.) 2.
Financial Reporting
The AICPA’s Financial Reporting Executive Committee (FinREC) released a working draft of the revised practice aid Valuation of Privately Held Company Equity Securities Issued as Compensation, also known as the “Cheap Stock” practice aid. It is an update of the practice aid originally issued in April 2004. The working
Count On It
Q: We import commodities from around the world and frequently need to convert weight and volume measurements from the metric system to United States customary measurements (for example, liters to gallons and meters to feet). Last year we purchased Windows 7 computers and developed Excel templates to help meet this
Business Development Skill Builders for Young CPAs
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
Business Insurance: What to Do Before You Renew
Conditions in the insurance market present CPAs a great opportunity to enhance their business insurance coverage as well as to educate their small business clients on key policy renewal strategies. Here are several tips on enhancements to look for and other factors to consider when renewing coverage: Following these tips
Caps Off to You
Q: Caps really bug me. It seems that I never know when I have the Caps Lock turned on. I think it changes by itself! Is there an app for Windows that easily alerts (by sound would be nice) that the Caps Lock is on? Is there an EASY WAY
Pasting Away Again
Q: Often in Excel, I have the need to copy and paste data from one cell location to multiple cell locations as I continue to work in Excel. However, after I have copied a cell’s content, but before I am finished pasting that cell’s content, Excel loses the copied content
Hide Me Quick
Q: I am constantly hiding, unhiding and rehiding columns to generate reports in a multitude of report layouts, and I can’t figure out how to display only the hidden column I need without having to display all my hidden columns. Can you help? A: Because hiding and unhiding columns is
Dating Tips
Q: When entering dates in Excel, it would be much simpler if I could enter the date as just the numbers without the forward slash character (for example, 06102010 instead of 06/10/2010). Entering the slash makes the exercise a two-handed exercise instead of a one-handed exercise via the numeric keyboard.
An Excellent Arrangement
Q: Last year, my office upgraded to two monitors at each workspace. Having simultaneous full-screen views of two files is a vast improvement over split-screen windows. Is it possible to display a different tab from the same Excel worksheet on two monitors? A: Yes, this can be accomplished. Start by
IFRS Foundation to Add Common-Practice Tags to IFRS Taxonomy
The IFRS Foundation said it will publish supplementary tags for the IFRS Taxonomy that reflect disclosures that are commonly reported by entities in their IFRS financial statements. The foundation, the International Accounting Standards Board’s parent organization, said the common-practice tags will enhance the comparability of information by enabling entities to
Mining Tax Clients for New Business Opportunities
Any CPA who does personal income tax returns can relate to the frustration of waiting for clients to open envelopes and organize data during the tax return informational interview. Don’t let this time go to waste. For many firms, the largest volume of clients is in tax return services. Using
Creating a New Worksheet Can Be a Drag
Q: How can I insert new worksheets in my Excel workbook without having to constantly set up headers and footers in those new worksheets? A: Excel 2003, 2007 and 2010 allow you to duplicate a worksheet by holding the Ctrl key down and dragging the worksheet’s tab to the left
XPS vs. PDF
Q: I see that Microsoft Office 2007 and 2010 offer a new file format called XPS. I have read that it supports the paperless environment, and I wonder if our firm should be using this format as we go paperless. Can you give us some advice? A: XPS (XML Paper
What Does It Take to Lead?
Confidence. Passion. Emotional Intelligence. These are all traits that successful accountants say are needed to be an effective leader in the profession. Whether choosing to work as a CFO, serve in academia, or climb the ranks to partner of a local or national firm, certain skills undeniably top the list
E-mail a Single Worksheet
Q: What is the easiest way to send a single Excel worksheet to a staff member without sending him or her the entire workbook? A: You can send a single worksheet (that is, not the entire workbook) from within Excel using the integrated Outlook Send this Sheet applet, as follows:
Excel’s New Slicer—It Slices, It Dices
Q: We maintain a large amount of data for more than 100 restaurants for which we analyze sales and expenses daily, weekly and monthly by location, city, state and territory, and even by type of restaurant. Overnight, the results of operations for the previous day feed into a database, and
Displaying a Two-Digit Year
Q: How can I force Excel to display a two-digit year (instead of a four-digit year) by default? A: Many of the default settings in Excel, including the date format, are governed by the default settings in the Windows operating system, as pictured in the screen below. These
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SPONSORED REPORT
Preparing clients for new provisions next tax season
As the 2025 filing season approaches, H.R. 1 introduces significant tax reforms that CPAs must be prepared to navigate. These legislative changes represent some of the most comprehensive tax updates in recent years, affecting both individual and corporate taxpayers. This report provides in-depth analysis and guidance on H.R. 1.
From The Tax Adviser
November 30, 2025
Digital asset transactions: Broker reporting, amount realized, and basis
October 31, 2025
Recent developments in estate planning
October 31, 2025
