by Louis Barajas, MBA, CFP Thomas Nelson Inc., 2007, 199 pp. As a 13-year-old, Louis Barajas was an integral part of his father’s small business, doing the taxes and bookkeeping and translating for his Spanish-speaking father. He understands the hard work, dedication and courage required to start and maintain a
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Information management and technology assurance
Hiring the Best and the Brightest
High employee turnover increases costs and hurts productivity. It is also preventable. The best way to avoid spending the time, energy and money it takes to find a replacement is to hire the right person the first time. To build a solid finance team, know what you
The Red Carpet Treatment
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Statistics show strong job prospects for CPAs are likely to continue well into the next decade. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) anticipates employment for accountants and auditors to grow by at least 22% between 2004 and 2014. Sarbanes-Oxley compliance,
Managed Accounts
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A growing number of companies are beginning to offer employees professionally managed accounts for 401(k) assets. In these managed accounts, an independent investment manager handles investment decisions, makes portfolio changes as needed based on each participant’s specific needs and risk tolerance, and rebalances the
Share Files, Printer on an Office Network
Since you already have a network, adding file- and printer-sharing is a snap. Let’s start with file-sharing. Open Explorer and select a folder you want to be able to share with the two other computers and right-click on it. Select Properties and the Sharing tab. Then, under Network sharing and
All in the Family
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Multifamily office (MFO) services have long been offered by a variety of financial services providers. Increasingly, CPA firms have made this provision of comprehensive wealth management and personal services to select client families a major facet or even cornerstone of their practice. For many
Keeping Secrets
You may be able to keep a secret, but how confident are you that your computer is up to the task? As a CPA, you’re entrusted with loads of confidential information, and your professional reputation depends on your discretion. But your computer may be vulnerable to someone
Migrate Bookmarks and Favorites
Internet Explorer (IE) and Firefox both have utilities that can help you do the job. If you use IE, open it on your old computer and click on File, Import and Export, which opens a wizard. Click on Next, Export Favorites and then Next again. Now select the Favorites you
NPO Software Measures Up
If you’re in the market for nonprofit organization (NPO) accounting software, you’re in luck. Most of the products have undergone major upgrades in recent years that have made them far more powerful, feature-rich and easier to use. In our last survey of such software (“ Sizing Up
Replicating Format Painter on the Keyboard
Yes, there is. It’s another one of those undocumented Word features. The keystrokes are related to keystrokes for copy (Ctrl+C) and paste (Ctrl+V) keystrokes—only for the Format Painter you add the Shift key. If you want to load a format, highlight the formatted text and press Ctrl+Shift+C to copy just
Shortcuts
Word: Double-click on a word to select it. Word: Triple-click inside a paragraph to select the whole paragraph. Word: Hold down the Ctrl key and click within a sentence to select the whole sentence. Word often gets confused if the sentence contains a courtesy title such as Mr. or Mrs.
Stop Toolbar Changes From Disappearing
The problem may be with your Normal.dot template file. That file not only stores your default document formats, it also remembers your toolbar design. Word’s default is to automatically remember any changes in Normal.dot , but in your case it somehow apparently was changed and you’re probably getting this message
Weaving the Web of Information
Companies are getting the message that their employees want benefits information online—62% reported they prefer this delivery method. But there’s a right and wrong way to educate and encourage responsible behavior among employees via the Internet, according to Michael Rudnick, national eCommunications and portal leader at Watson Wyatt. Rudnick offers
Make Your Own Turn-Off Button—and More
If all you want is a turn-off button, that’s easy. I can give you more. Not only will I give you a turn-off switch, I’ll raise you two: I’ll show you how to create three buttons—a one-step turn off, a one-step quick restart and an emergency button to abort those
Smart Stops on the Web
WEALTH MANAGEMENT SECURING A REPUTABLE BROKER www.nasd.com/brokercheck The NASD has answered the calls of investors looking for background information on potential financial service providers. The organization’s BrokerCheck Program lets users research current or formerly registered securities firms, individual brokers and regulated Investment Adviser firms. It also provides a comprehensive 10-year
Delivering Difficult Messages
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY No one relishes an uncomfortable conversation. When the best interests of a company, firm, individual or the public are threatened, it’s important to “be a leader” and take on the task. A three-stage process can be relied on to broach any uncomfortable conversation: (1)
A Risk-Based Approach to Journal Entry Testing
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The top-side journal entry is most susceptible to fraud by management override. It’s possible to make adjustments in subledgers, but this requires collusion with other organizational departments, which is much harder to accomplish. The most frequent types of management fraud involve fictitious or premature
ROI on XBRL
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The reality of XBRL has grown exponentially over the past two years, in large part due to the SEC’s focus and encouragement. With the time, money and effort that Chairman Cox and the SEC have dedicated to this initiative, it appears highly likely that
Remote Assistance
You are visiting an office in Texas and need immediate help with a computer application. Because of the problem’s complexity, you figure a phone call won’t resolve the issue. You need a live visit from an expert. The only problem is he or she is in New
Uncover Hidden Worksheet Tabs
Right-click on any of the navigation arrow buttons and a menu of all your worksheets will appear (see screenshot). Then just click on your target tab and the worksheet will appear.
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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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