when conservative politics clashes with conservative accounting

right-leaning politicians and pundits have taken aim at “fair value” accounting.

who knew that that transparent financial reporting was a leftist conspiracy until now?

r. emmet tyrrel in the american specator is only the latest to urges:

suspend the accounting policy of “mark to market.” because of this policy banks and lending institutions have had to mark down their assets, thus devaluing on their books the capital that they have available to lend out. many of these institutions have healthy cash flows. yet because they are faced with (hopefully temporarily) devalued assets they are hindered from making loans, and the consequence is the lending freeze that has put the economy into recession.

and there’s the move afoot to roll back sarbanes-oxley, which krupo wrestles into submission here.

when will we ever learn? politics and accounting don’t mix.

33 tech trends cpas need to know

what are your top tech issues?

the aicpa has released a survey, asking members to prioritize into its annual list of  “top ten techs” the technology issues that will have the most impact in 2009.

how many of these are you ready for… ?

  1. audit process improvement — this initiative is about auditing, process documentation, and the utilization of appropriate tools for continuous monitoring and collaborative auditing. strategies include continuous auditing, management control systems, continuous control monitoring, and remote auditing.
  2. business continuity management and disaster recovery planning — business continuity management and disaster recovery planning are the holistic processes organizations use to mitigate the risks to systems and people when unexpected events occur and include the maintenance of a documented plan that is periodically tested. this process includes identification, prioritization, and documentation of key systems, associated risks, and individuals responsible for ensuring the maintenance of these key systems.
  3. business intelligencebusiness intelligence solutions supply information to decision makers at all levels using tools such as dashboards, key performance indicators (kpis), data warehouses, and proactive alerts. read more →

the recession-proof accountant

cpas flock to at-home offices to battle downturn. is it the right move for you?

by rick telberg/on careers

if past recessions are any guide, the number of cpas launching solo or side practices should surge in the next few months. but is it the right strategy for you?

the practitioners i hear from who are already working at home give it a double thumbs up. still, the work-at-home accounting practice is not for everyone. it requires the right focus, self-discipline and an appropriate home-office setup.

don weinstein has seen the trend before. even now, as vice president of strategy and marketing at automatic data processing inc., he notes that small business has generally been faring better than large business. and franchising is expanding. indeed, cpas can be very competitive.

read more →

look who’s bullish now

some astute firms are seizing once-in-a-lifetime growth opportunities.

tell me: what should cpas do?

by rick telberg

the credit markets are frozen. the stock market is crashing. america’s auto makers face insolvency. job losses are mounting. consumers are catatonic

some days it seems as if the wheels are falling off the economy at home and abroad.

so why are some accountants so bullish? the fact is that a number of strategic-minded accounting firms are investing aggressively in mergers, acquisitions, talent grabs, global expansions and capital restructurings.

read more →

new survey results: clients from hell

some new polling data indicates that 93% percent of accountants surveyed have at least “a few” clients they would like to fire.

how many of your clients would you like to fire?
most of them: 1%
some of them:13%
a few of them: 77%
none of them: 7%

still, 9 in 10 accountants have terminated a client and many have done so at least once in the last year.

when was the last time you fired a client?
never: 10%
more than a year ago: 28%
within the last 12 months: 33%
within the last 30 days: 22%
within the last week: 7%

more:

‘good’ isn’t good enough anymore

when times get tough, the tough get better.

is your firm ready? join the study; get the answers.

by rick telberg

how do you rate your firm? let us count the ways…

actually, we counted seven ways, or rather seven qualities by which one can rate an accounting practice or finance department: leadership, technology, learning organization, business development, workplace morale, client satisfaction, and strategy execution.

after tallying 1,748 responses in a succession of online surveys and one-to-one interviews over the last six months, it’s emerging as pretty clear that in most ways, most professionals rate most shops as mostly pretty good.

but “good” may not be good enough in today’s tough business environment.

to be sure, there are critical – and critically important – differences between leading firms and lagging firms. and we’ll get to those at another time.

new leadership strategies that work: is your firm ready?

click here to join the survey, get the answers

(free. confidential.)

read more →

savvy cpas seek more tech upgrades

if you have the feeling that your office is not as up to speed with technology as it needs to be, you may have plenty of company.

by rick telberg

there seems to be a consistent sense of frustration among accountants – in both public practice and in business and industry – that their organizations are falling behind the technology curve and shrinking their bottom lines by failing to move fast enough to the newest efficiency-enhancing systems.

to be sure, the cpa profession is among the most technologically advanced professions in the american economy. but sometimes senior management’s unwillingness to address technology issues can be the biggest hurdle. and with the economy in crisis, finance and accounting workplaces could suffer.

read more →

memo to president-elect obama: accountants have something to tell you

what’s your best advice for how the next president should try to fix the financial system and the economy?

hundreds of cpas have clicked on the survey link and added their comments and ideas for the next president. you can join the survey here; and get the results. or, just add your comments directly below by clicking here.

here are a few of the latest comments from finance and accounting professionals around the nation:

1.      stay out of it! what makes our capitalism work is that the government does not control it. i believe things will correct themselves faster on their own, than if the government gets involved. that being said, however, i do think the government should look at the possibility of regulations in the banking and mortgage industries that might prevent situations like the fannie mae and freddie mac fiascos.

2.      forget about a permanent presidency (i.e. trying to get re-elected immediately after taking office).

3.      mergers and consolidation of city, county state and federal government. if it is so good for the private sector why not the government?

4.      get government out of the lives of the citizens. also, make all people pay some federal income tax. also, slash government spending in half overnight. further, send congress home for six months of each year.

5.      end the tax cuts from the bush administration effective with the 2009 tax year. get to work on the country’s infrastructure and health care crises.

read more →

cpa sound-off: ‘dear mr. president’

accountants have plenty to say to the next president. add your comments here.

by rick telberg/at large

imagine for a moment that you could do more than just vote on tuesday. imagine you could whisper in the ear of the next president. what would you say?

well, we have been asking, “what’s your best advice for how the next president should try to fix the financial system and the economy?”

and after hearing from 153 accountants in just a few days, it’s clear that cpas seem to be going to the polls this election year with more than their vote. they also have plenty of ideas and a lot to say.

read more →

bob jensen: beware the accounting borg

bob jensen, a truly legendary accounting professor, has been blogging about accounting since before they were called blogs.

lately, he’s been taking aim at the sec’s and fasb’s support of ifrs. he pulls no punches, and even includes in his latest commentary this hilarious photoshopped picture of star trek’s dr. mr. spock decked out in an ifrs-emblazoned green eyeshade.

jensen says:

the roaring sec-fasb (read that cox-herz) enterprise for replacing domestic accounting standards such as u.s. and canadian gaap is analogous to letting the federation  govern the world. both the u.n. and the international accounting standards board have lofty intentions, but multinational politics in the federation is a nightmare to behold.

read more →