Accountants Round Up

"Make a Call - Hold Off on the Email!"

By Sally Glick: I am conducting an informal poll today. I wonder if you would think about how many electronic holiday greeting cards you have received over the last few weeks. Then think about how many you deleted before you even read them! If you are like me, you have been inundated with this latest use (or abuse!) of e-mail as a communication tool.

While I am the first to say the e-mail plays a critical role today for us all, I also worry that it has begun to replace, not compliment, other forms of communication.

Read complete post Make a Call - Hold Off on the Email
Source: AccountingWEB, 23 December 2008. Copyright © 2008 AccountingWEB, Inc. All rights reserved.

"Feedback - Communication - Conversation"

By Rita Keller: Your people want to hear from you, period. They know when they have not performed up to their potential and will certainly not be offended to receive feedback on how they can become better. They want you to tell them the good AND the bad.

Think about the world of competitive individual sports, a figure skater for example. They anxiously await their scores from the judges. They want to know how they did AND their coach is right there beside them to give support, advice and guidance.

Read complete post Feedback - Communication - Conversation
Source: Possibilities for CPA Firm Leaders, 23 December 2008.

"The Singing CPA"

By Greg Price: For those of you scrambling for last minute Christmas gifts, there’s a novel one: Steven Zelin, The Singing CPA has released his latest CD, “No Accounting for the Holidays.”

Songs on the CD include: “We Wish You a Great Refund,” “Most Deductable Time of the Year,” and “Taxes, Taxes, Taxes.”  The CD is available on his website, www.thesingingcpa.com.

Read complete post The Singing CPA
Source: From Greg's Head,  22 December 2008. Copyright © 2008 PKF Texas

“FASB Changes Accounting Rule for Credit Crisis”

By Accountancy Age: The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has proposed change to accounting rules in an effort to bring greater consistency in reporting impairments for financial instruments affected by the credit crisis.

The proposal is one of four short-term projects, on which the board has been working to improve disclosures on the way companies take writedowns for securities which have lost value because of the credit crisis, Reuters reports.

Read complete article FASB Changes Accounting Rule for Credit Crisis
Source: AccountancyAge, 23 December 2008. © Incisive Media Ltd. 2008 Incisive Media Limited. All rights reserved.

“CGA Magazine – Accountant Bloggers”

By Bill Kennedy: CGA Magazine, the voice of Canada's Certified General Accountants, has an article encouraging accountants to blog. If you're an accountant, you should read it (not just because it mentions this blog as a good example!)

"If you’ve got something to say about accounting or, even better, a specific area of competency within the industry, having a blog will help establish your name online, and in a profession such as public accounting, getting your name out there is important for your career.”

Read complete post CGA Magazine - Accountant Bloggers
Source: Energized Accounting, 19 December 2008.

“Accountants Hot Commodities in Slowing Economy”

By A. E. Feldman: Job seekers face one of the most challenging job markets in more than a decade. The Labor Department recently reported that 533,000 jobs were lost in last month, pushing the total number of layoffs up to nearly 2 million through November. But it’s not all gloom and doom. The accounting industry is bucking the trend. Accounting firms are not only gearing up for tax season, but companies attempting to cut costs and struggle through the recession are realizing the importance of good financial controls which requires the expertise of accountants. Moreover, with financial firms anticipating more regulation and facing increased scrutiny, auditors will be hot commodities.

Read complete post Accountants Hot Commodities in Slowing Economy
Source: A.E. Feldman Blog, 18 December 2008. © Copyright A.E. Feldman. All rights reserved.

“New York Passes CPA Education Law”

By WebCPA Staff: The New York State Senate and Assembly have unanimously passed a groundbreaking bill that would amend the laws governing CPAs and provide greater public protections for their clients.

The legislation, A.11696-A/S.7497-B, was sponsored by Assembly member Deborah Glick and Senators Kenneth LaValle and Toby Ann Stavisky. The bill was passed by the Senate on Monday night and returned to the Assembly to be submitted to Governor David Paterson for signature into law.

Read complete article New York Passes CPA Education Law
Source: WebCPA, 18 December 2008. © 2007 WebCPA and SourceMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

“Ten Rules for the New Economy”

By Matthew Homann: This economic downturn provides a tremendous opportunity for lawyers to look at their practices in a new (and different) way.  Here are ten "rules" for lawyers facing an uncertain economic future.  I hope you find them helpful.

1. Your best response to bad economic times is to become indispensable to your clients.  What can you provide to them that they can’t do without?  If you can’t answer that question, it is unlikely your clients can either.

Read complete post Ten Rules for the New Economy
Source: The [non]billable hour, 17 December 2008. Copyright © Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License.

"SEC Publishes Proposed IFRS Roadmap"

By Michael Cohn: The Securities and Exchange Commission has published its long-delayed roadmap for the transition from U.S. generally accepted accounting principles to International Financial Reporting Standards.

The roadmap was originally announced in August, but had been delayed by the global financial crisis.

Read complete article SEC Publishes Proposed IFRS Roadmap
Source: WebCPA, 15 December 2008. © 2007 WebCPA and SourceMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

"Complete Analysis of the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 "

By PRNewswire: Both the House and Senate unanimously and in record-time passed the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 at the end of last week, clearing the way for the President's signature. This new tax law, which is already available in full analysis on Checkpoint, the premier tax research platform for the Tax & Accounting business of Thomson Reuters, temporarily suspends the requirement for taxpayers age 70-1/2 and older (and their beneficiaries) to make annual minimum distributions from their retirement plan accounts. This will provide older Americans some much-needed financial flexibility as they struggle to manage their finances during this difficult economic time.

Read complete article  Complete Analysis of the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008
Source Thomson Reuters, 17 December 2008. Copyright © 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved.