Source: The CPA Journal Auditors and others investigating fraud often rely on a well-established profile of the white-collar criminal: Fraudsters tend to be middle-aged, well-educated first-time offe...more
Source: AICPA CPA Insider In this article from CGMA Magazine, Paul Hopkin summarizes findings of a Cass Business School study that revealed common factors among businesses that faced significant fail...more
Source: Journal of Accountancy Author Charles Tilley, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), believes that management accountants will play a key role in driving...more
Source: Accounting Today For midsized accounting firms today, management consulting presents an unprecedented opportunity. Many middle-market businesses lack the skills they need to grow, operate mor...more
Source: AICPA CPA Insider The following includes excerpts, reproduced with permission, from an article by Kemberly Washington. Whether your clients are in their tender 20s or nifty 50s, it is never ...more
Source: AICPA CPA Insider The following includes excerpts, reproduced with permission, from an article by Heidi Bolger. Do you have clients who are thinking about closing their businesses and are lo...more
Source: AICPA CPA Insider The following includes excerpts, reproduced with permission, from an article by Heidi Bolger. Beyond all the financial wizardry that's essential to effective succession of ...more
Source: The CPA Journal This article reviews several recent research studies that provide insight into the role of CEOs and CFOs in accounting fraud. Auditors and consultants can use the findings to ...more
Source: AICPA CPA Insider The following includes excerpts, reproduced with permission, from an article by Tracy Crevar Warren. According to the recent CPA Horizons 2025 Report the trusted adviser ro...more
Source: Journal of Accountancy CPA firms that have established and maintained client advisory boards say that the benefits far exceed the costs. Those benefits include: Valuable feedback from clie...more
Considerations for business owners struggling with whether -- and how -- to transfer ownership to their children....more
Source: Accounting Office Management & Administration Report The Institute of Management and Administration (IOMA) recently conducted a CPA Firm Client Satisfaction Survey in which it asked 78 ...more
Source: Journal of Accountancy Representing clients who are delinquent in filing individual or business tax returns can be a rewarding practice niche, but it also requires some specialized skills, ...more
Source: Current Accounts In this article the author deals with two important client conditions—their feeling of isolation, and their complement of skills (i.e., how skilled they are in different aspe...more
Source: Practical Accountant Your small business clients can increase their comfort level and neutralize the effects of emotion by creating a plan to deal with adversity if and when it becomes necess...more
Source: Capstone Connection Following are excerpts from an article by Jean Caragher, president of Capstone Marketing, www.capstonemarketing.com. Client meetings are the most effective way to gauge ...more
Source: VeraSage Institute The following has been excerpted, with permission, from the VeraSage Institute blog. Ed Kless - 02/06/2009 Recently, we at VeraSage became aware of an accounting firm’...more
Source: Pennsylvania CPA Journal In this article the author points out the inherent conflict of interest in every closely held business and advises CPAs how to avoid being caught in the cross-fire. ...more
Source: Innovative Practice Management Following is a synopsis of a blog entry by Mark Bailey: Some of the most common complaints expressed by our assurance seniors are that the client “didn’t compl...more
Source: Public Practice Following are excerpts from an article entitled “Small Firms Can Meet Clients’ Needs in the IFRS Environment,” by James Metzler, CPA, AICPA Vice President—Small Firm Interests...more
Source: Practical Accountant Julie Littlechild, president of Advisor Impact (www.advisorimpact.com), says that client surveys are more than tools to measure satisfaction. Client surveys can help you...more
Source: CPA Trendlines Refuses to admit to mistakes. Won’t ask for help until it is too late. Makes excuses for tardiness of financial reports. Is bored with new business idea and begins the ...more
Source: What I’ve Learned So Far, the blog of Jean Caragher Following is an excerpt, reproduced with permission, from the September 24, 2008, entry in the above blog. Wall, Einhorn & Chernitzer...more
Though most firms aren’t using them, they offer big advantages. (CPA Practice Management Forum)...more
It may take years to land a new client but only moments to lose it....more
As part of your tax season planning remember to think about bringing added value to your clients....more
In response to the lure of higher pay from large firms, small firms can either raise compensation or develop other methods of retaining talent....more
Here are some questions firms should include in client surveys:...more
This is based on a study by State Street Global Advisors and Knowledge@Wharton on qualities clients want in investment advisors....more
Here are descriptions of 10 problem clients and what to do about them:...more
Providing clients a wide range of solutions helps you get close to them....more
CPA Trendlines interviewed CPAs to find out what they do to satisfy clients. Here are some of the responses:...more
In their eagerness to impress prospects, CPA firms sometimes promise more than they can realistically deliver....more
In addition to insight gained from surveys, these ideas will help you find out how clients really feel about you....more
The following advice on conducting client interviews comes from Don Aronson and Bruce Heintz of Aronson/Heintz Associates LLC, a consulting firm in New York and Boston....more
Clients are bonded to CPA firms in three ways, listed below in ascending order of importance:...more
Bay Street Group surveyed accountants in industry on why they might change CPA firms. Here is a summary of the results:...more
It takes more than satisfying a client to earn trusted advisor status....more
Consultant Michael Platt interviewed several CEOs about what they expect from their CPA firms....more
Neil Fauerbach tells his experience in interviewing clients....more
Although most CPAs think their clients would refer others to them, only half of financial executives would do so....more
Most frequently mentioned areas of cost control by controllers of 250 companies that participated in a survey by IOMA....more
CPAs should advise clients to consider mediation before submitting an action to arbitration or litigation....more
Changes in regulations have made the credits more readily available to small and mid-sized companies....more
Clients should learn about these things from you, not from the competition....more
Interviews by CPA Insider indicate CPAs and their clients are in substantial agreement about what clients want from their CPAs. But there are some surprises....more
The more types of services you provide for a client, the more likely the client will remain with your firm....more
What they want to talk about with you is how to make their businesses successful....more
Additional attention may be required from the leaders of the company....more
From The Sales Bible, Knock Your Socks Off Selling, and Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless....more
Protection for whistle blowers under Sarbanes-Oxley may be available to employees of private companies that do business with public companies....more
Staying within the boundaries of your expertise requires good judgment....more
All buildings contain components and fixtures necessary for taxpayers to run their businesses....more
Gary Boomer’s article asserts that skills in the following areas, rather than technical skills, are what distinguish accounting firms from their competition....more
The impending retirement of baby boomers, the decline in engineering and technology students, and the decline in high school graduates eligible for college admission are causing shortages of professional people throughout the economy....more
The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is grappling with two momentous changes....more
Clients look to consultants for solutions and to coaches to help them solve their own problems....more
The Ohio Society of CPAs and Accounting Today report that under a PCAOB proposal, CPAs would not be independent of their audit clients if...more
The Accounting Report By Art Bowman lists the following blog sites that may be of interest to CPAs: http://taxprof.typepad.com/> Scholarly tax research htt...more
Are CPA Firms Obligated to Help Clients with Financial Planning?...more