Citrin Cooperman’s 5 Big Secrets for “A Great Place to Work”

Crain’s NY ranks best CPA firms to work for.

Joel Cooperman

Joel Cooperman

Citrin Cooperman & Co. was also ranked first among accounting firms in the mid-sized category, which included companies with between 150 and 499 employees.

Winners were chosen based on the results of an employee-driven survey conducted by Crain’s New York Business in partnership with Quantum Research. According to Crain’s New York Business, it is the first study ever conducted to determine the most desirable companies to work for in New York City.

The other winners among CPA firms are:

Citrin Cooperman’s five top strategies: Read more

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Posted on November 30, 2008
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Gallup: Accountants ‘Top-Rated’ for Honesty, Ethics

Among Americans, 38% rate accountant ethics as above average or high to very high.

Nurses have no peer in the Gallup rankings today. But they are followed by pharmacists, high-school teachers, and medical doctors, all with close to two-thirds of Americans rating them highly. Just over half of Americans consider the honesty and ethics of clergy members and the police high or very high.

Fewer than half of Americans rate accountants as highly ethical. But they are much more likely to be viewed positively than negatively.

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Posted on November 26, 2008
Filed Under BSG [CPA TRENDLINES] | 3 Comments

Have You Fired a Client Lately?

Why you can’t afford that difficult client — and what to do about it.

by Rick Telberg
At Large

Invoices that are paid late or not at all, phone calls on Christmas day to calculate year-end numbers, unrealistic demands and even fraud… Most every accountant has their own story of clients who are more than just difficult.

Let’s face it. We love our clients. That’s why most accountants are in the business. But some clients are just, honestly, nightmares. Accountants have a name for them. They are the clients from hell.

Difficult clients are a problem to firms of all sizes. To be sure, small firms can be most vulnerable to one or two difficult clients. Larger firms generally have procedures in place to manage client acceptance and grading. But I’m also seeing firms of all sizes that are tightening up their client acceptance processes and systematically shedding their “D” clients so they can focus on their “A” clients.

RELATED (Updated Noon, Nov. 25, due to popular demand for the how-to and what-to-do):

What’s YOUR best tip for firing a client? Tell us in comments here…

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Posted on November 24, 2008
Filed Under BSG [CPA TRENDLINES] | 6 Comments

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.

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Posted on November 22, 2008
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The Billion-Dollar Secret CPA Market

SURVEY: One-third of all CPAs are working at home, on their own.

By Rick Telberg
CPA Channel Marketer

With the economy lurching downward and tax season approaching, small-office and home-office professionals should be prime targets for CPA channel marketers this year.

In every recent economic slowdown, the ranks of the part-time and the second-jobholders swell as workers seek to maintain or even expand incomes. CPAs, as independent white-collar professionals, are uniquely positioned to weather a recession by taking on “extra” work.

Today, more than one-third (34%) of accountants are already moonlighting in “side” practices or home offices, according to a Bay Street Group survey of 796 accountants and CPAs.

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Posted on November 22, 2008
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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 Intelligence — Business 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
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Posted on November 21, 2008
Filed Under BSG [CPA TRENDLINES] | 2 Comments

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.

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Posted on November 20, 2008
Filed Under BSG [CPA TRENDLINES] | 15 Comments

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