Not quite yet, according to a new analysis by CFO magazine.
But CFO says “the trend has begun to slow.”
“Only three of the top eight audit firms showed a drop in fees charged as a percentage of client revenue in 2009,” CFO says, compared with a dramatic drop from 2007 to 2008 for all but Crowe among the top eight firms.
Audit fees have been dropping since 2007.
In 2004, more than a third of auditor changes were the result of audit firms walking away from clients.
Last year, 82% of auditor changes resulted from companies firing their auditors. And among the Big Four, the number was 90%.
Professional tax practitioners should be bracing for a difficult but potentially highly profitable tax season.
John Sapp, vice president of sales, marketing and education at Drake tax software, provides two reasons: Taxpayers never needed a professional’s services more and professionals rarely have had such an opportunity to prove their value.
“Preparers are going to succeed by selling their services and their knowledge,” says Sapp at the Illinois CPA society’s annual trade show.
Big question for workflows: Will the IRS be ready for full e-filing Jan. 15? Or will the agency push back some dates because of last-minute changes wrought by Congress?
Fasten your seat belts. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.
With marginal clients falling by the wayside, it may be time for accountants to rethink how they do business, according to Dave Pollack, vice president of sales at AccountantsWorld, makers of the Power Practice cloud solution.
“The people who are proactive and seizing new opportunities are flourishing,” he says in this interview at annual the Illinois CPA society trade show.
But if your business needs credit these days, banks would rather keep their money in the vault, according to Sara Mikuta, CPA, CFO of Leaders Bank, Oak Brook, Ill., and 2010 chair of the Illinois CPA Society.
“I always worry that the people who need money now are the ones you don’t want to loan to,” Mikuta told us the state society’s annual trade show. “Until the economy picks up there’s just not a whole lot of need.”
With borrowers under economic pressure and banks still chary, CPAs have an opportunity in producing the kind of financial statements that banks can have confidence in. That, she says, could benefit well-positioned CPA firms.
We are dedicated to delivering the actionable intelligence that tax, accounting and finance professionals need in order to identify and act on emerging issues and opportunities. We specialize in high-quality, concise executive briefings designed to help busy professionals improve their organizations, advance their careers, and enhance their lives. Our reports are relevant, timely and to-the-point, providing only the most essential information, often in under and hour. Our clients will be 100% satisfied, or their money back.
– Rick Telberg,
President / CEO,
CPA Trendlines
Bay Street Group LLC Contact me here
We are dedicated to delivering the actionable intelligence that tax, accounting and finance professionals need in order to identify and act on emerging issues and opportunities. We specialize in high-quality, concise executive briefings designed to help busy professionals improve their organizations, advance their careers, and enhance their lives. Our reports are relevant, timely and to-the-point, providing only the most essential information, often in under and hour. Our clients will be 100% satisfied, or their money back.
