Here’s what you’re looking for: CPA Trendlines Research

CLIENT SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES

CLIENT INSIGHT: Small Businesses Sell for Highest Prices on Record

Tariffs and Elections Take Center Stage as Market Aims to Continue Record Pace.

A new report obtained by CPA Trendlines reveals record highs in small business financials, allowing sellers to ask and receive more money than ever recorded.

Sale prices of businesses sold in the third quarter of 2018 reached new highs, according to the BizBuySell Third Quarter 2018 Insight Report. The record sale prices are directly related to stronger business financials which also hit new levels in Q3.

With buyers able to offset increasing prices by acquiring healthier businesses, the result is a well-balanced market.

Full results are included below, with statistics from business-for-sale transactions reported by participating business brokers nationwide.

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MANAGEMENT

The Do’s and Don’ts for a Happy Accounting Office

The knack of feedback doesn’t always come naturally.

By Rick Telberg

If the finance and accounting people in your office work together like a well-oiled machine, then consider yourself lucky.

Let me suggest you take them all out to lunch and raise a toast to their attitudes … Because without their skills and goodwill, you are no longer working in a firm or company. You are a solo practitioner.

Even if you’re not working in a traditional command-and-control hierarchical organization, you are, in the end, a professional. And you work with fellow professionals. Understanding how to trade feedback honestly, openly and without rancor is an essential ingredient to your successful work life.

Personnel who fall short on skills can usually be brought up to speed. All it takes is a little coaching and training.

But personnel who fall short on attitude are a big problem. You need to talk with them, and you need to do it the right way. While a few words might suffice for the wise, you need carefully chosen words for the attitudinally challenged.

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PRO Member Exclusive

Don’t Blame Technology

Source: Sage

Accountant and client expectations are driving today’s changes. Technology is only the enabler.

Warawa

By Jennifer Warawa
Executive Vice President – Partners, Accountants & Alliances at Sage

The world is changing — that’s no surprise, especially to accountants. Conventional wisdom will tell you it’s new tech adoption that’s changing our field, increasing competition and altering the way we do our jobs. But is that what’s really happening? Not necessarily.

Accountants today are feeling more pressure than ever to stay competitive. At the same time — accountants are expanding far past their traditional roles — becoming more holistic business advisors to their clients and strategic partners with an ever-increasing list of demands on their time.

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INNOVATION & CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Thoughts on Artificial Intelligence from Sage Software’s Kriti Sharma

Robot typing on desktop keyboardWhat role will AI play for your clients?

By Kayleigh Padar
From Success to Significance: The Radical CPA Guide

Kriti Sharma, vice president of AI and bots at Sage, said this in response to the bot called Digit:

MORE ON RADICALISM: Blockchain: The Basics | What Are AI and Bots? | True Diversity Means Creating Equity | Creating More Diversity in Accounting Firm Leadership | Accodex Sets Up a Platform for Practice Management | Father, Son Team Up to Capitalize on Capacity | Dean Quiambao: ‘If You’re Not Disrupting, You’re Not Doing It Right’
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“As an industry, we need to be more careful about that. It’s not just moving money from one account to another. The second point I would say is design. It’s a very important element of this. We see people sometimes like to have more control.
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PRO Member Exclusive

SnapStat: CPA Exam Rankings from Utah to Baruch

Silhouette of graduates throwing caps into airNew stats on the CPA exam.

There must be something special in the water accounting students drink in Utah and in New York. Or so, some new statistics might suggest.

Performance metrics indicate 95,654 candidates took the exam in 2017, of which 71,199 were new candidates, with 25,834 candidates passing their fourth section of the test.

In a new report,  the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy reveals the jurisdictions with the highest pass rates and the universities with the most candidates sitting for a First-Time section.

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