AccountingWeb - July 16, 2010
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News provided by: Week of July 16, 2010 Finance execs: Many candidates lack critical thinking, problem solving abilities
July 14, 2010 – Skill sets beyond technical knowledge are critical when it comes to employing experienced accounting professionals most effectively, according to a recent report by Grant Thornton LLP.  PCAOB proposes new auditing standard on confirmation July 14, 2010 – The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board this week approved for public comment a proposed audit standard on confirmation, which is designed to strengthen current requirements under the auditing standard. AICPA offers white paper to help CPAs, financial pros obtain federal training grants July 8, 2010 - The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants has published a free white paper to help CPAs and financial professionals understand and locate federal economic stimulus grants for training and specialized certifications. Accounting errors, fraud are common problems for small businesses grants July 12, 2010 - Experts say the difference between errors and fraud is a question of intent. When it’s your money, does it really matter? How to use social media to find your next role July 14, 2010 - Social media is a great way to increase your profile and get recognized. Here are seven top tips to use social media to help you find your next job. Five ways to go green – and save money, too July 5, 2010 – Whether your motivation is to save the planet or save some money, going green with your office IT is a smart move. After all, who doesn’t want to save a little money, especially when it’s so incredibly easy? Are you a manager or a leader? July 5, 2010 – Modern leadership guru Warren Bennis said, “Managers are the people who do things right and leaders are the people who do the right thing.” To run a business well, you need both. But that doesn’t mean you should be the one doing both.
Finance execs: Many candidates lack critical thinking, problem solving abilities July 14, 2010 – Skill sets beyond technical knowledge are critical when it comes to employing experienced accounting professionals most effectively, according to a recent report by Grant Thornton LLP. Fifty-five percent of survey respondents thought that the lack of employees with the necessary soft skills – communication, critical thinking, and problem solving abilities – was the most significant challenge in recruiting seasoned accounting professionals. Approximately 50 percent of respondents said the increased workload/number of hours has made corporate finance and accounting careers less attractive, making it the second most significant obstacle in hiring senior finance employees. The dearth in technical skills among experienced accounting staffers ranked third, according to the report, The Evolving Accounting Talent Profile: CFO strategies for attracting, training and retaining experienced accounting and finance professionals. The report presents research findings distilled from interviews with chief financial officers at publicly traded and privately held companies on the state of the accounting employment market, including staff development and job turnover. Building upon Grant Thornton’s survey of more than 500 U.S. senior finance executives in 2009, the new analysis presents insights on a range of concerns facing CFOs in the hiring and retaining of experienced finance professionals involved in formulating accounting policy, financial reporting, internal controls, and compliance. “Because of rapidly changing rules and regulations in the accounting industry, we would have expected lack of talent with technical accounting skills to be the primary challenge for CFOs. As a result, we were surprised to see soft-skills deficiency to be a more pressing issue,” said Gina Kim, a director in the Public Policy and External Affairs Group at Grant Thornton LLP. “CFOs are really looking for people with soft skills, like critical thinking and problem solving, to understand the implications of shifting accounting standards.” As macroeconomic factors force CFOs to pay closer attention to the bottom line and rein in corporate spending, senior finance executives also are charged with meeting the expectations of experienced finance and accounting professionals in order to prevent employee turnover. Thus, talent management is more crucial than ever at a time when changing regulations and new advances in technology make skill development, technical competency, and retention core priorities for CFOs, according to the report. Designed to assess the CFO outlook on accounting and finance employees with at least a bachelor’s degree and 10 or more years of work experience, Grant Thornton relied on the assistance of third-party research firm Evalueserve Inc. for its interviews of 32 CFOs, including 10 non-U.S.-based CFOs of companies located in Australia, Canada, India, and the United Kingdom. The study was conducted between the fourth quarter of 2009 and first quarter of 2010, and included CFOs at 13 public and 19 private U.S.-based companies along with six public and four private non-U.S. companies. It also provides a rare inside look into the different viewpoints held by senior finance executives at public and private companies. For instance, Grant Thornton’s survey found 62 percent of public company CFOs thought the lack of soft skills was the biggest recruitment challenge involving accounting talent, as compared with 44 percent of their counterparts at privately held businesses. By comparison, 56 percent of private company finance executives said that increased workload has made accounting and corporate finance careers less attractive, compared with 46 percent of public company CFOs. The Evolving Accounting Talent Profile noted that talent management isn’t confined simply to soft-skills identification and employee development. Changing accounting standards and technology advances also require that technical expertise be improved through additional training. Grant Thornton’s study offers best practices to today’s CFOs in addressing the most urgent talent-related concerns:
About Grant Thornton LLP: The people in the independent firms of Grant Thornton International Ltd provide personalized attention and the highest quality service to public and private clients in more than 100 countries. Grant Thornton LLP is the U.S. member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd, one of the six global audit, tax and advisory organizations. Grant Thornton International Ltd and its member firms are not a worldwide partnership, as each member firm is a separate and distinct legal entity.
PCAOB proposes new auditing standard on confirmation July 14, 2010 - The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) this week approved for public comment a proposed audit standard on confirmation, which is designed to strengthen current requirements under the auditing standard, AU sec. 330, The Confirmation Process. Comments are due Sept. 13, 2010. "The proposal would modernize the confirmation standard and strengthen its requirements to better protect investors,” said Daniel L. Goelzer, PCAOB acting chairman. “The proposed new standard would also more explicitly incorporate consideration of the risk of material misstatement due to error or fraud into the selection, design, and performance of confirmation procedures.” On April 14, 2009, the PCAOB issued a concept release on possible revisions to the confirmation standard, which was written in the early 1990s. The PCAOB received 24 comment letters on the concept release. Additionally, revising the existing confirmation standard has been discussed with the PCAOB Standing Advisory Group. “The proposed standard recognizes the importance of audit evidence obtained from independent third parties and, in doing so, strengthens and extends the requirements for using confirmations in the audit process,” said Martin F. Baumann, PCAOB chief auditor and director of professional standards. Any new auditing standard that is adopted by the PCAOB will be submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for approval.
AICPA offers white paper to help CPAs, financial pros obtain federal training grants July 8, 2010 - With the U.S. unemployment rate at 9.5 percent and the economic recovery appearing to slow, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) has published a free white paper, "Training Grants and You: Expansion Through Career Development," to help CPAs and financial professionals understand and locate federal economic stimulus grants for training and specialized certifications. The paper identifies nearly $6 billion in federal budget and economic stimulus funds available through the U.S. Department of Labor that businesses and job seekers can use to improve their professional skills. Increasingly, available jobs in the U.S. economy require higher levels of education and skill than in the past. “People who have been in transition for an extended period of time may be able to get government stimulus money for training to keep their skills current,” said Carol Scott, AICPA vice president for business, industry, and government. “This white paper can help CPAs direct their organization to government-subsidized job training for eligible new employees, including those who have been previously unemployed or dislocated.” The Employment and Training Administration, a part of the Labor Department, has allocated for workforce training $2.9 billion annually for fiscal years 2010 and 2011. Additional funds are available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, economic stimulus legislation, for on-the-job or direct training. The paper is particularly timely for businesses as 56 percent of respondents in the most recent AICPA Business & Industry Economic Outlook Survey reported that they expect their organizations to expand in the next 12 months. Conducted quarterly in collaboration with the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, the survey is a barometer of the outlook of CPA decision makers. Through Labor Department One-Stop Centers and local workforce boards, individuals and firms may apply for financial assistance to enroll in courses that add to their skill base through national emergency grants, apprenticeships, structured work experience, or work share programs.
Accounting errors, fraud are common problems for small businesses grants By C.P. Morey July 12, 2010 - Experts say the difference between errors and fraud is a question of intent. When it's your money, does it really matter? Accounting errors and fraud are serious issues for all businesses, but they are especially challenging for small companies where cash is always a top concern. Errors and fraud undermine decision making, lead to financial losses and, in some cases, even force companies to lay off staff or shut their doors. Unfortunately, both accounting errors and fraud are common problems for small businesses. More than 30 percent of all fraud occurs in small companies, according to research by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) - a startling fact considering that the estimated fraud losses for businesses of all sizes were nearly $2.9 trillion in 2009. Small companies pay a high price when it comes to fraud. The ACFE research found that the median fraud loss for a small business was $150,000. Despite the severity, very little has been done to help small businesses proactively address the problem. As a result, in the majority of the cases investigated by the ACFE, the fraud was discovered accidentally or via a tip from someone outside the company. In some small businesses, the risk of fraud is low or even non-existent. Still, accounting errors can potentially be a big problem. One small mistake in recording a payment from a customer can lead to underpaid sales taxes ultimately resulting in unnecessary penalties and interest charges. Approximately 60 percent of accounting errors result from "simple bookkeeping mistakes or misapplication of easily understood accounting standards," according to recent research by Indiana University. So why do errors and fraud occur so frequently in small businesses? A common reason is that small companies typically have small or even single-person accounting staffs and limited internal controls. When the bookkeeper also is the office manager and receiving clerk, problems can arise if for no other reason than no one double-checks the work. Besides being more susceptible to errors and fraud, small businesses also are less likely to discover them because financial audits are almost never performed. Comprehensive analysis of accounting data can help to identify errors or possible fraud, much like anti-virus technologies are used to protect your computer from attack. Software products can automatically assess every accounting transaction in a matter of minutes to identify errors and possible fraud. The sooner issues are discovered, the sooner corrective action can be taken. As with protecting computers from viruses, analysis of financial data to detect irregularities should be done on a routine basis. The added diligence of even a manual review or a monthly automated scan of your data reduces the chances that accounting errors or fraud harms your business, ultimately helping you to stay focused on growth and financial success.
About the author: C.P. Morey, CPA, is vice president of AuditMyBooks, a provider of automated detection of errors and fraud for small business accounting systems.
How to use social media to find your next role By Heather Townsend July 14, 2010 - Social media is a great way to increase your profile and get recognized. Here are eight tips to use social media to help you find your next job. 1. Keep an updated profile on LinkedIn Recruiters and headhunters tend to use these social networking sites for professionals as an extension to Monster.com. You need to make sure your profile can be easily found on these Web sites, and is peppered with keywords. Whenever you meet someone, ask permission to connect with them on LinkedIn and stay in touch. A quick word of warning, make sure any Internet links to you enhance rather than decrease your personal brand. You may find it easier to ramp up the privacy settings on your Facebook account to the highest level possible, rather than ask your friends to take any photos of you socializing as a student down. 2. Use LinkedIn to target companies within your preferred geographical location Do a search on LinkedIn and find out all the companies within your preferred geographical location, which are likely to hire someone like you. You can then use LinkedIn to find out more about these companies and contact former and current employees to get the inside scoop – plus who you should contact within the company to find out about vacancies. 3. State clearly on your e-mail signature and short biography that you are currently looking for your next opportunity 4. Write a blog and post articles and comments on Internet forums Writing a blog is a great way of demonstrating your expert skills. If maintaining a blog is too much work, how about getting an article published in a popular online magazine? (When I say popular, I mean popular with potential hiring managers.) This is an excellent way of raising your profile and getting yourself noticed. When you answer a question on LinkedIn, or another Internet forum, ask permission to connect with them on LinkedIn and start an offline dialogue. 5. Use your personal status updates to keep people informed of your job-hunting progress Your Facebook network is a great place to keep people informed of how your job hunting is going. You can use your status to jog people’s memory on who they know who may be able to help you. 6. Use LinkedIn (and other social networking sites) to expand your personal and professional network Eighty percent of all vacancies are not formally advertised – and your network is the best place to find out about these vacancies, or those who may be able to help you find one of these vacancies. One-third of all job hunters who use their personal or professional network to find out about vacancies were successful. 7. Aim to connect with well-connected people For example, recruitment consultants, people who run networking groups, generally are one of the first people to hear about potential job vacancies. Befriend these people –they are all over LinkedIn. They might be able to help you. 8. Read blogs of career coaches Many good career coaches will write blogs dedicated to helping people find their next role. It's worth reading these blogs and articles to help you with your job hunting. About the author: Heather Townsend is the chief coach at The Efficiency Coach, and Founding Elder of the executive village. The Efficiency Coach, an award-winning business, works with professional advisors and business owners to help them achieve better business results with less effort. The executive village brings together business owners to help them solve their business challenges. Reprinted from our sister site, http://www.Accountingweb.co.uk.
Five ways to go green – and save money, too By Heather Townsend By Diana Spurgus - July 5, 2010 - Whether your motivation is to save the planet or save some money, going green with your office IT is a smart move. After all, who doesn’t want to save a little money, especially when it’s so incredibly easy? Go paperless The concept of the paperless office was introduced years ago with the invention of document imaging. However, one look around your office surely will prove that was a bit of a pipedream. There are a lot of really smart reasons why you should consider converting some portion of your paper documents to electronic format in addition to the fact that going paperless is a much greener solution. First off, finding documents will be so much easier and faster, and you won’t run the risk of important documents being misplaced, misfiled, or damaged (who hasn’t spilled coffee on a critical document). If that doesn’t grab you, maybe the cost savings on paper, ink, and storage will, or the fact that employees working remotely can access contracts or other paper documents in seconds, any time, day or night, from any location. When not in use, turn off the juice Computers are the largest drain on electricity in your office; and considering you’re only using them for approximately nine to 10 hours a day, that means you’re paying for 14 to 15 hours of unnecessary power. (And yes, it is a myth that regularly turning your computer off and on will cause it to wear out more quickly.) For our IT EZ support clients who have newer workstations, we are in the process of implementing automatically powering down the office overnight and bringing it back up again in the morning without any interruption or interference with their systems’ performance. This alone can save thousands of dollars on electricity. And if there is any maintenance to be done, we can take care of that remotely and power them down after we’re done. Go virtual Virtualization allows you to run multiple computers or servers on one super computer. Sometimes this is accomplished by replacing your complex, power-sucking, expensive workstations with much less expensive thin-client machines that require very little power or maintenance to operate. Thousands of businesses are rapidly trading in their overblown, traditional networks for virtualization because of the incredible cost savings in hardware, software, and maintenance. Plus, it offers instant disaster recovery, the ability to securely work from home or the road, and it drastically reduces the amount of power needed, making it far more environmentally friendly. Allow employees to work from home More and more businesses are creating virtual workspaces for several reasons. First, allowing employees to work from home perpetually or for a couple of days a week cuts down on gasoline and emissions. It’s also a great retention strategy for your rock star employees. Additionally, allowing employees to work from home reduces the amount of office space needed, lowering or eliminating rent costs and utility bills. Finally, it’s a great disaster preparedness plan. In the event of a fire or natural disaster, employees can keep the doors open by working remotely. Dispose of old electronics responsibly Your computer is made with a wide variety of components, many of which are toxic. When old computers are disposed of improperly, these substances can enter the environment, causing pollution and associated plant and animal death, along with birth defects. Many of these components also are produced in unsustainable ways, causing even more environmental harm. Because these components can be recovered and recycled, throwing out an old computer is simply irresponsible. If you have old equipment, you can donate it to a charity for a tax break. Not only will that solve the disposal problem, but you’ll save a little money, too. About the author: Diana Spurgus, MBA, MCP, CITP CPA, is president of Lancaster, Ohio-based Business System Solutions Inc. (BSSI). BSSI can be reached at ask@bssi.biz.
Are you a manager or a leader? By Diana Spurgus July 5, 2010 - Modern leadership guru Warren Bennis said, “Managers are the people who do things right and leaders are the people who do the right thing.” To run a business well, you need both. Employees, finances, sales, marketing, operations, and, yes, IT all need a manager and a leader. But that doesn’t mean you should be the one doing both. Why leadership is your No. 1 job Bennis’s idea is this: You need management. True. Managers budget, organize, react to situations, and solve problems. They ensure things get done, monitor the day-to-day functions, and enforce the rules. They are the tactical part of your business. You probably do a fair amount of managing things now. But just like everyone else, you only have 24 hours in a day. So some management tasks can and should be delegated, hired, or outsourced. Bennis, who was cited by Global Gurus International as one of the top 30 leadership experts in the world, defines leadership differently. Leaders establish direction, align people, and motivate and inspire to prevent problems. Like it or not, everything in your business – good and bad – ties back to the leader. Unless and until you grow leaders inside your company, the leader is most likely you. Five ways to differentiate a leader from a manager Are you more of a leader or manager? Here are five leadership traits adapted from two of Bennis’s books, On Becoming a Leader and Learning to Lead, to help you decide: 1. Managers set standards for performance; a leader sets a benchmark for excellence. Do you dictate a status quo or do you paint a picture of what the ideal is? Do you merely communicate what’s acceptable or do you encourage exceptional? 2. Managers want employee compliance; leaders seek employees’ commitment. Let’s say you decide to streamline a process. To do so, you purchase new software. Do you just provide training on how to use the software or do you work on communicating the reasons why you’re doing it so employees willingly and happily dive into training? 3. Managers have subordinates over whom they have formal authority; leaders have followers who are inspired to perform at their best. Leaders recognize that continual improvement in all aspects of their business is critical to their success. 4. Managers try to avoid risks or minimize them; a leader looks for opportunities. Maybe it’s an investment in a new technology, or a decision to expand your business. Whatever the case, managers will tell you why it won’t work. Leaders will tell you why it can. 5. Managers enforce rules and policies; leaders challenge red tape and bureaucracy when necessary. Sure, you should have and enforce an acceptable use policy for your computers. But if any of your policies prevent someone from helping a customer or generating sales, put on your leadership hat and throw that rule away. One management task you can take off your plate Your computer network, phone system, software and all things IT can suck up your time and resources and be a royal pain – if all you do is manage it. Checking backups, maintaining critical patches on the computers, updating anti-virus software and firewall protection, and dealing with issues that arise – these are all management tasks that can be outsourced. As a leader, you can deal with IT differently. You look for opportunities to improve your company with technology, you use it as a way to help propel the vision for your company, and you deploy it to reach your goals. Then you hire someone to handle the rest. About the author: Diana Spurgus, MBA, MCP, CITP CPA, is president of Lancaster, Ohio-based Business System Solutions Inc. (BSSI). BSSI can be reached at ask@bssi.biz.
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LAST UPDATED 7/16/2010