卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

today's features

hoisted from comments: ron baker cites cpe “lunacy”

ron baker, value-pricing pioneer at versage.com, comments on gary bolinger: the uncertain future of cpe [video]:

right on, gary. as an instructor providing cpe since 1995, our system is totally antiquated. the question of “how do you measure that?,” i believe, is the wrong question.

i’ll tell you how you don’t measure education: hours that butts sit in (uncomfortable) chairs. that measures inputs, not outputs. not measuring would be superior to this completely ignorant measurement. we only use it because it’s easy and can be precise. but it’s precisely wrong. i’d rather be approximately right.

i do think there are ways to do it better. have the instructors certify someone’s learning. this doesn’t just have to be a test. we have to stop being afraid of subjective judgments and letting the free market sort out quality, since they are both far superior than precisely wrong measures.

i applaud you for speaking out about this. i’ve been tilting at this windmill for years. the status quo is well invested, so i fear nothing will change. like you, i put my faith in the younger cpas who see the lunacy of the current system.

see the original at gary bolinger: the uncertain future of cpe [video]

outlook & analysis

cpa firm compensation plans and the law of unintended consequences

“unintended,” maybe. but not altogether unforeseeable.

with a new generation of cpas taking over as managing partners comes a host of new questions and issues. marc rosenberg addresses some of the concerns in compensation issues for the new managing partner, which inspires gary zeune, managing director at the pros & the cons llc, to weigh in on the kind of comp issues that he sees all too often as a fraud-fighter.

zeune comments:

don’t tell anyone but the problem with cpa firms is they’re run by accountants who don’t understand the unintended consequences of decisions.

read more →

outlook & analysis

gary bolinger: the uncertain future of cpe [video]

gary bolinger, president and ceo of the indiana cpa society, says the profession’s system of continuing professional education is broken and needs to be scrapped.

“if we don’t do something,” he says an entire generation will “flatly reject” and “thumb their noses” at cpe as we know it. they will “find other ways to learn.”

in a video-phone interview with rick telberg for 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间, bolinger calls on the profession — mainly its leaders in state regulatory boards and associations — to “change the regulatory environment and delivery system… to be more responsive to the rate of change.”

if bolinger is right, then today’s system of measuring achievement and competence in hours is already doa and the profession needs to start embracing alternatives, such as real-time learning, independent study, peer-to-peer assessments, and snap quizzes.

few issues could be as disruptive to the business of accountancy than what bolinger suggests. but without dramatic change, it’s only a matter of time before the cpe system crashes and burns into a heap of cynicism and irrelevancy. if it hasn’t already.

marketing & sales

what to do when you lose your biggest client

and why aren’t more cpas asking the same question?

here at 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间, ed mendlowitz answers some of the toughest questions practitioners can throw at him. he’s the right one to ask. after more than 40 years in the business – building his own practice, running the firm, and eventually selling it to a major regional firm, withumsmith+brown, where he remains a senior partner and consultant to professional services clients – he has the answers. we’re happy to have him at 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间. send your questions for ed here, or chime in with comments below.

meanwhile, browse more from ed here: congratulations! you bought a tax practice. now what? | how accountants can keep the business when a client wants to sell theirs | 10 reasons clients don’t pay, and what to do about it | 13 reasons timesheets will never die |

— rick telberg
president / ceo

question: i have an established practice and just lost my largest client and need to get new business to make up for the loss. how do i go about getting additional clients?

answer: funny, cpas aren’t asking me about marketing. maybe it’s because 1) they are too busy working so aren’t thinking about marketing, 2) they really don’t like to sell; 3) they feel uncomfortable about asking existing clients for referrals and especially so if they feel they aren’t doing as good a job servicing the client as they should be; 4) they would like new business but don’t seem to want to go out of their way to get it unless it is a referral, or 5) they don’t know what “marketing” is.

outlook & analysis

get real: 15 questions for achievable growth

first, understand your firm.

by bruce w. marcus
professional services marketing 3.0

in building a growth plan for your firm, perspective is important.

objectives, clearly defined as they should be, should not be overwhelming. nor should they be adhered to slavishly. it’s often enough to know what you want to do, why you want to do it, and how you plan to get it done.

objectives should be consistent with a firm’s comfort level, and should certainly be ethically acceptable to both the firm and the profession practiced by the firm.

more on professional services marketing 3.0:

— if you don’t know where you’re going, how do you know how to get there?
— eight tips for staying one step ahead of the competition (and maybe the client, too)
— nine things we know for sure about how to grow an accounting firm
— the cpa’s castle is crumbling
— my address in space: the dynamics of change at accounting firms
— six quick reasons why cpa firms will never be the same
— 14 steps to find the right “value price”
— it’s not just accounting anymore. today, everyone’s in marketing

instead, it must have clear objectives that are flexible enough to accommodate the dynamic nature of the market. it must focus on specific aspects of a practice, predicated on the distinctive needs of each aspect of the prospective clientele. for example, a marketing program to attract high asset individuals is different from one to attract corporations. a program to attract real estate developers is different than one to attract builders.

practically, a firm’s growth plan should be in two parts – near-term and long-term. near-term should be no longer than two or three years. beyond that, there are too many variables in the economy, in law, in regulations, etc. to be valid – even with the flexibility that should be part of any plan. longer than that, it becomes a wish list – not to be ignored, but seen for what it is – a long-term goal. the short-term goal, on the other hand, should be action-oriented, with an action plan for each goal, including who does it. read more →

outlook & analysis

how to attract clients like a magnet

10 tips to build an irresistible reputation.

by sandi smith, cpa
accountant’s accelerator

if you’re an expert at something, don’t be the best-kept secret on your block. get the word out about what you can offer others, and one way to do that easily, especially if you’re an accountant, is to build your reputation.

here are 10 quick tips to boost yours.

1. get credentialed, certified, or educated. a good credential, and the cpa is pretty much the gold standard, will get you instant credibility with your prospects and clients. you are simply treated better and respected more when you’ve earned a credential that others recognize.

more from sandi smith at 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间:

• eleven easy ways to deliver more value to clients • five things accountants take for granted that costs them revenue
• what’s in your new client funnel?
• what’s in your welcome kit for new prospects?
• five fun and easy ways to wow your clients
• six ways to give yourself a raise
• strategies to stop losing business to competitors
• five tips to manage your ‘overwhelm’ level
• easy ideas for a quick business boost
• four new mega-trend marketing strategies
• how to stop leaving money on the table

2. create a results-oriented biography. let people know what you’ve accomplished so far in your career and what you’re capable of doing for them by writing a great bio that represents you well. read more →

featured

accountants rate 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间: recommended reading

good, bad, ugly or indifferent… here are some results of the latest two-minute reader survey. thank you for your interest, support, honest feedback and helpful criticisms. we’ll keep working on delivering to you the kind of actionable information you can use to profit in your practice and in your career.

sincerely,
rick telberg
president / ceo

comments, verbatim

impressed with knowledge content and the variety of information.
because i tend to forward articles to members of my small cpa firm as i find them in sync with a small firms needs. – steven
very useful info and insight into the mind and practice of cpas, not to mention the important trends on our profession. i find it to be invaluable in my work. please keep it up!
read more →

charts & graphs

accounting industry adds 500 jobs

marks 16 months annualized expansion. but cpa firms are a different story.

accounting and bookkeeping services, all employees in thousands, thru july 2012

the accounting and bookkeeping industry, which includes cpa firms and payroll agencies, added a statistically meaningless 500 jobs in july, according to new data sourced by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间. july ended with 953,200 fte’s, up from june’s 952,700.

but it’s in the year-over-year gains where the trend is more clear. and the story at cpa firms is much different.

humor

another bad accountant joke

http://baystreetgroup.com/store/instant-classic-the-accountants-bad-joke-book/ — order here

an accountant was visiting the natural history museum.

while standing near the dinosaur, he said to his friend, “this dinosaur is 2 billion years and 10 months old.”

“where did you get this exact information?” the friend asked.

“i was here 10 months ago, and the guide told me that the dinosaur is 2 billion years old.”

leadership

compensation issues for the new managing partner

five factors to consider in their new compensation plan. and five key responsibilities for the new managing partner.

by marc rosenberg, cpa
author of how to operate a compensation committee

baby boomer partners are rapidly approaching retirement age, creating a huge demographic shift. one result of this is a dramatic increase in new managing partners at firms.

many firms are skipping a generation and turning the reins over to “younger” partners. firms are also asking their new mps to divest themselves of a significant part of their client base to enable them to focus more on managing the firm.

how should the new mp be compensated?

outlook & analysis

[a&a update] big changes coming in compilations

management

congratulations! you bought a tax practice. now what?

how to make money merging in low-priced work.

by ed mendlowitz

question: i bought a tax return practice in december from a person that was charging $180 per hour. my rate is $300 per hour so i did not make money and i would like to know what i could do to raise fees so i don’t continue to lose on it. read more →

growth strategies

if you don’t know where you’re going, how do you know how to get there?

the essential first step for any growth strategy.

by bruce w. marcus
professional services marketing 3.0

because an accounting firm’s marketing program must do more than accumulate clients, and because it must function in a dynamic world that’s constantly in flux, an effective marketing program can’t be a static list of activities that use a static list of marketing tools.

more professional services marketing 3.0 by bruce w. marcus:

— eight tips for staying one step ahead of the competition (and maybe the client, too)
— nine things we know for sure about how to grow an accounting firm
— the cpa’s castle is crumbling
— my address in space: the dynamics of change at accounting firms
— six quick reasons why cpa firms will never be the same
— 14 steps to find the right “value price”
— it’s not just accounting anymore. today, everyone’s in marketing