Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Game of Drones

As someone who is old enough to remember what 33 LP or stereophonic sound meant with regard to music, you can imagine in that time, I’ve seen more than a few advances in media and technology.

My daughters can’t believe there was a time you actually had to get up off the couch to change the channel on the TV, or for that matter, when regular programming ended with the playing of the Star Spangled Banner.

As the owners of iPads they look with only a vague understanding as I explain to them that I used to write and edit content on something called an IBM Selectric, which when it debuted was greeted with far more muted fanfare than say, the iPhone.


The phrase “you sound like a broken record,” means absolutely nothing to them.

Friday, August 22, 2014

Powerball for When You’re Expecting

Each week, my spouse and I faithfully play New York’s Powerball lottery game.

We play three games for a total of $6 and more often than not, opt for the quick pick with regard to the (hopefully) winning six-number combination.


Then, we fantasize for roughly five minutes or so about what we would do with the proceeds should we one day guess right. I’m not sure exactly what I would do with our new found largesse, but I can guarantee you there would be two things I would NEVER buy.

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Just listed: A three bedroom refrigerator box

We spend a great deal of our time here talking about (and hopefully helping with) succession and transition for CPA firm owners and principals.

I won’t regale you or, for that matter, bore you time and again with the grim statistics of how many – or more accurately, how few – CPA firms have formal succession plans in place, but for those unfamiliar with the numbers, let’s just say they’re about two levels above eye-opening.


Recently however, I came across an interesting and another rather depressing study along sort of the same lines – retirement savings, or again lack thereof.

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Oval Office Blame Game

In a refreshing turn of events, the 44th President has found another demographic to blame some of the country’s woes other than the 43rd President.

Accountants.


Let me repeat that for emphasis – accountants.

Friday, August 8, 2014

You Were Doing What?

Having served in management posts for a decent portion of my working life, you might imagine I’ve heard more than a few excuses and heard more than a few anecdotes with regard to employees not working (at least at what pursuits they were receiving paychecks for) when they were allegedly on the clock.


For example, when once caught in a shortage for copy at one of my former publishing posts, and ordering all hands on deck, I was grateful to see one of my junior editors furiously banging away on his keyboard only to discover that he was crafting a freelance piece for a theater magazine. When confronted, he argued with a straight face that “it had to be in by 5 p.m. that day.”

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

The real competitive threat

The other day I read an article in one of the accounting trades that posited an interesting premise; that in the not so very distant future, cloud accounting software applications will perhaps become so turnkey that they would be eventually be able to replace accountants.


Certainly there are a number of user-friendly cloud accounting apps currently, whose use is growing exponentially – i.e. Xero, and FreshBooks to name two, but can one or more automated technologies really usurp the expertise and personal touch of the most trusted advisor?