van carlson: 831(b) risk strategies gain ground | the concierge cpa
the former tax loophole is now a mainstream strategy for business continuity.
the concierge cpa
with jackie meyer
for 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间
risk management
six steps to battle cybersecurity risks
what cost or time investment would you pay to protect your firm and your clients?
by donny shimamoto
cybersecurity for accountants
when it comes to cybersecurity, one risk aspect to consider is whether or not the steps you’ve taken to protect clients’ pii will stand up in court in the event of litigation related to a data breach or damages to a client because of a cybersecurity issue caused by your firm. during litigation, opposing counsel will often bring in cybersecurity experts to describe cybersecurity best practices—which are often a higher level of controls than just compliance.
more: understanding the full cost of a data breach | the 7 categories of of cybersecurity solutions firms need | future firm growth requires a mindshift | donny shimamoto explains how ‘agile’ applies to cpa firms | ai, ocr, nlp & cpas: oh my! | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers | early adopters gain an edge in audit | dustin wheeler: for serious cas success, hire tech teams | csr for cpas: the missing ingredient | donny shimamoto explains how ‘agile’ applies to cpa firms | staff retention for remote workers | why the future is in risk advisory | ready for non-cpa “cpa” firms?
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be sure to consult with both your cybersecurity advisor and legal counsel to determine which controls you may still want to implement even if you qualify for some of the exemptions. many controls, like the ones identified in the ftc exception, do not cost much to implement and can demonstrate that you still fulfilled your professional obligation to protect clients’ data—reducing your litigation risk.
is audit in crisis because of definitions?
auditors, accountants and businesses need to agree on expectations and deliverables in audits.
by alan anderson
transforming audit for the future
instant download:
“the new manifesto for accountants.“
do the banks and investors get useful information from historical audited financials? in their book, “the end of accounting and the path forward for investors and managers,” baruch lev and feng gu researched the relationship between changes in stock prices and the dates that corporate financial reports were released.
more: three fundamental questions to ask in audit | how auditors can beat ai | the big issues in audit: frustration, inconsistency and technology | five ways to increase audit efficiency | early adopters gain an edge in audit | talent retention: five tips for an audit adjustment | six benefits of an internal audit | the ten financial controls that’ll make you a hero | five cash reports you can’t live without | when an audit is a great thing
in the 1950s and 1960s, roughly 90 percent of the market value of public companies could be directly attributed to the earnings and book value reported in their financials. by 2013, that percentage had dropped to just 50 percent. personally, i’m surprised it’s even that high. the historical financial statement does not serve the needs of the users of those statements.
read more →
why business email is doomed
malware, ransomware, phishing and other hacker tools will make email obsolete.
by frank stitely
the relentless cpa
last year, the ceo of slack predicted the demise of business email in five years. i think he’s wrong. i think business email maybe has another two years. there are two obvious reasons why email has a foot in the technological grave.
more: control your time: avoid ambush meetings and phone calls | get clients to bring tax docs early…yes, early | you train your clients, whether you mean to or not | train your clients before they train you | why time tracking still matters | business owners face one of three exits | don’t let clients dictate tax workflow | make fewer mistakes, increase revenue and capacity | how small firms can win the talent wars | easy ways to avoid ‘done but’ tax returns | six ways to create a millennial-friendly firm | do you know your turnaround time?
first, spam killed the efficiency of email. how much time do you spend each day deleting spam? you can train your spam blocker, but professional spammers get through using variable email addresses and agreements with internet routing companies.
read more →
the 7 categories of cybersecurity solutions firms need
how important are wisp and employee awareness? just ask the irs or the ftc.
by donny shimamoto, cpa, citp, cgma
on cybersecurity for accountants
center for accounting transformation
historically, finding cybersecurity solutions “right-sized” for the small and mid-sized business space was difficult. most of the technologies were expensive and difficult to implement, and their price points weren’t reasonable for organizations with under 25 people. it’s only been within the last five years that we’ve seen solutions mature and evolve enough to be delivered via the cloud at a price point that makes sense for smaller organizations.
more: how hacker-proof is your firm? | donny shimamoto: future firm growth requires a mindshift | ai, ocr, nlp & cpas: oh my! | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers | early adopters gain an edge in audit | dustin wheeler: for serious cas success, hire tech teams | csr for cpas: the missing ingredient | donny shimamoto explains how ‘agile’ applies to cpa firms | staff retention for remote workers | why the future is in risk advisory | ready for non-cpa “cpa” firms?
to check if your policy addresses all of the requirements, take our cybersecurity compliance self-assessment for tax practitioners at: improvetheworld.net/cyberselfassessfortaxbook
with the covid-19 pandemic and the adoption of remote work increased cybersecurity threats, the cybersecurity industry has stepped up and made solutions much more affordable and easier to implement. these solutions still require some technical knowledge to install, but there is much less maintenance, and they now make economic sense even for sole practitioners. read more →
are you ready to become a data analyst?
the right dashboards can optimize your data … and your value.
by bonnie buol ruszczyk
business leaders are constantly called upon to make snap – yet important – decisions. yet, poring through spreadsheets, reports and financial statements can be a laborious and time-consuming process, especially for those who need to act on urgent matters.
more: survey: zoom, teams top meeting choices | are you using too many monitors? or not enough? | one in four firms replaces servers by schedule | you’re probably not reading this on an ipad | 52% of firms look outside for it support | pandemic? what pandemic? | today’s top 3 problems: staffing, workflow and tech
this is where data visualization tools can be a tremendous boon to organizations. automatically pulling from various data sources, these cloud-based, interactive dashboards present business data visually using charts, graphs and other widgets. once designed, these repositories save precious time for analysts, managers and key decision-makers, allowing them to focus on the information and analysis rather than on the grueling process of gathering it and creating reports.
irs and ftc cybersecurity expectations of tax practitioners
your tools for a cybersecurity compliance check-up.
by donny shimamoto
cybersecurity for accountants
in august 2019, the irs published its list of “security six” steps to protect taxpayer information.[i] these described the six “basic protections” that it expects tax prepares to utilize.
more: how hacker-proof is your firm? | unleashing the power of technology: transforming accountants into trusted advisors | future firm growth requires a mindshift | ai, ocr, nlp & cpas: oh my! | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers | early adopters gain an edge in audit | dustin wheeler: for serious cas success, hire tech teams | csr for cpas: the missing ingredient | donny shimamoto explains how ‘agile’ applies to cpa firms | staff retention for remote workers | why the future is in risk advisory | ready for non-cpa “cpa” firms?
these include:
cybersecurity exemptions for orgs with less than 5,000 clients
you may be off the hook, but not out of the woods.
by donny shimamoto
management consulting company aon described an exemption for some of the ftc requirements for firms that handle the personal identifiable information (pii) of less than 5,000 consumers.[i]
the safeguards rule provides an exception from certain requirements if the covered financial institution maintains customer information concerning fewer than 5,000 consumers. a consumer is defined in section 314.2(b)(1) of the safeguards rule as “an individual who obtains or has obtained a financial product or service from the financial institution that is used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes, or that individual’s legal representative.”
more: how hacker-proof is your firm? | unleashing the power of technology: transforming accountants into trusted advisors | future firm growth requires a mindshift | ai, ocr, nlp & cpas: oh my! | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers | early adopters gain an edge in audit | dustin wheeler: for serious cas success, hire tech teams | csr for cpas: the missing ingredient | donny shimamoto explains how ‘agile’ applies to cpa firms | staff retention for remote workers | why the future is in risk advisory | ready for non-cpa “cpa” firms?
essentially if you handle less than 5,000 social security numbers, then it would appear that you can take advantage of this exemption. aon went on to report that if you fall under this exemption, then you do not need to address the following requirements:
safe harbor compliance reduces risk of fines and penalties
protect your clients–and your firm–by being proactive.
by donny shimamoto, cpa, citp, cgma
in the last few years, we’re starting to see state legislatures and attorney generals recognizing that tax practitioners are trying to protect their clients. they are formalizing this recognition with changes to regulations or laws to include “safe harbor” provisions that limit or eliminate the fines and penalties for tax practitioners who take proactive action to manage their cybersecurity risks.
more: how hacker-proof is your firm? | unleashing the power of technology: transforming accountants into trusted advisors | future firm growth requires a mindshift | ai, ocr, nlp & cpas: oh my! | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers | early adopters gain an edge in audit | dustin wheeler: for serious cas success, hire tech teams | csr for cpas: the missing ingredient | donny shimamoto explains how ‘agile’ applies to cpa firms | staff retention for remote workers | why the future is in risk advisory | ready for non-cpa “cpa” firms?
as of december 2022, the following states have some type of safe harbor provision in place:
in contrast, states like california and colorado are taking the opposite approach and penalizing organizations that have data breaches.[iv]
three fundamental questions to ask in audit
are you teaching your team the real work or just the compliance work? 
by alan anderson, cpa
transforming audit for the future
instant download:
“the new manifesto for accountants.“
when i started in accounting, we wrote audit programs out by hand, and we thought about what it was we needed to do to carry out our audit procedures.
and then, the firm got a copy machine. that started the arts and crafts period of public accounting.
more: the big issues in audit: frustration, inconsistency and technology | five ways to increase audit efficiency | early adopters gain an edge in audit | talent retention: five tips for an audit adjustment | six benefits of an internal audit | the ten financial controls that’ll make you a hero | five cash reports you can’t live without | when an audit is a great thing
because we were going to do the same as last year, every year we would make a copy of last year’s hand-written audit program, cut out the sign-offs, tape that on a new page, make sure to draw the lines for the sign-offs, and then we’d make a copy of that. then we had our audit program for the new year.
the life insurance that your firm needs
guarantee funding when your business needs it the most.
by russ alan prince
your $5 million high-net-worth practice
there are times because of death when key people in a company are lost. key person life insurance provides funds to a business to address the financial losses that can occur when a key person dies.
more: why you need a team of experts | why a virtual family office? why now? | is your client’s umbrella big enough? | your client’s instincts are wrong | preserving wealth is a different mindset | three approaches to investment consulting
revenue losses can be offset, and money can be tapped to help ensure the business remains viable and doesn’t fail – for example, to find a replacement or train someone to take the job of the key person who died.
this is almost always the most cost-effective approach. additionally, key person life insurance pretty much guarantees the money required will be available when needed.
preparing for the worst (thanks to my wife)
instant download: the practice continuation toolkit
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting
cybersecurity for tax professionals
checklist: the 24 steps to prevent and, if necessary, respond to breaches.
by amy welch
last year, there were nearly 90,000 reports of tax identity theft, according to the federal trade commission.
in fact, in june, an irs agent admitted to stealing someone’s identity. law360.com reported special agent bryan cho, 49, pled guilty to aggravated identity theft and wire fraud in a brooklyn district court. it appears anyone can be a criminal!
join donny shimamoto, cpa, citp, cgma, for “hybrid work: holistic approach to customer, employee & cybersecurity risks,” aug. 26, 3:30 pm et. register here | learn more
it’s also important to note that protecting taxpayer data is the law. according to the ftc safeguards rule, “tax return preparers must create and enact security plans to protect client data. failure to do so may result in an ftc investigation.” additionally, any “failures that lead to an unauthorized disclosure may subject you to penalties under sections 7216 and/or 6713 of the internal revenue code. read more →