CPE

In honor of Halloween, we present succession-planning horror stories. For more on succession planning, check out this Wednesday’s Practice Management Conference, featuring a panel of partners from small, mid-size and large firms sharing their succession-planning expertise, moderated by member Robert Fligel.

Vincent Price may have inspired these creepy tales…but are they based on true stories? You be the judge!!

Narcie's Woe

What’s brewing at the SEC? Why not hear it straight from the source. James Kroeker, who has just been appointed chief accountant at the SEC, will be speaking at the SEC Conference on Sept. 17.

The NYSSCPA will be offering a free session on the accountancy reform law on July 27 between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. The content and format will be similar to a session previously held on June 30 and will provide another opportunity for Society members and non-members in industry, government, and academia to obtain first-hand information on the new law and its regulations.  The accountancy reform law will take effect on July 26, 2009.

The NYSSCPA continued its efforts to reach all CPAs affected by the new accounting reform law at JPMorgan Chase in lower Manhattan this morning.

A group of CPAs -- including at least one from out of state -- and CPA candidates came together to get information about the new law from Society leaders.

The session participants also earned two CPE credits for attending.

At left, four of JPMorgan Chase's accountants pay close attention as NYSSCPA Executive Director Lou Grumet speaks about the law's provisions.

At a meeting of the NYSSCPA Not-for-Profit Organizations Committee this morning, member Allen L. Fetterman (with his hand raised at left) held up a copy of the latest FASB Statement, No. 168.

"This is the last FASB accounting statement that will ever be issued," he said. "Frame it; hang it on the wall."

He's right: The FASB today launched its Accounting Standards Codification in Statement No. 168 as "the single source of authoritative nongovernmental U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP)," the agency said in a statement. It supercedes all exisiting accounting standards documents, rendering its own format obsolete.

Happy Regulations Day!

The New York State Board of Regents is preparing right now to vote on the proposed regulations that will define the requirements of the accounting reform law that goes into effect next month.

WebCPA talked to NYSSCPA President David Moynihan as the clock ticked down to that important decision, and in a brief story Moynihan outlines the provisions of the new law and what CPAs should expect.

A wealth of knowledge is also available on the NYSSCPA's Web site. Get general information on the law, read the proposed regulations and review a special issue of The Trusted Professional dedicated to the legislation. Or ask a question.

Busy? Definitely.

Need CPE? Always.

Now, with FAE's new e-CPE program, you can squeeze your education in-between clients, on your lunch break, or whenever you find it most convenient.

Developed in response to a need for more accessible continuing professional education options, the e-CPE program enables FAE to serve NYSSCPA members and others now required by the accounting reform law to meet annual CPE requirements. It can also assist those unable to travel to conferences or seminars due to increased demands on budgets and calendars in the midst of a downturned economy.

Getting a loan and keeping it current is very difficult these days. As a result, many individuals and companies struck by default or foreclosure—and, in turn, their CPAs—are facing difficult conversations with lenders.

Sheryl Garrett was a partner at a successful wealth management firm, but still felt she had not completely achieved her life goals. The hours on the job were draining, and Garrett felt she was on-call 24 hours a day, even when on vacation.

Garrett was raised in a middle class family, and she was bothered by the fact that working class people like her own friends, family and neighbors couldn’t afford her services, or might even be turned down as clients by her firm. [Watch her video below or click here to hear her at the Personal Financial Planning Conference.]

Do you know someone whose attitude or wardrobe is holding them back professionally? Who knew that four components of wardrobe can raise or lower one's perceived level of authority? “Image shouldn’t matter, but it does,” according to style expert Carol Davidson of StyleWorks of Union Square.

Davidson will discuss how everything from wardrobe to attitudes and non-verbal cues can impact our career progression from 1:30-3:00 p.m. on May 12 in the new Professional Development Lounge at the 2009 Accounting and Business Expo, Long Island Marriott. The Expo returns to Long Island on May 12 and 13 for the first time in 10 years. Click here to register and see the full schedule, location and CPE.