Author: Caleb Newquist

Founding editor, Going Concern.

Grant Thornton Wants Help Breaking Into the Global 6

Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Grant-thornton-logo.JPGBoy, a firm gets fired a couple times and you’d think the sky was falling.
GT isn’t literally saying, “Help us, for the love of God, the Big 4 is just too powerful” but it’s close enough for us:

Mid-tier accounting firm Grant Thornton has described the current audit market as unsustainable and is calling for new rules to promote greater competition.
In a letter to the International Organization of Securities Commissions, the firm put together a four point plan aimed at increasing diversity in the concentrated audit industry.


The firm want regulators to require companies to disclose third party agreements that limit auditor choice, discourage companies and financial intermediaries from entering agreements containing restrictive clauses, and publish balanced findings of their inspections of individual audit firms.
The firm claims that in the event of a Big Four collapse, 20% of the 7200 largest businesses in the G20 would be left stranded without an auditor.

Hell, maybe they have a point? If their claims are legit, we are talking over 1,000 companies that just up and don’t have an auditor any more. And the firm can’t instantly quintuple its global revenue.
We asked a frequent commenter on the subject of Big 4 failure, Jim Peterson of Re:Balance, for his thoughts and he told us:

[W]hen the next of the Big Four goes down — which will be in a highly visible and ugly burst of flame and wreckage — the other 3 will quickly enough leave the assurance business themselves. What incentive would they have to stay? They would not have the resources or the political agility to take up the slack, and there would be no upside for them in the face of relentless attacks from the blame-mongers.
So it’s not 20% — it’s 100% — and then the re-building process starts with a blank page.

That sounds kinda serious. Maybe governments do need to get involved. Seems like the going trend these days anyway.
Global audit industry is unsustainable: GT [Accountancy Age]

Pictures of the Day: One Idea to Help Keep the Utilization Up

As you well know, it’s key for all of you to stay as fully utilized as possible this busy season, and sometimes little things make all the difference.
A reader provided us with the following idea:
bathroom23.jpg
The strategically placed marker board will come in handy when all those great ideas pop into the grey matter.
bathroom3.jpg
Or you can just memorize Giants statistics.


bathroom10.jpg
Say what you will about the impracticalities of this set up but at least you won’t have to chase down a key.
We strongly encourage you to submit any chicanery that you might cook up this busy season. We’re here to help you stay sane.

Which One of You Was Sending Out Bogus PwC Checks?

Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for pwclogo.thumbnail.jpgRight before the holidays even! The worst part of the scam is that they forged the timeless P. Dubs logo. As in the KPMG Letterheadgate case, this calls for a complete rehaul of the firm’s image. Your suggestions are encouraged. Our preference would obviously involve something around this.
Sounds like the entire firm is at DEFCON 1 so if you happen upon one of these checks, we suggest you notify someone in your office that handles these things after you take a picture of it and send it to us of course.
The firm issued a press release today giving us details about the scam, you can read it after the jump.

The checks began arriving in people’s mail boxes just before the Christmas holidays. They looked so good, they could have been real. But they weren’t.
In a new twist on an old crime, scam artists created bogus checks bearing the logo of PricewaterhouseCoopers. Accompanying the checks was a letter advising the recipients that they had been selected to be “secret shoppers.” The letters guided the potential scam victims to cash the checks at specific banks, then wire the funds to another address for use by a second “secret shopper.”
As soon as the first report about the checks surfaced, PwC’s US Security team began working with the banking community and law enforcement agencies to shut down the scam. “Besides working with law enforcement, we put all of our local offices on alert. We prepared our telephone operators and receptionists to provide guidance for anyone who might call,” said Rose Littlejohn, head of US Security. “We put all of our people on notice, in case they saw or heard anything.”
The checks were dated December 21, 2009. Because the scam took advantage of the US Postal Service, a Postal Inspector has been assigned to the investigation. Anyone who has received one of the solicitations should contact Doug Smith, Postal Inspector at (813) 281-5228. If they have the capability to fax information, they should fax a copy of the bogus check and any instructions they received with it to 813-375-8047. They should then keep the originals as law enforcement will have separate instructions for what to do with them.
“Since the first batch of checks went out in December, we suspect those recipients have either reported the issue or thrown out the materials,” said Littlejohn. “But right now there is nothing to prevent the scammers from making another attempt. We hope people will be skeptical about any kind of offer like this they receive in the mail. Meanwhile, we’ll keep trying to track down and bring to justice the perpetrators of this scam.”

Job of the Day: California State University Needs Auditors

Thumbnail image for Need_a_job.jpgCalifornia is still trying to sort itself out but the last thing Arnie would do is issue IOUs to state employees (that’s a big assumption on our part).
The Office of the University Auditor at California State University is looking to fill both an internal auditor and senior auditor position at its location in Long Beach, CA. The CSU offers a premium benefits package including 24 days of vacation and 14 paid holidays per year.
Check out more details after the jump


Company: California State University, Office of the University Auditor
Title: Internal Auditor; Senior Auditor
Location: Long Beach, CA
Minimum experience: 2 years; 3 years
Description: The California State University, Office of the University Auditor, is seeking an Internal or Senior Auditor to conduct operational and compliance audits at the system office and each of the 23 campuses.
Responsibilities: Conducting reviews of assigned organizational and functional activities; evaluating the adequacy and effectiveness of the management controls over those activities; and determining whether organizational units in the university are performing their planning, accounting, custodial, or control activities in compliance with management instructions, applicable statements of policy and procedures, and in a manner consistent with both university objectives and high standards of administrative practice. The senior auditor occasionally assists in audit program development and periodically supervises the work of others, including instructing new staff.
Requirements: Bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university is required for either position; The internal auditor position requires two years’ experience in internal/external auditing; and CPA, CIA or CISA certification is desired; The senior auditor position requires three years’ experience in internal/external auditing; CPA, CIA or CISA certification highly desired; and progress towards certification required. The position requires approximately 33% out-of-area travel (within California, no weekends).
See the entire description over at the GC Career Center and visit the main page for all your job search needs.

Is Becoming Your Own Boss the Next Move?

aspirations.jpgStarting your own firm might seem like a tall order but with all the uncertainty out there many people are giving more thought to putting them their name in the window.
And plenty of people are leaving on their own after several years working for a large public accounting firm and/or working in-house once they realize that they don’t want to wait to be the boss.

Web CPA addressed this a while back and it seems there are lots of reasons that younger CPAs consider the move:

“What I have learned is that audit risk keeps increasing while fees don’t and that tax practices keep facing more competition from home tax-prep software,” said Vuchnich, 31, a sole practitioner in Charlotte, N.C. “When I made the leap it was because I didn’t want to spend years working for a firm to buy into a service industry that is high-risk, low-reward, or where my services would be regularly compared to a $40 software package.”
…


Jody Padar, 37, left her position of four years at a midsized firm after feeling management saw her as just a stay-at-home mom with a part-time tax job. “The sacrifices I was making to be a competent, exceptional professional were never appreciated. So I left.”

The other possibility is that maybe you have your own ideas on how a firm should be run. There is no shortage of opinions on processes and how a firm should be run so some see that as an the opportunity:

“Young professionals will leave if they feel that they can innovate better than their firm and ‘do’ CPA work in a better way. This may be as a free agent, or it may be as a solo practitioner.”

The other option is that you come from a long line of CPAs and it’s your turn to take over the family business. While the mere idea of working with family members may be enough to give some of you an aneurysm, for others it’s an easy way to get into an established firm.

So is being the boss in your future? Judging by the response to our partner track poll, it’s a goal for many of you but going out on your own to get there is a whole other ball game. Discuss your thoughts and for those that have made the leap, share your experiences and shell out some advice for those looking to make the move.

Becoming your own boss [Web CPA]

Layoff Watch ’10: Ernst & Young January Edition

Confused doesn’t even begin to describe what were feeling. We are hearing tons of rumors about layoffs in the Ernstiverse this week.

We’ve heard rumors from Denver to the East-Central (fka North-Central) and New York FSO. This includes both client serving professionals and support staff. We have already confirmed that two admins were let go earlier this week in New York.

The timing is especially strange since, you know, it’s January and in some offices the mandatory hours have already rolled out. Even if it were only support staff being let go, the timing is still unheard of. Why wait until January to let people go when having cuts in November? Maybe it’s just us but if we had survived that November cut, we would have thought that our job would be safe until at least the spring.
And since the roundtables seem to be SOP you wouldn’t think they would be anything to worry about but they definitely have people talking and wondering what will go down.

So far, Ernst & Young has not responded to our request for comment.
If you hear anything about your office get in touch in with us and discuss in the comments.

Preliminary Analytics | 01.15.10

Thumbnail image for patsy_byrne.jpg• Taxman misses 44 million calls – The British version anyway. That makes the IRS look like rock stars by comparison. [Accountancy Age]
• Annals of Public Relations – Fortunately for us, Patrick Byrne doesn’t keep PR by his side at all times. [Gary Weiss]
• If California Owes You, It Would Like to Pay You – “Across the state, 89,000 residents and businesses — including 2,315 here in San Francisco alone — are sitting on some $50 million in uncashed i.o.u.’s from the state, a souvenir of California’s most recent, but by no means its last, budget crisis.” [NYT]
• Verizon Lowers Wireless Pricing Plans – “Verizon Wireless introduced lower wireless-pricing plans Friday, a move that’s likely to force rival AT&T Inc. to follow and could pressure margins on the carriers’ high-end business.” [WSJ]
• GM Daewoo finance chief Mark James named Opel CFO – Missed opportunity, people. [Reuters]
• Prince Tells Pandit ‘It’s Time to Deliver’ – No pressure. [DealBook]

Review Comments | 01.14.10

Mary Schapiro.jpg• Regulators Call for Tougher Policies at Hearing – Sheila Bair and Mary Schapiro got their turn today to make pledges, promises, etc. [WSJ]
• Are You Gonna Make My Day? The Auditors And SEC Enforcement – Didn’t you hear? They’re on this. [Re: The Auditors]
• Geithner to testify on AIG – Don’t make plans on January 27th. [Reuters]
• Bernanke Fights to Keep Bank Powers in Senate Letter – Beard to Chris Dodd: Just retire already so I don’t have to listen to your crap anymore. [Bloomberg]

But Does She Get a Key to the Bathroom?

porta.jpgOne of the best things about making partner is that, if you’re lucky, you’ll end up on a board of directors someday. You get a nice chunk of change for sitting in some meetings pretending like you’re responsible for a company. Pretty simple.
Just like Sue James, a former E&Y partner. She was introduced as one of the new directors at Yahoo! The 8-K filed by Yahoo lays out her comp:

Ms. James will participate in the current director compensation arrangements applicable to non-employee directors. Under the terms of those arrangements, Ms. James will receive an annual retainer of $80,000 for her service on the Board, an additional annual retainer of $35,000 for serving as Chair of the Audit Committee of the Board, and will participate in Yahoo!’s other compensation programs for its non-employee directors. In addition, Ms. James is expected to receive in February, subject to Board approval, a grant of restricted stock units under the Company’s 1996 Directors’ Stock Plan with the number of such units to be determined by the Board at the time of the grant

Not too shabby. The filing doesn’t outline her rights to the facilities but for that kind of money she could, at the very least, arrange to have a rent-a-john parked outside Yahoo! HQ.

Report: Accountants Responsible for Two-thirds of Embezzlements

Sue_Sachdeva.pngOkay auditors. No more excuses. You should already be giving everyone the stink-eye the second you walk in the door but now we’ve got a REPORT about embezzlement in the US of A that gives you all kinds of hints on who you should suspect — provable or not — of being the next Sue Sachdeva.
The Marquet Report on Embezzlement is an annual report put out by Marquet International, Ltd., a “an independent investigative, litigation support and security consulting firm” according to the company’s website.


Here are some of the key findings in the report:

• Women are more likely to embezzle than men.
• Men embezzle significantly more than women.
• Perpetrators typically begin their embezzlement schemes in their early 40s.
• By a significant margin, embezzlers are most likely to be individuals who hold
financial positions within organizations.
• The two broad industry categories that have the highest risk for a major
embezzlement are Financial Services and Government Agencies/Municipalities.
• The Financial Services industry suffers the greatest losses from major
embezzlements.
• On average, major embezzlement schemes last about 4½ years.
• California and Florida are consistently the states that experience the greatest
losses from major embezzlements.
• The vast majority of major embezzlements are caused by sole perpetrators
• Gambling is a clear motivating factor in driving some major embezzlements.
• Fewer than 10 percent of embezzlers have a criminal record – less than expected, but enough to suggest that pre-employment screening has merit.

Some takeaways: 1) Immediately suspect anyone that gambles. Even if it’s bingo games in the church basement; 2) If you’re in California or Florida you’ve got your work cut out for you; 3) By “a significant margin” they mean accounting/finance personnel were responsible in 67% of the cases. Executives were second, in 13% of the cases.
Annnnd since we know you’re wondering: the largest embezzlement case in 2009 was none other than our Suz. Based on the criteria above, it appears that she should have been under suspicion from day one but you can’t fault Grant Thornton too much. This is only the second report that Marquet has issued so chances are she still would have made off with $20 million. Oh well, you’ll get ’em next time!
The top ten from 2009:
Picture 2.png
Report On Major Embezzlements 2009.pdf

Job of the Day: Lynn Tilton Needs an Assistant Controller

Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for hire me2.jpgDoesn’t ring a bell? Ms. Tilton is the founder of Patriarch Partners is a leading private equity firm with over $6 Billion AUM. The company specializes in distressed buy-outs with a long-term investment approach.
Patriarch is looking for an assistant controller in New York. Get the details after the jump.


Company: Patriarch Partners, LLC
Title: Assistant Controller
Location: New York City
Minimum experience: 5 years
Responsibilities: Preparation and analysis of multiple funds’ financial statements and distribution schedules, including working closely with internal Structured Finance and Loan Administration teams as well as external Trustees; Review and understand fund indentures and Limited Partnership Agreements, navigate interpretations of legalese, and maintain external fund compliance deliverables; Managing invoicing process to portfolio companies; Departmental budgeting for corporate entity; Treasury, cash management & plain vanilla, non-exotic investment strategies at the corporate level for excess liquidity
Requirements and Skills: 5 years minimum in accounting/finance function; Accounting degree or CPA required. MBA a further plus, and preferred; Private Equity, Hedge Fund or other Alternative Asset Mgmt accounting experience (we need someone who understands from an accounting standpoint capital & fund structures, financial services, etc.); Accounting for multiple corporate entities and subsidiaries (w/ intercompany accounting concerns).
See the entire description over at the GC Career Center and visit the main page for all your job search needs.