• AP: Ponzi collapses nearly quadrupled in ’09 – Thimble-dick Bernie, Allen Stanford, Tom “Cocker Spaniel” Petters, all did their part. [via HuffPo]
• The First Annual Jr Deputy Accountant Year in Review Awards (or some h*t) – Somehow we ended up on this list and somehow JDA managed to make it a backhanded compliment (we think). [JDA]
• Koss financial records will get more scrutiny in 2010 – With comments from Tracy Coenen at Fraud Files. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
• The Man Who Wired Silicon Valley – How Raj got the world by the short and curlies. [WSJ]
• GM Plans Pontiac Fire Sale – “GM sent letters to dealers Dec. 23 saying it would pay them $7,000 for every new Saturn or Pontiac on their lot that is moved to rental-vehicle or service-vehicle fleets operated by the dealers.” So yes, they’ll seem extra pushy. [WSJ]
• The Big Zero – As in the decade we’re finishing up. Prof. Krugman also quotes Diet Coke fiend Larry Summers stating that GAAP was the most important innovation in history and that it allows investors to make good decisions. According to PK, also a big zero. [Paul Krugman/NYT]
• Spurious academic study of the day, Tiger Woods edition – Ball-parking investors’ losses due to TW’s cheating ways is not so easy, nay, ridiculous. [Felix Salmon/Reuters]
Author: Caleb Newquist
Founding editor, Going Concern.
Review Comments | 12.28.09
• AT&T Resumes Online iPhone Sales – You can step away from the window. [WSJ]
• Best of 2009: Careers – Strategery, layoffs, and that shifty bunch in HR. [CFO]
• TaxProf Blog Named Best Law Professor Blog of 2009 – Congrats to the Tax Prof! [TaxProf Blog]
• Reality board game craze hits Argentina – One game is entitled Eternal Debt aka The Game of Life in the U.S. [FT]
• Over 15 PwC tax professionals quit; to join rival KPMG – Relax, it was in India. Seems as though the Satyscam is causing a mini Exodus from P. Dubs in India. [Business Standard]
• Fewer People Were Murdered in New York This Year Than Any Year on Record – See? 2009 wasn’t so bad. [Daily Intel]
Are Three Letters Enough for You?
Back when we did our initial survey of you — our brilliant readers — we asked you to share with us the certifications that you boast behind your name.
As you well know, the mother of all certifications for accountants is the CPA. You hear about it in your college courses until graduation and the accounting firms put you under the gun to knock it out so you can make manager witho��������������������this coveted status, Adrienne gives you the latest in CPA exam fodder every week in her >75 column.
After dominating the CPA, your careers mosey along and eventually you may consider obtaining another certification. The motivation for more of the alphabet are many but most likely you’ll want to hold yourself out compared to your slacker co-workers or maybe you’re just obsessed with the notion of having as many letter combinations behind your name as possible.
Some of the more common certifications include:
• Certified Management Accountant (CMA) – Implemented by the Institute of Management Accountants, the IMA states “As many as 85% of accountants today work inside organizations, where expertise in decision support, planning, and control over value-adding operations are crucial elements of operational success.”
• Certified Financial Manager (CFM) – A complement to the CMA, the CFM can be obtained by taking one additional exam in addition to the portions under CMA.
• Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) – The sexiest certification going. As long as you can keep from soiling yourself.
• Certified Financial Planner (CFP) – Among other requirements, a three part, 10-hour exam is administered three times a year for this certification.
• Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) – The Institute of Internal Auditors issues this global certification that “demonstrate their comprehensive competence and professionalism in the internal auditing field.”
• Certified Information Systems Auditors (CISA) – Sponsored by the ISACA, this is another global certification for information systems, audit, control, and security professionals.
• Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) – Issued by the CFA Institute. Check out the requirements here.
• Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) – Issued by the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts, this certification involves a five day training program and a 40–60 hour exam.
Although the thought of studying and testing for another certification may make you nauseous, it’s worth considering if you’re looking to make yourself a smidge more noticeable than your competition counterparts. Vote in our poll and discuss any thoughts or experiences in the comments.
Preliminary Analytics | 12.28.09
• A Modest List of Financial Analysis ‘Red Flags’ – “Patrick Byrne is the CEO” isn’t one of them but Overstock.com does get mentioned. [The Accounting Onion]
• Tax Vox’s Lump of Coal Award: The Worst Tax Ideas of 2009 – California gets its very own spot at #4. [Tax Vox]
• War on Wall Street as Congress Sees Returning to Glass-Steagall – Bank break up courtesy of Maverick? [Bloomberg]
• How the VP of Finance at Koss steals millions – “For the year ended 6/30/09, Koss had sales of $38.2 million and profits of $2 million. For the year ended 6/30/08, Koss had sales of $50 million and profits of $4.5 million. If Sachdeva stole $20 million over the last four years, that’s $5 million per year…. and far exceeds the profits for the last couple of years. How did no one notice?” [The Fraud Files Blog]
• New security restrictions could hurt airlines – As if they needed help. [Reuters]
• Black Eyed Peas Didn’t File Tax Returns for Years – Due to ‘an inadvertent oversight’. [Web CPA]
• Gee, Who WASN’T Bribed? – This involves one large process of elimination. [The Market Ticker]
We understand that the first day back after the Christmas break could be one of the worst on the entire year. Especially if you’re one of the few actually working. We’ll check in with you unfortunate souls later today.
Review Comments | 12.24.09
• Fannie, Freddie Disclose Big Jump in CEOs’ Pay – It wouldn’t be a joyous holiday season without baiting the populists. [WSJ]
• Schwarzenegger Seeks Obama’s Help for Deficit Relief – A last minute gift idea? [Bloomberg]
• IRS Odds of Getting Audited Increase with Income – Get right out of town. [Web CPA]
• Best of 2009: Accounting – If you’re so anxious for St. Nick that you can’t sleep tonight, these topics should help. [CFO]
• Bernie Madoff Gets Sh*t Beat Out Of Him – Took long enough. [DB]
That’s it for us today. We’ll be back next week on a light schedule unless the Big 4 apocalypse occurs. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, et al.
Alleged Gunman Hates Taxes, Loves Pizza Hut
We thought that Glenn Beck had flipped his lid again but unfortch, it’s just some other person complaining about taxes:
A daylong hostage standoff ended late Wednesday when an armed, disabled man wheeled himself out of a post office in Wytheville, Virginia, and was taken into custody, police said.
The alleged gunman, identified by police as Warren “Gator” Taylor, 53, of Sullivan County, Tennessee, surrendered in a wheelchair, said Wythe County Sherrif’s Office Chief Deputy Keith Dunagan. All three hostages walked out without injury.
…
He asked for a pizza but made no other demands, [the police] said. He seemed neither angry nor disgruntled but did utter complaints about government and taxes…When the supreme pizza that police ordered was more than half an hour late, Taylor joked that Pizza Hut promises delivery in less than half an hour or the food is free.
Gunman surrenders in hostage ordeal at Virginia post office [CNN]
Your CPA Success Is Paying Peter Olinto Back in Ways He Couldn’t Have Possibly Imagined
There are seven days left in the year decade and, so far, the bean counter that has made the biggest mark in the last ten years for you has been Peter Olinto.
The man that bludgeoned mnemonics into your gray matter day after day, week after week, during the Aughts is taking a commanding lead into the final week of voting.
We’re keeping the poll open until the very last minute so if your candidate is lagging (TF needs to start calling his fellow sweater vest club members) jump back to the poll and make your voice heard.
Allen Stanford Won’t Be Home for Christmas
Despite Allen Stanford all but flipping out Judge David Hittner isn’t feeling it, denying his request to be released from prison while awaiting trial.
Stan’s attorney was shocked — SHOCKED! — that the judge was in such a cavalier mood with his client’s well-being:
“The issues we raised were real, as well as legally and factually compelling,” attorney Kent Schaffer said in an e-mail today. “I am surprised that we were shot down so abruptly and without a response from the government or a hearing. I am not sure how Allen will be able to participate in assisting in his own defense and, the truth is, he probably won’t be.”
Stanford is scheduled to go on trial in January 2011 which will probably seems a helluva lot longer if you’re slowly…coming apart…at the seams.
Stanford won’t be released, judge rules [Houston Chronicle]
Preliminary Analytics | 12.24.09
• Bear Stearns Staff Parties On as Surviving Banks Scrap Soirees – That’s the spirit! You can still party even though you didn’t get bonuses! [Bloomberg]
• Senate Passes Sweeping Health-Care Bill – Santa? [WSJ]
• Grant Thornton LLP elects one new member to partnership board [Press Release]
• Dimon, Blankfein, Mack Among First to Testify at Crisis Panel – Set your DVRs now! [Bloomberg]
• The Impact of the Tiger Woods Scandal on His Charities [TaxProf Blog]
• Buffett’s back – A non-Tiger Woods story from the Post. [NYP]
• The Newlywed Game, Year-end Tax Planning Edition! – “Love is a many-splendored thing, but love is even better when it saves taxes. Your marital status at year-end is your filing status for the entire year, so maybe you want to run down to the courthouse and tie the knot before the ball drops before midnight January 1, local time. Sure, call me a hopeless romantic. The Tax Update just rolls that way.” [Tax Update Blog]
• Disliking Your In-Laws – Annnnnd this is where the tax planning will get you. [Motherlode/NYT]
Review Comments | 12.23.09
• How big of a problem is cybertheft from banks? – One thing is for sure, everyone is lying. [Felix Salmon]
• IRS Has 70% Error Rate in Issuance of Taxpayer ID Numbers, Resulting in Fraudulent Tax Refunds – Seems about right. [TaxProf Blog]
• U.S. retailers open past midnight in holiday push – One strategy…[Reuters]
• Yahoo to shut down for a week to cut costs – …and another. [Los Angeles Times]
• That’s it for us today. Travel plans and all. We’ll be back tomorrow to get you through your half day. In the meantime, occupy yourselves with this:
Job of the Day: Someone Is Promising Fun at Work
Animation Mentor, that’s who. Including: “True work-life balance, urban adventures, movie premieres and many more enjoyable team activities and an environment where your input and suggestions matter!”
Check out their Senior Accountant position in Emeryville, CA after the jump.
Company: Animation Mentor
Title: Senior Accountant
Compensation: $50,000 – $80,000 (depending on experience)
Location: Emeryville, CA
Experience: 5 – 7 years
Responsibilities: Full cycle general ledger close (balance sheet account reconciliations, standard, recurring, reversing and allocation journal entries, review income and expense accounts for reasonableness); Prepare cash flow statements; Accounts receivable and Revenue; Assist in monthly budget vs. actual expense analysis; Assist is annual budget and quarterly forecasting process as required; Prepare audit schedules.
Requirements: 5+ years accounting experience (preferably 2-3 years in Sr. Accountant role with full cycle close experience); CPA, QuickBooks and large ERP systems, eCommerce industry experience, consolidations experience, all a plus.
See the entire description over at the GC Career Center and visit the main page for all your job search needs.
Barry Salzberg Is Proud of All of You
Somehow we missed Barry Salzberg’s latest masterpiece on leadership from last week and since you’ve all checked out, we’re sure you won’t mind.
When asked “Who was the best business leader of 2009?”, Dr. Phil — using every fiber of his being not to nominate himself — chose “Do-right employees”. It’s not about the BSDs of the world. It’s those of you that manage to not sit bare-assed on the copy machine and resist the urge to watch porn on your work computer. You’re the leaders setting the example:
Rather than single out a best business leader, I’d recognize the many unsung ethical heroes in our organizations. I’m talking about people who, even when no one is watching, consistently do the right thing. And they’ve been doing it at a time when confidence in business urgently needs to be restored.
Not only are you restoring confidence (?) in business, you’re going to lead us the charge into this recovery:
As we prepare our organizations for the upturn, we also need to prepare our people for the uptick in wrong-doing that can accompany better times.
First of all, what is this “upturn” you speak of? Also, Costanza-stache: “uptick in wrong-doing accompany better times”? Just what the hell is all this accounting fraud talk? Or how about executives’ bad attitudes about its employees? Or everything else?
Apparently you need to get even more vigilant people! This ship is turning around and wrong-doing is really going to take off. We need you more than ever.
Do-right employees [Washington Post]