When accounting goes unaccounted for
We covered this story in yesterday's Monday Morning Accounting News Brief but it's significant enough news to earn its own spot in a separate article as it's a large market…
Oh my God it feels like it's 2010 all over again with that headline. Thanks to the algorithm for putting this item in my feed since no one saw fit…
Ed. note: This article was originally published on March 5, 2026. It was updated on March 18 after KPMG made a public announcement confirming Gary Wingrove as Global Chairman and…
Wait, what is this? Deloitte Italy and Fondazione Deloitte [Deloitte Foundation] are handing out tens of thousands of euros in a photo competition centered around the subject of "proximites." Why?…
Anyone in the mood for a bit of good news? Here goes: EY is doubling their CPA bonus for early career new hires who can manage to pass all four…
Footnotes is a collection of stories from around the accounting profession curated by actual humans and published every Friday at 5pm Eastern. While you're here, subscribe to our newsletter to…
We covered this story in yesterday's Monday Morning Accounting News Brief but it's significant enough news to earn its own spot in a separate article as it's a large market…
Good morning and happy Monday, capital markets servants. I ventured out into the muck to dig up some news for you to start the week. In this news briefYour Services…
Footnotes is a collection of stories from around the accounting profession curated by actual humans and published every Friday at 5pm Eastern. While you're here, subscribe to our newsletter to…
EisnerAmper (#15 on the INSIDE Public Accounting Top 100 with $1.023 billion in revenue) and TowerBrook Capital announced yesterday that they've completed a continuation vehicle transaction which basically means TowerBrook…
Commence to fantasizing about what you'll do with all that glorious free time when you lose your job to AI in 12-18 months because that's the confident prediction made by…
TIL that early AI accounting platform Botkeeper has died. I found out via this CFO Brew article which pointed to a post on Botkeeper's own site. Turns out r/accounting was…
The image is upside down because Australia. This story sounds like a joke but we assure you it is not. KPMG Australia has expanded KPMG's storied cheating repertoire by being…
As reported by Financial Times on February 6, included in Friday's edition of Footnotes, and widely chuckled at by public accountants both current and former across the world since, KPMG…
'Tis the season. For alleged data breaches, that is. Cybernews is reporting that a Russian ransomware group called Lynx claims to have gotten its hands on a whole mess of…
Struggling to Find Remote Accounting or Tax Talent? We’ve Got You Covered.If your firm or internal team is having a tough time sourcing qualified remote tax and accounting professionals, you're…
Struggling to Find Remote Accounting or Tax Talent? We’ve Got You Covered.If your firm or internal team is having a tough time sourcing qualified remote tax and accounting professionals, you're…
Struggling to Find Remote Accounting or Tax Talent? We’ve Got You Covered.If your firm or internal team is having a tough time sourcing qualified remote tax and accounting professionals, you're…
Struggling to Find Remote Accounting or Tax Talent? We’ve Got You Covered.If your firm or internal team is having a tough time sourcing qualified remote tax and accounting professionals, you're…
Struggling to Find Remote Accounting Talent? We’ve Got You Covered. If your firm or internal team is having a tough time sourcing qualified remote tax and accounting professionals, you're not…
That Time Researchers Discovered Accounting Firms Would Rather Die Than Publish Salaries
Recruiting firm Brewer Morris has released its 2025 US CPA salary guide and should you want to read the whole thing you can request it from them here. Perhaps you,…
Saw this on the bird app yesterday and thought its message would be worth passing along what with 20 days remaining until April 15 and nerves as strained as ever…
Ed. note: An earlier version of this article's headline stated the sheriff is investigating. The Alexander County Sheriff's Office informed us they are not investigating, only fielding calls from the…
Boston Business Journal wrote an article about Deloitte's new office in Boston and for some reason they chose to lead with this: You won’t find trash cans at the desks…
We realize the decision to run maintenance on IRS systems likely isn't made by anyone who understands deadlines but surely someone who does could inform the IT department of these…
Looking to staff up for a season or hire a freelancer for a project? Accountingfly is ready to partner with you! Gain full access to a pool of highly skilled…
Every accounting firm struggles with project management, with smaller practices that are rapidly expanding taking the brunt of the damage. As your firm adds new clients, takes on more work,…
Email: The word itself sounds innocent, doesn't it? Kind of like "snail mail," but faster, sleeker, and without the slimy trail. But don't be fooled—email is secretly a sinister beast,…
Business growth is always a high priority for accounting firms, especially small-to-midsize practices. Take care, though, because growth can be a double-edged sword. If your firm expands too quickly or…
From a soon to be ex-Ernst & Young SA:
Being employed by a big 4 is like being in an abusive relationship. You know its bad for you but its still kind of addictive.
Right on the money? Dead wrong? Addictive like salt & vinegar potato chips or addictive like the stuff that’s in Rush Limbaugh’s medicine cabinet? Discuss.
Word on the street is that the winter interns have arrived at KPMG which makes us think they’re out in force all over the country.
If you’ve got a new intern at your beck and call, tell them how much you appreciate them in the comments and then send them the link (telling them in person isn’t necessary).
If you’re a new intern, tell us how things are going. Is your SA sending sexually explicit emails to strangers from your computer yet? Is it everything BusinessWeek says it would be or are you getting the taste of busy season already?
Whatever your thoughts, do share and try to stay under control at the welcome happy hour.
Earlier:
Love Me, Love Me…Say That You Love Me…Critiquing The Positive Intern Hiring Trend
Despite getting all bent out of shape in their earlier statement:
“The fraud was apparently conducted by a longtime, trusted senior financial executive who was hired and supervised by senior management,” a Grant Thornton spokeswoman said Tuesday. “The company (Koss) did not engage Grant Thornton LLP to conduct an audit or evaluation of internal controls over financial reporting. Establishing and maintaining effective internal control is management’s and the board’s responsibility.”
Grant Thornton is less enthused in their letter to the SEC:
We have read Item 4.01 of Form 8-K of Koss Corporation dated January 4, 2010, and agree with the statements concerning our Firm contained therein. We have no basis to agree or disagree with the statements and conclusions in Item 4.02(a), some of which were not disclosed to Grant Thornton LLP prior to receipt of this filing.
The only thing we read here that might be a dig at Koss is “some of which were not disclosed to Grant Thornton LLP prior to receipt of this filing.” If this is intended to be the firm’s version of the finger — straight up, at you Koss — the passive-aggressiveness is at a level that even impresses us.
At least in the Overstock letter the firm flat out called Pat Byrne and his company liars. This latest opportunity to lay the smackdown on a client in a regulatory filing seems to have been squandered.
When we saw the BDO rebranding story this week we were perplexed because we told you about this new effort to popularize the Global 6 in OCTOBER.
Come to find out that 2010 will mark the 100th birthday of BDO Seidman so there was no rush to change the name back on October 1 with the less-special firms because A) all the firm’s clients were already calling them ‘BDO’ and the change wasn’t really ness, and B) they couldn’t cancel all the festivities they had planned:
“The adoption of the single ‘BDO’ brand name reinforces our commitment to the BDO international network, even as we celebrate our firm’s centennial here in the United States,” said BDO (U.S.) CEO Jack Weisbaum in a statement. He acknowledged that many of the firm’s clients have been referring to the firm as BDO for years anyway.
BDO plans to conduct a year-long celebration of the firm’s founding by Maximillian L. Seidman in 1910, including historical podcasts on the firm’s intranet, a centennial video tracking the firm’s progress over the past century, and celebrations at the BDO Biennial and BDO Partner Meetings in November.
Gosh that does sound fun. We totally get it now.
Plus, the American firm still has to figure out how to pay $521 million to Banco Espirito. Going out at an even 100 years would put a nice cap on things.
BDO Seidman Rebrands as ‘BDO’ [Web CPA]
Something a little unique for our job of the day.
Laika is an animation studio owned by Nike co-founder and Chairman Phil Knight that specializes in feature films, commercials, music videos, broadcast graphics and short films.
They are looking for a Head of Financial Planning and Analysis in Portland, OR. Get the details after the jump.
Company: Laika
Title: Head of Financial Planning and Analysis
Location: Portland, OR
Minimum experience: 5 – 7 years
Description: This person will be responsible for the management of all financial planning and analyses for LAIKA. The position will take the lead in collecting, summarizing, and interpreting financial data for LAIKA partnering with key stakeholders regarding their annual operating budgets and quarterly forecasts.
Responsibilities: Creating and maintaining all company budgets and financial projections including consolidated company projections, film ultimate P&L’s, overhead budgets across functional areas and two operating divisions; Prepare a range of film modeling analyses including creating film ultimate financial planning models for all LAIKA films; Prepare long range company projections under different production and performance scenarios; Work with distribution partners to develop reasonable and informed financial projections for released and soon to be released films; Prepare financial reporting for senior management and Board of Directors; Provide financial analysis supporting new and evolving business projects.
Required Skills: Bachelor’s degree in Finance or Accounting preferred or equivalent combination of education and experience; 5+ years in corporate financial planning or similar; film industry a significant plus; Significant and in-depth experience in financial model building and financial statement construction and analysis required; Experience creating primary quantitative analyses with proven ability to communicate and present the information in a summarized way to senior management.
See the entire description over at the GC Career Center and visit the main page for all your job search needs.
So you’ve been embezzling money from your employer for awhile and what’s a girl to do? Well you could spend it on your wedding but if you’re already hitched then it’s has to get blown elsewhere. Besides, the £470,000 that Joanne Kent stole is chump change compared to what Sue Sachdeva had on her hands:
• $225,000 at Karat 22 Jewelers.
• $1.4 million at Valentina Boutique a high-end joint in Mequon, WI.
• $20 million on artwork.
• $649,000 at Zita Bridal Salon, even though she was already married. Probably just wants to wear a gown to slob around in.
• $670,000 at Au Corant a Milwaukee-based fashion retailer.
• $4.5 million on credit card bills.
A decent haul although the new GT leadership can’t be thrilled to have this shopping spree land in their laps.
Btw, congrats to Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, the new auditors, on the pickup. We’re sure it’ll be a breeze from here on out.
Girl is 27 today so leave her some bday wishes in the comments.
It must be an extra special day since the RSM McGladrey and McGladrey & Pullen kissed and made up last month.
Plus, since the marketing campaign has been such an unmitigated success it might be nice for the reconciled firm to throw a little extra scratch her way. Happy Birthday NG.
You may have noticed that the posting schedule here at GC has ran a bit longer the past few days. This is no accident. We were given a friendly reminder on Monday:
Caleb, this is busy season, I expect review comments an hour later for the next few months. That is all.
Well! Since we’re always with you in spirit, we’ll be happy to oblige this request.
We failed to mention it in our outlook on Tuesday since we figured it was understood that the new year marks the beginning of the end of your lives for the next 3ish months.
Then we remembered that it has been prophesied by many of you that this particular busy season will be the worst in recent memory due to layoffs and the ongoing (?) exodus.
So we present you with our busy season open thread. Discuss whatever you like. Will it indeed be the worst ever or will you dominate as usual? For some of you, it’s your first busy season. Are you soiling yourself from all the horror stories or have you found the right drug cocktail to keep you both focused on your work and oblivious to time passing? Go.
• Geithner’s New York Fed Told AIG to Limit Swaps Disclosure – “AIG said in a draft of a regulatory filing that the insurer paid banks, which included Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Societe Generale SA, 100 cents on the dollar for credit-default swaps they bought from the firm. The New York Fed crossed out the reference, according to the e-mails, and AIG excluded the language when the filing was made public on Dec. 24, 2008.” [Bloomberg]
• Climbing the Finance Ladder: Landing a Promotion [FINS]
• Canadian Police Seek Man Accused of Ponzi Scheme – According to the SEC, the self-dubbed, “Chinese Warren Buffet” sent a letter to investors admitting that he was running a Ponzi scheme. That was easy. [AP via NYT]
• Economic Consequences and the Political Nature of Accounting Standard Setting – “For decades it has been taught in every graduate accounting program in the country that accounting standards have economic consequences. As a result, I contend it is natural and predictable that competing economic interest attempt a political solution to proposed accounting standards.” [The Summa]
• Accounting rules over M&A spread confusion – IFRS 3 is disappointing many. [FT]
• U.S. regulators undecided on Ticketmaster deal: sources – Maybe because they’ve been turned to the Dark Side. [Reuters]
• Yes, that morale problem is as bad as you think – Snap out of it people. [CFOZone]
• New Clarity on Contingent Liabilities – Crystal. [CFO]
• Kansas May Need 16 Weeks to Refund Paper Tax Filings – Remember what we said about expectations. [Web CPA]
• Schwarzenegger Asks for More Funding – Arnie is blaming the Feds for the state’s $20 billion budget shortfall. [WSJ]
We’ve mentioned this before but it’s worth stating again: are everyone’s expectations for the IRS unreasonable?
The National Taxpayer Advocate, Nina Olson, has released her annual report to Congress and it points out (among other shortcomings) that the IRS provides “unacceptable” customer service.
Sigh. Need we remind everyone that we’re talking about the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT? This is not Nordstrom’s where you can snap your fingers and another pair of gabardines appear.
Oh sure, maybe the Service is lowering its expectations: “[T]he agency’s goal is to connect 71 percent of callers to a real person, down from a recent high of 87 percent in 2004,” but doesn’t that seem reasonable for the IRS? Are we missing something? Is there some other dimension where the IRS is revered for its efficiency?
IRS Too Busy to Talk to 3 in 10 Who Call for Help [AP via ABC]
National Taxpayer Advocate Report.pdf
As you are all aware, there are some hella-suck clients out there for accountants. Demanding clients, unorganized clients, asshole clients, etc.
Then there are the clients that just don’t give a damn about how much money they may be throwing around.
Today’s example is none other than Lady Gaga and the nightly extravaganzas she puts on.
For some reason LG strikes as the sort of client that would show up with all her receipts in shoeboxes but in her case, there would be hundreds of shoeboxes and they’d all be fabulous.
The ‘Bad Romance’ singer – who describes her stage show as “ostentatious and over-the-top” – is making a heavy loss every night she performs on the North American leg of her ‘Monster Ball Tour , which has so far overspent by £2m (€2.2m) even though every concert is sold out.
The massive costs have been run up by her elaborate stage design, costumes and props, including the giant bath she used while making a promotional appearance on UK TV talent show ‘The X Factor’.
A source said: “The concerts are losing money hand over fist because they’ve spent a fortune on pricey costumes, technical equipment and elaborate set designs. She spent £500,000 (€550,000) on one stage alone.
“But Lady Gaga gets what Lady Gaga wants. Her wardrobe is huge and she wants to shock – and that costs serious money.”
There are many — including our friends at Fashionista — that say the woman is an “utter genius” and that genius simply cannot be denied.
Fair enough but accountants, being the practical creatures that they are, would not stand for such irresponsible behavior. From the sounds of it however LG’s accountant seems to accept the notion that the woman is an artist, bottom line be damned.
If you’ve got ideas on how to keep her spending under control, we’re all ears but personally, if she walked up to us (sans pants naturally) we’d have a helluva time saying no.
