Tag: Deloitte

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, commonly referred to as Deloitte, is a international professional services network headquartered in London, United Kingdom.

Here you’ll find news about Deloitte salaries and raises, promotions, press releases, and lawsuits.

Apparently $2 Mil Is Enough to Keep Deloitte in Dallas

DTa.jpgEarlier this year, the Deloitte Dallas and Irving offices were ready to copulate and move the combined digs to Irving. Apparently this was going to save the two offices bookoo dollars.
Problem for the City of Dallas is that if a big shot spendy tenant like Deloitte bolts, Dallas’s Central Business District would not be good, especially since the vacancy rate is already high. The City pondered this and came to the conclusion that offering Deloitte a $2 Million “economic development grant” should convince them that moving to Irving is the WORST IDEA EVER.
More, after the jump


Not quite sure what Deloitte will do with that money (our suggestion is for more donut giveaways) but here’s the back scratching they’ll do for the City, according to the Dallas Observer:

Subject to City Council approval of the proposed economic development grant, Deloitte LLP has agreed to execute a 10-year lease extension at 2200 Ross Avenue (Chase Tower) beginning 2011 and will:
•Commit to maintain a minimum of 1,111 jobs at this location
•Ensure approximately $19.9 million is invested for tenant improvements

So it looks like Deloitte is down for this but we’re not exactly sure how they came up with 1,111 for the minimum number of jobs. At the very least, it’s kind of a cool looking number.
Regardless of the figures, we doubt that Deloitte would be taking the $2 mil if wasn’t going to be a good deal for them. So greasing Deloitte to keep them in Dallas seems to be a good deal since, “[the City of Dallas] believes the $2 million investment will yield $31 million in ‘net city fiscal impact.'”. So, yeah. Not too shabby.
However, we’re guessing that more than a few people in Irving that might be a little bent out of shape about this, so if you’ve got any more information on this deal, let us know.
When Deloitte Did the Math, It Needed $2 Mil From Dallas, Or Else It Was Going to Irving [Dallas Observer]

Will Deloitte’s Diversity Push Work?

Thumbnail image for small salzberg.jpgAwhile back we told you about Salz’s dissatisfaction of the diversity at Deloitte, regardless of their long-standing commitment to it.
After the Web CPA piece, Dr. Phil is steppincussing Deloitte’s recruitment of students on community college campuses in last Friday’s Business Week. The article points out up front that, “Deloitte CEO Barry Salzberg likes to talk about the value of diversity. But of the 4,500 partners and other top executives at his firm, 92% are white.” We did the math, that’s less than 500 non-white partners.
So this is obviously a public relations problem that the firms would rather not have, since as we’ve noted, they love, love, love to point out how diverse they are, regardless of what others are saying. The facts simply seem to be that accounting, as an industry, doesn’t seem to be that diverse:
Continued, after the jump

For Deloitte, the hope is to reach high-potential people of color at community colleges, interest them in accounting, and then shepherd them through a university to a job upon graduation. If it works, it could turn around a troubling trend. In 2004, African Americans represented 1% of all CPAs, Latinos 3%, and Asians 4%, according to a U.S. Treasury Dept. report on the profession. By 2007 the figures were unchanged, if not down slightly.

Okay, so those numbers aren’t good for anyone. They’re especially not good for the image of the firms or the profession. Deloitte’s plan is to recruit on six community college campuses to try and convince the students that accounting is a kick ass career. Obviously that’s easier said than done:

Deloitte will have to do a fair amount of myth-busting. Many students believe accountants don green eyeshades and plunk away at calculators all day. So Deloitte is sending a brigade of up to eight staffers, including at least one senior partner, to enlighten, mentor, and ultimately guide potential recruits toward an accounting career. In visits to the campus classrooms, the partners plan to share workplace perspectives and explanations of how the industry has broadened to include financial, management, technology, and human capital consulting. “I don’t think students realize the vastness of what you can do in accounting,” says Gregory Brookins, a CPA and associate professor at Santa Monica Community College. “They feel like it’s a boring bean-counting job.”

‘They feel like it’s a boring bean-counting job’? GASP. How’d they get that impression?
Not everyone is on board with this plan, specifically, E&Y, “…it recruits from four-year universities where students get credits toward the CPA exam. That’s something “a two-year program doesn’t offer,” says Ken Bouyer, Americas Director of Inclusiveness Recruiting for Ernst & Young.”
Plus, since accounting firms like to pitch their professionals’ merits when courting new clients, there is a worry that community college grads are jumping up and down to brag about their less-prestigious education regardless of the accomplishments they’ve made professionally.
So accounting firms and the accounting industry appear to have an old white boy’s club problem. Is Deloitte taking the right approach? Is E&Y’s attitude short-sighted? Discuss your thoughts in the comments.
Deloitte’s Diversity Push [BW]

(UPDATE) Deloitte Still Stalling on Global Revenue Numbers

DTa.jpgThe U.S. numbers are out, $10.7 billion, according to Deloitte’s U.S. website but the global page still only has the fiscal year ’08 numbers. The U.S. numbers are essentially flat from fiscal year ’08 revenue of approximately $11 billion.
We don’t really know what the problem is but we understand that math is hard sometimes so we’ll just wait patiently until the global numbers come out. God knows we’d have pandemonium if Deloitte was a SEC registrant filing the 10-K but hey, that’s one big advantage to a private company: We’ll report our revenue when we’re damn good and ready so you can all piss off.
Fine. We can wait.
In the meantime, some interesting data that is presented on the U.S. page so far includes:
• “Staff” dropping 1,490 while “Partners” went up 14 from FY ’08 to FY ’09
• Two offices were either closed or consolidated as the number went from 92 to 90
• Total number of CPA’s went up over 3200 from approximately 8,700 to just under 8,900
So at first glance, it appears that Big D had a similar ho-hum year to E&Y but we’ll withhold final judgment until the global numbers come out. Feel free to speculate on the delay of the global numbers or if you dare to eat donuts that look like a Smurf/Braveheart reenactment occurred on them.

Attention: Deloitte Is Handing Out Donuts On Thursday

For crying out loud, this is what we’re talking about people. If you’re in the DC area, get your hungry hippo ass over to Kogan Plaza at The GWU on Thursday from 10 am to 12 pm. Accounting firms don’t skimp on this stuff so consider doing a jay before going and update us on how many you put away.

Any other firms feeding your faces with fried goodness on campus? Better get in on it while you can.

Deloitte Passes on the Opportunity to Admit Mistakes

DTa.jpgObviously we were too busy promoting democracy and creativity to notice Deloitte getting named in Private Capital Management co-founder Bruce Sherman’s lawsuit against Bear Stearns.
Continued, after the jump


WSJ:

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, alleges that [Jimmy “Don’t Call Me Cheech”] Cayne and others at Bear made material misrepresentations about the company’s financial health and its risk management, causing Sherman to hold shares of Bear stock he “would otherwise have sold months before Bear ultimately collapsed.”
“Defendants knew that the market and the financial press would view Sherman’s sale of his Bear stock as a loss of confidence in Bear by a well-known and long-standing investor,” the lawsuit said. “This, in turn, would have undermined confidence in Bear’s management at a critical time when Bear’s liquidity and Bear’s valuation of its assets were open to question following the implosion of two Bear-sponsored hedge funds in the summer of 2007.”
Cayne; Warren Spector, Bear Stearns’ former co-president and chief operating officer; Bear Stearns; and its outside auditor Deloitte & Touche are defendants in the case.

Regardless of what Deloitte ‘knew’, the firm did not jump at the chance to start a trend of Big 4 firms issuing mea culpas. Big D issued the following statement, which we plan on to memorize for future reference, per the Journal, ‘Deloitte believes the complaint to be totally without merit and we will defend against it vigorously.’ We’ll continue to update you on the vigorous defense as it progresses.
PCM Co-Founder Sues Bear Stearns For Misstatements [WSJ]

Some at Deloitte Aren’t Too Concerned About Accountant Stereotypes

world-of-warcraft-noob.jpgLook. We’re not saying that World of Warcraft is geeky. We’re sure that it’s a very challenging game and some very talented people put it together and continue to work on it. There just seems to be a particular segment of the population that is repeatedly associated with the game. So for the purposes of this discussion, World of Warcraft qualifies as geeky.
We’re all familiar with the reputation of accountants and people that work for the Big 4, so there’s not much to discuss there.
Continued, after the jump


Considering these two factors, why in the name of everything that is good and holy would Deloitte decide to put out an in-depth analysis on “performance improvement” that incorporates said game?
For all impractical purposes, we’re going to ignore any valid conclusions that the authors came to. That’s not what this is about. This about the authors cementing the stereotype of bean counters being not just geeks, but now super-geeks.
Don’t you recognize what we’re trying to accomplish here? There is serious cause for concern. Get someone on this before we get all Glenn Beck on your ass.

The collaboration curve: Exponential performance improvement in World of Warcraft [Deloitte]

Somehow Deloitte Gets Roped Into a Chicago Political Scandal

Rod Blagojevich.jpgBig D is probably just a pawn in the whole game but it serves as a nice example of how Illinois political tomfoolery touches just about anyone and everyone.
And Rod Blagojevich is just ridiculous and not relevant for this story but his picture seems to work here, so deal with it.
A criminal investigation into Cook County Board President Todd Stroger that started with questions surrounding the hiring, promotion, and firing of a busboy. Stroger then fired his own cousin, “the county’s chief financial officer amid questions about her dealings with [Tony] Cole.”
Cole is said busboy who must have made a move on Stroger’s cousin but enough speculation. The investigation has now grown wider as prosecutors have now subpoenaed Deloitte.
More, after the jump


Chicago Tribune:

Prosecutors have ordered Deloitte & Touche LLP, the county’s auditors, to turn over “certain documents” pertaining to the 2008 audit of county finances, according to a memo from County Board Finance Committee Chairman John Daley (D-Chicago), who also heads the Audit Committee. Deloitte personnel “may serve as witnesses to a current grand jury investigation,” according to an attached letter sent to Stroger from Deloitte’s Tracey Guidry.

It should be noted that John is the brother of Richard, the Mayor who was elected around the time when the Cubs last won the World Series.
The only word on the documents are that they were used in the ‘customary preparation’ of the audit, according to the Sun-Times.
Safe money is on at least one resignation/removal from office and a small fortune being discovered to have passed through various channels of the City Hall.
Todd Stroger: Probe expands into Cook County Board president’s hiring of ex-busboy [Chicago Tribune]

Deloitte Wants to Help You Find a Job. In Another Country

DTa.jpgIf you recently find yourself unemployed and either you were here on a visa or you’ve had enough of the old US of A, Deloitte is here to help you this week. On Wednesday, the big D is providing a 90 minute webcast for its alumni who are looking for work internationally.
Since Deloitte is a big shot accounting firm that is always on top of this whole economic sitch, they’re providing a webcast for you former Green-dots to figure out how to go to another country ’cause your chances of getting a job States-side are pretty much zilch.
Get details, after the jump

As colleagues for life, our alumni are an important part of the Deloitte culture. You have made significant contributions to Deloitte over the years, and in similar fashion we are committed to continually supporting your journey as you increase your personal market value.
Join us on Wednesday, September 16, 12:00 p.m. EDT for expert advice and tips from members of the Deloitte Global Talent Acquisition and Mobility team…Located in London and Amsterdam, our presenters have their thumb on the pulse of the international job search and will examine ways to navigate a marketplace job search outside of the U.S. Topics covered will include:
• What parts of the world are hiring right now
• How to market yourself for international jobs
• How to maximize your chances of getting a job outside the US
• How to prepare yourself for job interviews outside the US
• How to integrate if you do relocate
• How to negotiate an offer outside the US

Nevermind the tricky part about how the hell you get to Johannesburg once you’ve landed the new gig. That’s all on you.

A Muslim Working in Arkansas. You Know Where This Is Going

A former Deloitte Consulting employee has filed suit against the firm and Wal Mart claiming that, “his civil rights were violated when he was fired for exercising his religious right to pray and clean himself beforehand in a ritual known as [Wudu]”
After the jump, Hairballs (yes) has the story.

According to the lawsuit, Deloitte assigned Memon to a consulting project at Wal-Mart’s corporate office in Bentonville, Arkansas in November 2007. Memon claims he would wash up in the restroom before going to pray in an area designated by Wal-Mart, such as the parking lot or in a hallway. The whole process took about five minutes or so.
…the lawsuit states, Wal-Mart employees began to get upset with Memon for using the bathroom to sprinkle water on himself and Memon was told not to perform the “Wazu.”…Memon’s boss at Deloitte suggested that Memon pray at the hotel. However, this was not practical because it meant driving more than half an hour for each prayer instead of just taking a short five-minute break.
It didn’t take long until Memon was then taken off the Wal-Mart project. He claims that a Deloitte project manager told him that other colleagues would also be removed from the job, but in the end he was the only one.
According to the lawsuit, the project manager told Memon that, “Americans do not deal with Islamic practices and clients particularly in the South do not understand these religious practices.” The manager also allegedly said that Memon “is putting himself at risk” by practicing his religion. Deloitte then fired Memon, citing “poor performance,” the lawsuit states.

Having never been to Arkansas, we can’t really give any first hand account on the populace’s tolerance for, well, anything but we do know a few people that went to school in Arkansas and they are very nice, tolerant people.
Since Hairballs wasn’t interested in Deloitte’s statement, we went ahead and got it:

“The allegations in this case are false and we intend to defend ourselves vigorously. Deloitte is deeply committed to all aspects of workplace diversity and inclusion, including expression of religious beliefs, and is proud to be regularly recognized as a leader in this area.”

Based on the Green Dot’s statement, we’re assuming Mr. Memon was let go for performance reasons, which as you all know, are subject to change at any time.
Wal-Mart And An Accounting Firm Fire A Muslim For Praying, Suit Says [Hairballs]

Now That the #1 Spot Is Secure, Deloitte Is Making Some Changes

We’re not sure when Deloitte dropped the hammer on Pandora but the timing of us hearing about it is dubious since the coveted #1 spot on BW’s list is safely in print.
Much like E&Y, we’re curious as to the motivation here. Bandwidth sucking notwithstanding, your morale doesn’t seem to be much of a concern here. Green dots, kindly discuss in comments your theories behind the latest buzz kill. The rest of you (minus E&Y, natch) can share what you’re listening to currently as pure schadenfreude.

In a Pinch, Deloitte Lets Anyone Sign Off on Audit Reports

DTa.jpgAudit partners are busy people. Regrettably, things get overlooked from time to time. Birthdays. Anniversaries. Pants. There’s just too much to think about sometimes.
One thing that you wouldn’t expect an audit partner to forget is to sign an audit report. Sadly, it appears that this crucial piece of the engagement sneaks by too:
More, after the jump

Deloitte has agreed to pay a £10,000 fine after allowing three members of staff to sign audit reports who were not designated as “responsible individuals”, contrary to audit regulations. Between March 2003 and November 2007 the three employees signed 95 audit reports.

Personally, we’re hoping that interns signed off on these because that would amount to a level of irresponsibility of the utmost hilarity. Speculation aside, Deloitte took this matter very seriously:

“Deloitte prides itself on its rigorous quality procedures and is disappointed that the individuals concerned failed to comply with the explicit policy that only those authorised to sign audit opinions may do so. None of the individuals concerned now work for Deloitte and the firm has implemented further improvements to its processes and controls.”

Rigorous quality procedures that let 95 audit reports sneak by? Short of the partner being on their deathbed, what could have come up that would make it a good idea to have someone else sign the reports? As for “rigorous quality procedures”, these must be on a sliding scale dependent on the number of pints that everyone has at lunch.
Deloitte fined £10,000 over mis-signed audits [Accountancy Age]