Survey Finds That Nearly a Third of KPMG Employees Aren’t Surprised by Latest Cheating Scandal
In the competitive world of Big 4 recruiting, sometimes reputation is everything. Oh who are we kidding, the firms are all mostly the same — from work-life balance, pay, and even prestige — regardless of what PwC recruiters may tell you. At the end of the day, Big 4 firms are in a constant race […]
Reminder: Take This Survey About the Month-End Close
Are you an accountant? Do you help close the books for your company or someone else’s? Well, then take this survey, by God, and tell us what it’s like in this day and age. Yes, we are making this ask again, but we figured it’d been long enough that you wouldn’t mind. If you’ve taken […]
Survey: Tell Us Your Experiences With the Month-End Close
Hey there, denizens of Going Concern. Please, take this survey that’s sponsored by our partner, FloQast. (Read more about our partnership with them here.) They want to learn what your experiences with the month-end close are. The survey is short and harmless, and you’re doing us a solid. The survey appears below or you can […]
Los Angeles Accountants Sound Like a Content Bunch, Minus the Traffic, Of Course
A couple of weeks back, we surveyed Los Angeles accountants to find what there is to know about working and living there. If you’re an L.A. accountant, you can still take the survey if you haven’t already, but for now we’ll share what we’ve learned. Here’s an overview: 53 percent of the respondents who work […]
Los Angeles Accountants, We Want to Hear From You
The publishing overlords who run this here site would like to survey Los Angeles accountants. If that’s you, kindly take this short survey on working and living in the L.A. area. If you’re not in the L.A. area but are in Southern California region, go ahead and take the survey. It’s harmless, plus you’ll be […]
CFOs Don’t Want You Wasting Time on CPE While Clocked-in
Summer is a great time to dust off the mental cobwebs and do some CPE. Hey, it’s better than trying to squeeze hours in around holiday time. Extreme procrastination before the year-end CPE deadline always makes for a dull New Year’s Eve. And, since it’s better to knock your hours out early, why not eat […]
The Window Is Closing: Take Going Concern’s Accounting Salary Survey
Our first annual Accounting Salary Survey is off to a great start. If you have not yet completed the survey, what have you been doing? Right now we now have hundreds of responses from people at large, mid-tier and small firms, spanning the full range of industries, experience and roles, all the way from staff […]
Take Going Concern’s Accounting Salary Survey
Are You Getting Paid What You Are Worth? It is time to assess where the accounting industry is headed with regard to compensation levels. This is your chance to see how your comp plan stacks up against the industry. You are invited to participate in Going Concern’s first annual Accounting Salary Survey, which we are […]
Talent Crisis Survey: Where Have All the Accountants Gone?
We’ve looked everywhere. In a March 6 article in The Wall Street Journal, we learn that there is some kind of accounting shortage, particularly for “companies adjusting to accounting-rule changes in the U.S.” In other words, public companies are struggling to poach or even barely seduce experienced hires from public accounting firms. Per the article: […]
Take the Going Concern Reader Survey
From time to time, the publishing overlords that run this joint like to survey you, our beloved audience. If you would be so kind to complete this survey, I'm told it won't take long and is painless. There's even a chance for you to tell us what you like, don't like, etc. Kindly help us […]
AICPA Survey: College Students Overconfident, Exaggerate, Delusional, Etc. Etc. About Their Personal Finance Skills
I think most people look back on their college selves and think, "I was dumb to think I was so smart," or "At least I'm not that irresponsible anymore," or "Man, I was really bad at sex." With that in mind, it's sort of fun to learn that the AICPA conducted a survey that tells […]
Seventy Percent of Accounting Grads in Some State of “What the Hell Is Going On?” at First Job
In an Accountemps survey, 56% of accounting and finance professionals responded that, "they felt only somewhat prepared for their first job after graduation." Another 14% admitted that, "they were not at all prepared." Nothing mention about whether coding skills would've done them any good. [AT, Earlier]
Counteroffers Rarely Work for Employees Jumping Ship
A recent Robert Half study found that 78% of CFOs don't extend counteroffers to employees who are leaving. Chris Jensen, CPA, cgma, explains: “In most cases, when someone leaves and gives you the heads up, it’s probably best for both parties to separate,” said Jensen, the CFO at Pinnacle Exhibits in Hillsboro, Oregon. “They’re ready […]
Throwing Money at People Still a Solid Retention Strategy
Oh look, a study found that CFOs are trying to retain their top employees with raises and promotions:
Pittsburgh Utters a Collective ‘Meh’ About Its Accounting Firms
What do we know about City of Pittsburgh? It has lots of bridges, 446 to be precise. Andy Warhol was born there. Carnegie Mellon University, a decent school, is located there. Its professional football team is popular with the residents.
Nearly Half of Accountants Surveyed Hooked Up With a Colleague
Who says accounting isn't sexy? According to 2,274 total respondents to Vault's Office Romance Survey, 45% of accountants admitted to having participated in a workplace romance at some point in their career. After digging through the archives, we found that this is down a little bit from Vault's 2011 survey when 47% of accountants said […]
PwC Study: Millennial Women Find Companies Better at Paying Lip Service to Diversity Than Delivering It
As we're about to learn in the following tweet, sometimes expectations don't meet with reality. Is #diversity important to you? Join our #femalemillennial study to have your say: http://t.co/83WL88ixX6 #PwC pic.twitter.com/xXQ0urM60N — PwC LLP (@PwC_LLP) January 26, 2015 The way they phrase the infographic, one might assume respondents overwhelmingly chose diversity and inclusion […]
Here Are Just a Few Questions You’ll Be Asked in a Big 4 Interview
Our friends over at Vault are still working on their massive survey of accounting professionals and if you haven't yet gotten on that bandwagon, please do so here. It helps them help you, or something. Only Big 4 and other "top" firms need apply. Don't worry CBIZ people, you're invited to the party. They recently […]
What Are the Best Perks Offered by the Big 4?
Besides a paycheck, that is.
The Happiest Lawyers Are Tax Lawyers
Of 17,000 associates from over 150 large and mid-sized law firms surveyed by Vault for their annual Law Firm Associate Survey, it's the tax lawyers who clearly they love their jobs. Or rather, are at least more "satisfied" than their counterparts in other practice areas. As you can see from the chart, it was a […]
Survey: What Was the Salary at Your First Accounting Job?
If you remember, that is. Personally, I do. The job was with a boutique CPA firm and they offered, and I accepted, $43k. This was 2003. I imagine most people vividly remember their first job's salary. The feel of the paper it was printed on or the person who called with the news. But the […]
Center for Audit Quality Managed to Find Some People Confident in Audits
With PCAOB inspection rates at their most embarrassing ever these days, you'd think most educated people would not be all that confident in audits. Of course, most "normal" people don't stay up on PCAOB inspection rates. We do, of course, which is why we thought it was hilarious that the Center for Audit Quality was […]
EY Celebrates Its Second Year as the Most Attractive Professional Services Employer
Did someone say attractive? No, I don't mean attractive young men in various states of undress, I mean attractive, as in if you have to work in professional services, I guess working for EY will do. So every year, Universum conducts this study, asking business students from the world's most prestigious schools which employer they […]
The Obvious Link Between Inadequate Staffing and Stress Explains Why You Hate Your Life
Have you experienced workplace stress at any point in your career? In the last year? How about the last month? Or perhaps today? CGMA Magazine reports that stress at work is most often caused by a familiar factor. Understaffing: One-third of professionals frequently experience excessive pressure at work, according to a global survey by Towers […]
IMA Survey Shows Men Make More Than Women and Certifications Matter
The Institute of Management Accountants salary survey came out yesterday, and you should check it out if you're into that sort of thing. Quickly while we're on the topic of salary, consider this your friendly reminder that the Going Concern Compensation Survey is still open and it would be great if you can take a […]
Help This Big 4 Alum-Turned-PhD-Candidate with Her Homework (By Taking a Survey)
Recently, a PhD candidate contacted us about helping with her dissertation. That sounds strange since neither Adrienne nor I have any interest in working more than we do already and this sounded like work. Thankfully, we found out that we didn't really have to do too much. Michele Frank wrote us last week asking […]
Your Smartphone Compels You to Take the Going Concern Technology Survey
TPTB got together and decided it would be great to know what technology makes your heart flutter, so they had the interns get together and whip up this fancy technology survey. It only takes a second and in exchange for your compliance, we're giving away five $100 Amazon gift cards at random. You could finally […]
Take the Going Concern Compensation Survey and Win More Than a Raise!
With the pungent aroma of compensation talks lingering in the air like a stale cigar, it's time to introduce a fancy new survey that you guys have been begging us to do for about as long as we have been ignoring your begging. As comp threads start rolling out, this is your chance to help […]
Deloitte Survey: Millennials Ready to Change the World But Still Need to Borrow a Few Bucks for Rent and Bills
According to a study by the ironically named Take Charge Institute at the University of Arizona, more than half of young "adults" age 23 – 26 rely on their family for financial support. Half! Of those, nearly half of them are employed full-time. No worries though, it's just that Millennials are taking an extended break […]
Accountants Love iPhones and Shun Android, Says This
The latest CPA Trendlines survey — which is worth a glance if you're into mobile tech trends within the profession — reveals accountants favor iPhones to Android phones by two to one. More interesting, 10% of respondents say they use neither smartphones nor tablets at work. Yet half of respondents are billing at least 11 […]
Communicating Purpose Key to Higher Employee Engagement, Says Ironic Deloitte Study
Let's discuss: Every company, at some level, has a purpose. How well you are able to communicate yours internally could have a major effect on your employees' engagement levels. That's one of the more striking findings from a new survey from Deloitte. To put it in terms of numbers, 73 percent of employees who say […]
According to This, Who You Work With Is More Important Than Where You Work
Just a friendly reminder, Vault will be releasing its latest Accounting Rankings — when else — on April 15 so those of you who like to whip it out and compare should mark your calendars accordingly. For now, we get a teaser: This year, we surveyed more than 10,000 accountants at the top 90 accounting […]
Everyone is Overwhelmed and Companies Don’t Know What to Do About It, Says Deloitte Survey
What's this, now? Too much access to information has turned us into “overwhelmed” employees. Nearly every company sees this phenomenon as a challenge to productivity and overall performance, but struggles to handle it. Information overload and the always-connected 24/7 work environment are overwhelming workers, undermining productivity and contributing to low employee engagement. Sixty-five percent of […]
To Retain Millennials, Gently Remind Them They Will Never Do Better Than You
What do abusive boyfriends and firms that don't understand Gen Y have in common? Apparently, they are supposed to use the same tactic to retain their prizes, be that a battered girlfriend or a Millennial worker with a wandering eye: “This Millennial generation [has] seen what companies do to their people,” McGrath said recently at […]
Take the Going Concern Annual Reader Survey to Save the Children*
It's that time of year again when the publishing overlords who run this laugh factory would like to know a little more about you, the Going Concern readers. It also gives you a chance to tell us what you think about this here web site and the Lord's work that we're doing. Go here to […]
Most Americans Disapprove of Cheating On Taxes; Some Want to Cheat Like Tiger Woods
A recent poll, commissioned by the IRS, found that the overwhelming majority of taxpayers think that it's never okay to cheat on their taxes. It's an interesting data point, but what does it really tell us? More than anything, it tells us that the IRS is an insecure little bitch. Like Stacey, that girl in ninth grade who […]
This Is a Friendly Reminder to Take the Going Concern Jobs Survey and Enter for a Chance to Win an iPad Mini
Hey, everyone. Colin here. Mind if I pull you away from your spreadsheets for a bit? No, you don't mind. Last Friday we announced that Going Concern Jobs would be gracing the Internet with its presence in the very near future. Of course, before we jump into anything we like to check with you all […]
Going Concern Jobs Is Coming Soon to an Internet Near You
It’s February. It’s busy season. We understand that you have things to do. You can spend a few minutes helping us, can’t you? Of course you can. Believe it or not, we pay attention to what you guys and gals click, read, complain about, enjoy, and flat out hate. So we think we have an […]
Help Us Out By Taking the Going Concern Reader Insight Survey
TPTB, in their never-ending quest for world domination, ask that you fill out this year's Going Concern Reader Insight Survey so that we may learn a little bit about you all. I've been assured that it's perfectly harmless and if you have any suggestions on how we can improve this here site, then you'll have […]
Lease Accounting Survey Highlights Growing Demand for Competent Survey Writers
Thank you, readers, for forwarding your spam to us. @going_concern Kindly help me complete this survey on the proposed lease reforms surveymonkey.com/s/LKFDN8P — MachO (@bakersavi) September 24, 2012 The best way to complete the survey is to click the delete button located near the top of your Outlook window. But don't worry. A less optimal […]
Take the Going Concern Fall Survey for a Chance to Win an iPad
Happiest of Friday, capital market servants. All the scary news out there got you down? It’s tough, I know. Unfortunately, there’s very little we here at Going Concern can do about it. Adrienne has yelled at everyone imaginable but still things are sucky.
The good news is that the TPTB here are still neck-deep in their never-ending quest for world domination and they need you to take our reader survey. Because we know your time is valuable (or at least it should be), we’re giving you a chance to win an iPad just for humoring us.
I know, our generosity is overwhelming at times but don’t get the impression that we equate love with cool-ass gadgets. Wait…maybe we do. Anyway, just take a few minutes to take our survey and you’ll have a chance to win.
Thanks for your continued support of Going Concern.
The AICPA Wants Your Thoughts on What the Future Holds for CPAs
Now is your chance to tell the AICPA exactly where you think the industry is headed in the future. CPAs don’t get many chances to be this candid about their chosen profession, so please make it count.
CPA Horizons 2025, coined “the profession’s effort to anticipate and plan for the future,” is a short survey that seeks to get professionals’ opinions on where the industry is going and the challenges it faces to get there. Participants are faced with the following directive:
Growing global competition, rapid technological development and increasing regulation are impacting the CPA profession today and will continue to in the coming years. As a result of the changing environment, how can the profession remain competitive? Will services being requested of the profession change? Will the profession’s core values, core services and core competencies remain the same or need to change to allow the profession to continue to best serve its clients and employers?
CPA Horizons 2025 is about your future and the future of your profession. It’s about forging a path to ensure both remain competitive in a rapidly changing world. Your participation in this profession-wide endeavor is vital in helping shape our collective future.
We are soliciting the thoughts of thousands of CPA’s along with other voices via this interactive survey, online discussion forums, in person forums and direct outreach to AICPA committee members, leaders in the profession and beyond. We ask for 15 minutes to help map out the next 15 years. Your 15 minutes will be on a limited # of questions that is a subset of a larger group of questions which will serve to identify what is on the Horizon impacting the profession. Your participation is important. What may the future hold? Help tell us.
Beyond answering simply yes or no questions based on pre-determined criteria, you will have the opportunity to write in your answers regarding trends, opportunities and challenges facing the profession. You will also get an entire box to fill in what you think the profession should do to remain relevant, a huge opportunity for those of you who feel the current food chain just isn’t doing it for you.
And then you get to watch a video. Frankly I’ve got to say this video was pretty depressing, showing how the U.S. is falling behind in the global scheme of things, continuously getting spanked by India and China when it comes to science, math and the economy. Ouch.
Take the survey here.
Going Concern Mid-Busy Season Survey (2011)
Hey gang, the ad folks who run this laugh factory have asked that you take this short survey. I’ve been assured that it’s harmless, so kindly oblige them and we’ll never have to speak about it again.
Supposedly there are some fantastic swag in it for a few lucky few of you, so make haste.
We now return to your regularly scheduled inflammatory nonsense.
Final Call: Going Concern Reader Survey (Fall 2010)
Look people – I did my best. I told TPTB that reminding you a third time to take our survey would risk irritating them to the point of many of you breaking out in hives. Alas, my warnings have gone unheeded.
I’ve been assured that this will be the last reminder as well as the final chance to win a $500 gift card. So, if you decide to humor us, take the survey and end up winning the prize, it will be worth it. As for the rest of you, well, you can’t win if you don’t participate.
Follow this link to take our survey. As always, your billable/free time is appreciated.
We now return to your regularly scheduled inflammatory nonsense.
Reminder: Going Concern Reader Survey (Fall 2010)
Against my will, TPTB have forced me to remind you that it is imperative that you take our Fall 2010 Survey if you haven’t already.
It’s also been impressed upon me to also re-mention that we are offering you the chance to win a $500 gift card and it also makes you a good American.
Kindly follow this link to take our survey. As always, your time (billable or not) and participation are appreciated.
Thanks!
Going Concern Reader Survey (Fall 2010)
Going Concern readers – TPTB, in their never-ending quest for world domination, have requested that you share some information about yourselves and to give us some feedback on this here site.
I’ve been assured that your answers will only be used for the forces good and that it won’t take up too much of your time.
As a show of our undying appreciation, we are offering you the chance to win a $500 gift card which could come in handy with the holidays coming up and whatnot.
Kindly follow this link to take our survey. Your time and participation are appreciated.
Thanks!
Going Concern May 2010 Survey
We interrupt your regularly scheduled dose of accounting and tax-related news and chicanery to request some information about you, dear readers, and any input you may have for this here website.
Participants will have a chance to win a $100 AMEX Gift Card so it’s definitely worth your time. Click on the link below to access the survey, answer a few questions and you’ll be back to spreadsheets in no time.
Thanks for your participation!
Ninety Percent of Nonprofit Execs Expect 2010 to be as Financially Difficult as 2009
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Not to be the harbinger of doom but the Non-profit Finance Fund released a survey Monday that reflects the less-than-optimistic hopes of non-profit leaders for the year ahead. Though it’s far more depressing than Financial Armageddon, it shows that non-profits are far more prepared for the worst (and more deft at handling adversity) than their for-profit counterparts. For-profit CFOs still seem preoccupied with the credit crunch while non-profits are merely trying to meet increased demand with less to provide.
America’s nonprofits expect that 2010 will be financially more difficult or as difficult as 2009, according to a survey released today by Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF). The survey of more than 1,300 nonprofit leaders in markets nationwide also found strong evidence of the dramatic and creative steps that organizations are taking in order to maintain and even expand service delivery to meet increased demand during this time of continued economic uncertainty.
• Nearly 90% expect 2010 to be as difficult or more difficult than 2009; only 12% expect 2010 to be financially easier for their organizations.
• 80% of nonprofits anticipate an increase in demand for services in 2010; 49% expect to be able to fully meet this demand level.
• Only 18% of organizations expect to end 2010 above break-even; 35% of organizations ended 2009 with an operating surplus.
• The majority — 61% — have less than three months of cash available; 12% have none.
“We expect 2010 to be another treacherous year for many nonprofits that routinely take heroic measures to meet demand for services,” said Clara Miller, President and CEO of NFF. “The economic ‘recovery’ has not yet reached people in need, or the organizations that serve them. We must do more to repair the tattered social safety net.”
Interestingly, only 46% of non-profits surveyed said they believed they would not be able to replace government stimulus money from other sources when the money is gone. Also curious, non-profits appear to be having an easier time of getting loans. Only 30% of survey respondents said they’d applied for a loan in the last 12 months but incredibly 74% of those secured the loan. Oh and 26% said they only applied for a loan because they were waiting for late government payments.
There were quite a few memorable responses from survey participants but I think this one sums up the theme of NFF’s results pretty well: “WE DIDN’T GIVE UP.”
Accounting News Roundup: KPMG Survey: Half of Execs Want Option to Adopt IFRS Early; PW India Plea Rejected on Satyam; Two-thirds of States Have Raised Taxes Since Recession Began | 03.09.10
• Half of US execs want to use IFRS early-survey [Reuters]
KPMG surveyed some shot-callers and lo and behold, half of them are ready to get down with International Financial Reporting Standards before the SEC’s target date of 2015. That’s if the SEC is even down with the whole idea.
KPMG’s surveyed also discovered that executives would like the SEC to be a little more transparent with their plans re: IFRS. You know, other than more meetings.
“Many U.S. companies with subsidiaries around the world are already using IFRS for statutory reporting,” said Janice Patrisso, partner and national IFRS leader at KPMG. “For them, having the option to synchronize it all up front at the U.S. company is a positive.”
…
Patrisso said companies with international subsidiaries that have already made conversions to IFRS were looking at the way those units had chosen to use the rules. They are also preparing for changes U.S. and international accounting rulemakers are making to converge the two sets of rules.
It’s nice to see some pushback to the SEC’s waffling. Despite where you fall on the IFRS debate, most people would agree that allowing businesses to make their own decisions about what financial reporting method to use (as long as it is consistent and high quality). Especially since the AICPA recognized the IASB as an official standard setter, thus giving private companies the go-ahead on IFRS, shouldn’t public companies be allowed the same freedom?
While the SEC spends the next five years trying to figure out what all this means, some businesses already see where this is going and don’t want to waste time. The SEC isn’t so enthused.
• PW plea on Satyam probe rejected [Business Standard]
Pricewatherhouse India really wants everyone to forget about Satyam. Their latest plea to the Securities regulator in India, the Securities and Exchanges Board of India (SEBI) has been rejected BUT apparently the firm is going to try making their case again. Sigh.
Don’t get any illusions about this case making any progress, “The next step is for ICAI’s disciplinary committee to send notices to the PW auditors charged by law enforcement agencies in the fraud case…this could happen only after the auditors, under judicial remand, are in a position to argue their case before the committee.” And we complain about the bureaucracy here.
• CBPP: 33 States Have Raised Taxes by $32 Billion/Year [TaxProf Blog]
You may have noticed a state fiscal crises here or there in the last couple of years and by God, they’re trying to do something about it. Unfortunately, the most common solution, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, is the raising of taxes. Thirty-three out of 50 states have taken a number of measures from eliminating tax exemptions and broadening tax bases to good old fashioned higher sales, income, or property tax rates.
KPMG Survey: Cost Cuts May Not Be Sustainable
This story is republished from CFOZone, where you’ll find news, analysis and professional networking tools for finance executives.
Corporate executives have really gotten to show off their cost-cutting skills during the financial downturn and the ongoing, tepid recovery, as many have managed to push earnings up even as revenues sagged.
But, in looking forward, they have to wonder what cost those reduced expenses came at.
According to a survey released by KPMG on Wednesday, board members and senior executives are doing just that. Forty-five percent of the respondents expressed concern about the sustainability of the cost reductions undertaken by their companies in response to the economic crisis.
“Significant cost cutting can create a variety of risks to the business, both near- and long-term,” said Mary Pat McCarthy, KPMG Vice Chair and Executive Director of the Audit Committee Institute, in a press release.
In particular, two-thirds of those surveyed said they were most concerned about the impact of cost cutting on their company’s employee talent and training. Other concerns include the impact of cost-reductions on internal controls (36 percent), fraud risk (25 percent), management of outsourcing and supply chain (24 percent), financial reporting integrity (21 percent), and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and compliance issues (9 percent).
Some 13 percent of the respondents said their companies had not implemented significant cost reductions.
While previous recessions were characterized by short-term belt-tightening and a quick return to normal, KPMG noted that current cost reductions may be much longer-term, and possibly permanent.
The long-term nature of the cuts is understandable in light of the executives’ economic outlook. The survey found that 45 percent of respondents don’t expect the U.S. economy to reach pre-crisis growth in terms of investment, employment and productivity before at least 2013, and 22 percent said it would be beyond 2014.
Another 17 percent were particularly pessimistic, saying the economy would not see pre-crisis growth “for the foreseeable future,” while 15 percent said recovery could come in 2011. Just 1 percent said recovery could occur in 2010.
Similarly, in a separate response, 66 percent said American companies will not return to “business as usual” and will operate in this new environment through at least 2013.
Deloitte Survey: The Next Generation of Employees Will Not Stand for the Inability to Update Their Status
In Deloitte’s Survey Du Jour we learn that your future underlings are going to want — nay — DEMAND the ability to move up in Farmville while they’re at work (at least one person understands your obsession).
Okay, demand is a stretch but dammit the kids these days are an ethically conscious bunch so you can trust them to get their work done while checking all their hot friend of friends.
Nearly nine-in-10 (88 percent) teens surveyed use social networks every day, with 70 percent saying they participate in social networking an hour or more daily. More than half (58 percent) said they would consider their ability to access social networks at work when considering a job offer from a potential employer. This comes as many organizations have begun implementing policies that limit access to social networks during the workday due to concerns about unethical usages, such as time theft, spreading rumors about co-workers or managers and leaking proprietary information, among other reasons.
Most of the teens surveyed feel prepared to make ethical decisions at work (82 percent) and a significant majority of teens say they do not behave unethically while using social networks (83 percent).
There’s really no cause for concern when you’ve got newbies out there asking their friends to vote for their sluttiest co-worker using a work email address. We do realize that some people make better decisions than others.
Overall, we don’t see what the BFD is. Commercials on the tube portray “responsible” adults on Facebook so to allude that the next wave of corporate soldiers would be the only ones that wouldn’t take a job with limited access to social networks seems weak. There’s plenty of people working already that have that point of view. Plus, pretty soon everyone on FB, Twitter, et al. will have phones that can run those apps. Just let people do what they want and they’ll be much happier.
Now excuse us, we’ve got strawberries to harvest.
No Facebook at Work? No Thank You! Teens Expect Access to Social Networks On-The-Job [Junior Achievement/Deloitte Poll]
Deloitte’s Latest Survey Reminds Everyone That Americans Like Vedging Out
Deloitte threw their “State of The Media Democracy” survey together for the fourth year in a row, and man are we glad they did. This latest opus informs us that TV is 34% of Americans’ favorite form of media and that it ranks in the top three for 70% of Americans. Viewing hours increased to almost 18 hours a week, up two hours from the same study last year.
The same survey also states that 60% of the U.S. Households have a gaming console including 70% of GenX households. So for many of you, after a long day of opining and complying, you like to go home and pwn some noobs.
Forget — for a minute — about what this reveals about Americans in general. What’s really important is that Deloitte is going out of their way to perform a survey annually that will remind all of us how lazy we are.
This is almost as helpful as as the reports based on World of Warcraft analysis. Keep up the good work, D.
Deloitte “State of The Media Democracy” Survey: Recession Intensifies America’s Love for TV [Deloitte.com]
Study: Interest in TV viewing on the rise [The Hollywood Reporter]
Robert Half Survey: CFOs Are Nearly Done Firing People
Bob Half is spreading some good cheer the-world-is-not-ending-in-2010 news this holiday season, as the staffing company’s latest poll has indicated that the job market for accountants should “stabalize” in the first quarter of the new year. Call us morbid but “stable” makes us think of someone in the ICU.
Web CPA:
Staffing company Robert Half International found that a net 3 percent of the 1,400 CFOs interviewed for the survey plan to reduce their accounting and finance personnel in the first quarter of 2010, but this represents an improvement from the net 6 percent forecast the previous quarter. Most executives — 84 percent — expect no changes to their staffing levels.
Six percent of executives plan to increase hiring in the first quarter and 9 percent foresee personnel reductions. Compared to the fourth-quarter projections, the number that anticipated adding staff rose while the number projecting cutbacks declined.
Thought so! Not anything to write home about since 84 percent of the respondents expect no changes in their staffing levels. To make matters worse, according to the survey those of you pounding the pavement don’t have any skills:
Despite current unemployment levels, CFOs continue to report challenges finding highly skilled professionals for certain functional areas. Twenty-five percent of financial executives said accounting roles are the hardest to fill, and 20 percent said they experience the most difficulty hiring for operational support positions.
Leave it to the BSDs of the world to bring you down by telling you don’t have any skills. We believe in you, unemployed number crunchers of the world! Don’t let the bastards get you down.
Accounting Staff Cutbacks Expected to Slow [Web CPA]
Grant Thornton’s Determination to Saturate Us with Data on CFOs Knows No Bounds
Our prediction that Grant Thornton’s string of press releases related to its survey of CFOs was coming to an end was wrong. Dead wrong.
The firm issued two more today, one related to the financial services companies and one for health care organizations.
While we appreciate all the good work that GT is doing to pull all this information together, we’re definitely to the point we’d like to see something else out of GT. Some people are inspired. We’ll even take the freaky milk company.
Grant Thornton’s Survey Elves Are Still at Work
Our only point is that if it wasn’t for the nice little explanation of the survey on the website, we would have assumed they had a huge room filled with survey elves working day and night.
Anyway, today GT issued its latest press release of its “national survey of U.S. CFOs and senior comptrollers”.
This installment shows that CFOs are homers when it comes to who sets their accounting rules (just so long as it isn’t the government). Seventy-one percent of those surveyed said that rules should be set by “A national independent board supervised by a national regulator” while only 24 percent want an international board. This despite the belief of some that Bob Herz is the most dangerous man in the country.
Only 3% thought a “national legislature” should set rules, which is a relief. Plus it probably gives Barney Frank a little vindication but definitely upsets Newt Gingrich.
The survey also states that the respondents are split on how to report debt on their balances sheets, either amortized cost or fair value, which may be why the FASB and IASB are talking contingency plan.
The last bit of interesting information is that CFOs are still scared shitless of eXtensible Business Reporting Language (“XBRL”) because 84% of those surveyed have no plans to start using it. If you assume most of the CFOs were in Big 4 at one time, then this isn’t so surprising.
The elves are off until spring next CFO survey will occur in the spring when another spectacular round of press releases will inform all of us what is on the minds of financial bigwigs.
Earlier: Grant Thornton Survey: Financial Statements Are Still Too Complex for the Average Shmo Investor
Also earlier: Grant Thornton Survey: 40% of CFOs Never Ever Ever Want IFRS to Replace GAAP
Grant Thornton Survey: Financial Statements Are Still Too Complex for the Average Shmo Investor
That’s right! Way too complicated. GT’s survey states that 73% of the finance bigwigs surveyed believe financial statements are too complex for the average investor to understand. That’s bad because even more respondents (82%) said that financial statements should “be prepared to meet the needs of the average investor”.
Strangely, this survey’s respondents, “CFOs and senior comptrollers”, are directly responsible for the still-too-confusing financial statements. Unless, of course, everyone that responded to this survey already has easy-to-understand financials and thus, is thinking, “NMFP”.
Also, average investor is not explicitly defined which doesn’t help us put the survey in context. So we’ll put it out there that if “average investor” is anything remotely similar to the “average American”, the solution to this whole problem may be to get Fisher-Price and reality TV producers involved.
Nearly three-quarters of senior financial executives say financial statements too complex for investors [Press Release]
PwC Employees Don’t Need AmEx Gift Cards to Motivate Them
That’s right! We’ve confirmed that PwC’s annual employee survey went out Monday and unlike other firms, the rank and file at P. Dubs are more than happy to tell TPTB exactly how they feel without being bribed (but it would be nice).
The Moment You’ve All Been Waiting For
If you work at KPMG anyway. We heard that the annual employee survey was sent out today so that’s exciting. The most thrilling news is that FIVE of you will win $200 AMEX gift cards for participating. If there are questions missing on the survey that are not addressed, feel free to bring those up in the comments.
The only other firm that we’ve heard about having their survey is E&Y so if yours is rolling out be sure to let us know.
Grant Thornton’s Latest Survey Reminds Everyone That Your Chances of Getting Another Job Are Still Pretty Slim
Grant Thornton’s national survey of financial executives shows that only 1 in 4 plan to increase hiring in the next six months. That’s not great news but what’s perplexing is that the meaningless highly regarded Grant Thornton LLP Business Optimism Index basically told us the same thing less than a month ago.
Does GT really have to repeat the obvious message that no one wants to hear? We get it. No one can leave their job that they hate for another job that they’ll hate less right now because no one is feeling spendy on new employees.
Oh but GT isn’t purely a purveyor of bad news. Only 10% of the financial bigshots surveyed expect things to get worse. Which is a relief but not particularly interesting since the Business Optimism Index pretty much said the same thing.
It appears that GT is hellbent on reminding everyone that while things certainly can’t get any worse, they’ll probably remain craptacular for the foreseeable future. Keep up the solid work GT, we’re looking forward to next month’s reminder.
National survey of senior financial executives finds only 1 in 4 plan to increase hiring in next 6 months [Press Release]
Your Firm Has Questions. Answer Them Here
E&Y’s global survey has rolled out and we’ve obtained a list of questions that Ersnters are being asked.
After the jump, we’ve presented a partial list for feedback on your respective firm.
Since the standard “Strongly Agree, Agree, Neutral, Disagree, or Strongly Disagree” format doesn’t tell the whole story (and are pretty boring), we’re asking you to pick your favorite(s) and give your full answer in the comments.
• I have the time I need to deliver quality work.
• People at the Firm are held accountable for their performance.
• If I had a question or concern about the way we conduct business, I would not hesitate seeking advice or reporting my concerns.
• People I work with inspire others to do great things at the Firm.
• I understand the measures used to evaluate my performance.
• I am rewarded appropriately for the work I do.
• I believe my pay and performance are linked.
• I trust the information I receive from leadership.
• Leadership does a good job of explaining the reasons behind major decisions.
• I rarely think about looking for a new job with another company.
Be honest. Please. If you don’t see your favorite, submit it in the comments along your response.
Our Speculation About the Motivation Behind Deloitte’s Most Recent Survey
Big accounting firms like doing surveys. We’ve often thought about the motivation behind the constant surveys and further wonder if firms ever josh the numbers around out of a personal vendetta against its rivals, enemies, former clients, etc.
Deloitte’s survey that states that American consumers are planning on spending less this back-to-school season causes us to speculate as to why the Big D would do such a survey? It’s a nice little press release we suppose. Shows that the firm is plugged into the current state of the economy, etc., etc. But then we got to thinking about how Heelys, the obnoxious shoes with wheels, recently dumped Deloitte because their fees were too high in favor of Grant Thornton.
Far be it from us to speculate about the temperament of a Big 4 accounting firm when it has business swiped away by a second-tier firm but isn’t it possible that Deloitte is bitter about the whole sitch? Isn’t it possible that Deloitte is merely putting out this survey as a way to scare consumers out of spending money on back-to-school junk like Heelys?
Back-to-School Shoppers Plan to Spend Less, Save More [Bloomberg]