[CPA TRENDLINES]

Robert Half releases "2008 Salary Guide"

MENLO PARK, CA (Robert Half International) -- Starting salaries for accounting and finance professionals are expected to increase an average of 4.3 percent in the coming year, according to the just-released 2008 Salary Guide from Robert Half International. Public accountants, financial analysts and internal auditors are projected to see the largest gains.

Read the full article at the new CPA Trendlines, here...

Bob Jones spent the past summer on a coast-to-coast sight-seeing trip.

Nothing unusual about that, except for two things: He did it on a bicycle. And he’s 76 years old.

Jones, the managing partner for Towson-based Jones Hall Advisors and a life member of the MACPA, spent 48 days and 3,300 miles on a bicycle as part of last summer’s Big Ride Across America, a fund-raising event to benefit the American Lung Association. Starting June 25 in Seattle, 44 riders averaged 83 miles per day as they made their way to Washington D.C., where they crossed the finish line on Aug. 11.

Along the way, they saw, in Jones’ words, “some awesome scenery” and raised some serious cash. To qualify for the ride, each rider had to raise a minimum of $5,500 in donations. Jones, who suffers from chronic asthma, felt especially motivated: He alone raised more than $13,500 for the Lung Association’s cause.

“The American Lung Association’s research has aided in the development of medications that allowed me to do this, whereas 25 years ago I was close to death several times with asthma,” he said. “It was very important to me to be a part of this.”

Read the rest at the Maryland Association of CPAs...

Report Highlights International Skills Shortage, Retention Concerns

MENLO PARK, CA (Robert Half International) -- Employers around the world are feeling the effects of a shortage of accounting and finance professionals, according to the Robert Half International Global Financial Employment Monitor.

More than half of the finance and human resources managers surveyed -- 56 percent -- reported difficulty finding skilled job candidates, and 43 percent expressed concern about losing top performers to other job opportunities. The situation is most severe in Asia, where more than four out of five respondents from both Japan (83 percent) and Hong Kong (82 percent) reported finding skilled financial professionals was a challenge.

The international study was developed by Robert Half International, the world’s first and largest staffing services firm specializing in accounting and finance, and conducted by an independent research firm. The survey includes responses from more than 5,000 finance and human resources managers in 17 countries throughout North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. The overall margin of error is +/- 1.4 percent, and the results are within 95 percent certainty.

The report indicates widespread difficulty finding skilled candidates and significant time and effort spent on interviewing and hiring. Currently, companies around the globe are spending an average of five weeks to fill staff-level accounting and finance positions and eight weeks for management roles.

“Recruiting and retaining top financial professionals may become more challenging in the years ahead due to increasing demand for this expertise and the potential retirement of millions of baby boomers around the world,” said Max Messmer, chairman and CEO of Robert Half International. “To build effective teams, employers will need to offer attractive compensation packages, as well as programs that support professional development and work-life balance.”

When asked to identify the most sought-after attribute for executives, respondents in nearly every country said experience in compliance was needed most. This underscores the increased international emphasis on corporate governance.

Managers in the United States reported the greatest difficulty hiring for executive positions. In response, companies are moving quickly to secure these candidates: U.S. respondents said their firms are taking six weeks to hire for management positions, two weeks less than the global average.

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - California accounting and business students can enhance their career prospects thanks to free résumé postings at www.calcpa.org.

The California Society of CPAs is providing the free service for CalCPA student members. "Top employers from throughout California rely on the CalCPA to find professional accounting staff," said Loretta Doon, CalCPA CEO. "Now we are opening this service to help college students land their first accounting job."

To be eligible for the résumé service, accounting or business students must be CalCPA members. Student memberships cost $30 per year. Students can apply at www.calcpa.org/join.

Any employer, including out-of-state employers, can access the CalCPA classified web page and search the site for free. To take advantage of the service, CalCPA student members should login to www.calcpa.org/classifieds and submit their résumé under Situations Wanted--Students. CalCPA will review the information for suitability before posting. All postings are for 30 days and renewable monthly.

"With accountants being in hot demand nowadays, we're confident that almost
every student will be able to land a good job within a few weeks," Doon pointed out.

That's the intriguing question that accountants in Canada are asking today.

The new edition of CA magazine from the Canadian Institute of Charted Accountants reports "female CAs 34 and younger now outnumber their male counterparts. Of the nearly 14,000 CAs in this age group, 51% are women and 49% are men."

This is part of a trend among younger CAs, with the percentage of new members who are women continuing to rise. Fifty-three percent of new CAs admitted in the first six months of 2007 are women, up from 51% in 2006. More at the CICA...

CPAs say you need more than just good technical skills. What’s your secret? Join the study; get the results.

by Rick Telberg

People skills are important in everything and in every business, but they have a special significance and separate meaning in the accounting profession.

While people skills are a key element of success in any walk of life, it can be argued that CPAs have a professional obligation to take those skills beyond the level of mere communication to the point of empathizing with clients and being able to see things through their eyes.

“Many staff members are self-absorbed and are not able or willing to put themselves in the clients’ shoes. Those who are able to be the ‘client’ and to make those kinds of commitments seem to achieve the most,” says J. Frank Fisher, managing partner of a small public practice in Reno, Nev.

Hint: It’s not all ticking and footing. What’s your success secret? Join the survey; see the results.

by Rick Telberg

“Passion” is not a word that pops up in a lot of business studies. But ask accountants and finance managers for the secret formula to a successful CPA career and “passion” is mentioned many times and in many ways.

“There are so many different career paths one can take and are available; finding the career path that you are passionate about is key and it takes time,” said James Hoffman, an assistant controller in Englewood, Colo.

Joanne Newfield of Cherry Hill, N.J., a comptroller who also runs her own public practice and teaches accounting, advises new accountants: “Don’t give up. Find your passion in accounting and specialize in that area.”

Hint: It’s not all ticking and footing. What’s your success secret? Join the survey; see the results.

by Rick Telberg

“Passion” is not a word that pops up in a lot of business studies. But ask accountants and finance managers for the secret formula to a successful CPA career and “passion” is mentioned many times and in many ways.

“There are so many different career paths one can take and are available; finding the career path that you are passionate about is key and it takes time,” said James Hoffman, an assistant controller in Englewood, Colo.

Joanne Newfield of Cherry Hill, N.J., a comptroller who also runs her own public practice and teaches accounting, advises new accountants: “Don’t give up. Find your passion in accounting and specialize in that area.”

9 keys to successful recruiting

Bruce Marcus, the author of 15 books and a consultant and strategic planner for accounting and other professional firms, and The Bay Street Group, LLC offer their recommendations for making a firm appealing to recruits and for enhancing the recruiting process.

Listen to the audio stream...

How to succeed in accounting.

by Rick Telberg
On Careers

Everybody’s got advice for the new grad, and accountants, it turns out, are no different. We’re getting excellent results from our new survey searching for career advice. Though it shows a lot of variety, the advice is not contradictory. It’s good advice, with 60 percent of it coming from professionals in the field for 10 to 30 years. We think it’s worth sharing.

Join the survey. Get the answers.

But is this the future we've always feared?

What are the ingredients to success as a CPA? Join the study. Get the answers.

by Rick Telberg
On Careers

With the accounting industry already struggling to keep positions filled, roaring demand for new college graduates could put pressure on accounting firms and finance departments to ratchet up recruiting and retention efforts.

This year, employers plan to hire nearly 20 percent more new college graduates than they did last year according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). Starting salaries for business majors is advancing across the board. Marketing graduates are winning the biggest increase among the business fields: their average offer rose 10 percent to $41,285. Conversely, the smallest increase among the business fields went to accounting grads: their average offer rose three percent to $47,421.

"However, it is important to note," according to NACE, "that accounting salaries have been rising steadily, a good indication of the level of demand for this discipline."

Still, the flattening trend line begs the question: Is the profession's Sarbox-fueled growth spurt peaking?

New Research in Financial Performance Management Reveals Midsize Companies Must Make Better Use of IT Before Finance Organizations Can Become More Strategic

SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In a new research study “Finance and Innovation in Midsize Companies,” Ventana Research reveals that finance managers in midsize companies want their organization to go beyond bean counting to a more strategic role in management.

Use of mainstream information technology (sometimes simply using what they already have) is critical to meet this business need.

Finance managers must master the art of accelerating business evolution.

by Rick Telberg
On Finance

Business has never demanded more from finance and accounting professionals. From technical knowledge to people skills, professionals are facing stiffer challenges every day.

It seems the most daunting challenge of all is change itself, and if change is the constant, then speed is the competitive edge. Or so suggests management consultant, Dan Coughlin, in his new book, "Accelerate: 20 Practical Lessons to Boost Business Momentum." “My definition of ‘accelerate’ is to increase the rate of achieving desired outcomes in a sustainable manner,” Coughlin explains in this new manifesto.

We don’t have space here for all of Dan’s “lessons,” but a few are especially suitable for finance managers and accountants...

If you're like 3 in 4 of your colleagues, according to a study by VitalSmarts, you're working on a project that you believe may be in serious risk of failure.

That's not good for you -- or your organization. But how do you express your concerns without looking like a traitor or slacker? Joseph Grenny, coauthor of the New York Times bestseller "Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High," offers a 10-point remedy...

Recruiting takes on the look of marketing.

by Rick Telberg
On Careers

If you think finding and keeping good people is tough in the finance and accounting business, then you probably haven’t been reading the papers... or listening to clients.

Today, all businesses on a global scale, are reporting labor shortages. The shortage in professional talent is undermining growth opportunities across the globe, according to a survey of nearly 32,000 employers across 26 nations by the Manpower staffing agency. Some 29 percent of employers worldwide say they would be hiring more professionals if they could, and about the same number are also paying higher salaries than a year ago.

Other reports suggest that India, typically considered as the first choice in outsourced professional talent, is facing a looming crisis in talent, which could push the next wave of outsourcing into China. Maybe the world really is flat.