Federal Judge Sides With Maryland in Digital Ad Tax Dispute
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and three trade associations argued the tax violates First Amendment rights to free speech. But they lost at least this part of the case. Case at the state and state tax court level still ongoing (& the tax continues to be collected in the meantime).
(via CPA Practice Advisor)
As the Maryland budget crunch becomes an increasingly reality, Gov. Moore proposes cutting $150m from budget already enacted for this year.
He continues to emphasize reticence to raise taxes in the state, my guess since he suspects it may further push away the very economic growth the state needs to fund its current spending commitments.
Also more from his guest commentary piece in The Baltimore Sun.
Although our company doesn’t specialize in non-profits anymore, we do come across tools & tips unique to non-profits that we can share:
One that’s been around for a bit but may be unknown to new non-profits is TechSoup -> Through them, non-profits can:
- Get discounted or even free software to help run your organization
- Courses, articles, & knowledgebase around non-profit information
- Connections with other non-profit leaders with whom to learn and grow
If you run a non-profit, check them out!
In the ongoing unfolding of interpretations around the federal Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), the Maryland AG weighed in on 8 May 2024 to say that it depends on the facts & circumstances whether CPA assistance with Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) filings could be considered “unauthorized practice of law”.
Essentially, simple guidance & completing the form based on customer inputs IS NOT, while customer circumstances that involve judgement that requires legal interpretations IS.
Seems reasonable middle ground as most CPAs I know aren’t interested to wade deep into the BOI waters to begin with, only to be a help to our small businesses customers who now need to jump through yet one more compliance filing in the course of their year.
(via AICPA Town Hall)
Folks coming over from X/Twitter may be interested to know I’ve exported my Tweet history on that platform (Oct 2010 - Jun 2024) into a searchable page here on my microblog titled Tweets.
(Sometimes I like to scroll back thru and remind myself of nuggets found & shared.) :)
IRS' National Taxpayer Advocate (IRS watchdog) reported that identity theft cases are taking 22 months to resolve & have a backlog of 500,000 cases.
May be worth getting an IP PIN to save future hassle (tho, as it stands, you can never undo the request).
There’s a balance between having good tools and tool overload that’s not always easily navigated.
I think I’m seeing Confluence emerging as a tool our company wants to go deeper in for team collaboration that isn’t customer Project/Task oriented. Part of this is that I think while the Microsoft 365 platform has a lot going for it, the design, features, and ease-of-use aren’t quite there, at least currently.
One contributor to the evolution of this thought: Confluence’s new whiteboard feature looks well designed. (You’d think a tool like this would have been nailed by Microsoft.)
How to Get Started with Value Pricing
I was pleased be quoted and share value pricing tips in the April 2019 AICPA Journal of Accountancy newsletter. The article was put together by Liz Farr and also includes interviews with Ron Baker and Dominique Molina. It's a great compilation of ways to get the ball rolling and provides good insights into how it's worked out in practice.
Check out the online version.
Beta Alpha Psi Career Panel
I had a lot of fun at Beta Alpha Psi’s (BAP) 2019 Atlantic Coast Regional Meeting today as a panel member on “Explore Your Career Choices” headed up by Zoe Yang of PWC. We were able to address two sessions of officers from BAP chapters in the region about the variety of career paths they could pursue, sharing tips, experiences, and perspectives along the way.
In addition to getting to talk with accounting students, it was also great fun to meet and get to know fellow panel members drawn from different areas of the accounting industry: including Big 4 auditors, forensic accountants, financial analysts, and more. I represented the accounting entrepreneur firm-owner and encouraged students to consider if the path might be a good fit for them to.
Pictured here with me is Ozo from the DC Public Charter School System and very friendly guy. Check out Beta Alpha Psi site for more info about their organization (of which I’m an alum), and cheers to all new accountants entering the profession!
Live Xero Certification
Excited to be teaching a live Xero Advisor Certification course on October 23 at the beautiful Hamilton Hotel in Washington, DC. Time is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and registration is free!
If you’ve been curious about the Xero platform, or have tested the waters and want to get more, come on out – would love to meet you, and also help kick-off your Xero experience!
- Step 1 - Register on Xero's website to become a Partner and access all their special Partner tools for free!
- Step 2 - Register for the Xero Advisor Certification course with yours truly. The link will auto-trigger into your Xero learning portal and register you for the course, plus you'll receive a confirmation e-mail.
MSATP: Security & Your Practice
Happy to announce I’ll be appearing as the practitioner on a “Security & Your Practice” panel at the MSATP Solo/Small Firm Conference November 2 - 4 in Bethany Beach, DE.
The panel will be held twice during the weekend, and will seek to address emerging issues from the changing technology landscape and legislative pronouncements, including topics like: security insurance, portals, mobile device security, home offices, the new cyber legislative credit, and more.
You can visit the event page to learn more about the conference and potentially register, and also feel free to check out membership in the Maryland Society of Accounting and Tax Professionals.
Karbon Academy 102
I’m pleased to be re-joining the Faculty of Karbon Academy for their “102 course” semester starting late this August.
Karbon Academy is an educational offering of the practice management/ workflow software Karbon. It seeks close the accounting education gap and empower our profession to face the challenges in today’s industry while looking boldly to the future. According to their home page:
"Karbon Academy provides online professional courses in management, growth, technology and strategy. Focused on practical applications and group discussions, it is taught by leading practitioners and business mentors.The particular sessions I'll be guest lecturing in are being finalized, but tentatively I'll be assisting in "Strategy 102: How to of Value Pricing", "Strategy 102: Innovation: Practice & Services", and "Growth 102: The Selling Process". Last year I really enjoyed helping teach process design in the EFF-101 course. (My full faculty profile and course listing.)
You can find a full listing of courses on their website, sign up for any of the new 102 level courses for $900, and access the 101 courses self-paced at $200.
Also, there’s also many great resources on the Karbon website, not to mention their Magazine. And don’t forget to check out their practice management/workflow software if you want to see if their approach to practice management and workflow is a good fit for your firm.
The Role of the Entrepreneur
You’ve seen those car commercials: the sleek, sporty car expertly threading through rural roads as it speeds its way towards bliss. And along the bottom of your screen in small print: “Do not attempt – Professional driver on a closed course.”
Man, what a let down. 😉
I’m here to tell you that value pricing is like that – if you’re not an entrepreneur, do not attempt. Value pricing is not in the professional mainstream yet (though one day will be), and you could wait for the rest of the herd to move before re-examining your business model (though realize that strategy comes with its own risk too).
But if you’ve decided to become a ‘professional driver on a closed course’ (a.k.a. an “entrepreneur”), I’d like to provide a little lay of the economic landscape to help inspire you on your journey.
Referring link: The Role of the Entrepreneur
Happy to announce my first post to the VeraSage blog, entitled: “The Role of the Entrepreneur”.
My aim is to give courage to entrepreneurs ready to make business models changes that come from value pricing, by showing them the heritage and place of entrepreneurs in the human ecology.
(Full post to appear on this blog in six months.)
VeraSage Symposium 2017
I was pleased to give a DET Talk at the VeraSage Symposium 2017 hosted in Allen, Texas, and chose two topics to focus on: “Variations on The Neinbach” and “Assisted Valuation”.
The first relates to different pricing heuristics I adapted from the Neinbach pricing model as a quick shorthand and to also aid purchasing decisions. The second is a method and worksheet I developed from material by Blair Enns, Ron Baker, and Mahan Khalsa that I use in my own firm’s Value Conversations.
Below are my slides, and hope you enjoy!
The Soul of Enterprise: 2017 VeraSage Symposium
It’s always a treat to gather with other Fellows and Founders at the bi-annual VeraSage Symposium for good wine (in the true spirit of a symposium) and great conversation with revolutionary thinkers. One highlights of the event this year was a live broadcast of Ron and Ed’s radio show, The Soul of Enterprise, which featured many of the Fellows present plus additional guests. It’s jam packed with great revelations and insights (as well as laughs), and highly recommend you give it a listen.
You can catch the audio right from the page for Episode 167 (you’ll hear me starting at 6:27), as well as subscribe to their podcast in iTunes.
And don’t forget to check out The Soul of Enterprise’s website, their VoiceAmerica internet radio page, and the VeraSage website for more great resources. (Note: You can keep your eyes posted on the VeraSage website for the next VeraSage Symposium, currently anticipated to be in late 2019 in Australia.)
Live Xero Advisor Certification
My colleague and friend Barrett Young and I taught the first non-Xero sponsored Live Advisor Certification on October 23 in Columbia, MD under the Maryland Association of CPA’s banner.
The MACPA location worked great, and we covered the basics any accountant/bookkeeper looking to start working on the advanced Xero platform needs to know: the Xero accountant tools, setting new Xero customer files, how to record everyday income and expense transactions, plus how to use Xero’s strong reporting tools.
I expect additional Live Certification opportunities to present themselves, and will keep you posted here!
Apps for Accounting & Tax Practices
On October 3, 2017, I gave a presentation in Columbia, MD for the Maryland Society of Accounting & Tax Professionals entitled “Apps for Accounting & Tax Practices”.
My goal was to share what I see as the evolving definition of what an app is, plus demo a selection of apps I use in the categories of accounting, tax, communication, general business, and travel. I closed out by providing an approach to discover and deploy new apps.
Below are the slides I used for your reference too!
Soul of Enterprise: On Value
Two of my great mentors are Ron Baker and Ed Kless, from whom I’ve learned so much about how to think about business (not to mention they’re fun people to be around). It was a pleasure to be on their internet radio show Soul of Enterprise (and whose name I suspect is connected to a talk they once suggested I read called The Soul of Silicon by George Gilder, and which blew me away).
In this episode, we chatted about a book I had started reading, entitled An Austrian Perspective on the History of Economic Thought by Murray N. Rothbard. (2 volumes) I’m actually still in the midst of reading the book since it’s so densely packed with history and insights, but we chatted about the origins of economics, the different theories of where value comes from over the years, how ideas and thought influence action, how value and accounting mix, and more.
You can listen to the audio right from page for Episode 145, as well as subscribe to their podcast in iTunes.
And don’t forget to check out The Soul of Enterprise’s website, their VoiceAmerica internet radio page, and the VeraSage website for more great resources.
Thrivecast: Deeper Weekend 2016
At the annual Thriveal Deeper Weekend conference, hosts Jason Blumer and Greg Kyte record a live version of the great accounting podcast: the Thrivecast. In this episode they talk to the various attendees of the conference and get their take-aways from this year’s speaker Blair Enns who taught us advanced value pricing techniques.
You can catch all types of good snippets, and look for myself and Ian Vacin being interviewed starting at 36:45 right from the audio on the page for Episode 65.
I definitely recommend you check out the Deeper Weekend conference - it’s like none other I’ve been too, and of course the great Thriveal CPA Network.