Isaac M. O'Bannon is the managing editor and digital content manager for CPA Practice Advisor (www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com), drawing on two decades of experience covering the areas of professional accounting, taxation, business productivity and consumer technologies. Prior to CPA Practice Advisor, O'Bannon was a consultant at firms in San Francisco, Denver and Tulsa, serving clients that included Logitech, Polycom, Hilti, Microsoft, the Stanford Research Institute, the University of Oklahoma's College of Engineering and other technology leaders. He is a U.S. Navy veteran. Email: isaac.obannon - @ - cpapracticeadvisor.com
January 1, 2014
Improving workflow by streamlining engagements and following best practices is a continuing effort for successful accounting firms, but implementing workflow management solutions has often been a challenge for smaller firms. This is because they often lack the internal resources and staff to perform and manage the implementation process.
December 26, 2013
The Internal Revenue Service today reminded professional tax return preparers to renew their Preparer Tax Identification Numbers (PTINs) if they plan to prepare returns in 2014. Current PTINs expire Dec. 31, 2013.
December 19, 2013
The end of the year brings the happiness of the holidays, time spent with family, hopes for the year to come and, for many individuals and business owners, challenges relating to their financial health.
December 19, 2013
Change comes in waves that sometimes are less astounding when looking at them in the present, but can be dramatic when their cumulative effects are viewed after several years.
December 17, 2013
Anyone who has ever tried to call the Internal Revenue Service knows what to expect first ... a wait. Sometimes a really long one. For tax professionals who need to reach the IRS more frequently, this can be a waste of precious time and productivity.
December 12, 2013
Closing the financial books for an organization requires accuracy, attention to detail, and a knowledge of some advanced accounting principals. For many nonprofit organizations, especially smaller ones operating on a shoe string budget, hiring a full-time accountant may be out of their reach.
December 12, 2013
Taxpayers looking to hire a professional to complete their 2013 tax return can expect to pay an average of $261 for an itemized Form 1040 with Schedule A and a state tax return, according to the National Society of Accountants (NSA).
December 12, 2013
Privately-held U.S. businesses had a great year in 2013, according to recent data from financial information provider Sageworks. But while dozens of financial metrics make it clear that companies had a lot going for them this year, what about the near future?
December 12, 2013
By this time next year, more than half (53%) of surveyed CFOs plan to expand their businesses internationally, according to the annual CFO Evolution Benchmark Survey released today by Armanino LLP, which includes a pool of mainly Bay Area CFOs answering questions about their financial expectations over the next several years.
December 11, 2013
With January only a few weeks away, business owners should already be thinking about year-end tax planning, and there are five significant tax regulations and credits they should evaluate before the New Year, according to Paychex.
December 4, 2013
Walmart.com, the e-commerce website of the world's largest retailer, experienced an outage on Tuesday evening, Cyber Tuesday, which is traditionally the second biggest online holiday shopping day of the year. The outage affected all U.S. customers.
December 2, 2013
Based on data from 3,828 charities that raised more than $12 billion in the prior 12 months, The Blackbaud Index reported that overall charitable giving grew 2.3 percent for the three months ending October 2013, as compared to the same period in 2012.
