Top Line

SURVEY SAVVY
The Best-Laid Plans
According to a study of accounting, legal, marketing and other professionals, accountants rated as “Cool Cucumbers” (compared with “Nervous Nellies”) on the emotional scale when it comes to being prepared for a serious disability.

Just 27% of accountants (the lowest percentage among all the professions) questioned in MassMutual Benefits Barometer Survey: Disability Perceptions, said they would be worried that they would never be able to work again if they became disabled.

Source: http://halfapaycheck.com.

SIGN OF THE TIMES
Back to School
A rising number of professionals are returning to college for a master’s or other graduate degree to enhance their earning power. An advanced degree can bring, on average, a $16,000 bump in annual salary.

Source: www.worldwidelearn.com.

GOLDEN BUSINESS IDEA
Showing the Way
A small firm can’t operate efficiently if workers are constantly asking similar questions, circumventing problems or forwarding inquiries to the higher-ups.

Make sure your employees have enough knowledge to make decisions and solve problems on their own:

Organize an orientation session in which you answer the most frequently asked questions and walk employees through the preferred ways of solving common problems at your firm.

Provide workers with the history behind procedures and policies. Background information is essential for making good decisions.

Furnish the necessary resources, whether it’s a list of client contacts, knowledge of the appropriate forms or even sharp pencils.

Give workers a place to turn when they can’t solve problems on their own. They should be able to consult a manual or a designated experienced colleague instead of always knocking on the president’s door.

Learn to delegate. Handing off certain tasks will build employee confidence and help others learn the necessary steps to follow.

Source: Score, www.score.org.

TOP 10
Ways to Minimize Stress

Wake up 15 minutes earlier. This helps avoid running late throughout the day.

Practice preventive maintenance on your car, appliances and home. Things seem to break down at the worst time.

Be prepared to wait. A magazine or book can make waiting in line at a bank or doctor’s office almost pleasant.

Plan ahead. Fill the gas tank before it nears empty and buy stamps before you run low.

Count your blessings. For every one thing that goes wrong, there are probably 10 things for which to be thankful.

Say “no” to extra projects and social activities. Don’t schedule more than you have the time or energy to do.

Surround yourself with non-worriers. Being around people who worry makes you more likely to worry.

Be body wise. Eat a balanced diet, exercise and get enough sleep.

Discuss problems. Talk to a trusted friend or family member to help clear your mind of confusion.

Do something kind and helpful for somebody else. Volunteer to help a neighbor or charity.

Source: PeopleFit USA, www.peoplefitusa.com.

DATA POINT

80.4
Percentage of all Social Security and Supplemental Security Income payments in FY2007 being paid by direct deposit (up from 41.1% 20 years ago).

Source: Social Security Administration, www.ssa.gov.

SURVEY SAVVY
Hire Me!
When job hunting, the more leads the merrier. But is one source better than another?

According to a survey by The Conference Board, a business research organization, 38% of job-seekers who received an offer attributed their success to an Internet search.

About 27% said networking with friends and colleagues helped them land the job, and 30% cited “other” sources, such as employment agencies.

Newspapers received the least credit, with only 24% of job-seekers saying their offer resulted from a print classified ad search.

Source: www.conference-board.org.

BUSINESS TRENDS
Hot Jobs
Looking for a new career path? Narrow your search to the fastest-growing accounting jobs.

According to the Robert Half International 2007 Salary Guide, the following are the top five high-growth positions for the year:

Internal auditors. Those who possess the certified internal auditor designation are needed to help improve internal controls and meet the compliance mandates of regulations such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The national average starting salary at a large company is expected to climb 5.8% this year, to a range of $77,500 to $101,500.

Compliance executive. Companies are hiring compliance executives with SEC-reporting experience to help them meet ongoing corporate governance requirements. Starting salaries for chief compliance officers at midsize companies are expected to rise 9.3% to a range of $111,000 to $145,500, and salaries at large companies are predicted to rise 14.4% to between $132,500 and $181,250.

Financial analyst. As firms expand, financial analysts are needed to assist with budgeting and forecasting initiatives and to identify how companies can become more profitable. Base pay is expected to rise 5% for managers with small companies to between $55,750 and $70,000, and 5.6% to between $58,250 and $73,750 at large companies.

Staff accountant. Accountants with at least three years experience, including in public accounting, are sought for projects related to general ledger-account maintenance, financial-statement preparation and budget development. Salaries at large companies are predicted to rise 5% to between $41,250 and $52,500.

External auditors. Public accounting firms are seeking more CPAs with seven years experience to meet rising client demand for audit services. Salaries at small firms are expected to rise 5.2% to between $48,750 and $63,000.

Source: Robert Half Finance & Accounting, www.roberthalf.com.

NEWS
How Low Can They Go?
Securities fraud class action lawsuits fell to a record low in 2006, says a report by Stanford Law School’s Securities Class Action Clearinghouse. The number of cases filed was the lowest since the adoption of the Public Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Securities fraud class actions fell by 38% compared with 2005, from 178 filings to 110, making 2006’s numbers nearly 43% lower than the 10-year historical average of 193.

Twenty class actions related to options backdating allegations were filed in 2006. Last year’s complaints contained more allegations of specific accounting irregularities compared with 2005.

Source: http://securities.stanford.edu.

SIGN OF THE TIMES
Asia Leads World in Optimism

Asian business owners have the most optimistic economic outlook for 2007, according to a survey by Grant Thornton International. India, the Philippines, China and Singapore took the top four positions. The survey included the opinions of 7,200 business leaders in 32 countries.

Source: Grant Thornton International, www.gt.com.

SURVEY SAVVY
Small Business Shuns Outside Financing
Eighty-one percent of small business owners said they have never received outside equity or debt financing, according to a survey by SurePayroll. More than half (55%) of respondents said they had no need and no future plans for external funding.

For those businesses that tapped outside capital, debt financing was most popular, with 40% financing growth through debt and only 29% using equity financing. The remaining respondents obtained a combination of the two.

Source: www.surepayroll.com.

JOB SECURITY
Corporate Shields
Thirty-three percent of in-house corporate lawyers surveyed said their companies have been investigated by the SEC or the Occupational Safety and Health Administration since 2003.

Source: Fulbright & Jaworski LLP.

BUSINESS TIPS
Everyone Has Something to Learn
Are those whippersnappers in the office blogging, podcasting and otherwise Internetting circles around you or some of your veteran employees?

Maybe you should consider setting up a reverse-mentoring program, in which you pair young hires, who can offer fresh perspectives and new technology, with older workers, who can share their experience in corporate culture, work flow and decision making.

To establish an effective mentoring program, start by asking these questions:

What is the business reason for developing the program?
What are the criteria for success?
Who is going to manage, coordinate and oversee the project?
Are there pairings we should avoid?
How often should the pairs meet?

Source: American Management Association, www.amanet.org.

BUSINESS TRENDS
Report Sheds Light on IPO Market
U.S. markets are holding their own against foreign competition for initial public offerings (IPOs), says a report by Ernst & Young.

Key among E&Y’s findings is the fact that most companies list on exchanges close to home. Even at the height of the dot-com boom, 94% of foreign companies listed their IPOs domestically. E&Y identified only 17 “competitive” foreign IPOs in the first half of 2006. Of them, U.S. exchanges won 11 (65%). In 2000, U.S. exchanges won 73% of competitive IPOs, according to the same criteria E&Y used in its 2006 analysis. To determine whether an IPO was globally competitive, E&Y looked at, among other factors, the companies’ market caps and target investors.

Source: Ernst & Young, www.ey.com.