Brought to you by the Maryland Association of CPAs Leading off Podcast: AR and the future of the profession New augmented reality tools are transforming the accounting and finance profession. BDO’s Dina Broydo and Rachelle Hernandez examine how in this week’s episode of our “Future-Proof” podcast. (From the MACPA) • Subscribe: iTunes | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher 4 changes that will stick after the pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic’s far-reaching effects have touched every industry around the world, and CPAs are not immune. Not only were CPA firms working to help the businesses they serve survive economic challenges, but they were fighting their own battles as well. (From Accounting Today) The perception problem in accounting Kimberly Ellison-Taylor, CEO of KET Solutions and a former AICPA chair, discusses some common misconceptions about accounting that are hurting recruitment efforts. (From Accounting Today) Will business travel ever return to normal? Airline travel has certainly rebounded this year, with data from the TSA showing about twice as many passengers traveling this year compared to the same time period last year. Yet many businesses remain reluctant to send their people packing as the Delta variant rages among the unvaccinated. (From Entrepreneur) UPCOMING WEBCASTS #FutureReady Resources from MACPA Preferred Providers As strategic partners of the MACPA, our Preferred Providers are on the cutting edge of the hard trends impacting the CPA profession. Whether it’s cybersecurity, automation, AI and machine learning, or any of the other issues you’re wondering about, chances are our Preferred Providers have resources for you. 2021 CPA Summit The 2021 CPA Summit will be more important than ever as we begin reimagining the future in a post pandemic world, and focus on getting back to being innovative after incredibly turbulent times. The half-day Summit will allow attendees to get 4.5 CPE hours. You don’t want to miss out! Join us at this year’s event for a virtual, interactive conference featuring thought leaders from across the industry. Learn what it means to be a #FutureReady CPA from those with expert insight into the major trends affecting the profession. Learn a bit more about each section of the ecosystem. (10/26) Personal Financial Planning Conference Your clients trust you with their financial security – make sure you’re advising them with the best information available. The Personal Financial Planning Conference is designed to give you up-to-date insights into the issues and trends that impact local, regional, and global markets. Attendees will hear from distinguished speaker Robert S. Keebler, CPA/PFS, MST, AEP on key long-term planning to best serve your clients. CFP credits will also be made available. (10/29) Business & Industry Conference Now all virtual. The Business & Industry Conference will give not only CPAs but all financial professionals in the business and industry sectors updates on recent trends. Hear economic & legislative updates as well as a discussion on navigating PPP and employee health & wellness. This year’s speakers are nationally recognized Anirban Basu and Gabrielle Bosché! You do not want to miss out, so register now! Don Farmer Tax Seminars Skillfully combining humor and to-the-minute tax updates on high-level tax legislation, Don Farmer’s Tax Workshops will review tax developments that affect tax return preparation and tax planning. This year, THE Don Farmer as well as William Harden will take a deep dive into practical ways you can prepare for the upcoming busy season. We’ll look at the latest developments when it comes to dealing with new & recurring issues in individual, corporate, and federal income taxation. Economy High inflation to last awhile, Fed says The biggest burst in U.S. inflation in three decades is likely to last longer than expected and no longer should be considered “transitory,” a senior Federal Reserve official said. (From MarketWatch) Biden signs debt limit hike, but December standoff looms President Joe Biden on Thursday signed into law a bill raising the nation’s debt limit until early December, delaying the prospect of an unprecedented federal default that would cause economic disaster. (From Fox Business) What you need to know about the supply chain bottlenecks Supply chain snarls and labor shortages are driving prices higher and creating shortages as the economy struggles to adapt to a new phase of the coronavirus pandemic. (From The Hill) Accountant confidence in economic recovery lost momentum in Q3 Global confidence among accountants in the economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic declined in the third quarter of the year, especially in North America. (From Accounting Today) COVID-19 Vaccine mandate for large employers one step closer to reality Employers are a step closer to getting specifics on the Biden administration’s plan to order large employers to mandate the Covid-19 vaccine or require weekly testing for unvaccinated workers. (From the Baltimore Business Journal) How COVID-19 litigation is trending in Maryland It was a busy summer for Covid-19 employment litigation, and attorneys are bracing for a flood of future lawsuits as companies try to navigate the many headaches that have accompanied the pandemic. (From the Baltimore Business Journal) Former lawmakers press Congress not to end ERC early A group of former lawmakers from both parties is calling on Congress to undo a provision of the bipartisan infrastructure bill that would end the Employee Retention Credit months before it’s set to expire at the end of the year. (From Accounting Today) SBA Administrator Guzman weighs in on EIDL changes, plans to streamline the process The Small Business Administration continues to look at ways to make its Economic Injury Disaster Loan application process easier. (From the Baltimore Business Journal) Pandemic has disrupted retirement plans for 35% of Americans, study finds The COVID-19 pandemic has been a financial boon for some and a catastrophe for others. Now those effects are showing up in one more place: anticipated retirement dates. (From CNBC) Tax Service levels hit new lows at swamped IRS The IRS is inundated with the volume of returns yet to be processed and phone calls for assistance, and is working hard to remedy the situation. While there are many factors contributing to this, it is overwhelming to the agency, according to Stephen Mankowski, tax chair of the National Conference of CPA Practitioners, who attended a recent IRS meeting for stakeholders. (From Accounting Today) States fight back against ARP’s tax cut ban The “tax cut ban” introduced in the American Rescue Plan Act — which requires that states that accept federal funds through ARPA must not reduce their own taxes — has been challenged by a number of states in several jurisdictions. (From Accounting Today) Historic global tax deal taking final shape After years of difficult negotiations, an OECD-brokered deal to update international corporate tax rules has the support of all OECD countries and is closer to becoming reality. (From Financial Management) Yellen confident U.S. Congress will pass minimum global corporate tax Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Sunday she was confident the U.S. Congress would approve legislation to implement the global corporate minimum tax agreed by 136 countries. (From Reuters) 15 tax breaks for self-employed clients With the recent uptick in self-employed workers, chances are that some of your clients might be looking to freelance or register their own businesses. In either case, you can advise them on how to lower their self-employment taxes by considering these tax breaks. (From AccountingWEB) Public practice / A&A Technology reshapes future of audit quality Technological changes are already making an impact on how auditing firms are carrying out their audits. (From Accounting Today) 5 tips for maintaining audit quality today and in the future The global pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to public company auditors as well as the clients and the public they serve. (From the Journal of Accountancy) New standard sharpens focus on risk-based auditing The AICPA Auditing Standards Board sharpened the audit profession’s focus on risk-based auditing Tuesday with the release of a new standard on audit risk assessment. (From the Journal of Accountancy) CAS practices see 20% growth rate Client advisory services practices saw a 20% growth rate in terms of net client fees per professional, according to the latest CPA.com & AICPA PCPS Client Advisory Services Benchmark Survey. (From the Journal of Accountancy) Why clients leave (and how to prevent surprises) Creating a positive client experience at your firm means taking deliberate steps to ensure your client retention rate remains high and the people who leave do so on good terms. (From AccountingWEB) Business and industry Corporate directors see ESG reporting as necessity Corporate board members may finally be ready to embrace environmental, social and governance reporting by their finance teams. Nearly two-thirds (64%) now say that ESG is linked to their company’s strategy, compared to just 49% in 2020. (From Accounting Today) The 2021 audit cycle: Not quite back to normal The 2020 audit cycle was unlike any other, with a host of accounting and reporting issues brought to the forefront by shifts to remote work, shuttered businesses and a standstill in deal activity. While some industries recover slowly and many organizations continue to operate remotely, robust capital markets have created a hot job market for accounting and finance professionals. (From Accounting Today) Small business optimism falls amid inflation, labor shortage Optimism fell among small businesses in September amid persistent inflation and tight labor markets, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) said, citing a survey of 537 small business owners. (From CFO Dive) Stimulus programs, lender generosity keeping bankruptcies at bay The pace of bankruptcy filings in 2021 is at 10-year lows, as federal stimulus money and lender forbearance efforts keep financially strapped businesses from heading to the courts to restructure their debts. (From CFO.com) Private companies continue to delay lease accounting implementation Privately held companies are putting off implementation of the new lease accounting standard, even as the effective date approaches. (From Accounting Today) Diversity and inclusion More women becoming partners and principals at firms How can a pandemic that has been so bad for millions of working women nationally be so good for women at accounting and advisory firms? (From Accounting Today) Black accountants confront racism from co-workers and clients Black accounting professionals are facing indignities and disrespect from both their colleagues and clients, according to a study published by the American Accounting Association. (From Accounting Today) 100 years of Black CPAs Crystal Cooke of the AICPA and Todd Shapiro of the ICPAS discuss the centennial of the first Black CPA, what we can learn from pioneering Black accountants, and the work the profession needs to do on diversity. (From Accounting Today) Accounting has made strides in diversity, but more work remains We need more women and people of color in the accounting industry. So, are we doing enough to make that happen? (From Accounting Today) From our sponsors Oct. 18-21: Don’t miss ‘SuiteWorld On Air’ Whether you’re a NetSuite expert, newbie, or just in the market for a new ERP system, SuiteWorld On Air has options for you. Connect with fellow online attendees and those attending the event in Las Vegas; watch our live broadcast show, NetSuite TV; explore the Expo; and learn how superheroes like you are powering their business for growth. (From Oracle Netsuite) Free e-book: 'The True Costs of Recreating Your Tech Stack' The right technology will create efficiencies and help your accounting firm overcome its challenges, big and small. The wrong technology will just add to your problems and prevent you from true scalability. But how difficult—and expensive—is it to rebuild your tech stack so it actually benefits your firm? This ebook looks at what an accounting firm tech stack is as well as the costs associated with recreating it. (From Botkeeper) Free resource: 'What Does Your CAS Dream Team Look Like?' If you haven’t given much thought to hiring, promoting, and engaging your accounting advisory team, then you might be missing a tremendous opportunity to bring more business into your accounting firm. In this resource, we take a look at curating the right team to tackle your firm’s advisory goals. (From Botkeeper) Save hundreds of hours with SafeSend Returns Tax automation has transformed the tax return assembly and delivery by reducing manual, labor-intensive tasks at every client touchpoint. Save hundreds of hours with SafeSend Returns and provides a wonderful experience for both firm admin and clients! Schedule a demo to see it in action. (From SafeSend) Register for Xero Education Month Whether you’ve been doing business for awhile or just starting out, this is your chance to dive into a stack of free educational content from our team of experts. It’s all about learning to do more with your business with topics such as sustainability, tax reporting, bank reconciliation, working with apps, mastering cash flow, and so much more. Register to become an expert today! (From Xero) MARYLAND ASSOCIATION OF CPAs 901 Dulaney Valley Rd, Ste 800, Towson, MD, 21204­-2683 800­-782­-2036 | MACPA.ORG Update your email preferences here