AT Think

Even if there are no new laws from President-elect Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress, practitioners still will have to cope with a number of changes that go into effect for the first time this year or apply for the first time for tax returns filed this year.

This summer a couple of my columns dealt with developing a specialization, and I had a ton of feedback. One person I spoke to is a young accountant who is trying to figure out a career path with a specialization. She has about five years of experience and feels she needs to choose a specialization to be able to start the next phase of her career.

Acquiring high-quality clients can prove difficult -- which may help explain why so many firms are willing to serve clients that don't provide much value.

Technology protocols, security measures and proper staff training are key.

The changes are easy in concept: Most people favor lowering the tax rate and closing loopholes. The difficulty is in the details.

Accounting students have the arduous task of learning how to prepare and analyze financial reports. Like other users of financial data, they may wonder if the numbers alone are enough to evaluate a firm.

The right number and titles of positions in a firm lead to stronger firm stability and growth. They can also lead to better employee job satisfaction and employee longevity because they set a clearer path to partner.

Among all the decisions and actions a small business may need to take, one of the more important is deciding whether to incorporate or form an LLC.

A billion accounts hacked at Yahoo; real-time translation on Skype; businesses going entirely cashless; and other recent developments you and your clients should know about.

The Federal-Level Research and Development Tax Credit Program, or RTCP, was originally enacted in the Internal Revenue Code through the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 as a temporary provision at a time when research and development jobs were significantly declining throughout the United States.