The Latest

Avalara aims to make the process of calculating sales tax less taxing and more relaxing.The company is so serious about their message that they’ve adopted an island theme for their exhibition booth at technology trade shows, complete with tiki-hut-like decorations and margaritas.

ACCOUNTANTSWORLD BRINGS ACCOUNTING RELIEF TO WEBAccountantsWorld has released its Accounting Relief software with Web 2.0 features that allow accountants to collaborate with small business clients.

Innovation and technology are powerful forces in commoditization. Harvard economist Joseph Schumpeter coined the term “creative destruction,” a process that involves several stages, beginning with emergence and moving on to growth, status, and a depleted industry.It doesn’t take long to think of several industries that have moved through these stages. Some have transformed themselves to stay relevant, while others have expired. The lifecycle is much shorter now, and commoditization is occurring at an increasing rate. The accounting profession is not exempt.

There is a distinct correlation between a firm’s profitability and the degree to which its partners think and act strategically.During the course of my consulting, I have identified nine key non-financial elements that drive high-performing professional firms. They help explain why some firms are more profitable than others, and why the high-performing firms constantly beat the competition.

SoftwareLEASE ACCOUNTING

NOVEMBER24-30: Income Tax Practice Course, Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants. Collingwood, Ont. Contact: www.cica.ca/cpdevents.

FLORIDADohan Brown Salum + Ferro CPA, Miami, has joined Firm Foundation.

ACCOUNTING SALARIES STILL RISINGMENLO PARK, CALIF. — Starting salaries for accounting and finance professionals will increase an average of 4.3 percent in the year ahead, predicted the 2008 Salary Guide from staffing firm Robert Half International.

While the word is that defined-benefit plans are no longer in favor, they can still provide a tax savings for the right client.“A lot of the press would lead you to believe that defined-benefit plans are on the way out,” said Karen Shapiro, chief executive of Dedicated DB, a San Mateo, Calif.-based provider of such plans. “But for some small-business owners, it’s a terrific tax strategy.”

In a special area on its Web site (in a Q&A on home foreclosure and debt cancellation), the Internal Revenue Service advised, “Insolvency can be fairly complex to determine and the assistance of a tax professional is recommended.”Also, in recognition of the important role that the “insolvency exception” plays in excluding a beleaguered homeowner’s forgiveness-of-indebtedness income, the site further advised, “Consider the tax consequences before foreclosure.” This article explores what planning can be done to maximize the use of the insolvency exception to reduce or eliminate forgiveness-of-indebtedness income for the individual caught in the current mortgage financing or similar credit squeeze.