Advisory Services Archives - Wiss & Company, LLP

Capital Formation Advisory

Written on February 2, 2021. Posted in Advisory Services, Financial Planning, General Business.

Whatever stage your company is in, Wiss Capital Advisors can help you make the right financing decisions. We can advise on securing equity capital for growth-oriented companies, including expansion capital and pre-IPO financing. We can help you secure financing for a management buyout, management buy-in, or corporate divestiture. And we have the experience and expertise needed to help you in special situations, including acquisition financing, public-to-private transactions, and...

SBA Releases Loan Necessity Questionnaire’s for Large Borrowers

Written on November 2, 2020. Posted in Advisory Services.

By: Travis Miskowitz After many months of waiting and speculation, on Monday October 26th, 2020 the Small Business Administration issued a notice stating the intended release of two new forms available here relating to FAQ – questions #31, which describes each borrowers good faith certifications that current economic conditions made the PPP loan necessary to support ongoing business operations. While this guidance was not available at the time business could apply for the PPP loan...

Documenting Expenses to Support PPP Loan Forgiveness

Written on April 7, 2020. Posted in Advisory Services, Financial Planning, General Business.

By Travis Miskowitz The Paycheck Protection Program allows loans of up to $10 million at 1% interest to employers with fewer than 500 workers. The purpose of the program is for employers to retain their employees; the loan amount is intended to cover two months of payroll and overhead. The government will forgive most or all of the loan if the company keeps its workers and does not cut wages. The maximum amount of the PPP loan that is eligible for forgiveness is equal to the amount...

Economic Injury Disaster Loans & Emergency Economic Injury Grants: What You Need to Know

Written on March 29, 2020. Posted in Advisory Services, Financial Planning, General Business.

By Travis Miskowitz SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan THE BASICS What is the criteria for a loan approval? Credit History – applicants must have a credit history acceptable to SBA Repayment – SBA must determine that the applicant business has the ability to repay the SBA loan Eligibility – the applicant business must be physically located in a declared county and suffered working capital losses due to the declared disaster, not due to a downturn in the economy or other reasons How...

Managing Cash Flow During Crisis

Written on March 23, 2020. Posted in Advisory Services, General Business.

By Travis Miskowitz, Manager, Wiss CFO Advisory Cash flow is the lifeblood of your business. During this (or any) time of crisis, it is imperative to keep an eye on your cash flow and regularly monitor your cash position. Instituting effective cash flow management may be the most important action you can take to navigate through challenging times. The Wiss team has put together this list of recommendations to help monitor your progress: Monitor your cash flow regularly With the...

5 Questions to Prepare Your COVID-19 Readiness

Written on March 13, 2020. Posted in Advisory Services, General Business.

By Paul Ursich Beyond the immense impacts the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is having on public health, the pandemic directly impacts economic activity and poses unique challenges to businesses across industries because of its potentially compounding and unpredictable consequences. With massive quarantines, travel restrictions and factory shutdowns, companies are struggling to quantify potential exposure. Attempting to mitigate potential losses from an unknown number of variables...

New Jersey’s Changing Laws Regarding Independent Contractors

Written on February 13, 2020. Posted in Advisory Services, Human Resources.

by Lisa Calick, SPHR New Jersey continues down the path of strengthening employee rights in the workplace, with recent legislation designed to help and protect workers. Last month Governor Murphy signed several bills into law to combat worker misclassification. Below is a summary of newly enacted laws which New Jersey businesses should pay close attention to: Penalties for Misclassification New Jersey employers that misclassify workers as independent contractors may be liable for...

A message to CEOs: When a CFO joins or leaves your company, it’s an ideal time to conduct a Business Process Review

Written on November 7, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services, General Business.

by Paul Ursich A CFO entry or exit event, especially when it comes to mid-sized companies, is often an opportune time to conduct a Business Process Review. When a mid-sized company decides to bring on a CFO, it’s an indication of an important company life cycle shift. Making the investment into this critical CFO role is a major one. It’s the perfect time to conduct a Business Process Review to provide valuable insight into this new hire. An immediate and independent review can drastically...

Why Your Business Should Embrace Digital Transformation

Written on July 30, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services.

The term “digital transformation” probably sounds a bit intimidating – like something beyond your capabilities and a drag on your business in trying to undertake it. So let’s start with a basic definition that’s not quite so off-putting. Digital transformation is simply your efforts to integrate digital technology into all areas of your business. The right mix of digital technology solutions will make your company run smoother and more productively internally, and yield bottom-line,...

Today’s Software Solutions Vastly Improve HR Staff Productivity

Written on April 29, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services, Human Resources.

Updated 7/30/2019. I recently visited a client company with over 750 employees. The HR staff kept track of vacations on a spreadsheet. Anyone considering taking time off would first call up some poor overworked HR rep and see how many days they had remaining. That rep would have to then manually update the remaining totals. I have to imagine that was pretty much how that staffer spent his or her summer months at work. This same company had a total of about ten spreadsheets keeping...

Update: Fishbowl Vs. Quickbooks

Written on April 2, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services.

By David Singletary Companies using a combination of QuickBooks and Excel are oftentimes looking to find a more robust system alternative, but are not ready for an enterprise-level ERP system. For these types of firms looking for a low-cost option that will not require the replacement of QuickBooks, one application is Fishbowl—a manufacturing and inventory control system that integrates seamlessly with QuickBooks. Fishbowl Manufacturing is designed for small to mid-sized companies...

Inventory Management Systems

Written on February 19, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services.

By David Singletary Are you still using Excel spreadsheets to keep track of your company’s inventory? You’ll know it’s time to upgrade when your business grows to the point where you or your people are spending way too much time inputting static data. A good inventory management system should do the heavy lifting. Here are a few features and capabilities a good solution should offer. Multiple costing method options — You shouldn’t be limited to just one method of calculating...

The Critical Importance of Effective Cybersecurity in Your Business

Written on January 29, 2019. Posted in Advisory Services.

Updated 7/30/2019. Cybersecurity does not offer a return on investment — unless you count stable client relations, peace of mind, insurance against the financial, and public relations disaster that can result from digital criminal activity. In other words, cybersecurity is something that your business will hardly notice if it’s functioning well, and deeply regret if it goes wrong. Harmful effects from data breaches Data breach can be a crisis for your business in a number...

HR & Payroll Year End Readiness

Written on November 27, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Lisa Calick, Carolyn Hall, Floriana Allen, and Laura Melville The end of the year can be busy for many companies. While December brings holiday parties and end-of-year celebrations, business owners should be mindful to make sure their HR and payroll departments are on top of timely actions in order to ensure a smooth transition into the New Year. This checklist will help you get a jumpstart on your year-end planning. Human Resources Review your employees’ data to make sure...

Four Strategic Decisions Holding Your Small or Mid-Market Company Back

Written on November 13, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Joe Cicerone Updated 7/29/2019. Your business needs help. No, that doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong — or more wrong than anyone else trying to independently run a business. But it would help to have an experienced CFO advisory group who could see your company’s challenges and opportunities from a fresh perspective. That’s because the management team of young and growing companies tend to see what they’ve always seen. They only know the one way of looking at their...

Business Process Reviews-the First Step to Positioning Your MSO or DSO for Rapid Expansion

Written on July 26, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Carolyn Hall, CPA, MBA Business owners with an entrepreneurial spirit welcome growth without necessarily focusing on the bottom line. MSO and DSO professionals who own and operate medical and dental service organizations that are experiencing patient gains and revenue growth can often lose sight of the details that go into back-end processes. Your accounting system can be your first and most visible sign of trouble. When billing is slow or error-filled, processes are broken, locations...

Advantages of Onboarding an Outside Accounting Firm for Your MSO or DSO

Written on July 24, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Carolyn Hall, CPA, MBA Updated 7/29/2019. In my last blog post, we covered how a business process review is a great tool to determine what processes can be improved upon in your medical service organization (MSO) or dental service organization (DSO). One of the most common outcomes of a BPR is a company elects to onboard an outsourced accounting firm. With this post, let’s explore the value-added benefits of such a relationship. An outsourced accounting firm with experience in...

Proper Management Gets Ambitious Projects Over the Finish Line

Written on July 17, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

What could be more intimidating to a business than the prospect of launching a new ecommerce website? Or merging with a competitor? Or implementing a new business process management software solution that will touch virtually every department in the company? Lots of thoughts go through your head as you consider taking on a project that might take months or years, and will impact your company and your people for a long time to come. Just think of the prospects of establishing goals,...

When and Why Your Business Needs a Business Process Review

Written on June 5, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By David Singletary Have you ever really noticed a process at your business that’s been in place seemingly forever? As you take a closer look it doesn’t appear to be the best way of doing things, so you ask the logical question: “Why?” In response, your team collectively shrugs and says, “Well…that’s how we’ve always done it.” It’s time for a business process optimization review. Third-Party Overview Business process reviews are important because they’re conducted by a professionally...

KPI Checklist for Evaluating Your CFO or Controller

Written on May 22, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich, CPA Updated 7/29/2019. How do you grade the accomplishments of your Chief Financial Officer or Controller? Not only at review time, but whenever you’re thinking of the value this key management team member brings to your company. What are the key performance indicators, or KPIs, that really matter to you? Does your CFO or Controller know the KPIs that define success in your eyes? How could they know if you don’t? Here’s what to do: For starters, review the job description...

Ideal Minimum Requirements for Your Accounting Department

Written on May 1, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Angelique Zitz, CPA One of the most common causes of chronic problems in accounting departments is having the wrong people on board – or the right people in the wrong positions. In other words, things can go terribly wrong when the education, work experiences and career trajectories of your personnel do not match up with your expectations. With that in mind, here are some of the ideal minimum requirements for business process optimization you should look for under most circumstances...

Accounting Department Red Flags: Is It Poor Training, Incompetence or Theft?

Written on April 3, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

When things go wrong in your accounting department, you’re sure to feel the pain — especially if errors are common. Problems and irregularities can crop up for several reasons. For instance, your accounting staff might be inadequately trained, or they’re just not suited for the job. But the cause could also be much worse: someone is stealing from your company. Let’s take a closer look at both scenarios. Innocent Mistakes Everything from inadequate training to incompetence could...

Know When an HR Assessment Is Needed

Written on March 6, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Lisa Calick, SPHR Are your business’s human resources starting to fall behind? Have you not reviewed HR policies and procedures in quite some time? Are you running a new startup? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may need an HR assessment to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations, as well as reduce the risk of potential liabilities. When Should an HR Assessment Be Performed? Fundamentally, an HR assessment is an investigation of a company’s current...

Alleviate 1099 Reporting Stress

Written on January 24, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Wiss Advisory Associate If your company works with nonemployee service providers “in the course of business,” you may be subject to 1099 reporting requirements. Failing to file these forms may result in penalties, so here’s what you need to know to keep your business in compliance. 1099 reporting requirements You’re required to send 1099-MISC forms to vendors when payments to them total $600 or more during the calendar year for: Services performed for your business by someone...

Refinancing Student Loans: Is It Worth It?

Written on January 10, 2018. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Rachel Kleiman A letter from a student loan refinancing company is placed on your desk. Have you wondered if refinancing is worth it or just a scam? Refinancing means taking on new debt with new terms in order to pay off older debt. By refinancing, you can reduce monthly payments, secure a lower interest rate, and renegotiate the term of your loan. Additionally, refinanced student debt is still student debt, meaning you will still receive a 1098-E for tax purposes. Refinancing...

Salary History Ban Takes Effect in NYC

Written on December 21, 2017. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Lisa Calick, SPHR If you’re a company based in, or with offices in, New York City, you should be aware of a new law that took effect on October 31st. As of that date, it became illegal for public and private employers in New York City to inquire about an applicant’s salary history during any stage of the hiring process. This includes inquiries on employment applications, during interviews and while conducting background checks. The law was introduced to even the wage gap between...

Social Media: The New Handshake

Written on October 17, 2017. Posted in Advisory Services.

Why social media has become a critical way to attract and retain customers By Shelley Lazarescu How strong is your handshake? For years, a firm handshake has been a must-have to succeed in business, for the simple reason that most business contacts have historically been made in person. Companies’ representatives usually met, vetted and negotiated with prospects or customers over lunch, on the golf course and in a variety of other social settings. There will always be a place for...

Effective Records Retention Practices for Businesses

Written on October 3, 2017. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich Remember how things used to be? You’d carefully store all business contracts, insurance policies, tax records, purchase orders, invoices, banking statements and correspondence with vendors, customers and prospects. When your filing cabinets filled to capacity you’d buy more, move boxes of paperwork to a lonely storeroom or make a U-Haul delivery to off-site storage, never to be seen again. Things are better in the electronic age—supposedly. Now you can fill hard drives...

Changing Overtime Rules? New Recommendation Could Change Who Qualifies

Written on May 30, 2017. Posted in Advisory Services, Outsourced Accounting & Tax.

By Laura Melville Under current regulations, employees are exempt from overtime pay if they meet three criteria: the employee must be salaried, perform executive, administrative or professional duties, and earn more than $455 per week, or $23,660 per year. The current salary threshold was enacted in 2004. But that salary threshold could be increasing, as the U.S. Department of Labor last year recommended raising the salary criteria to $913 per week, or $47,476 per year. (The rule...

Take Your Inventory Management System Out of the Spreadsheet Age

Written on January 31, 2017. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Donna Woronka Many businesses start up so modestly that they can fit their full inventory in their garage, a slice of rented warehouse or in that dark, cobwebby storeroom in their building—and easily keep track of it via a spreadsheet. But as businesses grow and inventory expands, all that manual input catches up with them. In the first place, spreadsheet inventory management is a laborious operation that takes key people away from what they should be doing. And manual input is...

Goal 2017: To Start Painlessly Building Your Accounting Technology Ecosystem

Written on January 4, 2017. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich If the end of one calendar year and the beginning of the next is when your company starts planning the future and prioritizing investments in technology, I hope you’ll spend some of this time considering your accounting system. Call it your Y2K17 effort if you will, but it’s your strategic efforts to improve your technology footprint in order to increase productivity, financial accuracy and, ultimately, profitability. If you’re like a lot of our clients, you’re likely...

Reduce Year-End Accounting Woes with these End-of-Month Closing Best Practices

Written on December 29, 2016. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Wiss Advisory Associate One of the best ways to alleviate end-of-year financial stress is by being more proactive in your monthly closing process. The trick to keeping procrastination at bay throughout the year is to make your monthly closings more productive and predictable. Follow these tips to stay on track each month. Set and maintain a schedule. When your staff knows that the final Friday of the month (or whichever date you set) is close time, it becomes a structured part...

How to Assess and Resolve Business Process Issues

Written on July 19, 2016. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich Updated 7/30/2019. As companies grow, they often fail to focus on the technology or resources required to maintain their edge in the marketplace. This can lead to a breakdown in business process optimization, hinder productivity and impact morale. Take, for example, a construction company that approached Wiss after experiencing 300 percent growth over a five-year period. While sales had tripled, the size of the accounting department and the technology used to run...

Classifying as Debt vs. Equity to Raise Capital

Written on July 12, 2016. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Bill Beiermeister It can be tempting to use financial instruments to quickly raise cash, especially for technology and life sciences companies that must go through several rounds of financing before they can develop marketable product lines and begin generating income. But if you’re thinking about going this route, tread carefully. Some financial instruments must be treated as liabilities on your balance sheet if payment is demanded at certain times or under stated circumstances....

Differences Between Employees and Independent Contractors for ACA Purposes

Written on February 16, 2016. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Jim Gerhard Businesses have long utilized independent contractors as a means of leveraging the highly trained services of other professionals. Independent contractors provide their own tools, training and expertise. This saves the hiring company the cost of teaching someone how to do the job.. When the work is done, the hiring company simply pays the agreed-upon fee, and both parties go on their way. But are contractors always independent? The Affordable Care Act has given this...

Bringing Companies Together Through Post-Transaction Integration

Written on December 8, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich You’ve just spent months doing due diligence and negotiating terms, and you’ve finally acquired another company — or your company has been acquired. Finally, the hard work is done. Or so you thought. Now begins the process of integrating the two companies, bringing together people, processes and procedures, culture, technologies and management responsibilities as seamlessly as possible. Here are the next steps to managing the post-transaction integration process. If...

How to Reduce the Threat of Employee Fraud and Embezzlement

Written on November 17, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich Employee fraud and embezzlement can devastate a company. Recently, two client companies each lost more than $100,000 to fraud by trusted senior level accountants. A few simple precautions would have saved both companies from six-figure losses. A search of the Internet will provide details on many different fraud cases; therefore, there is not one simple solution to prevent fraud at your company. The following financial controls are just a few examples that are easy...

CFOs and Controllers Guide for Year-End Reporting and Tax Compliance

Written on October 6, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich For CFOs and Controllers, the end of the year is typically a hectic and sleepless time. No matter how prepared you are, end-of-year planning inevitably brings surprises and last-minute complications. To create an accurate, timely and surprise-free planning experience, you need to stay organized throughout the year, by preparing detailed monthly and quarterly financial reporting packages that include reconciliations and detailed back-up schedules. In addition, you...

Fishbowl and QuickBooks Advanced Inventory Comparative Review

Written on September 23, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

Companies using a combination of QuickBooks and Excel are oftentimes looking to find a more robust system alternative, but are not ready for an enterprise-level ERP system. For these types of firms looking for a low-cost option that will not require the replacement of QuickBooks, we recommend Fishbowl—a manufacturing and inventory control system that integrates seamlessly with QuickBooks. Fishbowl Manufacturing is designed for small to mid-sized companies looking for a complete...

Finding the Right Accounting Software for your Professional Services Firm

Written on August 25, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich Emerging engineering firms and other professional services companies quickly outgrow the rudimentary accounting system software they buy off the shelf to get started. Although these starter systems can handle the basics, such as financial reporting, accounts payable processing and accounts receivable, they have limited capability for handling employee time reporting, expense reports, project reporting and related functions. However, there are several software packages...

Beware the Temptation of Offshore Consulting Services

Written on June 18, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich Outsourcing accounting consultancy services overseas can be a tempting strategy for gaining expertise at a highly competitive cost. But as someone who’s previously done that, here are a few precautions I learned along the way. Language can be a barrier. I admire anyone with any degree of fluency in a second language. But while you can easily find English-speaking talent almost anywhere, there are degrees of familiarity with the language. When addressing, in person,...

Y2K15 Technology Assessment

Written on May 26, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich Remember what you went through in the late 1990s as you frantically sought to assure yourself and others that your computer systems would survive the turnover to the year 2000? Fifteen years later, this is a good time to review your technology and infrastructure haves, have-nots and should-haves. But this time around, you don’t have to be frantic. Take your time in 2015 to assess your needs and determine how to invest to meet the demands and embrace the exciting...

Seven Critical Steps to Upgrading your Accounting Software

Written on April 21, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Robert Risk Corporate accounting software generally lasts about 10 years before users get bogged down with a system that’s out of touch with current needs. Perhaps your people use Excel spreadsheets for processes that should be easily automated. Or the company has grown to where your existing software can’t keep pace. Or — worst of all — you can no longer trust the numbers on your reports. As you look for a cost-effective system that will serve your needs now and into the future,...

An Evolving Role

Written on February 10, 2015. Posted in Advisory Services.

Look for a diversified skill set when choosing a CFO By Paul Ursich Today’s CFOs need a firm grounding in accounting, financial reporting and tax planning as a starting point. They also need an understanding of computer software systems, a good working relationship with your company’s IT department and the ability to develop company strategies. An effective CFO must also be a smart manager and a team builder who can engage your controller and accounting department. This combination...

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