CFO Advisory Archives - Wiss & Company, LLP

2022 Year-End Tax Planning for Businesses

Written on December 19, 2022. Posted in Tax.

By Nicole DeRosa U.S. businesses are facing pressure to drive revenue, manage costs and increase shareholder value, all while surrounded by economic and political uncertainties. Disruptions to supply chains brought about by the pandemic have continued into 2022. Inflation and rising interest rates have made the cost of debt, goods and services more expensive and cooled consumer spending. The stock market has declined sharply, and the prospect of a recession is on the rise. What’s...

Driving Growth with a Business Process Review

Written on December 12, 2022. Posted in General Business.

By Paul Ursich When a company is laser-focused on growth, it can take time and effort to analyze business processes. But when problems arise — or significant organizational changes occur — taking a hard look at strengths and weaknesses is often the best way to light the path forward. The reasons that a company might decide to do a Business Process Review are manifold. The CEO may be looking for help optimizing processes for compliance assurance, finishing an audit, or completing...

Part 1: Maximizing Your Organization’s IT Investments

Written on November 22, 2022. Posted in Investing.

By Luis Vargas, Director, CFO Advisory This is part one of a seven-part series on maximizing your organization’s IT investments. Every organization must decide how to allocate limited human and financial resources across competing needs, and stakes are exceptionally high when selecting suitable IT investments. Research by McKinsey found that large IT projects run 45% over budget while delivering 56% less value than predicted. The same study found that 17% of IT investments...

Confronting the Onshoring Workforce Crisis

Written on November 16, 2022. Posted in General Business, Small Business.

For decades, the goal was globalization. In the early 1990s, the end of the Cold War and the growing ubiquity of the internet ushered in an age of new possibilities for American manufacturing, which caused supply chains to sprawl worldwide. Recent years have provided strong incentives to reverse this trend and encourage investment in reshoring. As BlackRock CEO Larry Fink noted in a March 2022 letter to shareholders, we are seeing the “end to the globalization we have experienced...

How to Assess and Resolve Business Process Issues

Written on September 27, 2022. Posted in Advisory Services.

By Paul Ursich 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 the business never...

Healthcare Organizations: Ask These Questions Before You Pursue an M&A Transaction

Written on June 30, 2022. Posted in Healthcare.

Written by Matthew Barbieri and Michael Castle. Your guide to making sure your transaction decisions are what’s best for your business M&A remains a key growth strategy in 2022, with more than one in five healthcare CFOs (22%) planning to pursue M&A this year, according to the 2022 BDO Healthcare CFO Outlook Survey. With high valuations and uncertainty around future market trends, it’s important that healthcare organizations carefully consider if an M&A deal is the right...

Construction Ahead: Opportunities and Challenges in 2022

Written on June 22, 2022. Posted in Construction.

CONSTRUCTION AHEAD: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES IN 2022 The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684) will inject approximately $3 trillion into upgrading and expanding U.S. infrastructure, presenting a long horizon of opportunity for the construction industry. But to what extent will ongoing supply chain disruption, labor shortages and competition for materials continue to pose challenges for developers and project owners? Investors, project owners and other stakeholders...

2021 Year-End Tax Planning for Businesses

Written on December 20, 2021. Posted in Tax, Tax Alerts.

By Nicole DeRosa, CPA, MAcc, Senior Tax Manager As the U.S. entered 2021, many assumed that newly elected President Joe Biden along with Democratic majorities in the House and Senate would swiftly enact tax increases on both corporations and individuals to pay for the cost of proposed new infrastructure and social spending plans, potentially using the budget reconciliation process to do so. Since then, various versions of tax and spending measures have been negotiated and...

Biden Administration Targeting PPP Aid to Smallest Businesses – 2 Week Delay Starting Wednesday Morning

Written on February 23, 2021. Posted in Financial Planning, General Business, PPP, Small Business.

By Travis Miskowitz, Manager, CFO Advisory Early Monday morning, the Biden Administration announced it is instituting a 2-week period targeting Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to small businesses only. The temporary freeze goes into effect Wednesday morning beginning at 9:00 am, and only small businesses with 20 or fewer employees will be eligible to apply for a PPP loan for the next 2 weeks. The move by the current Administration is an effort to provide much-needed funding...

SBA to Speed Up PPP Approval Process

Written on February 11, 2021. Posted in Financial Planning, General Business, PPP, Small Business.

By Travis Miskowitz, Manager, CFO Advisory In response to concerns from the small business community regarding delays and processing issues with the latest round of PPP funding, the SBA released a procedural notice on 2/10 implementing changes to speed up the loan approval process. As many as 30% of all PPP loan applications have been delayed due to Hold or Error codes as a result of stepped-up front-end compliance and verification checks. Late last week, we covered the issues causing...

PPP Processing Delays – More Communication Required from SBA

Written on February 5, 2021. Posted in Financial Planning, General Business, PPP, State & Local Tax Services, Tax, Tax Alerts.

By Travis Miskowitz, Manager CFO Advisory When the Small Business Administration rolled out the Paycheck Protection Program in 2020, there was an immediate need to stem the losses and financial difficulties that small business owners were facing due to the pandemic and government-mandated shutdown orders. The early days of PPP were fraught with processing issues, incomplete or inconsistent guidance, and a lack of reliable resources for small business owners to reference when applying...

Straight Outta Congress: How to Maximize the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) & Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

Written on January 19, 2021. Posted in General Business, PPP, State & Local Tax Services, Tax, Tax Alerts.

By Travis Miskowitz, Manager, CFO Advisory This is a developing story; updates will be published as additional information becomes available. Update: March 3, 2021 As we enter March, we would like to remind our clients and friends that they may be eligible for 2 very beneficial programs: Employee Retention Credit (ERC) and a 1st Draw or 2nd Draw PPP loan. The ERC is a refundable credit which can now be claimed retroactively by PPP borrowers to 2020 if the company meets 2 main eligibility...

PPP “Yeah, You Know Me” – 3rd PPP Application Window Opening Soon

Written on January 8, 2021. Posted in PPP, State & Local Tax Services, Tax.

By Travis Miskowitz, Manager, CFO Advisory Late Wednesday evening, the U.S Small Business Administration (SBA) in coordination with the Department of Treasury, issued guidance for the revamped Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) authorized by the Economic Aid Act of 2020. The newly released guidance includes: Interim Final Rule (IFR) “Business Loan Program Temporary Changes; Paycheck Protection Program as Amended” an 82-page consolidation of existing PPP guidance in the form of 24...

Show me the money…again! Congress agrees to $900B Emergency Coronavirus Relief Act of 2020

Written on December 21, 2020. Posted in General Business, State & Local Tax Services, Tax Alerts.

By Nicole DeRosa, CPA, MAcc, Senior Tax Manager, and Travis Miskowitz, Manager, CFO Advisory Congressional leaders are close to finalizing the next round of stimulus, referred to as the Emergency Coronavirus Relief Act of 2020 providing for $900 billion in government funds aimed at supporting small businesses and the ailing economy. The coronavirus relief bill is expected to pass with bi-partisan support, and the President is expected to sign the bill into law quickly. The relief...

Unintended Effect of PPP Loan Forgiveness: Reduction in R&D Credit

Written on November 19, 2020. Posted in Tax, Tax Alerts.

By Travis Miskowitz, Manager, CFO Advisory The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) provides loans to small and mid-size businesses to cover payroll and other specific costs during the coronavirus pandemic. PPP loans may be forgiven under particular circumstances, and are typically excluded from taxable income. Sounds simple—and if you focus on the question of payroll costs, it is. But companies that are interested...

What Can the Pandemic Teach Us About Recruiting?

Written on November 16, 2020. Posted in Human Resources.

Series introduction: In this four-part Q&A series, Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) Lisa Calick speaks with experts from Wiss to learn about the challenges that clients face due to the changes in work arrangements and culture as a result of the pandemic. A Q&A with Wiss’s Practice Leader for Recruiting, Kevin Kurtz As a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR), I spend my days giving human resources advice to Wiss clients, helping them with everything from...

Helping New Employees Feel Belonging in a Remote Work World

Written on August 20, 2020. Posted in Uncategorized.

Questions & Wiss Answers: An interview with Amanda Dominguez, Director of People Operations With employees working from home, how can companies make sure new hires are really part the team? Even before the Covid-19 era, research showed that onboarding was one of the biggest challenges for organizations. The need to onboard remotely provides a chance to think about this important process in new ways, including ensuring that you’re putting the right emphasis on making sure new...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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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