Archive for the ‘President's Message’ CategoryIf You Can Only Get to Know One Person at the East Bay Chapter, Make Sure it’s …October 16th, 2008
To give you an idea of what Soco does, the chapter has more than 20 committees, hosts 13 major events, plus chapterwide meetings, board meetings, executive board meetings and is involved in a number of statewide programs. Soco keeps us on track for all of these activities—and more—and has a major hand in making them happen successfully. Our chapter’s enthusiasm and spirit is growing, which has us doing even more, but, we couldn’t do half of what we do without Soco. And for Soco, being our chapter’s program associate is not just a job. She really cares and goes more than the extra mile to support us in her gracious, Soco-esque style. So please be sure to stop by and say “hello” to her at the next activity you attend and let her know how much you appreciate her. Soco, what can I say? Thank you! You may wonder, “What brought on all that? I know she’s great.” Well, as part of our Financial Literacy outreach efforts, our chapter recently had the opportunity to participate in a financial planning clinic hosted by Assemblymember Sandre Swanson and Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums’ office. The Financial Planning Association’s local chapter spearheaded the event. Did I mention it was an all-day event held on a Saturday?! Soco was there before, during and after to make sure we had everything we needed. As a result, many good things came from our contingent being there and representing CalCPA. We made contacts with legislators’ representatives and with other professionals in a way that never would have been possible had we not attended. We represented CalCPA very well, and the doors are open for new opportunities. I believe we’ve paved the way for our upcoming meetings with local legislators and for CPA Day at the Capitol in January. Other unsung heroes from the event: Crystil Turner, who was our liaison with Frank Pare of the FPA; Barbara Williams, Hank Levy, Sherry Knight (and I) volunteered to facilitate the workshops; and Tom O’Sullivan and Clay Selland also helped. Changes in Chapter LeadershipRegrettably, Alan Olsen resigned as secretary of the board of directors due to other commitments. We appreciate Alan’s willingness to serve. The good news is that AJ Major stepped up to fill the secretary role and is now a member of the executive board. AJ will progress toward the presidency over the next three years. In addition, Jenise Gaskin accepted the nomination to join the board as director, taking over AJ’s term, which ends in 2010. The board approved both nominations. What a testament to our chapter to have busy professionals so willingly come forward to take on leadership roles. Thank you all! Other News: Sports NightOur most recent chapter dinner meeting was a rousing success as guest speaker Joe Fonzi, KTVU-TV weekend sports anchor, entertained and informed us about the state of the sports world in the Bay Area. Joelyn Carr-Fingerle and Scott Haislet: Thanks for the great idea and for making it happen! Upcoming OpportunitiesI look forward to seeing you at the Estate Planning Symposium (Tuesday, Nov. 4) and the Partners’ Forum (Wednesday, Nov. 12). Also, I hope you get the chance to join the meetings that are being set up with local legislators. News and details coming from … you guessed it … Soco! See you there! — Michele Day, CPA
So, Let’s Dance!September 26th, 2008
The other day, I was driving to work listening to the soundtrack of Mamma Mia!, which, as you probably know, is a movie with lots of singing and dancing as the characters meet and overcome life challenges. I was thinking about how, in the accounting profession, we often face unforgiving deadlines and stressful situations, and I began reminding myself of why we do our work anyway. What came to me was that there could be a lot of joy in the opportunities we have to make a difference to individuals or organizations. Whether we’re preparing financial reports or tax returns, performing an audit or a forensic investigation, or executing almost any accounting-related task, we’re helping to uncover the story. Often, there are many ups and downs in the accomplishment of any given project. The numbers we deal with reflect the tale of the business or the individual—how well (or not) things are going for the entity and any parties touched by the entity’s endeavors: owners, employees or even legal adversaries. Our role as advisers and collaborative professionals allows us to “dance” with our clients and often each other through the process as the picture unfolds, accomplishments are celebrated and challenges met. In this dance of making a positive difference, myriad opportunities allow us to engage in a variety of roles at all levels of involvement. CalCPA gives us many such possibilities. For example, our chapter just hosted (read “celebrated”) another hugely successful and well-attended ABC (Attorneys, Bankers and CPAs) Night, which gave us a chance to connect with other professionals who help our clients deal with their financial affairs. Thanks, Rob Anderson and committee! Also, a good time was had by all at our chapter’s golf tournament, hosted in San Francisco at Harding Park. Thanks to Steve Willis for keeping us connected there. Don’t miss the many other chances to get involved that are coming up in just the next few weeks! For example, our chapter is participating in an Oct. 4 financial planning/literacy event being spearheaded by the local chapter of the Financial Planning Association, Assembly member Sandré Swanson and the city of Oakland. We will take part by facilitating seminars to members of the local community. This is expected to be a large event with several hundred attendees. Our next chapter meeting, Sports Night, is Tuesday, Oct. 28 and should be very enlightening and great fun. Then, be on the lookout for the Estate Planning Symposium and the Partners Forum coming in early November, plus all of our chapter’s committees and discussion groups. So, as we work in this profession that provides us with so many opportunities to make a difference—let’s join in the dance! — Michele Day, CPA
A Positive EpidemicAugust 21st, 2008
Per Gladwell, “The Tipping Point is the biography of an idea … that the best way to understand the emergence of [popular] trends, the ebb and flow of crime waves, or for that matter, the transformation of unknown books into best sellers, or the phenomena of word of mouth, or any number of the other mysterious changes that mark everyday life is to think of them as epidemics. Ideas and products [CPA services] … and behaviors spread just like viruses do.” He goes on to say, supported by many studies, that the process of shifting paradigms—ways of thinking and behavior of groups—happens (counter intuitively) very quickly and that “… little things can make a big difference … [as] human beings are a lot more sensitive to their environment than they may seem. … The name given to that one dramatic moment in an epidemic when everything can change all at once is the Tipping Point.” I can hear you wondering: “So, what does all that have to do with the accounting profession and our chapter?” It’s no secret that our profession is undergoing great change and challenges. We face incessant changes in tax laws (sometimes it seems nearly daily); the advent of new auditing and international, principles-based accounting standards; and the shifting sands of our own economy wherein we are the trusted and knowledgeable financial advisers. Plus, we must factor in the challenges of building successful practices and careers, including attracting, developing and retaining qualified, enthusiastic staff members and clients. Perhaps one of the largest challenges is keeping our sanity and balance as we try to live lives that make a difference in a world that is spinning as fast as our world is. Gladwell’s ideas are highly applicable to helping us navigate through and improve these unsettled waters. I recently attended a very inspiring Business and Industry Committee meeting featuring Solomon Darwin, executive director of the Center for Financial Reporting & Management at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. In his discussion about fraud and ethics, Darwin cited some disturbing statistics about the pervasiveness of cheating at higher levels of education and in business, plus the broad spectrum of ethical behaviors across societies. (Remember, these are the diverse societies that are trying to bring accounting standards under one international set of guidelines.) It was most disturbing, yet inspiring. In thinking about Gladwell’s ideas, I can see great value in utilizing them to make positive changes to address these issues—to “deliberately start and control positive epidemics of our own.” I invite you to read the book. Learn about the three roles of people who translate the ideas into a language others can understand and, in turn, facilitate massive and dramatic change given the right context:
Are you one of these? Given that it’s September, and we’re just coming off of summer, it can seem like a quiet time around the chapter, but there is a lot of great activity brewing. The committees are coming into full swing, with several already having had successful and well-attended meetings with lots of new faces appearing. Your talented and enthusiastic leadership team is developing diverse and exciting programs for you. Whether by giving you an idea about how to improve your practice (discussion groups, dinner meetings, the Partners’ Forum or the Leadership Training Institute), creating an opportunity for community outreach (financial literacy events) or making a connection with a resource or new client (Sept. 16 - ABC Night), our chapter is setting the stage as a vehicle for positive change. What more can I say about The Tipping Point … read the book! I’d love to hear your thoughts and to see you “M/C/Ss” in action. Let’s start our own positive epidemics! See you at ABC Night Sept. 16! — Michele Day, CPA
The Importance of Being There … Not Just EarnestJuly 28th, 2008
The weather may sing the “dog days of summer”—those lazy, hot days of summer when little gets done—but for CalCPA and the East Bay Chapter, it’s anything but. There’s been a great deal of activity planning the year’s events, including some that already have occurred. Since our last newsletter, the Council and Annual Members Business meetings were held in Hawaii in late June. See Joelyn Carr-Fingerle’s article, which relates her experience and discusses the main issues that were addressed. At our July chapter meeting, we had an inspiring evening and a wonderful bridging of the long-term and the very new in our chapter. We were honored with the presence of our newly installed statewide chair, Greg Burke, who brought his message directly to us. It also was Past Presidents’ Night, when we acknowledge the past presidents of our chapter, whose service spans decades. Before the meeting, the Membership Committee, led by Jamie Menasco (kudos!), presented a New Member Orientation to CPAs who are new to our chapter and profession. A power-packed evening to say the least! Speaking of power-packed, the deadline for applying for the Leadership Institute is nearly upon us. It’s a wonderful program, which I had the privilege of attending a few years ago. Check out Jamie Menasco’s article about her experience—I bet you’ll be moved to consider (and hopefully, take action to) apply yourself. It’s great hearing from you … Among other developments, we now have a new QuickBooks Users Group Chair, Iana Zemniakova, who responded to the call in the last bulletin. (Thanks, Iana, and welcome.) Look for more on the meetings she has planned in upcoming announcements. Spread the word—remember, one doesn’t have to be a chapter member to attend our events. New Volunteer Opportunities in Financial Literacy—A Request for Your Response I’m looking forward to seeing you and sharing the experience of our upcoming events with you—and your guests. —Michele Day, CPA
Ambassadors, All!June 26th, 2008
Your leadership team (board of directors and committee chairs) already has many programs and events in the works. Be sure to check for schedule updates in both the Bulletin and on the website. Our theme this year is: Increased involvement through inclusion, corroboration and communication. We are stronger as individuals, a chapter and a profession when we work together and with other financial professionals. Instead of only looking for growth through additional members, I’d also like to see more involvement from current members. In my experience, the more involved we are in our chapter, the more value we receive. As noted in my last column, we have goals in the following three areas: Inclusion/Involvement Goal: Six guests at dinner meetings; two to three at other chapter events.
Invite them to the next program you attend. If the person is a financial professional in industry, let them know about our Financial Leadership Forum, which delivers continuing education and other benefits specifically designed for professionals in business and industry. Public practice members may even want to attend. Here is the good news. There’s no way you can lose. Have you ever been invited to a function but couldn’t go? It felt good to be invited anyway, didn’t it? So even if you extend the invitation and the person can’t attend, you’ve begun building a relationship and letting them know of the value that CalCPA (and you!) offers them. Also, remember the CAP card. It’s still a great value and is transferable. So if you can’t attend one of the events, send someone else in your office. And don’t forget, guests can attend at 50 percent off! The main message is: We’re ALL AMBASSADORS for CalCPA the profession and our chapter. Financial Literacy Goal: To add two community workshops. We’re collaborating with another professional group to bring a financial literacy day to an East Bay community through its assemblymember . I’ll provide more details as this unfolds. Let’s reach out to the community! Accounting Education Initiative Support Goal: CalCPA Chair Greg Burke will roll out his initiative and enlighten us about the state of the profession at our chapter’s July 15 dinner meeting. Let’s have a great showing to welcome Greg. We are especially honored to traditionally be the first chapter that is addressed by the new state chair. We’ll also show a short video about the changes we face that will really knock your socks off. Next Dinner Meeting: Tuesday, July 15, Past Presidents’ Night with an address by CalCPA Chair Greg Burke. We’ll also have a new-member orientation. Let’s build a bridge that spans from our most senior to our newest members. There is value in the wisdom and experience of our past presidents and our 40-year members, as well as the fresh perspective brought by our newest members to the chapter and profession. Hope to see you (and your guest) Tuesday, July 15 at Scott’s in Oakland—ambassadors all! —Michele Day, CPA
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