Archive for the ‘President's Message’ CategoryTax Season is Upon UsFebruary 25th, 2010
Thank you to the contingent of chapter members that represented us at CPA Day at the Capitol Jan. 20. It was a successful day (and a very rainy one, too). We received lots of positive feedback from our legislators and their staffs. Thanks to everyone who participated: Lynette Atchley, James Counts, Derrick DeBruyne, Kathy Johnson, Alex Lemos, Mayra Meza, Johanna Sweaney Salt, Danielle Witten and program associate Monica Thompson. Once again, happy tax season to you all and see you in April!
Happy New YearJanuary 1st, 2010
A Successful MonthNovember 24th, 2009
During the meeting we were privileged to hear from Dr. Esmael Adibi from Chapman University, who led us through his economic forecast. Adibi’s presentation was enlightening, and, dare I say, cautiously hopeful? We also received a legislative update and were pleased to hear—and celebrate—that the governor signed the bills related to accounting issues. This council meeting also had an emphasis on our organization’s young and emerging professionals, many of whom were in attendance, and featured a round table discussion about issues revolving around that part of our membership. The chapter celebrated CalCPA’s 100th anniversary Nov. 6. CalCPA Chair Andrea Cope was in attendance and spoke to those assembled. Our chapter was also pleased to recognize our 40-year members, as well as present our Public Service and Distinguished Service awards to Paul Sundeen and Richard Teaman, respectively. We enjoyed a great evening, and I would like to offer a personal word of thanks to all those who made the evening such a success. November featured a successful YEP networking event Nov. 11. Thanks to YEP co-chairs Miel Rey and Alex Lemos for their tireless work in planning and executing programs for our YEPs this year. Our chapter’s A&A event also was a great success. Mark Dauberman came and spoke to us about codification and the new SSARS standards. Having just celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday and December beginning, I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very pleasant holiday season. — Evan R. Strano, CPA
Great Events Coming Your Way in NovemberOctober 23rd, 2009
First, a thank you to co-chairs Alex Lemos and Miel Rey for their efforts in putting on our YEP/Student Scholarship Event. We also had a successful MAP/B&I meeting thanks to Johanna Sweaney Salt and Kathy Johnson.
Welcoming Fall and New Chapter EventsSeptember 23rd, 2009
This year October brings several events for our chapter. First, we are hosting the YEP/Student Scholarship event Friday, Oct. 16, at UC Riverside. The student breakout session will include a keynote speaker and a panel discussion followed by the awards ceremony. The young and emerging professional breakout session will feature 2.5 hours of CPE. The evening will include a time for honing a very important skill for both of these groups: networking. Tuesday, Oct. 27 brings a new event for our chapter that is jointly presented by the Business & Industry and Management of an Accounting Practice committees. The topics for the evening will be employment law and marketing during a crisis. Don’t forget to mark your calendar for the Friday, Nov. 6, Chapter Gala at the Mission Inn in Riverside celebrating CalCPA’s Centennial. We will acknowledge our 40-year members, as well as award our Community Service and Public Service awards. CalCPA Chair Andrea Cope will join us for the festivities.
Ready, Set, GoAugust 28th, 2009
This year the chapter is starting our event schedule with a meeting sponsored by the Litigation Committee, which has been working hard to put together what promises to be timely and informative meeting. October is just around the corner and will feature our monthly event, which is being jointly presented by the Business & Industry and the Management of an Accounting Practice committees. This meeting will feature speakers talking about employment law and marketing during a crisis. The annual Student Scholarship/YEP event will take place Friday, Oct. 16, at UC Riverside. We will have several interesting speakers. Don’t forget to mark Friday, Nov. 6, to attend our gala at the Mission Inn in Riverside to celebrate CalCPA’s 100th year. We will acknowledge our 40-year members and award our Community Service and Public Service awards. CalCPA Chair Andrea Cope will join us for the festivities. Hope you all enjoyed your summer and are all geared up for a terrific autumn. See you soon!
The Start of a Great YearJuly 22nd, 2009
One of the most informative sessions of the council meeting was the legislative update. There are several bills important to our profession that are moving through the state Legislature. CalCPA has been contacting the appropriate representatives, to inform them about these issues. You can see the status of statutory and legislative issues affecting the profession on the CalCPA website. At the local level, our chapter will celebrate CalCPA’s 100th year at a gala event in November. At this time we will also acknowledge our 40-year members. Please plan on coming out to this event! More information will follow soon. Your leadership team has been busy planning events for you this year. We will start our activities in September with a meeting sponsored by our Litigation Committee. The October meeting is being presented jointly by the Business & Industry and Management of an Accounting Practice committees and should prove to be very informative. In October we also will hold our Student Scholarship/YEP event. During the year we will host several other opportunities for CPE and networking, in addition to the events that I have mentioned. More detailed information will be available as the event dates draw near. As always, remember to make use of CalCPA’s website and its numerous resources. — Evan R. Strano, CPA
A New Year BeginsMay 19th, 2009
I am privileged to have an excellent group of chapter officers: Mark Erickson (past president), Johanna Sweaney Salt (first vice president), Kathy Johnson (second vice president), Lynette Atchley (treasurer) and Andy Anderson (secretary) behind me this year, as well as a great extended leadership team. The members of this team come to this year with many years of experience and honorable service to this chapter and the profession. Thank you to all for your service and dedication. In the past few years the chapter has launched several new initiatives, including outreach to young and emerging professionals and financial literacy. Last year also saw our first webcasts of chapter events. This year we will continue with these as well as other important programs and services. This year will also see important legislation in Sacramento that will affect the value of our licenses and our ability to practice across state lines. These initiatives need the support of the entire membership. Each one of us should to take pride in our profession and get involved in continuing the work of CalCPA promoting and protecting what it means to be a CPA in California and around the world. A highlight for this year will be our chapter’s gala event for CalCPA’s Centennial. Mark your calendars for the evening of Nov. 6 when we will come together and celebrate 100 years of our profession in California. Please consider sponsoring a table (or two) for this evening. It will be an event you won’t want to miss. Once again, thank you for the opportunity to serve you as your 2009-10 chapter president. Enjoy your summer. See you in the fall.
Thank YouMay 1st, 2009
The year started with our leadership retreat where CalCPA Chair Greg Burke shared his strategic plan and vision with the chapter’s leadership team. He provided us with a framework to better focus our efforts at a chapter level. To continue our emphasis on networking opportunities, we hosted several social events at Dave and Buster’s in Ontario. These were all well attended and offered students and professionals alike the opportunity to develop valuable relationships and have a great time in the process. Our chapter was the first to webcast a chapter meeting, which we did during our September meeting on peer review. There were several who participated in the webcast and their feedback was very positive. Next was our Young and Emerging Professionals seminar that provided different tracks for students and working professionals. The event attracted more than 170 participants, many of whom said it provided real value. Students were privileged to hear many of the important changes impacting our profession from Don Driftmier, the then-president of the California Board of Accountancy. Driftmier returned to the chapter, along with Bruce Allen, CalCPA’s director of government relations, to provide a presentation on the “state of the profession” to our local members. The chapter was again innovative by recording this event and posting it as a podcast on our website. We also went on to post our December tax meeting as a podcast. With the absence of the donated eight-hour CalCPA Education Foundation course this year, the chapter pioneered a new chapter meeting format to provide members with similar benefits. We offered a four-times two-hour event in January where we provided four two-hour courses with cutting-edge content, such as IFRS and XBRL. Again, we received very complimentary feedback. The chapter remained committed to the Young and Emerging Professionals initiative as well. In addition to the seminar mentioned above, we hosted two Young and Emerging Professional roundtables where students and young professionals provided valuable input on to how best to serve this audience going forward. And of course, Johanna Sweaney Salt continued her very successful MAP Interest Group meetings. This is where I stop to take a breath. There were a variety of other activities and volunteer efforts throughout the year that added value to our local members—too many to mention. The one person who worked the hardest and was responsible for much of the success we realized is Monica Thompson, our chapter’s program associate. A very big thank you goes out to her! The good news for our chapter members is that the majority of the leadership team responsible for the success of the year just concluding is returning this coming year. I encourage you to consider volunteering in a chapter leadership position. It is a very rewarding experience and the leadership skills developed and the relationships gained are invaluable. Again, thank you for the honor and privilege of serving you this year. Respectfully,
Take a Deep BreathApril 1st, 2009
I wish you a prosperous tax season and a time of rest and relaxation after the 15th. Respectfully,
Opportunity?March 1st, 2009
The chapter’s January 4X2-hour event was a great success. There were positive comments from the attendees on the new format that provided four two-hour sessions on a variety of subjects. As a reminder, these events are available as podcasts on our website. January also included our winter CalCPA Council meeting and CPA Day at the Capitol. Be sure to read the articles below that summarize these two important events—and a big thank you to second vice president Johanna Sweaney Salt and past president Scott Hofferber for their attendance at these events and their valuable insights in these articles. We began February with a young and emerging professionals event, which included a presentation by a representative from Toastmasters who provided valuable tips and recommendations on public speaking to several emerging leaders. Congratulations to co-chairs Ted Collins and Patrick Cabildo on facilitating this exciting event. I am excited to remind you about our March 18 social at Dave & Buster’s, but sad that this will be the last social for my term as president. I encourage you to join me and other chapter leaders in this important networking opportunity and have a great time in the process. These events have been selling out, so register soon. I have been so blessed to work with such a dedicated and talented group of chapter leaders and to have the most skilled program associate in Monica Thompson. They have all made our events this year a success and have increased the value of membership to our local members. Take the opportunity to get involved. You will not regret your decision. Respectfully,
AbundanceFebruary 2nd, 2009
But when we examine “abundance” in our lives shouldn’t the scope of our assessment go beyond monetary considerations? Didn’t our abundant freedoms remain intact? Did we ever go hungry? Did the spiraling economy steal the precious moments we had with family and friends? In 2008 either our health was good or there were abundant resources available to address our medical needs. More than 90 percent of us have jobs. Have you stopped to look at the snow-covered peaks this winter? Weren’t there abundant opportunities to help others and in doing so, didn’t we experience an abundance of joy? Indeed, there was abundance in 2008! Over the next couple weeks (but before this article is published) the Inland Empire will have hosted its first 4 X 2-hour chapter event and I will have participated in our winter Council meeting and CPA Day at the Capitol. I am hopeful many of you were able to attend the 4 X 2-hour event. As I write this, I am excited about and look forward to CPA Day. We will be educating legislators primarily on the need to mandate the 150-hour requirement for licensure. California is one of only four states that have not enacted a mandatory 150-requirement for licensure. We stand to be severely impacted by not being a substantially equivalent state. Read more here. CalCPA staff and volunteers have met with several legislators at their district sites and will continue to meet with those who have not yet been visited. Please consider volunteering for this important advocacy effort. Find more details on how you can participate. Please be reminded that the chapter is posting its chapter meetings as podcasts on our website. Our October State of the Profession meeting, our December tax meeting and our January 4 X 2-hour events are now posted. These podcast are available to members only, so a membership password is necessary to gain access. And one more time! Our last Inland Empire Guest Social is scheduled for Wednesday, March 18 at Dave & Buster’s in Ontario. Please join us for a mid-tax season or pre-finals break. For those who haven’t attended, this is a great opportunity to network and rub shoulders in a very casual environment. I promise a good time. So let’s proceed into 2009 with grateful hearts over the true abundance in our lives, never forgetting to help the less fortunate, so that we can experience the blessing that can only come from lifting others up. Respectfully,
Looking Ahead, But First …January 1st, 2009
My pastor has been with many people on their deathbeds when the most intimate of conversations occur. As these people assess their lives, he explains that their biggest regrets are always not spending more time with their families and friends. Unfortunately, there is no do-over when we get to this place. So, as you look back to assess last year and make necessary adjustments to your schedules this year, put a high priority on your relationships. It will always yield the greatest return. I just came from our Dec. 9 annual tax meeting where Shannon Carlson of Ahern Adcock Devlin, LLP delivered an update on the multitude of tax legislation impacting tax practitioners this year, as well as a detailed look at like-kind exchanges. The presentation was audio recorded and will soon be posted to the Inland Empire website as a podcast. As a reminder, a podcast of our state of the profession event is available on our chapter’s website now. I want to remind you of and encourage your participation in our in our Jan. 14 4 X 2 chapter event. This will be a new format that provides four two-hour sessions for a total of eight hours of continuing education. The program will include sessions on international accounting standards (IFRS), XBRL reporting, banking and credit market changes, and a compilation and review update. Come find out how and why IFRS and XBRL will impact business as usual. All four sessions are available for only $196 for members. Don’t miss this great value. (Note: you need to register for each session separately) Please keep in mind that the Inland Empire leadership team is at your disposal if you have questions, concerns or recommendations. I wish you a prosperous and successful new year, a year that will yield fruit that brings contentment to your soul. Respectfully, — Mark Erickson, CPA
Busy SeasonNovember 19th, 2008
October was a busy month for the chapter. The month started with a tremendously successful Young and Emerging Professionals Seminar, which I wrote to you about in the November president’s message. At the end of the month we hosted our first State of the Profession meeting. As I mentioned, we were privileged to have two men who are consistently in the trenches in Sacramento: Don Driftmier, president of the California Board of Accountancy, and Bruce Allen, CalCPA’s director of government relations. The discussion was fascinating and informative. The podcast is available for CalCPA members on the Inland Empire website. Lastly, Johanna Sweaney Salt continued her MAP interest group with a book study of “Managing the Professional Service Firm” by David H. Maister. There has been very positive feedback from this group. This past week I participated in the CalCPA Finance Committee and Council meetings. The council meeting placed a great deal of emphasis on upcoming legislative issues on the calendar in 2009. Legislation on mobility and the 150-hour requirement, to name a couple, will most likely be introduced and voted on by our representatives in Sacramento. These key pieces of legislation are critical for California CPAs to remain competitive with our counterparts in other states. There is a tremendous amount at stake and if you are unfamiliar with the issues, I urge you to review this article online and educate yourself on these very important issues, and review other mobility material on the CalCPA website. Our annual tax meeting is scheduled for Dec. 9, 12:30–4:30 p.m., and will be held at the Mission Inn in Riverside. Click here for details. Remember, too, that we will host a 4 X 2-hour event in January that will include such content as IFRS and XBRL. You will be able to attend all four classes for only $195. This is a great value that you shouldn’t miss. Remember to slow down and celebrate the reason for the season with those you hold dear. Your memories are depending on it. Respectfully,
The Lost Art of IntegrityOctober 17th, 2008
Yes, no and no. True integrity has always been based on a covenant—not contractual—relationship with our business partners. Contracts guide us to act in a way that doesn’t violate the contract. A covenant relationship, though, demands that we always act in the best interest of our business partner despite the contract. Hence, this may lead to outcomes that are not in our best interest—at least temporarily. Trust strengthens relationships and a covenant mentality always builds trust. So do we make a buck today or build a relationship that lasts a lifetime? Which is more profitable? Many understand this and many do not. I’m not sure why this is the case, but it is clear there are many factors that shape a person’s motives. I am sure that the environment in which we are raised has a significant impact. So what can we, as individuals, do? The obvious: insist on an environment where our own families and business associates see us operating with integrity at all times and in all things. Next, take the opportunity to speak to an impressionable audience at a high school or a college through one of the many exciting programs supported by CalCPA. Integrity should always be woven into your presentation and should be central to who we are and what we do as CPAs. It should always be a banner that we are proud to wave. I know that, for the most part, I am preaching to the choir. I have many close friends in the profession and I am awed by their unwavering integrity. Hopefully, for some, it can at least be a point of reflection. I know it is for me as I face daily ethical challenges. So I challenge you to do what is right, not to exercise your rights. I want to conclude my message by echoing a big thank you to the many who made our Young and Emerging Professionals Seminar a great success. Every session was filled with valuable insights that were evidenced by a plethora of glowing remarks. It was again a multi-chapter effort: Brett Stubbs and Loni Ang from the Los Angeles Chapter and Rick Rayson from the Orange County/Long Beach Chapter provided priceless, career-enhancing information to our participants. And, I want to extend a big thank you to Don Driftmier, president of the California Board of Accountancy, for sharing the very important changes impacting our profession and other thought-provoking ideas and concepts. And last, thank you to Inland Empire members who provided the bulk of the support for the event: Rod LeMond, Barbara Bowlby, Evan Strano, Johanna Sweaney Salt, Ernie Cooper, Brent Mason, Ginger Simonton and the one who worked the hardest, Monica Thompson. Integrity: In their best interests. Respectfully,
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I hope those of you with a large tax practice are having a smooth tax season so far. I know that you are focused on getting through client appointments, reviews and the myriad of tasks that accompany tax season. Before you know it will be April 15 and then our golf tournament will be quickly upon us. Remember to save the date of May 17. The tournament will be at Redlands Country Club and will once again benefit our chapter’s scholarship fund. More information will be on its way soon.
