Winning Through Passivity

No, we're not talking about indexed investments.

Here's a phrase you'd do well to learn, if it isn't familiar already: "passive candidate."

That's headhunter-speak for an employed person who is not seeking a new job. Odd as it might seem, recruiters – retained search firms especially – go ga-ga over these non-candidate candidates. So much so that many will routinely snub any candidate who initiates contact with them (whether through answering a job posting, sending a resume, or some other form of approach), in favor of candidates who the recruiter reached out to first.

Does that seem silly? Then you're on the same page as Ronald Katz, president of Penguin Human Resource Consulting. In a recent post on ere.net, Katz exhorts his peers in the HR and recruiting communities:

What is it that makes us question the motives of people looking for jobs? Aren’t we making our jobs harder by only looking for the flaws in active candidates? I’m all for screening applicants, but lately I’ve seen recruiters time after time shooting themselves in the foot.

Are we back in high school playing “hard to get”?

…..

There are all kinds of reasons that people are actively looking for work, and most of them do not cast a pall on the applicant. … We may find ourselves ignoring proactive, experienced team players with solid business experience just because they are actively looking for a job. Since when did looking for a better job become the mark of Cain?

The piece details diverse reasons why individuals do and don't actively search for jobs. It thoroughly debunks the myth (popular among headhunters) that passive candidates usually end up being better and more stable workers than active candidates.

But Katz overlooks an entirely different reason why retained recruiters prefer passive candidates – a reason unrelated to quality. To justify their fees, clients expect a recruiter to dig for hard-to-find candidates, as opposed to taking the lazy man's road of advertising on job boards or mining a database of resumes posted by active job-seekers. (I shouldn't have to say this, but any recruiter's client is not you; it's the employer whose opening they're working to fill.)

So whether recruiters are behaving rationally or not, you'll probably get more interviews and more offers if you can position yourself as a passive candidate. That means, instead of pursuing headhunters directly, do things that make it easy for headhunters to find you. Make yourself visible within your profession, and get evidence of your expertise and your achievements onto the Internet where recruiters will find it through search engines.

Get published or quoted in the trade press. Take a leadership role in your professional association or its local chapter. Each time you win an award or achieve some other professional milestone, send a brief notice to your alumni association(s) and any professional groups you belong to. When your exploit appears on the group's Web site, you've gone a long way toward establishing yourself as a passive candidate.

Some professionals may be able to go still further, by maintaining their own career Web site or even publishing their own blog. Before taking that step, carefully assess whether it could jeopardize your current job. Some companies and industries bar employees from publishing anything anywhere without prior approval. Lately there have been a handful of media reports about individuals fired by investment banks after they were caught blogging - even though the bloggers had published under pseudonyms and had never named their employers on their blogs.

What’s So Great About Passive Candidates? [ere.net]

The Kitchen Sink

Career coach George Stone, who once headed a top outplacement firm, offers a broad compendium of basic advice about numerous facets of the job-hunting process. It includes tips for conceptualizing and organizing your job search, goal-setting, marketing, networking, interviewing, and just about anything else related to finding a new job - all in just 700 words. Here's our story.

A Little Good News

Here’s a little spark of good news on the employment front: two-thirds of U.S. employers say they’re going to hold steady on hiring in the first quarter of 2009, while 16 percent plan to increase hiring and 13 percent plan to lay off workers, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.

The survey asked about 32,000 employers in 201 metro areas: “How do you anticipate total employment at your location to change in the three months to the end of March 2009 as compared to the current quarter.”

While it won’t tell you if your boss is planning to pink slip you tomorrow, you can take a look at what’s happening in your area by checking the state and city results at Manpower’s media Web page (use the drop-down box to pick your state).

Among 13 industry sectors, professional and business services had the second highest net employment outlook: 23 percent of firms planned to hire, 12 percent to decrease staff and 60 percent anticipated no changes.

Surprisingly, some companies in the financial activities sector -- which pretty much every indicator shows shed record numbers of jobs in 2008 – actually say they’re planning to increase staff. Although 71 percent of companies weren’t planning to add or subtract staff, 15 percent planned to hire, while only 10 percent planned to decrease staff in the first quarter of 2009, the survey found.

At the risk of pouring sour milk on your cornflakes, here are the top five cities (it’s actually more than that because some cities tied) with the weakest net employment outlook:

1. Barnstable Town, Mass.
2. Port St. Lucie, Fla., Reno, Nev. and San Diego
3. Flint, Mich.
4. Merced, Calif., Toledo, Ohio, and San Jose, Calif.
5. Wilmington and Greensboro. N.C., and Detroit

To end on a positive note, here are the top five cities with the strongest net employment outlook (FYI, mining was the number one strongest sector):

1. Lafayette, La.
2. Beaumont, Tex.
3. Houston, Tex.
4. Amarillo, Tex., Burlington, Vt.
5. Des Moines

Auditing's Minority Retention Problem

The auditing profession's reputation as an attractive career isn't borne out by retention numbers for minority and female accountants, says the co-chairman of a government advisory committee on the profession's future.

Diversity within audit firms is limited to the lower levels, says Donald Nicolaisen. Nicolaisen, a former SEC chief accountant, and former SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt served as co-chairs of the U.S. Treasury Department's Advisory Committee on the Auditing Profession. The panel issued its final report on Sept. 26.

Audit firms hire many women and minorities at entry level, but few of them stay, Nicolaisen told an auditing conference at Baruch College last week. There are few women in management, and even fewer minorities, he noted. The committee's 219-page report states:

In 2007, 1.0 percent of the partners in the six largest accounting firms were African American, 1.6 percent were Hispanic/Latino, 3.4 percent were Asian, and less than 1.0 percent were Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander or American Indian/Alaska Native, aggregating less than 7 percent of the total partners.

Minorities made up 21 percent of all 2007 accounting graduates, and 31.3 percent of new hires at the six largest accounting firms. (Most of the latter, 21.3 percent, were Asian.) Yet almost none stick around long enough to obtain CPA licenses: In 2007, just 7 percent of CPAs were minorities, about the same representation as among partners. The advisory committee report observes:

… this under-representation of minorities in the profession is unacceptable from both a societal and business perspective. As the demographics of the global economy continue to expand ethnic diversity, it is imperative that the profession also reflect these changes. The auditing profession’s historic role in performing audits in an increasingly diverse global setting and in establishing investor trust cannot be maintained unless the profession itself is viewed as open and representative.

Its recommendations for addressing the problem include:

- Recruit minorities into the auditing profession from other disciplines and careers.

- Create focused minority retention programs, such as mentoring.

- Work with community colleges to recruit more minorities into the auditing profession.

- Cooperate with historically black colleges and universities by offering cross-sabbaticals for faculty to work in audit firms, and internships for students.

- Institute programs to encourage minorities to pursue doctoral degrees in accounting, such as the KPMG Foundation's successful PhD Project.

Say What You Want Online. Ha.

We’ve written before about how important it is to be sure what you do or say online doesn’t come back to haunt you. But, because I’m continually amazed at how resistant people are to the idea of keeping things clean on their Facebook or MySpace pages, I’ll write about it again. This item by Sarah Perez on ReadWriteWeb gave me the starting point.

You may have heard about Stacy Snyder, who was dropped from the teaching program at Millersville University of Pennsylvania because she posted a picture of herself on MySpace, with a drink, the caption “Drunken Pirate,” and some words about the supervisor of her student-teaching position.

She sued the school, and lost. The court said her student-teaching status made her an employee, and so her free speech was only protected if it touched on public concerns.

Perez, put together an excellent, detailed description of the case. I’ll sum it up:

Woman wants a career in education. Woman is a less-than-stellar student teacher, with some negative reviews. Woman posts on MySpace: “I have nothing to hide. I am over 21, and I don’t say anything that will hurt me (in the long run). Plus, I don’t think that they would stoop that low as to mess with my future.” Woman posts tacky picture on MySpace. Woman doesn’t make them private. Supervisors see them. School fires her. College doesn’t give her degree in education. Woman sues. Woman loses.

Perez makes this note:

Synder may have needed more coaching in how to be a professional - the very thing that student-teaching is designed for - but it hardly negates her years of completed course work towards her education degree. So in the end, it really was her MySpace mistake that lost her the degree after all. And if that isn’t a tale that has you rushing out to manage your profile page’s privacy settings right now, then it’s hard to imagine what will.

Not long ago, I gave a talk to some undergrads about careers and was asked whether or not they should worry about what they post on their online profiles. I said they should. I was surprised at how much push back I got, with several kids arguing that, basically, they were entitled to their private lives and no one should hold their personal Web pages against them. I’ve seen others make that argument - often on Career blogs, which stuns me. Right or wrong, whether you like it or not, employers and bosses are going to see your posts, and it’s going to impact how the feel about you. The company you work for today may be laid back about these things, but you don’t know how your next boss will be. Of course, during this talk I was responding to a hypthetical question.

So let’s go back to the real world:

So in the end, it really was her MySpace mistake that lost her the degree after all. And if that isn’t a tale that has you rushing out to manage your profile page’s privacy settings right now, then it’s hard to imagine what will.

Recruiting Video Was a Parody, Says Author

Two days ago (Dec. 3) we described what we considered an over-the-top video designed to recruit financial advisors away from Merrill Lynch (about to be absorbed by Bank of America) and Wachovia (set to be acquired by Wells Fargo).

Its creator, Darin Manis of Colorado recruiting firm RJ and Makay, has responded. Here's what Darin says:

The video was meant to be a parody on what has happened with the financial sector this year and how aggressive recruiting has become for Financial Advisors.

Most of the response we have received from advisors has been positive and most have thought it was a humorous video. There are a lot of inside jokes that people who aren't advisors likely wouldn't get.

We make fun of ourselves (as recruiters) and poke fun at a some others as well. Our other videos have been of such a serious nature that we wanted to have a bit of humor in this latest release.

Opportunities in Restructuring

CFOs and controllers who steered one company through a financial recovery are finding their experience is in demand at other distressed businesses, accounting firms, and especially at consulting organizations specializing in workout and restructuring efforts. Bankruptcy and restructuring consulting work requires more than financial expertise – it also calls for experience "on the ground," with strategy, capital investment and dealing with creditors. Here's our story.

IFRS is the Next SOX

Looking ahead, it’s easy to predict that International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) could become the next SOX – an area where the supply of accountants who know the subject falls short of the number of companies who need that expertise.

The fact that IFRS is coming to America is definitely sinking in. More than half of all CPAs nationwide say they’re getting ready to adopt IFRS, according to a survey released by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).

"The Security and Exchange Commission’s proposed roadmap calling for U.S. adoption of international standards by 2014 is clearly getting people’s attention,” said Arleen Thomas, AICPA senior vice president for member competency and development. “What our tracking survey shows is that CPAs are increasingly aware that international standards are coming and are starting to feel a real need to get training and gain expertise in this new area.”

Fifty-five percent of about 1,500 CPA surveyed by AICPA said they were preparing in a variety of ways for adoption of IFRS. That’s up 14 percentage points from the 41 percent who were preparing for change according to an AICPA survey in April.

You’re going to have to learn IFRS anyway, so why not get a leap on the competition and pick up the knowledge ASAP. Start with the backgrounder on the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) Web site .

Then take a class with your state CPA association or the AICPA (courses are typically open to non-members). The CPA review firms have also begun offering IFRS seminars.

Then, if there’s a committee preparing a set of test IFRS statements at your firm, get on it. If there isn’t, start one and viola, instant expert status.

Student Aps Up at Deloitte Scotland

In Scotland, Deloitte has seen a 34 percent uptick in applicants from students set to graduate in 2009, according to a feature in The Scotsman.

The Edinburgh paper reports that while other firms are laying off staff, Deloitte plans to hire the same number of students next year that it hired this year.

The Scotsman’s Jane Bradley writes:

Deloitte said that applications in Scotland have been increasing for the past few years, but that concern about student debt and the availability of graduate positions had encouraged more to apply early for 2009.

Over the UK as a whole, applications rose by 40 per cent. Jim Boyle, talent partner for Deloitte in Scotland, said: "I've found that some graduates who might ordinarily take a post-university gap year have been applying to Deloitte during their final year rather than wait until they return…"

Sarah Shillingford, graduate recruitment partner at Deloitte, added: "The current economic climate has not affected our graduate recruitment plans. At this stage, we are anticipating around 1,000 graduate vacancies, broadly the same number of graduates as previous years. A number of graduate recruiters have cut back on recruitment figures and, as a result, more students are competing for our positions than ever before."

The company added that graduates were keen to secure a stable job amid rising student debt.

That’s a very interesting remark given that the average student debt in Scotland is about $17,000. But, back to the story:

Shillingford added: "Students graduating in 2009 face a tougher job market than those who graduated in previous years. The value attributed to job security by students is higher than I have seen before, both in terms of the employers they are attracted to and the timing of their applications."

Here at home, a Deloitte spokesperson declined to say whether the company has seen a simliar increase in applications from students, but our best guess is that if it's happening there, it's happening here, too.

Gloves-Off Recruiting

Sharks in the water. Stacks of bills. Flaming martinis. A big bank's chief executive struggling to hold tight while riding a charging bull.

Those are just a few of the strikingly un-subtle images in a YouTube video a Colorado recruiting firm is using to persuade retail financial advisors to leave Merrill Lynch, Wachovia and other big financial services firms that are either being acquired or are on life support.

Financial advisors, the heart of any institution's sales force, see themselves as independent business owners whose income derives from the client assets they manage or bring in. Now, pending mergers have placed a large chunk of the U.S. advisor community "in play." That's setting off a feeding frenzy among rival institutions and headhunters competing for the allegiance of these brokers, who control tens of billions of dollars in household wealth.

Near the center of the battle is Darin Manis, chief executive of financial services recruiting and consulting firm RJ & Makay, in Colorado Springs. A video featured on RJ & Makay's Web site is an anthem of the hard-sell approach to recruiting. It revels in jangling music and seductive images of cash that awaits brokers who choose rival banks' "transition" packages over the "retention" packages that Bank of America and Wells Fargo are offering advisors from Merrill Lynch and Wachovia, respectively. And it delights in bad-mouthing the competition.

"The deals are hot. You'll be a better golfer. The deals are sky-high," the video proclaims. It goes on to warn that "your executive management" – presumably, meaning Merrill Lynch/B of A – "is taking care of themselves. They didn't forget about their retention deals." Cue to photos of a luxury car, secluded beachfront, resort villa, yacht, corporate jet, and fat-cat cartoon. RJ & Makay ridicules one wire house for giving advisors "flat-screen TVs as their retention package" (a joke, apparently) – then asserts that Merrill's retention packages from Bank of America are even worse.

The ironic thing is, Darin Manis is one of the more thoughtful voices in the career management arena. His blog contains numerous detailed and useful advice articles for job-seekers, on topics ranging from sanitizing your professional contact information, to personal career Web sites, to recovering from interview mistakes.

But business is business. And recruiting sure can be a crude business at times.

RJ & Makay Video To Financial Advisors [RJ & Makay]

SEC: Don't Save Money By Cutting Compliance

Some good news for compliance specialists: The SEC says financial firms shouldn't consider compliance an area for cost-cutting.

In an open letter to the chief executives of registered financial firms, Lori Richards, the commission's director of compliance inspections and examinations, admonishes firms to "be vigilant and proactive" in making sure their follow accepted practices.

While many firms are considering reductions and cost-cutting measures, we remind you of your firm's legal obligation to maintain an adequate compliance program reasonably designed to achieve compliance with the law.

And:

Firms must be vigilant and proactive in preventing, detecting and correcting problems that could occur. Firms should pay attention to ensuring that their interactions with investors meet high standards, that sales and trading practices are appropriate, that financial, valuation and risk controls are followed, and that all disclosure obligations are met - as well as meeting all other obligations in conformity with the securities laws.

Compliance is one area of Wall Street that's experienced continued demand and relative security in total compensation. In tough times, insiders say, firms need to retain professionals who are overseeing critical legal and regulatory functions. So not only will some firms be adding in this area, bonuses may reward compliance officers and analysts across a range of specialized areas.

Ex-Bankers Make Good Accounting Candidates

If hordes of unemployed investment bankers and fund managers are contemplating a switch to finance-related jobs, Seiki Murono hasn't seen the evidence. The managing director of Boyden Global Executive Search's San Francisco office says he's received a few extra resumes from ex-bankers - but hardly an onslaught. Still, he thinks Wall Street's refugees could have a future in accounting, if they want it. Here's our story.

Another Nudge on IFRS

From California, James Rubin writes:

U.S. accountants who work internationally will have to learn a new set of standards and interpretations over the next five to 10 years as American firms adopt International Financial Reporting Standards. That was among the points touched on at a panel discussion last month at Town Hall Los Angeles. The event included Ian M. Eddleston, director of quality for the Pacific Southwest area of the assurance and advisory business services practice for Ernst & Young, Rosalind Tyson, regional director of the SEC's Los Angeles regional office and Brent A. Woodford, senior vice president, planning and control for the Walt Disney Company.

Kolb Hires Four

Kolb+Co., a management consulting and accounting firm in Brookfield, Wisc. that focuses on closely held businesses, recently announced four hires.

Johnnie Bannier, Jr., joined the firm as a tax specialist. He recently served in the U.S. Air Force, and holds a M.S. in accounting from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a B.S. in aeronautics from the University of North Dakota-Grand Forks.

Valerie Johnson joined as director of wealth management. She holds a Certified Financial Planner certification and has 28 years of experience in financial planning.

Randy Pinnow joined as a health care consultant. He is a CPA with more than 12 years of experience in the health care industry and a B.B.A. degree in accounting from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee.

Peter Schubilske joined as audit senior. He holds a CPA license and M.B.A. and B.B.A. degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Kolb+Co. SC Welcomes Four New Employees [Press release]

They're Having Some Fun Now

It's probably not a surprise economic pressures are weighing on the shoulders of chief financial officers, leading to unusually high turnover - but continued demand. Gordon Grand, head of CFO recruiting at Russell Reynolds Associates, calls CFO "the least secure job in America." Research by another search firm, Crist|Kolder Associates, bears that out: Nearly 20 percent of CFOs at the Fortune 500 and S&P 500 left their jobs in 2007, up from about 14 percent in 2006, says The Wall Street Journal.

Adding to the long-cited reasons for increasing pressures on CFOs – Sarbanes-Oxley and related responsibilities – are new challenges, like handling the credit crisis and a tanking economy.

When they leave, though, CFOs have options. "The surge in CFO turnover puts a premium on finance veterans," the Journal notes.

As demand for CFOs rises, so does pay. The median compensation for finance chiefs in the S&P 500 rose 5.2% to $2.9 million last year, including salary, bonuses, the value of equity grants and other compensation. The increase was bigger than the 1.3% jump in CEO compensation, according to data tracker Equilar Inc., of Redwood Shores, Calif.

That's the good news. On the flip side:

Some experts expect the high turnover to continue amid the slowing economy and depressed stock market. CFOs "will absolutely bear the brunt and, in some cases, take the fall," says George Herrmann of Right Management, a unit of Manpower Inc. "All of that stuff has really made the job, in a nutshell, less fun than it used to be."

They're Making Cuts in China, Too

The Shanghai Daily ran a feature last week about layoffs at KPMG’s China offices. Zhang Fengming writes in an off-the-cuff style that’s spread from Hong Kong’s English language papers to mainland cities: "Employees deemed to have performed poorly will be the first to lose their jobs.”

In addition to the layoffs in the auditing service offices in Shanghai, KPMG was also planning cuts in Bejing, according to an unnamed source.

Other interesting tidbits from The Daily:

Redundancies are rare in the industry in China, which has seen high growth in recent years with booming initial public offerings.

Ernst & Young, another of the big-four, said last week that it didn’t rule out salary cuts and job losses if the slowdown in the economy got worse.

Accounting firms are redeploying staff with the shrinking of IPOs and shifting emphasis to mergers and acquisition services and tax services.

PricewaterhouseCoopers is likely to cut flexible pay first in its Singapore office but no such move has been announced in China.

Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte bosses say they expect slower growth in China over the next few years. However, it still stood out as a market with higher growth when compared to the West.

Last Month's Poll

In the spirit of the election, last month we asked which candidate had the best understanding of accounting. The results:

• Barack Obama - 41%
• John McCain - 27%
  
• Ralph Nader - 13%
• Joe Biden - 10%
  
• Sarah Palin - 9%
  

Given the amount of attention the economy's going to get from the incoming administration, it may be a good sign that the election's winner earned such a score for his accounting acumen. We suppose some CPAs would argue that if people on Wall Street and in Washington had given more credence to basic accounting, maybe sub-prime mortgages wouldn't have become so very popular over the last few years.

Looking into the Gloom

Accountants have been more or less lucky this downturn: While other areas of finance have been imploding, demand hasn't let up for the likes of CPAs and tax specialists, and increased interest in risk management and compliance have pushed demand for people with accounting skills.

But now comes the latest quarterly survey by the AICPA and the University of North Carolina's Kenan-Flagler Business School, reporting:

Expectations for revenue, profits and employment showed their sharpest decline in the survey's history. Half of respondents expect revenue decreases and 55% expect profit decreases. Only 19% expect to be able to hire more employees. That figure was down from 38% in January.

The emphasis is mine. According to the Journal of Accountancy, the survey also found CFOs, CEOs and CPAs working in business and industry aren't very confident in the economic outlook:

• 36 percent either had or expected to freeze hiring, 31 percent reported layoffs or expected layoffs and/or compensation freezes, and 34 percent had restricted staff travel or planned to.
• 66 percent of the CPAs said their organization was being impacted by the credit crisis, up from 55 percent in April
• 8 percent of CPAs expect the economy to begin improving in the first half of 2009.

So, this isn't a tidal wave of bad news but it hints at some trends worth noting. What got my attention: The increasing impact of the credit crisis and the sinking rate of hiring expectations combined with planned or already implemented hiring freezes indicates the corporate finance job market is coming under pressure, like so many other areas of the business world.

Good News for Restructuring Specialists

As the economy drags more firms under, mid-size accounting firms may see a boost in their restructuring business, points out a feature in London’s Financial Times. Will the story be the same here in the United States? Jennifer Hughes writes:

The dominance of the Big Four in traditional accounting work is set to boost mid-tier rival BDO Stoy Hayward as it scoops uprestructuring work they are unable to take on, according to its head.

Simon Michaels, managing partner, said it was more likely that the Big Four firms, comprising PwC, KPMG, Ernst & Young and Deloitte, would find conflicts with their regular work, such as audit or advisory, for struggling companies, meaning his group could pick up the pieces.

BDO is working on the administration of Dawnay Day, the property and financial services group, and has taken on the independent valuation of Northern Rock, the nationalised bank. Both are among the biggest projects it has taken on and Mr. Michaels said it had the capacity for more.

"We find ourselves less conflicted than the Big Four so I can only see it going one way with us getting more of the work," he said.

The Big Four audit nearly all FTSE 250 members plus a significant proportion of smaller companies. Many groups will already have a relationship with two or more companies of the four, meaning theycould be ruled out of restructuring work for their clients.

The Wheels on the Bus go...

When the economy turns sour, you need to spend extra time looking over your shoulder because that's when people are more prone to blame someone else for problems they have caused, according to a management professor who studies behavior in the workplace.

"We're pretty obsessed with assigning blame in our culture. In the workplace, there usually are more challenges and failures during tough economic times, and because of self-serving attitudes, it's common to want to make sure the blame is on someone else," says Paul Harvey, assistant professor of management at the University of New Hampshire.

"It's a common human tendency for people to convince themselves that they are the cause of the good things but try to assign blame to others when things go wrong," Harvey says. "It's an ego defense mechanism that helps people feel good about themselves."

The history of accounting includes plenty of scapegoating. "For example, Enron fired Arthur Andersen in an apparent attempt to redirect at least some of the blame and criticism being targeted at Enron,” Harvey says. “Not to say Arthur Andersen did nothing wrong, but if the information the auditor receives from the company is flawed, it’s a bit of a stretch to say that the auditor shares in the blame for creating that information. Yes, Arthur Andersen should have been able to catch the deceptive numbers and their subsequent shredding of documents to cover their tracks didn't help their case, but to try to shift blame for lies that originated within Enron is a pretty clear (and fairly desperate) attempt at scapegoating.”

Being personally targeted as a scapegoat can be devastating, whether or not the allegations are true. If you're the target, trying to explain the real cause of and responsibility for the problem may appear as desperate excuses or, ironically, attempts to blame someone else.

And if the person throwing you under the bus happens to be your boss, the situation becomes even more complicated. "When that happens people usually have to stand their ground and hope that, over time, the facts help to vindicate them," Harvey says.

According to the professor, the better approach is to avoid being made a scapegoat by proactively making sure everyone knows your responsibilities and structural limitations beforehand when you see a problem developing.

Six Ways to Not Get the Job

If you want to know all the stupid things people do when job hunting, ask Ed Navis. He's been reading resumes for two decades as a human resources consultant to mid-size companies and non-profits. Here are the top six mistakes Navis see job hunters make.

I'll See You in Court

Finance-related lawsuits are booming, and criminal charges stemming from the housing and banking sector cataclysms may be coming down the pike. For some accountants, that's good news.

Litigation support has long been a recognized accounting niche. Now, corporations and financial institutions defending against private lawsuits, regulatory probes and indictments will have to ramp up their use of auditors and consultants with sophisitcated accounting skills.

Valuation work is a hot niche already, according to a recent JobsintheMoney story that cites RSM McGladrey and the New York search firm Careers on the Move. It looks to heat up still further, driven not only by litigation, but by tougher regulatory scrutiny and the heightened importance of fair-value accounting.

A potential lawsuit milestone came in October when Bank of America agreed to an $8 billion-plus collective settlement of homeowners' claims against Countrywide, the California-based mortgage lender that B of A acquired earlier in the year. That settlement, which investors in Countrywide mortgage securities also signed off on, provides for modifying the financial terms of potentially hundreds of thousands of individual mortgage loans.

That broad-based settlement "could set the stage for a deluge" of mortgage suits, wrote Andrew Jeffery on the Minyanville blog. The likeliest targets, he says, are two big banks whose subsidiaries wrote the most "option ARMs," a particularly toxic type of mortgage loan. They are JPMorgan Chase (current parent of Washington Mutual and Bear Stearns) and Wells Fargo (which bought Wachovia).

While suits over everything from predatory lending practices to balance-sheet writedowns will clearly propel demand for CPAs with specialized skills, related criminal cases against corporations and individuals will require accountants too – on both sides of the aisle.

The FBI is probing possible fraud related to sub-prime and other securities at 26 firms and the SEC has 50 open investigations, Bloomberg News reported last month. At least 12 former Lehman Brothers executives including Chief Executive Richard Fuld and CFO Erin Callan reportedly have received grand jury subpoenas. According to Bloomberg,

In the Lehman probes, investigators subpoenaed Ernst & Young LLP, Lehman's auditor; U.K.-based bank Barclays Plc, which bought its North American brokerage; and the New Jersey Division of Investments, which runs a pension fund that lost $115.6 million on a $180 million investment in Lehman's $6 billion stock sale in June, according to people familiar with the case.

Also subpoenaed were Putnam Investments LLC, the Boston- based mutual fund firm that oversees about $163 billion and bought Lehman bonds and shares; New York-based fund manager BlackRock Inc., a Lehman creditor; AIG; and New York-based C.V. Starr & Co., run by ex-AIG CEO Maurice Greenberg, according to the people familiar with the probes.

Executive Focus and You

It’s not much of a surprise, but business leaders are paying less attention to workforce issues and more to confidence and risk management. The Wall Street Journal, reporting on a survey conducted over the summer by the Conference Board, says executives are shifting their priorities away from finding and developing talent, succession planning, diversity and labor relations. As the research group’s CEO Jon Spector puts it: “The people-management issues … have moved off the front burner.” Writes the Journal’s Cari Tuna:

The results are even more striking when compared with a similar Conference Board survey a year ago. Then, executives listed revenue growth, profit growth and finding qualified management talent among their top-five concerns. Bolstering corporate reputation and promoting creativity and innovation were in the top 10 last year but fell in the new survey.

In other heartening news to go with your coffee, the Conference Board says the labor market will continue to sink “well into 2009.” It’s another sign the economy’s going to be pressured next year. Gad Levanon, senior economist at the Conference Board, explains:

… demand for goods and services in the U.S. is declining, and businesses are responding by aggressively slashing their payrolls. Unfortunately, it seems this environment will persist for several more quarters and business leaders will continue reducing their workforce.

This isn’t about “the sky is falling” and we should all be paranoid about our jobs going away. Accountants, after all, are still in great demand. At the same time, remember everyone - accounting firms and corporate finance offices includes - are looking for ways to save money, or at least not spend money. Approach your job with that in mind. The phrase “work smarter” is way overused, but nowadays it’s a good piece of advice.

Niche Trade Finance Business Booms

Are there any hot niches left in finance? Lending for international trade shipments.

Accounting and finance professionals skilled in evaluating credit risk or reviewing import-export transactions should sit up and take note.

Not that trade itself is booming. Quite the contrary: shipping volume is taking it on the chin lately as the whole world plunges into recession. But big global banks' flight from all types of lending is forcing importers and exporters to seek financing elsewhere, says a recent Wall Street Journal story. That's creating a flood of business for various niche trade-finance providers that include small hedge funds and boutique investment firms.


Global trade is a $14 trillion annual business, and 90 percent of it is shipped on credit. The most common mechanisms are letters of credit, factoring of receivables, and loans secured by the goods being shipped. Now that default is on everyone's mind, interest rates and other charges for these loans have climbed sharply, but so have lenders' risks. Says the Journal:

Demand for export and trade finance is so high that the operations of these small firms are being tested to the limit. They have to be careful about who they lend to, even though they are being offered what can seem like extraordinary incentives to make a loan.

Ship Comes In for Trade Financiers [WSJ]

Premium on Valuation Experience

Valuation work is shaping up as a beneficiary of the financial sector's troubles, thanks to increasing regulatory oversight and forced consolidation among banks. Here's our story.

Why Your Credit Report Matters

What's true then is even truer now: When you're looking for work, you need to be buttoned up, and that includes having your credit report in good shape. Last year, we published this story by Dona DeZube. In today's economy, it's worth reading again.

More and more companies are checking the credit and background reports of their employment candidates. Before sending in a resume, smart job-seekers should pull their own documents to make sure their information is correct. Here's how you do it.

KPMG Cuts 400 jobs

KPMG has laid off around 400 people nationally, reducing by about 2 percent its workforce of 24,000 people in 80 U.S. offices.

“KPMG’s business remains quite strong,” says company spokesperson Dan Ginsburg. “Clearly, the economy has caused some businesses to delay some discretionary projects. In order to improve efficiencies, we have had some very targeted force reductions.”

Despite the cuts, KPMG is still active in the hiring market. “We continue to recruit on college campuses, as well as in the experienced marketplace for specific skills,” Ginsburg says.

Why recruit and cut at the same time? Ending recruiting can cause problems when the economy turns around. For example, cutbacks during the last recession led to the current shortage of accountants with seven to 10 years experience.

Another Straw in the (Ill) Wind

A high-end financial headhunter in San Francisco tells JobsintheMoney that his volume of search assignments has suffered "the biggest fastest freeze up" since he entered the business 28 years ago. Paul Herrerias of Stanton Chase recruits for partner openings in CPA firms and senior-level finance slots in corporations. This is a relatively small slice of the hiring market but is considered a strong indicator of larger trends. Here's our story.

Fearful Workers Are Staying Put

In job-market sentiment surveys, people who say they expect to remain in their current job are routinely tallied as expressing a pessimistic view of employment conditions. If that strikes you as counter-intuitive, then an article in Thursday's Wall Street Journal should help clear things up.

That "Careers" piece by WSJ reporter Sarah Needleman starts off noting that,

A growing number of professionals are saying "no, thanks" to prospective employers asking them to change jobs.

A newly released survey by Accenture (conducted in mid-September) found just 13 percent of 322 U.S. middle managers said they were actively looking for a job. And 46 percent said it's "risky" to switch employers in the current environment.

Those findings align with anecdotal reports from headhunters, who the WSJ says "are having to work harder just to get professionals to hear out job opportunities they have to offer." One reason employees fear to move: the occasional horror story about someone who left a steady job only to lose their new job shortly thereafter – perhaps even before starting work.

If you're an intrepid soul who is still willing to fish in today's treacherously choppy waters, the WSJ also has several good tips about limiting the danger that jumping to a new boat might capsize your career. They include performing due diligence on the new employer (through a variety of methods – direct questioning, searching news stories and SEC filings, and seeking out past and present employees to get their opinions), and asking for a severance package before coming aboard.

The article's concluding paragraph also struck a chord with me. I've often found that my friends and family usually are clueless about the business world – so their advice, well-meaning though it is, can't be relied on. Says the WSJ:

It's wise to weigh the pros and cons of a job change with a professional career coach or mentor, says (executive coach and recruiter Paula) Marks. "Don't discuss it with friends and family. They bring their own baggage, their own fears."

Hooray, It's Review Time

If you're dreading that upcoming meeting where you and your boss will review your performance (and/or separate meetings you'll hold with your subordinates to review theirs), here's some good news: Performance reviews are valuable tools if used correctly, a number of career experts say.

Our story explains how you can profit from the annual workplace ritual, by turning your weak points to your advantage.

Burr Pilger & Mayer Sets up in Novato

Burr Pilger & Mayer, LLP (BPM) is opening a new office in Novato in Marin County, California. The office is the fifth Bay Area location for the firm, which offers full service accounting, assurance, tax, business consulting and wealth management services.

"We have work space for up to 20 people and we are already actively trying to fill the open positions," said company spokesperson Constance Jorritsma. North Bay business leader Jim Petray will manage the new office.

“Our new location will enable us to better serve our North Bay clients, including an expanding base in the wine, technology and professional services fields,” said Stephen D. Mayer, BPM co-founder and managing partner.

The Novato office will be located at Hamilton Landing Hangers. The firm’s other offices are in San Francisco, Palo Alto, San Jose and Walnut Creek. Currently, the firm has 350 employees.

Recent firm-wide initiatives include going green in all BPM offices; an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), offering all employees an ownership interest in the firm; and a new joint venture with MacKenzie Communications, a Bay Area marketing communications agency, to form a corporate responsibility and sustainability practice.

‘Previsualization,’ and Practice, Make Perfect

Chad Broadus sent this in:

Want to nail your next interview? Consider a proven technique Olympic athletes have been using for years to achieve a peak performance. It’s called “previsualization,” where you mentally practice a successful event, as realistically and positively as possible, before even leaving the starting line.

Dr. Lynn Joseph, author of The Job Loss Recovery Guide: A Proven Program for Getting Back to Work - Fast!, suggests previsualizing the whole process from interview to post-offer celebration.

…take ten minutes daily to relax, close your eyes, and mentally rehearse a peak-performance job interview. Engage all your senses as if it were a real interview, listening to the questions and giving answers confidently-even receiving an offer. When you do face a real interviewer, you’ll appear as a polished, self-confident professional with a winning attitude.

After each mental rehearsal of an interview, imagine your future self having your ideal job. Imagine it as if you have it now, in minute detail and with all the excitement and satisfaction of accomplishment that you can. Mentally celebrate with your family and friends.

Professional athletes rely on visualization exercises to prepare for their sports events. Mental rehearsal improves confidence and feelings of control, resulting in greater focus and insight in the face of challenge.

Although a natural fit for the interview process, previsualization’s application doesn’t end there. Just think of all the difficult situations that could apply it to, like annual reviews, that meeting with your boss to pitch an idea, meetings with challenging clients.

Avoiding Burnout

As layoffs spread throughout the economy, in coming months more and more staffers will find themselves shouldering added duties formerly handled by axed colleagues.

A post we saw on a blog called Mergers & Inquisitions offers seven useful tips for avoiding burnout when you work 80 to 100 hours per week and may be on call even while away.

Although Mergers & Inquisitions is written for investment bankers, we agree with its anonymous author that many of his tips apply to anyone who spends the majority of their time in an office.

Here's a synopsis of his advice:

1. Take vacations. They can be timed to coincide with the completion of a major deal or project.

2. When not at your desk, exercise, instead of watching TV or surfing the Web. This might require joining a gym that's open 24/7. Major cities have plenty of those, so you needn't worry about racing out of work to get to the gym before 9 p.m. Even while working out, you can still check your Blackberry every 15 minutes for urgent messages.

3. Take mini-vacations. If you can't afford a whole week off, there's bound to be a Saturday when things get slow to break away for a few hours at the spa, or even a day-trip to some lovely out-of-town spot.

4. Live with friends. Having company around during your minimal time outside the office fights burnout and helps you stay away from TV and Web surfing. Sharing an apartment cuts living expenses too.

5. Spend time with non-bankers.

6. Minimize unimportant work.

7. Learn to Say "No." Even if you're the low man or woman on the totem pole, you don't always have to take on every project that gets thrown at you. Mergers & Inquisitions explains:

If you have other looming deadlines that are more important, "I can’t do that right now - I have to finish all these other projects by tomorrow" is an excuse that works well (you can’t do this right away - you need to have been there awhile and established yourself).

And from a strategic standpoint, he adds,

there are diminishing returns to how much you learn with each new project, and you’ll learn that putting in 20% more hours for a 5% higher bonus is often not worth it.

7 Simple Steps to Avoiding Investment Banking Burnout [Mergers & Inquisitions]

Talent Fuels Acquisition in Philly

Doubting that demand for accountants is still high? RSM McGladrey Inc. Director of Business Development Nick Araco tells us that acquiring talent was a driving factor behind the firm’s recent purchase of Simonson, Lipschutz & Fogel PC (SLF) in Philadelphia.

“It’s easier to acquire talent in one swoop, and to complement it with entry-level hiring and one-by-one hiring,” he explained. “This economic unit of McGladrey was a 75-person office four years ago and with this acquisition we have 240 professionals locally.”

The 35 people RSM picked up are only the start. “We plan to expand our experienced- and entry-level recruiting, even given the state of the economy and the job markets,” Araco said.

RSM has seen a fair amount of resumes from folks shed by Big 4 firms and they’re vetting those people carefully. Those looking for a long-term commitment to a full service firm with a global reach and a sophisticated client base are making it through the selection process. “We want to make sure they’re not renting us and we’re not renting them until the Big 4 come back,” Araco said.

RSM has studied the numbers and feels supply and demand will continue to be balanced in job-seekers’ favor. In response, it actively works on ways to keep its Baby Boomer employees engaged, to offer flexible schedules to keep its mid-level career folks working and to groom young talent.

A second motivation for picking up SLF was the firm’s real estate and construction client base. While RSM is big in those areas nationally, it lacked market share in Philadelphia. Acquiring a local firm with RSM’s targeted clients was a win-win for both firms. The locals gain national-level opportunities, while RSM picks up more local clients and additional talent familiar with those industries.

The Philadelphia office will remain at the Center City location where SLF is currently based. RSM ends up with 240 professionals in four regional offices – Blue Bell and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Moorestown, New Jersey and Philadelphia. The SLF acquisition currently makes RSM McGladrey and McGladrey & Pullen the sixth largest firm in the region according to the 2008 Book of Lists.

Boomers Who Refuse to Quit

Recently while reviewing past JobsintheMoney stories, I came across one with a striking message – not in the article itself, but in the seven reader comments published beneath it.

Both the story and the reader reaction dealt with the attitude of employers toward "mature" workers. The thing that struck me was that every one of those reader comments came from a perspective far less cheery than the article's.

The story first appeared a little more than three years ago. Arguing that the aging of America's work force will ultimately force many companies to relax their boycott of older job applicants, the article cited soothing comments from the Conference Board and a Robert Half recruiting manager. But author Jane Carruthers didn't sugar-coat the issue. She wrote,

Entrenched age prejudice and traditional retirement patterns have created a work environment which does not accommodate those mature workers with little desire to sit in a rocking chair and reflect on their lives.

And:

It's not all clear sailing for mature jobseekers, however. "Being viewed as overqualified is a risk many older workers face," (Robert Half manager Keith) Feinberg says.

However, those cautionary notes pale beside the poignant testimonies of JobsintheMoney readers. Some had backgrounds in financial services – an industry with a special reputation, in one reader's words, as "more inclined to value you at your age, not your qualifications."

Having the resources to retire from full-time work while still in your 50s is a bit of a luxury, as a few comments pointed out. That's something you never hear in all the HR publicists' rhetorical hand-wringing over "Baby Boomer retirement" (another theme that seems more ubiquitous in the financial services industry than anywhere else). A reader who identified himself as Paul M. LeBas wrote,

There are many of us, like myself, 56 years old, MBA in Finance, with over 20 years of professional experience, who while aging, have not achieved financial independence, who are still physically and mentally robust and energetic, who have no desire ever to retire completely, and who are just hitting their professional stride. Nor are we all in a financial position to retire. I certainly hope that we can remain competitive participants in the workforce. Can we expect an end to age discrimination?

My personal feeling is that the answer will forever remain "No" until some organized group musters the will and the resources to mount a comprehensive campaign of blind testing and presents their findings to a court or a regulatory body.

The blind testing technique – in which identically qualified individuals who differ only in one legally protected attribute apply separately for the same openings – proved highly effective in combating race discrimination in both employment and housing.

The fact that no one seems to have used it to fight for mature workers is another reason why the laws against age discrimination in the U.S. are taken about as seriously as the laws that still exist on some states' books that define adultery as a criminal offense.

Mature Workers: A New Challenge for Employers [JobsintheMoney]

Looking for Accountants in South Florida

In Florida, it seems many of the newly unemployed are heading to local job fairs to look for work, and accounting firms are there to look for accountants. Tampa Bay Online quotes Don Selvage, who works in human resources for accounting firm NCT Group, at a job fair sponsored by Heartland Workforce and South Florida Community College:

"We're always looking for good accountants," Selvage said. "I find even in slow economy that good accountants are still in demand."

NCT, which has offices in Sebring, Winter Haven and Lakeland, is looking for a full-charge bookkeeper that can handle everything from journal entries to payroll and financial statements.

"What we really are trying to do here is plant the seed in young accounting students." Selvage said. "So that when they get their two years done and they go to Webber, UF, UCF they'll think don't forget their is a public accounting firm back in Highlands County that I want to talk to."

Seeking a Counter-Offer Has Pitfalls

Just about everyone is chopping heads these days, it seems. Yet strong performers remain in demand – even in financial services, an industry that's downsizing more furiously than any other. So it's hardly an anachronism for an employee who's received a job offer to think about obtaining a counter-offer from his or her current employer.

A recent Wall Street Journal Q&A article explored the ups and downs of directly asking for a counter-offer. The WSJ's Toddi Gutner offered these tips:

Before taking such a step, know your firm's culture - the attitude they've demonstrated in past instances where someone brandished an outside offer to request a raise. Some employers view this as hostile behavior.

Decide if you're ready to leave before informing your current employer about an outside offer. Then, instead of asking for a counter-offer yourself, just give notice and hope your employer needs you so badly that they initiate a counter-offer. In contrast, Gutner suggests that the questioner's approach might actually place his loyalty in greater doubt than if he'd just given notice.

I'm not sure I buy that last point. A staffer lured back by a counter-offer after giving notice can be perceived as holding a gun to the boss's head even more so than one who started the negotiation by emphasizing their desire to stay.

On the other hand, a well-known rule of negotiating is, the other party always will feel better about a step or provision that they initiated, than one that you presented to them. So from that perspective, perhaps it is wiser give the boss every opportunity to counter-offer without having to be asked.

When the employee has already asked for a raise, Gutner cautions,

You may need to assuage worries … that you just got another offer to leverage a pay increase—whether or not you did…

The most important thing is to do is to turn around any negative perception that you put your boss into a bind and forced him to raise your salary with a counteroffer. If you're able to do that, are happy in your current job and believe you can keep up the quality of your work, then "your future success with your current employer should not be affected ," says Ms. Baranello [Alane Baranello of executive recruiting firm Eileen Finn & Associates]. If you're not sure you can do that, you might want to consider the offer you received – or plan to look for another job even if you don't jump at the current offer.

Is Asking For a Counter Offer a Good Idea? [WSJ]

Recession? What Recession?

Demand for experienced public accountants is holding steady and CPA firms are raising salaries at a healthy clip across many specialties, according to Robert Half International's recently releasead 2009 Salary Guide. Audit and tax seem to be the hottest skills. Here's our story.

Eide Bailly Acquires Three Firms

Over the past couple of days, Eide Bailly LLP has announced three acquisitions: Keller, Young & Grover (KYG), LLP, Boise, Magee Rausch & Shelton LLP, Tulsa and Gordon, Hughes & Banks, LLP, (GHB), Golden, Colorado.

The acquisitions bring Eide Bailly up to 1,200 staffers, including 157 partners, serving 39,000 clients. The firm’s total revenues for fiscal year ended April 30, 2008, were $114 million.

MRS will add three partners, Tim Roberts, Dan Cunningham and Tom Ritchie, as well as 26 staff members and $3.5 million of revenue to Eide Bailly.

“Our growth plan for Oklahoma included expansion in both Oklahoma City and Tulsa,” said Jerry Topp, managing partner/CEO of Eide Bailly. “Just three months ago, Murrell, Hall, McIntosh joined our Firm, expanding our Oklahoma City and Norman presence.”

Steve Corley, partner-in-charge of Eide Bailly’s Oklahoma practice, says the two firms both serve clients in oil and gas, non-profits, financial institutions, health care and manufacturing. By combining, Eide will attract larger companies who previously looked beyond Oklahoma for help with their business needs, Topp says.

In Colorado, acquiring GHB fits well with Eide Bailly’s plan to expand westward, Topp says. The two firms serve several similar industries, including real estate, construction, oil and gas, non-profits, government and SEC clients.

“Our entry into Colorado also gives us the opportunity to expand some of Eide Bailly’s largest practice areas, including health care, financial institutions (banks and credit unions) and insurance, into a new market,” Topp says.

GHB has offices in Golden, Denver, Grand Junction, Boulder, Summit County, and Vail Valley.

James Lyons will serve as the partner-in-charge of the Colorado practice, and partners joining Eide Bailly include Penelope Banks, James Boak, Sheryl Brake, Brian Callahan, Dave DeZutter, Bob Drury, Thomas Froehle, Kim Higgins, Rex Hughes, Peggy Jennings, Celia Johnson, Richard Kendall, Lloyd Sweet and Eric Budreau.KYG’s Julie Hawkins, Bill Keller and Jim Young will be partners at Eide Bailly.

In addition to the new offices, Eide Bailly has offices in Phoenix, Arizona; Frisco, Colorado; Dubuque, Iowa; Madelia, Mankato and Minneapolis, Minnesota; Billings, Montana; Fargo and Bismarck, North Dakota and Sioux Falls and Aberdeen, South Dakota.

Make Yourself a Layoff Survivor

Chad Broadus, an IT manager we know, recently sent us this item about surviving layoffs. While we're not hearing huge fears about downsizing in the accounting world, I think Chad's points apply to anyone who's got their eye on business conditions, whatever their industry. So here it is.

Okay, the economy’s tanking. While a healthy dose of concern is warranted, don’t get caught up in all of the negative hyperbole. Instead, take some concrete steps to become an even more valuable employee who is less of a layoff target. Remember, those “lucky ones” who survive belt tightening are often less “lucky” than you might think. Like anything else, value in a company is relative - in this case relative to your fellow employees.

So to survive a layoff, you need to create enough value that you stand out. You need to be more productive than your colleagues. Think about it: If you had to choose between cutting Employee A, who merely gets the job done, and Employee B, who seems to achieve a great deal more in a week, you’ll probably come down on the side of the overachiever.

Of course, you don’t want to kill yourself working 60-hour weeks, so you’ll need a way to do more in the same 40 hours. That’s where time management comes in. Find and master a time management system. Franklin Covey works well for a lot of people, but there are other systems out there, too. Choose a program that’s right for you and stick to it with religious zeal.

Once you’re able to squeeze more out of your time, make those extra hours to work for you. Look for problems that can be solved within your area of expertise. Once you find a problem, solve it. If you can’t directly implement the change yourself, bring the problem - and your proposed solution - to your boss. If there’s a potential return on investment, chances are your boss will go for it - and you’ve associated “problem solver” with your name.

This is just one of many strategies to keep you working in lean times. Even if layoffs never come to your company - and, remember, they may not - getting more done has benefits when your annual review and raise come around.

Accountants STILL Needed

Recruiter A.E Feldman says the shenanigans in the financial markets are, if anything, boosting the demand for accountants. Companies need help managing both challenges and opportunities in the general business climate, laws and regulations continue to increase in complexity, and let's not forget the debate over IFRS. So:

(R)ecruiting among accounting firms remains highly competitive. The firm says that accounting jobs are opening up as firms address mounting resource demands. Current opportunities include tax manager jobs, audit jobs, international tax jobs, and business valuation jobs.

J.H. Cohn has formed a Client Economic Recovery Team (CERT), a multidisciplinary group that supports, advises, and assists companies impacted by "rapidly evolving" developments.

Here's a good wrapup, on A.E. Feldman's Web site.

Crowe Horwath Acquires Grobstein

Crowe Horwath LLP, Chicago is acquiring Grobstein, Horwath & Co., LLP, Sherman Oaks, California. The move will add 120 Grobstein employees to Crowe Horwath’s 2,500 employee base. Grobstein has a second office in Costa Mesa, California.

A Crowe spokesperson said the company would neither lay off nor hire employees as a result of the merger.

Grobstein offers tax, assurance, bankruptcy, litigation, estate, SEC, and valuation services to clients in the U.S. and the Pacific Rim, including the People’s Republic of China. Crowe CEO Chuck Allen said the transaction will help his firm better serve its West Coast clients, as well as those with Asian operations. The deal is scheduled to close December 1st.

Options, Demand in Corporate Accounting

Despite layoffs and a tightening job market in various industries, corporate accounting remains a strong line of work nationwide. Not only is there continued need for corporate accountants in a variety of positions, salaries are holding steady - and even increasing in certain high-demand areas.

Here's our story.

What’s Hot and What’s Not

Robert Half’s 2009 Accounting and Finance Salary Guide and Ajilon Finance's 2009 Finance and Accounting Salary Guide are out, and the winners of this year’s highest projected raises are…large company tax accounting managers at 4.9 percent, with second place going to tax managers working for companies with sales above $250 million at 4.8 percent, RHI says.

Ajilon Finance says its winners are accounting and finance professionals in San Francisco and San Mateo, California, where salaries are a whopping 20.4% above the national average. Salaries in finance-centric New York City are 14.1% higher than the average salary in other regions, the company says.

The biggest losers? No surprise here, it’s mortgage originators and processors, who’ll see a 0.4 percent change in base salary in 2009, according to Robert Half’s data. Given that mortgage banking has shed over 100,000 employees so far this year, perhaps the handful of originators who still have jobs and are managing to close any loans in the current environment are thrilled with that 0.4 percent.

Robert Half says the most in-demand positions right now are: tax accounting manger, director of financial reporting, staff or senior accountant, financial analyst, controller, credit and collections specialist and cost accountant.

You can use the surveys to calculate the salary range for your specific position, experience level, company size and region.

No time for that? Here’s our summary of what’s hot and what’s not, in accounting and finance, based on the RHI and Ajilon surveys:

HOT
Industry experience
Knowledge of company-specific software
Project professionals
Temporary-to-full-time hires
Cost control and process improvement
Low expectations for company performance
Total compensation
Job location
Work/life balance
Financial analysis
Planning, budgeting and forecasting skills
People skills
IT experience

NOT
Social responsibility
Moving to a new job for professional advancement
Governance/ethics
Sox compliance
XBRL compliance
FASB/GAAP
High base salary
Relocation packages
Lacking certification

Our Latest Poll

For the last several years it's felt like a good accountant is a rock star - always in demand. But will the economy's troubles catch up with the accounting profession? Here's what JobsintheMoney users said:

• Eventually – 51 percent
• Sooner rather than later – 13 percent
• No – 29 percent
• Not sure – 8 percent

What do you think? Post a comment below.

A NIMBY Attitude About Jobs

A majority of accounting and finance employees think the economy is weakening, but two-thirds are confident in their own firm’s ability to weather the storm, according to The Mergis Group’s latest Accounting and Finance Employee Confidence Index.

The survey found 67 percent of accounting and finance workers are “confident in their current employers’ future.” Only 41 percent said they were likely to look for a new job. About half said they were confident in their ability to find a new position – that’s down 12 percentage points from the second quarter.

"Market uncertainty has certainly increased in the third quarter as a result of the existing situation within the financial services sector. As expected, this uncertainty has affected accounting and finance workers' confidence," says Jack Causa, senior vice president and group executive for The Mergis Group.

"Though we anticipate seeing the continued effects persist throughout the fourth quarter, we remain encouraged by the sector's demand for accounting talent and its growth potential as developments continue in reporting regulations. We also foresee the emergence of new candidate opportunities in response to the government's intervention with financial institutions. Additionally, we have had success in placing financial services professionals in alternative industries where transferable skills can be parlayed into new career opportunities."

BDO Rescinds 11.5% of College Offers

BDO Seidman has rescinded offers to 11.5 percent of the entry-level college graduates it planned to hire.

The company blames the cuts on the Securities and Exchange Commission's decision to defer the application of Sarbanes Oxley 404 to small companies. A company spokesperson explains:

"In anticipation of client needs for small cap 404 services, BDO Seidman has increased staff and maintained it even through the deferrals by the SEC of these requirements over the last two years. However, the most recent postponement of SOX 404 for small cap companies, combined with current economic conditions, make it highly unlikely that small cap companies will be asked to meet 404 requirements in the foreseeable future. As such, we felt it necessary to adjust our hiring plans accordingly and have rescinded 11.5% of our entry-level offers to college graduates.

The spokesperson added that there are no plans to lay off any permanent staff at BDO.

While it's never easy to hear an offer has been rescinded, let Jobsinthmoney share two upbeat thoughts with those students who got the bad news.

First, if you were good enough for BDO, chances are another firm will want to hire you between now and June. Second, don't question your instincts in choosing BDO. At least you almost went with a company that rescinds offers to students. Another firm might have used you to replace the students it hired a year or two ago in lieu of giving those employees a raise.

High Demand for SALT Skills

State and local tax work, once viewed in the profession as something of a weak sister to federal tax accounting, has come into its own in recent years thanks to the hairpin twists and turns of ever-changing New York and New and New Jersey tax rules. One senior partner worries that in spite of its "huge salaries," the specialty may still suffer brain drain because, "You don't need to know as much to be a stockbroker or a lawyer, and we're working 12 to 18 hour days at certain points."

Here's our story.

IFRS Good for Everyone?

Eighty percent of US CFO don’t have experience using International Financial Standards (IFRS), but just over half of them want to be able to use them, according to a recent survey by Grant Thornton, LLP.

When asked if U.S. firms should be allowed to use IFRS instead of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) in Securities and Exchange Commission filings (SEC), 55 percent of the 688 CFOs Grant Thornton surveyed said yes.

Yet, 59 percent of them disagreed with the SEC’s decision last year to allow foreign firms listed on U.S. exchanges to use IFRS. And, only 20 percent of the surveyed CFOs had experience preparing statements using IFRS.

“The results tell us that although the respondents don’t yet have a lot of hand’s-on experience, they can tell that U.S. companies should not be put at a disadvantage when it comes to reporting requirements that allow for the use of IFRS,” said Gary Illiano, partner-in-charge of Grant Thornton’s International and Domestic Accounting.

The survey also asked about eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) and found while more than half of the CFOs knew what it was, only 2 percent use it. A whopping 92 percent have no plans to use it at this time.

PWC, E&Y Land TARP Accounts

The U.S. Treasury Department continued setting up its Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) yesterday by hiring PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young to handle its accounting and internal controls.

TARP will administer the troubled assets Uncle Sam is purchasing, including whole mortgage loans and mortgage-backed securities.

PwC will be paid $191,469.27 to set up TARP's internal controls. E&Y, meanwhile, was the winning bidder at $492,006.95 for general accounting support and advice. Treasury asked a dozen firms bid on the two jobs. Six firms bid on each request.

All the contracts Treasury lets for TARP will show up at the Federal Procurement Data System. If you're looking to land a government accounting contract for your firm, check the Fedbizops Web site.

Ditch Performance Reviews?

Samuel A. Culbert once had a boss he didn't like. And I mean, really, really didn't like.

That's what I concluded after reading Professor Culbert's long polemic against employee performance reviews, in Monday's Wall Street Journal. Although presented as objective analysis by a respected management consultant, author and professor at the Anderson School of Management at UCLA, the personal animus that pervades his essay is hard to ignore. I could almost see the author's brows furrow and his lips curl in disgust each time he placed the word, "boss" in the text.

Performance reviews never got much respect from the ivory-tower crowd. Their unease is rooted in doubts that most managers are capable of giving honest, constructive feedback to workers they supervise. That's also the gist of Culbert's seven-point, 2,500-word treatise in the Journal.

The real "primary purpose" of performance reviews, he writes, is "intimidation aimed at preserving the boss's authority and power advantage." He goes on to say:

Claiming an evaluation can be "objective" is preposterous, as if any assessment is independent of that evaluator's motives in the moment. Missing are answers to questions like, "As seen by whom?" and "Spun for what?" Implying that an evaluation is objective disregards what everyone knows: Where you stand determines what you see.

According to Culbert, everything about the typical review process is dishonest. The ostensible connection with annual salary reviews is a "cover story" to conceal how pay is really determined. Bosses are motivated not by desire to help their teams be more productive, but by "personal preferences, emotional biases, personal agendas and situational motives." Company forms that guide the review process are "one-size-fits-all" checklists with little or no relevance to the employee or the job.

No doubt, these observations are valid for some supervisors, or even some whole companies. But does the above description even come close to the mark for the majority of employers? Based on my experience, the answer is clearly no. Reading his piece, I get the feeling he is focusing on the worst-case scenario for managerial behavior, and treating it as the norm.

Beyond any one person's workplace experience, we can also consult long-term economic performance for a global verdict as to just how effective managers have been over the years, in their decisions to reward or promote subordinates.

For decades, U.S. economic activity has been dominated by institutions governed by just the sort of hierarchical, boss-centric decision-making structures that Culbert so detests. If "bosses" were as consistently dumb, petty, biased and counterproductive as his article suggests, then how is it that the cumulative result of their decisions is an economy that's enjoyed steadily rising productivity and a standard of living that's the envy of the world? It seems to me that the evidence of our senses indicates that over the post-World War II period, those in the executive suites must have chosen at least a few competent managers to delegate authority to.

Get Rid of the Performance Review! [Wall Street Journal]

Can You Blend FAS 109 and FIN 48?

Executive search firm A.E. Feldman says public accounting recruiting remains competitive for candidates who understand international finance and cultures. A number of top firms are also seeking state and local tax accountants, as well as tax managers and partners, says firm president Mitch Feldman.

In a recent blog, the firm says companies are looking for accountants with expertise in FAS 109 and FIN 48, in particular:

Applying FAS 109 and FIN 48 amid vague international tax laws can be challenging. Complicating matters, business and tax issues have become more intricate thanks to language barriers, diverse cultures, different currencies and technology as well as complex international tax laws.

The pace of globalization is accelerating and it’s creating demand for accountants and finance professionals with an international perspective and expertise. As a result, firms are staffing up to ensure they find opportunity and create value in a variety of complex overseas tax environments.

IRS Career Open House

The Internal Revenue Service will hold a career open house in New York on Oct. 28 to provide information about IRS careers for professionals interested in moving over from the private sector.

IRS leaders and newly hired employees from the private sector will be available to discuss goals and interests and answer questions about working at the IRS, said spokesman Kevin McKeon. Generally, the agency is looking for professionals with education, certification and experience in their disciplines, good communication and office computer skills, and U.S. citizenship. Available career paths include accounting, management, customer service, information technology, collection, law enforcement, legal and finance. Specific position requirements vary, and more details are available on the Careers section of IRS.gov.

The open house takes place 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 28 at the IRS office on 290 Broadway between Duane and Reade Streets in Manhattan. For additional information, contact Career.Fairs@irs.gov.

Building Your Internal Network

Building a network within your company can be as important to your success as developing contacts outside. But watch out: The wrong moves can sink you. Here’s how to avoid some of the most common pitfalls.On JobsintheMoney, Suzanne Barlyn explains why. Here's her story.

New Agency = New Jobs

If you know Washington, D.C., then you know the solution to a problem as big as the credit crisis always involves an agency.

This time, Treasury will be running the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) through the new Office of Financial Stability (OFS). It's already hired five interim big guns to set up the office, to hire permanent staff and to get TARP running.

The CFO will be Tom Bloom, who’s CFO of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and a former Commerce Department CFO. Jonathan Fiechter, who's deputy director of the IMF Monetary and Capital Markets and a former Resolution Trust Corporation board member, will be chief risk officer.

Donna Gambrell, director of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund at the FDIC, who also served at the RTC, will be chief of homeownership preservation. Don Hammond, deputy director of the Division of Federal Reserve Bank Operations and Payment Systems and a former Treasury Fiscal Assistant Secretary, will serve as interim Chief Compliance Officer.
Reuben Jeffrey, former chair the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), will be the agency’s chief investment officer.

“Recruiting the right people is essential to the success of this program and we are moving quickly on several fronts,” said Treasury Interim Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability Neel Kashkari. “It will obviously take time to bring on board permanent members of the team that will manage this program over the long term and provide stability during the transition. These leaders are actively building out their operations and contributing to all phases of the TARP.”

As of today, the only position at the new agency was advertising was a chief counsel slot. However, you can set up an alert at that will email you new TARP positions as they're posted.

BMS, Accenture Extend Services Pact

Bristol-Myers Squibb has extended its service contract with Accenture for 10 years, meaning the consulting firm will continue to handle the pharmaceutical company's accounts payable and other chores. Writes Big4.com:

The contract includes that Accenture will offer financial support services and global IT services to Bristol-Myers Squibb in order to help them attain flexibility and operational cost savings. The contract is designed to help Bristol-Myers Squibb in managing its business effectively, by offering variable cost structure in order to tackle different economic factors such as patent lifecycles.

BMS says the deal allows the two companies to "integrate" their employees into "high-performance teams."

CalCPA Chair's Ambitious Agenda

Greg Burke, the chairman of the California Society of CPAs, says his state's CPA licensing process is failing to keep up with most of the U.S. The gap with other states' requirements prevents some California CPAs from servicing out-of-state clients unless they get additional education or take another exam. "We're trying to establish rules for licensing and interstate practice amongst the jurisdictions so what we have is similar to a driver's license," Burke says. He's also pushing programs to attract more practicing accountants to obtain Ph.D. degrees and move to academia in order to remedy a shortage of accounting professors.

Here's our story.

Globalize Yourself

A new survey of CFOs finds a large majority believe that international experience will be necessary for accounting and finance professionals five years from now.

We've often observed that an overseas assignment gives a candidate a leg up when competing for positions back in the U.S. The latest finding by Robert Half Management Resources does more than corroborate that - it suggests that foreign experience may morph from a competitive advantage into a basic prerequisite.

Paul McDonald, executive director of Robert Half Management Resources, said,

The accelerating pace of globalization and the impending U.S. adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards will continue to drive demand for accounting and finance professionals with international business experience. Professionals who are bilingual and have had exposure to other countries’ tax, compliance, legal and regulatory issues have a competitive advantage in the job market, particularly among the largest firms.

Job seekers who haven't worked in another country can still enhance their career prospects, McDonald added, by studying different cultures, languages and business protocol to better serve companies and clients around the globe.

When 1,400 CFOs were asked, "How necessary do you feel international experience will be for accounting and finance professionals five years from now?" 71 percent called it either "very necessary" or "somewhat necessary." That was up from 56 percent when a similar group was asked the same question in 2002.

Survey: International Experience Increasingly Important for Accounting Professionals [Press release]