chair's corner.I have some very exciting news to share with you about the profession's Web-based portal. In mid-January n. 1. the middle part of January. Noun 1. mid-January - the middle part of January period, period of time, time period - an amount of time; "a time period of 30 years"; "hastened the period of time of his recovery"; "Picasso's blue period" , leading Internet Internet Publicly accessible computer network connecting many smaller networks from around the world. It grew out of a U.S. Defense Department program called ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), established in 1969 with connections between computers at the technology and content companies Microsoft (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, www.microsoft.com) The most successful and influential software company. Microsoft's software and Intel's hardware pioneered the PC and revolutionized the computer industry. and The Thomson Corporation officially signed on as partners. Their $50 million investment will help us build cpa2biz biz n. Informal Business. biz Noun Informal business Noun 1. to be the online resource center that we always imagined it to be. Through this partnership, cpa2biz will be able to provide a wide range of Web-based services and content to meet the daily needs of CPAs and small businesses. I have consistently said that our projects must be Vision aligned -- that the Vision is our blueprint blueprint, white-on-blue photographic print, commonly of a working drawing used during building or manufacturing. The plan is first drawn to scale on a special paper or tracing cloth through which light can penetrate. for survival and service for the early part of this century. I believe the development of the portal provides a huge opportunity to help our members achieve the Vision they identified for themselves. We know that technology is going to define us and how we do business for the foreseeable fore·see tr.v. fore·saw , fore·seen , fore·see·ing, fore·sees To see or know beforehand: foresaw the rapid increase in unemployment. future. If we can provide our members with the tools to take advantage of all that technology offers them -- to enhance their relationships with their clients and employers -- we will be providing them with the tools to increase and enhance their value. We are committed to not only providing members with these tools, but also to helping them learn how to use them. This is a big commitment but a necessary part of the process if the portal is truly going to help our members to be Vision aligned. You may recall there will be a CPA side and a business-to-business component. The CPA-centric element is where you will find products, services and knowledge sources to help you and your firm or organization. The business-to-business component will be a full-service, multi-function business services hub designed to meet the e-business needs of small-business clients and employers. By accessing e-enablement capabilities available through the portal, CPAs will be providing those clients and employers with an Internet infrastructure that delivers business services, tools, content and purchasing networks, among other things, strengthening their relationships and improving their value (never mind their revenue). Obviously, Microsoft and Thomson agree with market studies that show CPAs are the most trusted advisers to small businesses. Our relationship with smaller companies puts us in a unique position to offer e-commerce e-commerce, commerce conducted over the Internet, most often via the World Wide Web. E-commerce can apply to purchases made through the Web or to business-to-business activities such as inventory transfers. solutions for them to utilize. For example, Microsoft's bCentral Small Business Service, Thomson and other business partners will contribute valuable services and content to make core business processes easier. These include such services as general ledger General Ledger A company's accounting records. This formal ledger contains all the financial accounts and statements of a business. Notes: The ledger uses two columns: one records debits, the other has offsetting credits. systems, payroll, 401(k) administration, customer relationship management, human resources The fancy word for "people." The human resources department within an organization, years ago known as the "personnel department," manages the administrative aspects of the employees. management, procurement The fancy word for "purchasing." The procurement department within an organization manages all the major purchases. and online banking. With these strategic alliances in place, we're on schedule to launch the portal late this spring or early summer. A pilot program of volunteer firms is now under way to test the services being developed and offered to make certain they are market responsive and help position the CPA successfully in the e-commerce phase of business. While on the subject of the portal, I want to discuss a related issue about which I receive a lot of e-mail and questions: ownership in cpa2biz by certain members of AICPA AICPA See American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). management. As part of the AICPA Board of Directors' deliberations regarding the portal, then-Chair Bob Elliott Bob Elliott can refer to different people:
To the exact point of ownership by management, the portal was valued in its early stages by independent outside consultants. The few members of management who the board felt should be offered equity in the portal bought their interests at full market value -- there were no gifts of stock in the portal. They now have their own dollars at risk. All matters of ownership in the portal by management were conducted by the AICPA board in executive session without management present. A major factor influencing our decision to allow certain members of management to purchase limited equity in the portal was that our strategic partners told us it was important for those individuals responsible for the success of the portal to have ownership in it. In fact, this is the way THEY do business. The AICPA Board of Directors agreed. The feeling of the board is that if the portal is to be successful, it will and should be a win/win for all involved. kathy@mepb.com |
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