- October 25, 2017
Preparing your nonprofit’s annual budget is probably one of the least appealing parts of your job. Here’s how to make the process a little less painful.
Olsen Thielen Advisor Blog
- October 18, 2017
The environment for hiring and retaining top-notch employees remains competitive. One strategy for combating high turnover rates is offering a competitive package of employee benefits that goes beyond health care coverage and a retirement plan. This is where the right fringe benefits can really pay off.
- October 17, 2017
Lapping, or using receipts from one account to cover theft from another, is one of the most common methods of skimming from company accounts. But with vigilance — and a little knowledge — you can prevent this type of fraud from damaging your business.
- October 11, 2017
Not-for-profit organizations don’t receive only cash donations. Your support also likely comes in the form of gifts in kind and donated services. But even when such gifts are welcome, it can be challenging to determine how to recognize and assign value to them for financial reporting purposes.
- October 11, 2017
A cash balance plan is a defined benefit plan, which specifies the amount a participant will receive in retirement. But unlike traditional defined benefit plans, such as pensions, cash balance plans express those benefits in the form of a 401(k)-style account balance, rather than a formula tied to years of
- October 6, 2017
Term limits for not-for-profit board members can be a double-edged sword. They can allow you to easily let go of unsuccessful board members, but they also can cause you to lose the best sooner than you’d like. Consider some of the issues involved before making a decision.
- October 4, 2017
Recovering from tax-related identity theft can be a frustrating and time-consuming process. But the IRS can help remove fraudulent, inaccurate information from your federal tax records and ensure that your legitimate return is processed correctly. The key is to address the issue as soon as you realize your identity has
- October 4, 2017
Anonymous hotlines an effective method of uncovering occupational fraud. But while the mere existence of a hotline can prompt second thoughts in employees tempted to commit fraud, it usually isn’t enough to encourage reporting of fraudulent activities.
- October 4, 2017
Projecting your business income and expenses for this year and next can allow you to time when you recognize income and incur deductible expenses to your tax advantage. Typically, it’s better to defer tax. This might end up being especially true this year, if tax reform legislation is signed into
Parties to divorce sometimes accuse their spouses of hiding income or assets. Unfortunately, such accusations occasionally are true.
- September 14, 2017
Promoting current, nonsupervisory employees to management positions can fulfill the employment needs of many organizations. You’ve just got to follow the right recipe.
- September 13, 2017
We get this question frequently. Often the person who gets asked has little experience with SOC auditing and reporting and is concerned about responding appropriately. If your company is faced with this question, this article will help explain what you need to know.
- September 11, 2017
If you acquire a company, your to-do list will be long, which means you can’t devote all of your time to the deal’s potential tax implications. However, if you neglect tax issues during the negotiation process, the negative consequences can be serious.
- September 8, 2017
Investment fraud, such as Ponzi schemes, can cause significant financial losses for not-for-profits. But the harm it can cause an organization’s reputation with donors and the public may be even worse.
- September 7, 2017
Fraud that makes the headlines are typically disbursement schemes, meaning that they are frauds that occurred from the disbursement of cash, such as embezzlement and purchasing frauds. While these are very significant and should be considered by every type of organization by addressing internal controls surrounding cash disbursements, associations may