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Categories for General Business News

  • Three Strategies Companies Can Implement to Recover Faster

    Posted Date September 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 4 min readSmall businesses nationwide were already facing cash problems before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to McKinsey & Company. The firm found that almost one-third of small businesses were either seeing losses or making just enough to stay in business, but not realizing profitability. Looking at businesses selling essential and non-essential items, McKinsey & Company reports that before satisfying their “interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization” obligations and accountings, they were facing challenging times. When it comes to selling essential items, such as food, business owners in this industry only had margins of 5 percent. For businesses selling non-essential... View Article

  • How to Develop an Employee Leave Policy During COVID-19

    Posted Date August 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 5 min readAccording to the United States Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act addresses how select businesses must give their workers paid sick leave or expanded family and medical leave under permitted circumstances in light of COVID-19. Effective starting April 1, 2020, the following will be in effect through Dec. 31, 2020. 1. If the worker cannot perform his duties because he is relegated to a quarantine, as mandated by a medical professional or a local, state or federal government, or if he is symptomatic with COVID-19 and seeking a diagnosis... View Article

  • Hiring in the Age of Coronavirus

    Posted Date July 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 4 min readThe U.S. job market gained 2.5 million jobs during the month of May, dropping the unemployment rate to 13.3 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. There’s likely been a lot of rehiring, with more to come as the economy continues reopening. However, until social distancing becomes a thing of the past, hiring effectively will take some pivoting during the pandemic. Finding Candidates Virtually Employers looking to interview and hire candidates can take advantage of LinkedIn during the pandemic. Along with providing a branding opportunity, the platform gives businesses a hybrid social media and... View Article

  • Understanding the Federal Government’s Proposal for Opening Up Again

    Posted Date June 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 4 min readAfter seeing a peak and then a sustained decline in coronavirus cases, hospitalizations, and deaths resulting from COVID-19, the White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has rolled out a three-tier approach to get the nation back to its pre-coronavirus economic activities. While this program is led by the Federal Government, it is ultimately up to governors how they will reopen states and localities. However, there are some universal criteria that states must follow to gradually reopen the economy. Before transitioning from the stay-at-home orders to the three phases, certain criteria must be... View Article

  • Understanding the High-Low Method

    Posted Date May 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 3 min readWhen it comes to cost accounting, the high-low method is an approach that’s used to break mixed costs into either a variable or fixed cost. Although it’s straightforward, it’s important to do multiple analyses because outlier costs from the available data can sometimes misconstrue operating costs. This calculation occurs by looking at the periods with the most and least activity, as well as the total costs for both the high and low periods. In order to get results for the high-low method, the variable cost and the fixed cost must be determined first. Once these are... View Article

  • CARES Act – Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act

    Posted Date April 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 7 min readU.S. Government Provides Relief to Individuals, Businesses in Midst of COVID-19 Crisis On March 27, President Donald Trump signed into law a historic $2 trillion stimulus package designed to provide economic relief to individuals and businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Our aim in this alert is to give a brief overview of both the tax and non-tax provisions of the government’s new stimulus legislation, including what type of assistance is available for individuals and businesses, how to apply for it, and what to do if you become unemployed. The summary is divided into two sections,... View Article

  • 4 Common Liquidity Ratios in Accounting

    Posted Date March 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 6 min readOne way a business can manage its books and viability in the near and long terms is to see how liquid its assets are. Businesses that have better cash positions are naturally geared toward sustaining continued success. One important reason for a business to measure and maintain healthy levels of liquidity is because it promotes better odds that a company will be able to satisfy its short-term debts. There are many ways a business can accomplish this, and below are four common ways it can be done.   Current Liquidity Ratio One of the few liquidity ratios... View Article

  • Understanding Four Types of Depreciation

    Posted Date February 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 4 min readDepreciation is an accounting process where the cost of an asset is accounted for and expensed over its useful life. It shows how the value of the asset decreases over time. Assets that can be depreciated include buildings, fixtures, production equipment, etc. For intangible assets, including many types of intellectual property, this process is called amortization. For commodities mined or harvested from the earth, such as lumber, crude oil or natural gas, this process is called depletion. Here are four common types of depreciation. Straight Line Method In order to determine depreciation using this method, the... View Article

  • How to Calculate and Analyze Return on Equity

    Posted Date January 1, 2020 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 3 min readWhen it comes to evaluating a business, especially one that is publicly traded, determining its return on equity (ROE) is one way to see how it’s performing. What is Return on Equity? Return on equity is a ratio that gives investors insight into how effectively the company’s management team is taking care of the shareholders’ financial investments in the company. The greater the ROE percentage, the better the business’ management staff is at making income and creating growth from shareholders’ investments.   How ROE is Determined In order to calculate ROE, a company’s net income is divided... View Article

  • Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment – and Depreciation

    Posted Date December 1, 2019 Posted Time 12:00 am Published in

    🖨 Print⏱ 4 min readWhen it comes to determining depreciation for Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (FF&E), there are many considerations that exist for accountants and business owners. Defining Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment FF&E refers to expenses for business items that are not affixed to the building where that business operates. Real-world examples of depreciable assets include chairs, desks, phones, tables, cabinets, etc., which are used to perform business-related tasks, directly or indirectly. These types of items are associated with long-term use, generally more than 12 months, according to the Internal Revenue Service. Understanding How It Works When it comes to... View Article

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