Author: Christine Dill

Welcome to the second of our “Five Tips of Employment” blog series. This blog series is aimed at offering different tips on selling yourself to an employer and landing that dream job.

Tip #2: Know Your Audience

Not sure who in your area employs persons in your degreed area? The easiest way to start is by conducting a search. There is never a better place to start than utilizing popular search engines such as, Google, Bing, or Yahoo to search businesses, and then, review their website.   By reviewing a company’s website, you can find out their location(s), size, market(s) they serve, and typically the key employees/owners.

Do your homework. Review the website information to determine if the company is truly a target employer for you; and, if they are, take notes on the key information that you find and retain this information for use later on.

Ideally, when you are presented with an interview, you can then use the information you have gathered and share with them. This demonstrates to a hiring professional that you have done your homework and are a serious candidate.

In a competitive job market, you typically only get one first impression – make it a good one. Take the time to Know Your Audience.

Stay tuned for three more employment tips. For information about our careers or to learn more about researching companies, please visit our career pages, or contact Christine Dill at (231) 726-5835 or cdill@brickleydelong.com.

Author: Christine Dill

Welcome to the first of our “Five Tips of Employment” blog series. The next five weeks, we will be posting five different tips on selling yourself to an employer and landing that dream job.

Tip #1: Create Your Personal Inventory

In this day and age we are all different. We have different educations, different upbringings, and different backgrounds. When looking for a career, it is important to consider your Unique Selling Proposition. This is what makes YOU special, different, or set apart from the rest. Why should a prospective employer hire you?

Most CPA’s are not big self-promoters. We tend to forget all the things we have done, especially the positive things. We are not salesman (or sales women). To help you remember why you are worthy of hiring, you need to develop your Personal Inventory – a listing of what you have done, learned and accomplished in your life and career.

Your personal inventory will likely include:

• Education,
• Work experience,
• Community service,
• Sports,
• Academic activities, or
• Anything else you have done that makes you unique.

It is also beneficial to note the things you like to do, such as:

• Traveling,
• Reading,
• Volunteering, or
• Other hobbies/interests

This shows your ability to multi-task, passion for adventure, and experience with leadership. This different skillset shows another part of your uniqueness.

With your inventory in hand, you have completed the first few steps in preparing for an interview. Your personal inventory can also help you identify your true career interests.

So, start today by developing your inventory, so that you can be more effective in your career search.

Stay tuned for 4 more employment tips. For information about our careers or to learn more about creating your personal inventory, please visit our career pages, or contact Christine Dill at (231) 726-5835 or cdill@brickleydelong.com

As businesses grow, employees leave, or new positions are created, business owners are faced with the process of hiring personnel. This process of advertising job openings, analyzing resumes, choosing candidates, setting up interviews, and interviewing candidates can be long and time-consuming. And, as a business owner, it can be very difficult to capture the essence of a candidate’s skills and abilities, especially if you are filling a position that is not your area of expertise.

Being a CPA Firm, our hiring professionals have a high aptitude for employing those in the financial industry (i.e. accountants, bookkeepers, CFOs, payroll clerks, and others). In our 40-year history, we have developed a familiarity of skillsets that make stand-out employees.

Given this, our Firm, provides job placement services for businesses seeking employees in “financial” positions. We will write the advertisement, review resumes, conduct phone interviews and in-office interviews. Once we have three top candidates selected, we provide you with the resumes, and then schedule interviews for you to meet the candidates. This can happen at our offices or your location – your choice. It is our goal, through our services, that our client’s have the confidence of a highly qualified candidate, without the stress of the hiring process.

For more information on our job placement services, please contact your Brickley DeLong accountant or Christine Dill at (231) 726-5835 or cdill@brickleydelong.com.

Effective October 1, 2015, new credit card additions will change the way we pay for goods and services. An article by Gene Marks in Accounting Today states that new credit cards with EMV chips are currently being distributed to card owners. These EMV chips are designed to fight fraud and provide a more secure purchasing experience for the consumer. In order to utilize these EMV chips, some retailers must purchase new point of sale equipment. If the merchant does not do so, and they accept a fraudulent transaction, the merchant will now be liable for the costs.

These costs were previously covered by the credit card company, so failure to upgrade equipment could be very costly for some companies. Already being utilized in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America, these chips are proven to reduce credit card fraud. Unfortunately, many small merchants are not aware of EMV or what they need to do to take advantage of it. Failing to make a change could cost merchants thousands through customer loss and huge liabilities.

For more information on EMV chips and how they could affect your business, please visit the referenced article by Gene Marks in Accounting Today, or contact Paul Gilbert at pgilbert@brickleydelong.com or (231) 726-5860.

 Accounting Services , Closely-held Businesses

Recently, Governor Rick Snyder signed legislation that will transfer the operations of Gerald R. Ford International Airport to a regionally-managed authority with an autonomous board of directors. An article by Nick Manes, published in MiBiz, discusses the potential impact this change might have on the airport and its surrounding area.

The Kent County Department of Aeronautics currently operates the airport and will still retain ownership once the proposed authority model is put in place. However, all operations will be handled by the new authority.

This new operating model is being put in place in hopes of strengthening regional coordination and creating a stronger platform for economic development.

For more information, please visit the referenced article by Nick Manes published in MiBiz or contact Thomas Vereecke at (616) 608-8510 or tvereecke@brickleydelong.com.

In a recent new release, The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency announced that beginning in the third quarter of 2015, Michigan employers will pay less in unemployment taxes. This is due to a reduction in the state’s Taxable Wage Base (from $9,500 to $9,000).

According to Governor Rick Snyder, this reduction will benefit employers, families, and the economy, because allowing businesses to save money will grant them the ability to retain jobs, expand opportunities, and hire more employees.

For more information on the Taxable Wage Base decrease, please visit the referenced article, visit the UIA website, or contact Terry Maycroft at (231) 726-5825 or tmaycroft@brickleydelong.com.

Author: Chris Dill

A career in public accounting is both challenging and rewarding. No matter what firm you work for, the track to reach partner is very similar. Jim Toto, Kristen Walters, and Philip Culotta, in an article published in Accounting Today, lay out the typical progression for those in public accounting. For starters, whether graduating from college or moving into the profession, you are more than likely to start off as a staff accountant. The rest of your path and some related responsibilities might look somewhat as follows:

• Staff Accountant: Introduction to  tax and audit work
• Staff to Senior: Starting to lead engagements, seeing an increased workload, mentoring staff-level team members
• Senior to Manager: Becoming aware of where you want to specialize, developing the ability to train others and delegate tasks, and significant increase in client service leadership.
• Manager to Partner: An ever-evolving role, perhaps the largest and most challenging step, you are ultimately responsible for the work and ensuring Firm success

This organization structure is very similar to that of our firm. At Brickley DeLong, it is our goal that if someone starts off as an intern or staff accountant, that they are able to progress through this sequence and eventually become a partner at the Firm. We believe in training, goal setting, mentorship, and challenging our employees to help them grow in their careers. With this, our unique structure trains employees in both tax and audit, so that employees ultimately progress on a path to which they are most attracted to. Our most recent “Next Generation” initiative has received high praise from employees as its goal is to bridge the communication gap among different generations, as well as train attendees in how to succeed in their careers.

If you have any questions or would like more information on employment paths and opportunities at Brickley DeLong, please visit the referenced article, view our accounting career pages, or contact Chris Dill at cdill@brickleydelong.com or (231) 726-5835.

Author: Calvin VanderWal, Intern

As a student, I was told to participate in as many internships as possible. They provide real-world experience, give you a feel for the profession, and are a great resume builder. After going through the fall recruiting season my junior year of college, I landed a summer internship with Brickley DeLong.

I had the opportunity to do some audit work in the field on my first day of the internship, and I was slightly overwhelmed. However, the staff I was working with eased me into the job and made me feel very welcome. After a couple days in the field, I had my first day in the office. This day was filled with partners and staff coming over to my desk to introduce themselves and welcome me to the Firm. I immediately felt like a member of the Brickley DeLong team.

At the beginning of my internship, I was concerned with the lack of technical knowledge I might have. To my relief, every staff member was available and more than willing to answer any questions I might have. I was also surprised that some of the entry level staff was as new to some areas as I was. This made it easier to collaborate and ask questions. The professional staff I worked with honestly wanted me to understand what I was doing and why it needed to be done a certain way. They expected my work to be of the utmost quality, but gave me the information and resources to do so.

Throughout the summer, I spent time in both the office and the field. In the field, I was interacting directly with clients and working with them to complete various auditing tasks. This direct client interaction gave me insight to knowledge I otherwise would not have gained, and showed me that Brickley DeLong trusted me to represent the Firm in a dignified and professional manner to their clients.

The people at Brickley DeLong made my internship a great experience, and I would recommend this internship to anyone.

For more information on recruiting and hiring at Brickley DeLong PC, please visit our career pages or contact Christine Dill, cdill@brickleydelong.com or (231) 726-5835.