Whether you are planning to grow your firm for the 21st century or you are providing business planning for your clients, a lesson from top-performing companies can help.According to AnswerThink, a consulting group, top performing companies integrate strategic planning with tactical and financial planning processes. More than two-thirds of companies worldwide currently rely only on financial planning to realize business goals.Successful companies also don’t keep strategy a secret. They share it with all levels of the organization.

The way people retire is going to change dramatically in the new millennium. As 80 million baby boomers prepare to retire in the next 10 years, financial service professionals are setting their sites on helping this generation find the best ways to spend their nest egg. It is believed that many retirees will take the non-traditional retirement route and pursue second careers, explore educational options or take vacations that are tied to the ability to generate income.

A strong public relations program can help your firm in many ways. It helps extend your advertising efforts, it lends credibility, and it helps brand your firm’s image in the marketplace. PR also can inspire your employees and reassure clients they are working with a world-class firm.Here are a few strategies to boost your PR program.Press ReleasesSet a goal of writing one press release a month. You can write about product changes and improvements; new employees, service awards, board of director nominations; and more.

Recruiting and keeping good employees always has been more difficult for small business owners who must compete with large companies that offer a variety of perks and benefits. And now, with the jobless rate sitting below 5 percent for the past two years, the struggle to find reliable, long-term personnel has never been more difficult.The days when flex-time and telecommuting were considered attractive employment incentives are over.

Today's students are tomorrow's leaders, right? How about today-here and now!More and more small businesses are tapping the resources available to them through local graduate school programs, especially the red-hot MBA marketplace. Recruiting an MBA provides a fresh perspective to your business and, at the same time, helps the student receive invaluable experience.Businesses who must watch the bottom line are finding they can accomplish the same end result by relying on the graduate student to provide consulting services relative to his or her discipline.

In today's accounting marketplace, more and more CPAs and other professionals are getting further and further away from taxation and advise strategies for the small business owner.Some end-of-year tax planning will indeed help any situation, be it that of the CPA or a client. For example, by gathering together last year's tax statement, along with a projection of 1999, you can adequately take a look at where you may or may not be headed regarding the 1999 tax bill.Some strategies for small business boil down to the calendar itself, such as sending out invoices after Jan.

I’ve spent almost a quarter of my waking business life in meetings. If you are doing business in corporate America, I’d bet that you are being “meetinged to death,” too. Meetings aren’t bad, though. They are somewhat necessary. However, bad meetings aren’t necessary at all. Ever been to a meeting where the facilitator didn’t know what he/she wanted to accomplish? “Yes!” I understand.

Most CPA firms and businesses who hire CPAs and accountants know that finding good employees to fill positions takes time and patience. Placing newspaper want ads is one way to go, but in today's fast-paced, technology-driven world, going online to find employees makes sense for many reasons.Over the last two years, according to the American Management Association, just over half to 70 percent of all companies across the United States advertised jobs and recruited employees over the Internet. Why? Cost and convenience.

Time is money. Accounting firm owners know this as well as anyone. But what happens when Internet access gobbles up your firm’s precious time? Employers looking to play Big Brother and keep a check on Internet activity in their companies have several options. One solution is to completely limit access to the Internet. The problem with this idea is that it also limits your employees’ resources. Some employers are setting up Internet stations where employees can log on for specific projects. These stations are usually set up side by side and offer the employee little privacy.