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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY * Enter negotiations with a salary range in mind, but also understand which benefits and other elements of compensation you must have and which you are willing to [...]

Various policies introduced to promote employees' job satisfaction, boost their motivation and increase retention rates are described. Such positive approaches can fulfill the special needs of a company's workforce and render permanent improvements in employees' job satisfaction levels.

As a credit manager, one of your most import ant responsibilities is finding and hiring the best staff. After all, having qualified and motivated employees is essential to your department's [...]

There's a new trend afoot - hiring financial professionals on a project-by-project basis to fill in the expertise gaps at your company. Virtually everyone agrees: Knowledgeable and experienced executives are [...]

I'm an accounting manager in an expanding small company. I'm beginning to interview candidates for several new positions and would like some advice on reference checking. How many references are [...]

Just-in-time (JIT) staffing can be a highly valuable strategy for accounting departments. This concept involves the careful evaluation of departmental staffing priorities, which is then used as a basis for assigning projects to either full-time and temporary employees. Full-time employees function as a core staff unit that focuses on priority projects while temporary employees act as a contingency group that takes care of planned and unplanned seasonal fluctuations, rush projects and workload peaks. The advantage of hiring temps is that they can focus on particular tasks and are flexible enough to satisfy unexpected demands, thereby improving the quantity and quality of work in the department. Realizing the value of temps, the core staff then concentrate on strategic issues and daily execution. The overall effect is reduced concerns about staffing, overwork and burnout.

Gaps between the skills workers have, and the skills companies need, are impacting recruitment, productivity and morale. By understanding where the gaps are, and what causes them, you can avoid [...]

The pressure to produce more with less has left many employees zapped of morale. The economic conditions of the past several years clearly have left their mark on today's corporate [...]

Mortgage companies are uniquely vulnerable to interdepartmental friction. Origination staff and pricing departments are certainly capable of acting like warring factions. And underwriters have known the wrath of legions of [...]

The Russians are looking to the West for ideas, but old habits die hard. It was a moment impossible to replicate, impossible to anticipate. I was sitting at a long [...]

For years, it was difficult for companies to tap into the experience of high-level talent on a temporary basis. It required the same significant time and money commitments that were [...]

The next time an employee gives notice, don't just mentally 'dismiss' him or her. Sit down and discuss the departing employee's reasons for leaving. An exit interview is good way to find out whether your managers are motivational or your pay is competitive. With a minimal investment Of time, you'll get other hard-to-obtain information that can be used to improve inefficient operations and poor management--two leading causes of employee turnover., It is common for business owners to dismissed employees who want to leave the company without looking at the reasons for the departure of their employees. Conducting exit interviews with departing employees is a management technique that could help business owners find out inefficiency in company operations, which can manifested in many ways, one of which is incompetence on the part of company managers or supervisors., After the third controller in four years resigned, the CEO of a Northeastern apparel firm stopped attributing the company's inability to retain key employees to poor hiring decisions and bad [...]

Reference checks of an applicant's work history allow the employer to screen the applicant's former duties, areas of strength and weaknesses and personality. It is advisable to obtain written permission from the applicant to check his references. Getting in touch by phone allows one to perceive a tone of assurance or lack of it. Between eight o'clock and nine o'clock in the morning and five o'clock in the afternoon are the best times of the day to phone referrences. Face-to-face meetings can furnish more information through body language., In Brief: In these litigious times, it's hard to get references to reveal much more than an applicant's employment dates and salary. But a thorough and well-planned reference check is [...]

Accountingfirms have to continually adapt to changing business needs if they intend to remain competitive into the 21st century. Six major practice management areas are discussed to give accounting firms ideas on how to cope with a dynamic market. Compensation trends point toward nontraditional pay and benefits such as equity or nonequity partnerships and performance-based pay. Other trends discussed cover consulting and globalization, litigation and professional accountability, technology and professional development and women and family values.

The increasing availability of skilled temporary employees has presented human resources (HR) professionals and line managers with an expanded range of options to consider in solving staffing problems in the 1990s. The steps HR professionals may have to take to introduce the concept of hiring skilled temporary employees include dispelling myths about temporary workers among line managers; including segments of flexible staffing in orientation sessions for new managers; and including segments on mixing permanent and temporary employees in quarterly education sessions for senior management.

Maintaining and strengthening a highly skilled and responsive finance and accounting department is one of the senior financial executive's most important tasks. In today's environment, it is also one of [...]

A credit department, like all other areas of the business, is only as effective as the people who work in it. If employees are not motivated, their lackluster attitude will [...]

A capable staff is essential for credit management professionals to assist their organizations in maintaining sound customer relationships with the effective and ethical exchange of business credit information. While today's [...]

Government accounting managers should learn how to act like coaches to keep their staff members motivated and boost their morale. Coaching is an important technique in building staff confidence and loyalty, which are always important in a fully functioning department. To be the most effective coaches possible, accounting managers should hone their listening skills, establish and convey clear goals, develop new skills in staff, appraise employee strengths and provide personal guidance. Accounting managers should also encourage big picture thinking, welcome different learning styles, share their enthusiasm, offer incentives, be generous with praise and recognition, and provide personal growth opportunities.

Companies that expand their retail operations must improve its credit and collection policies and processes. Hiring high-level temporaries, senior professionals with extensive credit expertise and experience, can help a firm adjust through transition. Hiring such professionals can lead to the integration of skills and knowledge not present in current credit managers. However, the specific skills needed and costs must be factored in before recruiting such assistance., Louise Johnson runs the credit department at a large company we'll call XYZ Electronics. XYZ's business is prospering. Its latest new product has helped the company open up hundreds of [...]

Picking the best person for the job means not bowing to pressure from clients, company officials or colleagues while keeping an open mind when considering candidates. The average cost of [...]

There's been a lot of talk about the information superhighway, the fabled gateway to globalized network communications. In fact, employees from many firms already travel the highway on a regular [...]

Determining the factors that motivate temporary employees to perform their best is essential for maximizing employee contributions to the firm. Temporary employees may want flexible work schedules or exposure to different industries or companies. They may need to supplement their income while hunting for a more permanent job. The appropriate management style may be developed once the factors that are likely to affect a temporary employee's performance have been determined., Temporary employees have become an integral part of today's corporate landscape. In addition to their traditional roles of assisting during peak periods and filling in for absent full-time employees, highly [...]

The right combination of permanent and temporary employees can increase your department's competitiveness. Accounting departments used to be fairly insulated from the effects of economic cycles. Heads might roll in [...]

In the good old days, corporations were fully staffed and jobs were metered out by functional area. Accounting staff performed accounting duties. Marketing staff did marketing. But in today's tough [...]

Managerial accountants that have reached what the feel is a plateau in their career should conduct a career audit. Managerial accountants that have reached a career plateau should not blame their company for their situation, but should look at any weaknesses in themselves that have led to a lack of career momentum. A career audit entails an examination of the managerial accountant's knowledge base, including computer literacy, management of people, and post-graduate education.

The Task-is-Boss management system can help accounting managers adjust to the changes in the business environment caused by trends that include high levels of mergers and acquisitions, downsizing, and computerization. The key elements of the Task-is-Boss system include defining a task, responsibilities and roles. Defining a task involves: defining a company's mission; determining tasks each department must accomplish to fulfill that mission; and establishing interdepartmental contributions necessary to complete each departmental task. The factors in defining the roles and responsibilities include identifying the people who must accomplish tasks, and defining roles for each person.

One of the greatest challenges for a manager is allocating the appropriate resources for accounting projects: You must assign enough people to meet business requirements, but you can't afford to [...]

Business reports are a common assignment for accountants today. You'll most likely be asked to provide analysis on a variety of topics from budget considerations to technology investments and operational [...]

You've scanned through resumes, selected candidates to interview, and met face-to-face with many of them. Now you've reached the most important stage of the process--deciding which applicant will receive an [...]

Creating the right kind of work environment can go a long way toward retaining valued audit staff. NO MATTER WHAT THE PREVAILING ECONOMIC climate, no company can afford -- even [...]

Change is a normal part of business. Every day, companies make decisions to reorganize, add new products or services, acquire other firms, downsize, make other shifts in their strategy. As [...]

You've implemented casual dress days, an open-door management policy and flexible work hours to enhance your employee retention. But have you taken a careful look at your commitment to provide [...]

It's understood that a resume is meant to point out a job applicant's strengths and downplay any weaknesses. While it would be helpful to have all the facts up front, [...]

Returning to the workforce after a long absence is not without its share of uncertainties. While you may have had top-notch skills when you left the accounting field years ago [...]

Despite common perception, training today is definitely not just for beginners. Even the most accomplished accounting professional can benefit by continually updating his or her knowledge base--whether it's mastering the [...]

Most managers want to find the most qualified candidate for a job vacancy as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, this can be easier said than done, and no one can afford [...]

No impression is more important than the first impression. Whether you are greeting a new neighbor who has just moved next door or meeting your future in laws for the [...]

Before venturing down any new career path, you'll need to assess your marketability--the skills, attributes, and experience you possess that increase your value to current and prospective employers. The job [...]

No matter how experienced or talented your employees are, interpersonal conflicts can still arise at any time, particularly among workers assigned to project teams. The resulting tension--whether it involves staff, [...]

Like most accounting professionals, you undoubtedly find yourself attending many meetings throughout your work week--from department get-togethers to discussions focused on specific company initiatives. While many of these meetings are [...]

Retaining talented staff is critical to the success of any firm. It helps promote a stable work environment, creates a greater sense of job security for all employees and contributes [...]

Despite the number of dot-com disappointments in the past year, innovative and adaptive start-up companies continue to attract a variety of experienced professionals. Though typically technology-based, these developing firms offer [...]

Keeping up-to-date with the latest trends in accounting and finance is an absolutely crucial aspect of career advancement. The skills that made you successful as an accountant a decade ago [...]