Robert Half: Tax Accountant Among Most Promising Positions

Starting salaries for tax accountants with one to three years of experience are among those expected to rise in 2010, according to specialized staffing firm Robert Half International.

RHI identified 10 such positions that are expected to see gains in starting salaries this year, while most others remain flat or decline due to companies’ focus on cost control. Other positions among the top 10 are compliance director, credit manager/supervisor, senior financial analyst, network administrator, information systems security manager, technology systems engineer, medical records clerk, customer service representative, and executive assistant.

Tax accountants with the aforementioned experience and working at large companies – defined by RHI as having more than $250 million in sales – are expected to see an average national starting salary between $46,500 and $61,500. According to an RHI release, such companies “seek tax accountants who can help their organizations achieve bottom-line savings through effective tax management strategies.”

Eden Group Endorses Active Client Participation

Volatile financial markets are keeping tax planning strategists busy.

Count Stan Eden, president of Eden Financial Group, among them. Eden Financial Group has offices in Springdale and Fort Smith, and both are encouraging clients to take a more active role in their investments.

In particular, Eden said investors need to keep a close watch on money put in mutual funds. Because of the market volatility, there is a lot of buying and selling taking place.

“That’s why people really need to pay attention to their monthly or quarterly statements,” Eden said, adding that investors are allowed to write off up to $3,000 per year in long-term losses.

Eden also urges clients to get a handle on their situations by November, so that strategic moves can be made by the end of the year. That can mean more work for Eden and his staff, but he said now is not the time for a passive approach.

“You can’t just set things there and leave them alone anymore,” he said. “You’ve got to be actively involved.”

Officials Set 2011 Date For Major-area Alignment

Accounting officials from the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board and the London-based International Accounting Standards Board indicated the first week of June they are working on a modified strategy to come up with a single set of global standards – with a target date of June 30, 2011 – for major-area alignment.

President Barack Obama had called last summer for progress toward a single set of global standards by the end of 2009. According to Reuters, FASB Chairman Robert Herz and IASB Chairman Sir David Tweedie sent a letter to the G20 group of industrialized and emerging countries to establish the new timeline.

The IASB sets accounting rules known as International Financial Reporting Standards, which are used in more than 100 countries. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, meanwhile, is considering the use of IFRS in place of U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, for U.S. companies.

SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro said in a statement she is confident the regulator will decide in 2011 whether to adopt IFRS.