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Dear Friends and Colleagues,

It is my belief that the success of any organization is measured by the participation of its members. That being said, one can only conclude that AGN North America is very successful indeed. The North America region’s annual May meeting held in Seattle, Washington was an outstanding success.

We had over 340 participants attending Management of Accounting Practice (MAP) meetings and 6 share group (accounting and auditing, business valuation, human resources, information technology, marketing and tax) meetings.  This was the largest gathering of talent and resources at any AGN event ever.

Our keynote speaker was Cam Marston, who is the founder and president of Generational Insight. He spoke about the four distinct generations – matures, boomers, X-ers and millenniums – that are employed side by side in the workplace. Each of these four groups sees the world differently, which creates a huge challenge to management. It was an extremely entertaining and educational presentation.

“The Beckman Initiative” is the brainchild of Sandy Beckman, immediate past chairman of AGN North America. The process is for board members to make a presentation to the board discussing the firm’s cultures, successes, and failures. This year we heard from Charlie McGimsey of Windham Brannon, PC, CPAs, Frank Lanigan of Lanigan, Ryan, Malcolm and Doyle PC, and Bill Mahoney of Edelstein & Company, LLP. This is an excellent method for the board members to learn more about the different firms within the association.

The MAP seminar included a presentation from Bill Reeb, owner of the Succession Institute, LLC. Bill covered many important topics, including firm unity, partner compensation, partner roles, and rating clients. It was a fast- paced presentation,with many good thought-povoking ideas discussed.

A highlight of every AGN North America annual meeting is the financial survey. Gary Fitzgibbon led us in an overview of the results. We then broke into groups by size of firm.  In those smaller groups, we were able to drill down into the numbers and get a better understanding of the survey results and determine what may be done to improve our own firms.

AGN North America’s core purpose is “to enhance the practice value to each member firm”. I think all would agree that this year’s NARM helped further that cause.
From my perspective, this years meeting went very smoothly -- even with record attendance. This would not have been possible without the leadership of Rita Hood, executive director, and all the support of our Denver staff. They did an excellent job.

I look forward to seeing everyone in Argentina!

Jennings P. Hastings
Chair, North American Region
Faw, Casson & CO., LLP
Dover, DE  USA
jph@fawcasson.com

Order your tax publications through AGN-NA and receive discounts from CCH, Newkirk, and Thomson RIA!

Discounts have been negotiated with these vendors for various tax products including 2008 YETP Guides and 2009 Tax Planning Guides, Summer Codes & Regs, Winter Codes & Regs, Master Tax Guides, Master Depreciation Guides, State Guidebooks, Federal Tax Handbooks and much, much more. When placed as an AGN-NA group order everyone saves! More details and order forms are available at http://www.agn-na.org/orderforms/taxpubs.htm or email Patsy at pbowen@agn.org.

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Sharegroup Teleconference Schedule

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LRemember – All members are welcome to participate in sharegroup teleconferences, which are CPE-approved, in most cases, and free! For details, go to www.agn-na.org >Programs & Events> Calendar

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(Ed. Note: Cam Marston was the keynote speaker at the 2008 AGN International NARM Conference.  His presentation received a 4.9 on a 5. scale from the participants – 1/10th of a point higher than Jim Collins’ the previous year.  Cam generously provided this article for the WWLink from his book “Motivating the ‘What’s In It For Me?’ Workforce.  All member firms also received his DVD MIXING FOUR GENERATIONS IN THE WORKPLACE courtesy of member firm Robert R. Redwitz & Company, Irvine, CA.)

In the Barrie play, Peter Pan sprinkled pixie dust over the children so they could fly with him to Neverland. There, they would remain young forever, free from grown-up rules and responsibilities.
There is no pixie dust. All of us understand that, even Gen Xers and New Millennials. But these two generations do want to live their youthful years, as much as possible, on their own terms, following their individual paths to their personal concepts of “success.”
So, what will it take to harness the skills of a multigenerational workforce? What are today’s requirements for leading young people who see Baby Boomers as outdated and “out of it”?

It will take:
A new understanding of what employees want from their jobs, their bosses, and their workplace “experience”
A new understanding of loyalty - how the word has changed, why it changed, and why pay, benefits, and opportunities for promotion are not nearly as important in creating job loyalty as they used to be
A new definition of “self” - that young employees today define themselves by who they are outside the job, not by what they do for a living, which is a departure from senior generations
A new behavior from leaders in the workplace who must realize that younger generations enter the workplace seeking self-fulfillment from the get-go and aren’t interested in “paying their dues” for an unknown period of time
A new comprehension that youth today remain in their youth much longer than ever before, being able to live at home longer, stay in school longer, get married later, and have children later, which dramatically affects their commitment to their workplace

Because these younger generations are already approximately 50 percent of the nation’s employees, right now the condition of the workforce landscape is still uncertain. But rest assured that this is not the first time one (usually older) generation has looked upon another and been concerned for the future.
Aristotle complained about the ethics and behaviors of the younger generations. Peter Pan challenged his elders at the turn of the twentieth century. Society has been here before. We’ll be here again.
And, ultimately, it will all work out. But one thing is certain: The changes in business outlook and policies that today’s younger generations are experiencing are real and will continue to affect us all.
As the manager of a small firm, a mid-level vice president of a local corporation, or an executive of a large company, you are concerned about your ability to attract and keep employees – some of whom are also your potential customers, of course.
This is the right time for another change in the way businesses are run and how they function. The generational divide that now separates the Boomers from Gen Xers and Millennials may look unbridgeable. On one side are the Boomers, an entrenched group with 30 years of workplace experience - often with only one or two companies. They are used to doing everything “their way.”
On the other side of the divide is an increasingly large, skittish group of employees who have entered the workplace with college diplomas, superior technical skills, a different life strategy from their predecessors, and little regard for the establishment.
The gap can be bridged. To avoid havoc and to improve your bottom line, you can and must learn to make adjustments. These changes are necessary if you are to get the most from - and give the most to - this vast new population of employees.
There is no magic pixie dust that will make these generations “grow up and come to their senses.” Anyone waiting for that ought to grab a chair and get real comfortable. Yes, some generational differences reflect the desire and will of each new generation to change the world, at least its surface styles and attitudes.
However, other differences speak to the heart of these generations’ personal goals. The challenge is to determine which differences are superficial and which are deeply held convictions - and to reconcile those convictions with the traditional workforce hierarchy model.
In the end, there is no Neverland to escape to; we must all make an effort to understand each generation and determine the best way to define success in the current workforce environment.

Cam Marston is the president of Generational Insight and author of Motivating the “What’s In It For Me?” Workforce. He is one of the most popular keynoters and workshop leaders on the multi-generational topic. Cam lives in Mobile, Alabama with his wife and three children.  For further information about any Marston products and services, please contact Learning Communications at 800.622.3610, or www.learncom.com.

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AGN-NA has identified members within the association who are resources for more specialized assistance within certain practice specialties or indus-tries. These individuals are referred to as “designated resources”. A designated resource is someone who focuses almost entirely in that specialty and a designated resource may charge other members for services at standard rates. An initial call to a designated resource is free, however, requests for assistance or additional consultation time will be billed at standard rates.

Business Management Software
Tom Maurer
Director
Schenck Technology Solutions

Expertise:
MAS 500, MAS 90, MAS 200, Microsoft Dynamics GP, Business Works and others

Related Information:
• Employed with firm since 1998
• Undergrad degree earned in 1987 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison
• MBA earned from the University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh
• 10 years experience in this area
• 600 clients in this area
• 100% of time devoted to clients in this area
• Sage Certified Consultant
• Our goal is to help our clients reach their business goals with the use of technology. We specialize in delivering solutions to manufacturing and distribution companies and have very strong qualifications in a number of other industries including not-for-profits. We have several vertical solutions that can extend the use of software that we represent, including process manufac-turing, job shop software, warehouse automation and service.

International Tax

Ranko Princip
Manager - Practice Leader
Senior Manager
Pender Newkirk & Company

Related Information:

• Employed with firm since 2006
• Undergrad degree earned in 1981 from the University of Belgrade
• MBA earned in 1995 from Tulane
• LLM in Tax earned in 1996 from the University of Florida
• 12 years experience in this area
• 30 clients in this area
• 75% of time devoted to clients in this area
• Primary area of expertise is international taxation (tax compliance, research and planning), having extensive experience in both inbound (foreigners having trade or business in the United States, or passive income from U.S. sources, etc.) and outbound international transactions (foreign tax credit, controlled foreign corporations, tax-free transactions in the international arena, etc.).
• Extensive knowledge of transfer pricing rules, sourcing of income rules, foreign currency transactions and translation rules, and the effects of income tax treaties on international transactions.
• Significant experience in cross-border mergers and acquisitions and funding transactions.

SEC Practice
Tom Bellante
Senior Partner, SEC Practice Division
Pender Newkirk & Company

Related Information:
• Employed with firm since 1975
• Undergrad degree earned in 1970 from Hofstra University
• 22 years experience in this area
• 23 clients in this area
• 90% of time devoted to clients in this area
• Work mainly with middle market to small public companies
• Experienced with reverse acquisitions

Tom, Ranko and Tom join the following list of Designated Resources – those individuals who are considered to have significant experience in their particular niche:

Dennis McCullough, Schenck Business Solutions - Business Process Improvement
Mark Hanson, Schenck Business Solutions - Business Valuations
*Larry Steinberg, Blue & Co. – Construction
Skip Grubanowitch, Schenck Business Solutions - Cost Segregation
*Bill Edwards, Clark, Schaefer, Hackett & Co. - Employee Benefits Administration
Mike Miller, Concannon Miller & Co. - Fast Food Franchise [McDonald’s]
Howard Altman, Rothstein, Kass & Co - Financial Services [Broker-Dealers and Hedge Funds]
Kam McQuay, Blue & Co. - Health Care: Medical Practices
Sid Shaver, Weinstein, Spira & Co. - Mergers & Acquisitions
Brad Lusk, Sisterson & Co. - Private Foundations
Mark Weber, Schenck Business Solutions - Property Tax, Real Estate Appraisal
Sandy Beckman, Weinstein Spira & Co. – Restaurants
Faith Gorman, Daszkal Bolton - State & Local Tax
Butch Sigmon, Windham Brannon & Co.. - Tax Compliance & Consulting Services for International Executives

You can find details about all of AGN-NA Designated Resources at www.agn-na.org > Information & Resources > Designated Resources. Please use these resource to help boost your firm’s expertise and client services capability!!!
To find out how to become a Designated Resource, contact Rita Hood at rhood@agn.org * featured in previous issues

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