Business Toolbox
Expanded Roth IRA conversion opportunity in 2010
BY KAREN MATLAND, CPA, CTFA
Effective for tax year 2010, there is an expanded opportunity to convert traditional IRA or certain other retirement plan assets to Roth IRA assets as provided for in the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act (TIPRA) of 2005.
While this opportunity may not be appropriate for everyone, some taxpayers should review the changes and have a discussion with their Tax Advisor to assess the effects of converting all ...
Printing: Tips for adding color to your project
BY JON BOND
As a general guideline, we recommend incorporating color into almost any printing project. Use of color improves reader comprehension, calls for attention to important information and improves the overall appearance of your document.
A common way to use PMS (Pantone Matching System) color is to combine it with black as an accent. The color draws the reader’s eye and emphasizes the information printed in color. Or, if used for h...
Collecting pre-event feedback key to planning better gatherings
BY MARY CROGAN
Putting an event together requires a lot of time, resources and money, so you want to make sure it’s a successful endeavor. The simplest way to ensure a good outcome is to reach out to guests to ask for input prior to your event.
Conducting a survey prior to your event – before sending out invitations, even – can help with logistical planning, particularly if you have multiple options available. For example, if y...
The Law at Work: New data security regulations
BY BETH O’NEAL, ESQ. BY MARK TALERICO AND RYAN O’CONNELL BY BYRON LAFFERTY BY ROBERT BYERS BY WARREN J. RUTHERFORD BY TERENCE J. SHEPHERD BY SCOTT HOKANSON BY DONNA KAPLAN BY WARREN J. RUTHERFORD BY CHRISTOPHER J. JOYCE BY CAROLYN B. RZEWSKI, CPCU, CPIW BY TONY SHEPLEY BY GARY SHEEHAN BY DONNA KAPLAN BY CHRISTOPHER J. JOYCE BY DOUG FLEENER BY MATTHEW H. KEELING, CFP BY GLENN RITT BY KEVIN MACARTHUR BY ROBERT MULLANEY BY RICHARD D. BIENVENUE, CPA BY BYRON LAFFERTY Chances are, your company – no matter how small – may fall under new state regulations aimed to protect computer privacy. The financial implications of violating the regulations could be severe. Learn about your potential liability – and consider cyber liability insurance to protect yourself. What is a brand? BY NANCY TRAVERS
A company laptop computer was recently stolen during an employee’s business trip abroad. Fortunately, this employee did not have any company information saved on the hard drive, and all the company’s records are stored on our main server, which restricts access by requiring a password. However, we immediately informed all of our employees of the incident and warned them to ensure that no sensitive information is to be...
Reversing the tide: Expanding homeowner’s coverage across coastal Cape Cod and the South Shore
We serve thousands of business owners and managers who work around the clock to support their families. That makes it even more imperative to assure them peace of mind at home so they can focus on their companies in this very challenging economy.
This is a key rationale behind the Rogers & Gray Academy’s 2010 educational series targeting South Shore and Cape Cod businesses with workshops on bot...
Telecommunications - Meeting diverse needs of a business
Many times a business has diverse needs but meeting those needs may involve subsystems that can be expensive and difficult to manage. Now you have a better choice.
Imagine a single system that handles telephone and voice mail functions, integrates with your cell users, can record and archive certain phone calls, manages and reports on door access and control, and integrates video with the door access function – all manage...
Keeping pace with social media in the workplace
Social media’s impact on employers and employees has clearly affected the workplace. According to the 2009 Deloitte LLYN Ethics & Workplace Survey, “58 percent of executives agree that reputational risk and social networking should be a boardroom issue.”
As opposed to traditional and generally more costly media vehicles, social media encompasses and leverages a wide variety of highly accessible technologies ...
The smart guide to human resources - Managing Smart
Workforce alignment requires that you have the right types of people, in the right places at the right times, doing the right things right. This month we will discuss how to get your employees in the right places at the right times by managing them effectively.
We know that we need to convey a better understanding of our business needs by defining and communicating our long-term company strategy and plan to our employees ...
Selling your business ... the unpleasant surprise after
"I was 47. I just sold my business and had $3 million in my bank account. Do you know what the problem was?” came a question to me after a recent speaking engagement.
“You found yourself with nothing to do,” I replied. The problem this person found himself grappling with is one that has surprised many business owners after they have sold or transferred their business. What do they do with their newf...
Healthy lifestyle incentives can curb health care costs
To manage the recent health insurance rate increases across Southeastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod, there are a variety of newly crafted solutions for clients who are struggling to afford the plans they use today. We’ve found that providing incentives for employees to make healthy lifestyle choices is a very effective method to reduce costs.
It’s important to first note that the crisis we are in will not change anytime soo...
The end of Saturday delivery
It is looking more and more likely that in 2011, the United States Postal Service will be eliminating mail delivery on Saturday. This move is thought to impact businesses on a nationwide scale on the B2C level. The question is, does reaching consumers through any print medium during the week versus strictly on the weekend increase business?
In the past, companies depended on weekend newspaper circulars to announce sales, provide coupons ...
The smart guide to human resource and management – hiring smart
We all understand that we need people to run our businesses, but do we understand how people can contribute to the success of our businesses? This was one question that researchers at the Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies at Cornell University posed in 2005 when they studied employee selection processes at 250 small businesses.
These researchers understand that workforce alignment requires that you have the right types o...
Landscaping: Lighting up the night
Business owners have always used lighting to display their signage, but more and more are now investing in landscape night lighting to display the trees and shrubs and walkways around their property. The benefits of proper lighting at a business can add beauty, safety and security. In many cases this simple investment will enhance the overall appearance of the business and can attract more patrons in the daytime or nighttime.
In ...
Insurance: Consider employment practices coverage
If your company has not purchased an employment practices liability policy, you may want to give it serious consideration. This type of policy protects companies and individuals against loss (damages and defense costs) arising out of employment practice disputes. The most common allegations include discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, failure to employ or promote and wrongful discipline.
Studies have...
The basics of green building
Green building promotes the concept of an entire building system – not individual pieces. This is why green certification programs begin at the time of site design. The key is to have the least impact on the environment while creating a sustainable and energy-efficient home.
Here are some of the common, easy to achieve green points:
■ Minimize impact to environmentally sensitive areas when clearing the lot. Y...
Sleep apnea: An increasingly common condition
Many of us are so busy running, managing and growing our businesses that we forget about the most important piece of our ongoing success – personal health and wellness. Without it, we are forced to take substantial time away from our companies to refocus and get well; but with it, we can focus on the task at hand and achieve new levels of personal and professional satisfaction.
One topic related to personal health and welln...
Marketing - make it personal
In this age of Web sites, instant messaging and social networking, consumers are looking for companies to be tech savvy but to also show them that they value their business. There is one surefire way that your marketing dollars will work harder for you – take your marketing from impersonal to highly personal.
Personalized marketing has been around for a while – people who advertise on TV select the shows that match th...
How to choose a landscape contractor
When searching for a landscape contractor for your business or home, there are a variety of factors to consider that can help ensure a satisfactory outcome.
Perhaps the most important qualification to look for is certification. A Massachusetts Certified Landscape Professional offers you the most advanced knowledge and assistance in caring for your property. This certification requires individuals to pass a stringent exami...
Adapting your sales and engagement approach
One of the ways superstar salespeople differentiate themselves from average or good salespeople is in their ability to adapt their sales and engagement approach to the customer.
Good salespeople will deliver the same quality experience throughout the day with little difference between the first and last customers of the day. Superstar salespeople deliver a quality experience but they adapt each experience to the customers themsel...
Proper planning can help save you money
Now more than ever, small businesses are looking for ways to save money without sacrificing service and without laying off employees. Very often, those with small businesses steer away from seeing a financial advisor because they fear it will cost them money. In fact, the opposite is true. Here are some ways a financial advisor may be able to save you money.
Retirement plans
In 2009 business own...
Cooperative office space
You can purchase anywhere from 40 to 160 hours a month at multiple locations
Scenario: You have a home office. It’s wired and filled with all the technology you need to communicate with anyone anywhere. But something is missing – that company office environment, the experience of working alongside colleagues, grabbing a cup of coffee and comparing notes about the Sox or the stock market.
...
Managing your Computing
As the commercials ask, are you a Mac or a PC?
First of all, let me say that this is the best question I have had in all my time doing this column. As those inescapable television ads indicate, the world is generally divided into Mac users and PC users.
I would classify myself as a PC with an iPhone addiction. In reality, I have not had much of a chance to use a Mac on a daily basis, so commenti...
Life goes better with exercise
The benefits of exercise, unlike the Fountain of Youth, are real for everyone – even for senior citizens who avoided exercise in their younger years. Whether you start now or not until your golden years, exercise will maximize your quality of life and productivity.
Many research studies prove that anyone, including seniors, can improve their health and extend their longevity and time of independent living by extending th...
Begin year-end tax planning now
This year’s Stimulus Bill provides businesses with several big-ticket tax saving opportunities. It’s not too late to take advantage of these opportunities, but planning needs to start now!
In addition to extending so-called bonus depreciation and increased limits for expensing capital purchases, retail, restaurant and certain other business are now allowed to recover the cost of qualified improvements ove...
Telecommunications: What's new and exciting?
During these tough economic times, we all dig a little deeper to accomplish what we need to do to get by or get ahead. This is also true for the technology sector. Manufacturers are developing new and exciting product offerings that will set them apart from their competition and give them an advantage in the marketplace.
Business equipment manufacturers are using new technologies to create services and systems that extend beyon...
Cyber liability: It can cost you dearly
THE FACTS
Beginning March 1, 2010, businesses will need to pay more attention to data privacy regulations. A higher legal standard will go into...
Branding your business
BY RICK SAWYER
Simply put, your brand is the public’s perception of your company. The strength of your brand will determine the level of recognition that your company has with your target market.
Creating that recognition requires a combination of efforts – including, but not limited to, creating a graphic representation of your business (logo, ad treatment, signage, packaging, etc.), communicating you...
Meeting planning with the Midas Touch
In today’s recession, meeting planners struggle to balance constrained budgets, while still delivering optimal expectations for their attendees.
With a little hospitality industry knowledge, along with creativity and flexibility, the bottom line can be saved.
If your company or organization typically holds its meetings or conferences outside of Massachusetts, consider holding your meeting locally. By working...
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Cape Business Publishing Group, LLC
704 Main Street
Dennis, MA 02638
508-385-3811