Categories for business planning

Valuation – “Part Art, Part Science”

by | April 27, 2012

Often in our practice we hear business owners talk about the “fair market value” of their business, or speak of obtaining a valuation of their business as a definitive answer.  Business owners often have the perception that a valuation is absolute, objective, and definitive.  It’s the final word, right?   Far from it.  We learned... View Article

Valuation- An Analytical Exercise

by | April 10, 2012

Our guest blog post this week comes from Mark Mitchel, Director of Valuation Services, Clothier & Head, PS.   A business valuation is an analytical exercise to determine the value of a business (or its individual assets), giving consideration to all of the factors that influence the operating performance of the business. Key valuation concepts... View Article

Valuation: Why does a business need one?

by | April 2, 2012

In our discussions with business owners around exit planning and succession planning, one key area seems to consistently trip them up.  That is “valuation.”   We all generally understand that a company has some value, but how to determine that value can be tough to comprehend.  A lot of the confusion comes from the emotional value... View Article

How The Exit Deal Is Done

by | March 5, 2012

When talking with business owners about exit planning, most of the big questions revolve around the buyer and the price.  These are the most obvious components but, as they say, the devil is in the details and the details often come out in the deal documents.    In this post, I’ll share a bit about the... View Article

Implementation Considerations for Seattle Sick Leave

by | February 21, 2012

My initial thought regarding the new Seattle Sick Leave ordinance was that an employer that had a “Paid Time Off” policy for all employees would not be impacted much by the new ordinance.  As we dig deeper into the specifics of the ordinance, I am finding more complexities and administrative burdens that employers will have... View Article

BASICS OF THE SEATTLE SICK LEAVE ORDINANCE

by | February 6, 2012

The Seattle Paid Sick Time and Paid Safe Time Ordinance goes into effect on September 1, 2012.  The Ordinance will require that employers with more than 4 full time equivalent employees provide to employees who work in Seattle specified amounts of accrued, job-protected paid time off for personal illness, family care and other purposes. Every... View Article

TAX UPDATE: WRAP UP

by | January 30, 2012

Our Equinox Focus Event last week “Tax Update: What You Need to Know for 2012 (and 2011, too)!”  was quite a success with raves from our participants.   I wanted to share some of my key takeaways from the program. –  Pre-Opening Costs.  For folks starting or launching a business, certain pre-opening costs are tax deductible.  In... View Article

State Audit Focus: Unpaid Sales/Use Tax

by | January 18, 2012

Our guest blog post this week is from Connie Lewis at CliftonLarsonAllen.  Connie’s practice focuses on state and local tax matters. We are seeing more Washington Department of Revenue audits with our clients as the state attempts to meet their budget needs.  One area typically overlooked is the sales/use tax paid on items you use... View Article