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Whether you’ve been charged with finding the items your company will give away during the holidays or you need to locate just the right gift for a special client, make no mistake, the job is a big one. Should you be required to find gifts appropriate for a number of different people, all of different faiths or beliefs, the prospect can be even more so daunting. Finding the right corporate gift is bigger than making a gesture, too, it needs to be classy and leave an impression on those who receive it.

Read more on Corporate Gift Ideas – Impression Is Everything…

Every year, the IRS comes out with the new annual retirement plan limits. Some of these limits provide in part; the maximum individual contribution to Solo 401k, 401(k), 403(b) or 457 plans; the maximum compensation taken into consideration for retirement plan allocations and deductions; and the social security wage base.

Investment representatives and retirement service providers will be hailing the new limits as an opportunity for employees to save more money in their retirement plans on a tax deferred basis. Following that advice may be a mistake for highly paid employees and could cost their employer additional fees.

Following the advice, highly compensated employees, with higher discretionary income levels, would increase their contributions. The non-highly compensated employees, with little discretionary income, will maintain their contributions at the current levels. The net result is a failed Non Discrimination test (The Average Deferral Percentage Test) with the required subsequent refunds to the highly compensated and additional employer fees.

Read more on Safe Harbor Plans-a Retirement Triple Play…

The IRS issued the February 14, 2006 Quality Assurance Bulletin (“QAB”) dealing with 401k plan exclusions of part-time, temporary, and seasonal (A.K.A. “part-time”) employees. T

This QAB revolutionizes the way IRS document examiners will look at 401k plan eligibility clauses and warns that inadequately drafted provisions dealing with part-time employees may be disqualifying, regardless of any plan determination letter.

Read more on IRS Attacks 401k Part-time Employee Exclusions and Your Determination Letter is useless……..

Every day decisions are made that influence our lives or businesses. With men and women occupying the same space in corporate American, the Glass Ceiling is busting wide open. Men by nature want to conquer and dominate and always have, but women have arrived on the scene with full force and a different style that men sometimes find hard to understand. Women tend to tackle the matter at hand by looking for a sequential set of maneuvers that will have an outcome of a win/win situation.

Read more on Do Women Rule by Committee…

The process to go public via initial public offering (IPO) or Direct Public Offering (DPO) follows a prescribed path. While some elements can be handled simultaneously, there are a number of parts that must be done sequentially. As a result, it will often take between six and nine months for a private company to go public.

Read more on Going Public: How Long Does it Take?…

While going public is often touted as a cure-all, surefire way to gain funds for a company, it’s not without its drawbacks. If a company is not in a good position to go public, the decision may actually hurt the corporation more than it helps. Even as money flows in from the offering, the costs of setting up and maintaining a public corporation are high, and should be taken into consideration before such a drastic step is taken.

Read more on Going Public: The Disadvantages…

The costs to go public via direct public offering varies substantially with the type of company, size and complexity. The four major costs include:

1. The accounting fees:
When a private company goes public, they must obtain financial audits. These audits are incorporated into a registration statement that is subsequently filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

Read more on Going Public: The Four Categories of Cost…

The direct public offering offers a relatively unique form of financing that is just beginning to catch on with business owners and individual investors.

In a direct public offering, a business issues registered shares without the full expense of an initial public offering. Since direct public offerings are issued through officers and directors, there are no underwriters. Shares are marketed directly to parties that might have an interest in the company, and the buyers often include customers, distributors, or employees.

Read more on Direct Public Offerings: Benefits and Drawbacks…

Many entrepreneurs have preconceived notions about taking their company public, most of which are not accurate. Nine little known facts:

1. You do not need a brokerage firm or investment banking firm to take your company public.

Read more on 9 Little Known Facts About Going Public…

You hear the term “Marketing Plan” thrown around but it’s sad how many businesses don’t know what it means to have one. Perhaps the most vital aspect of any business is the marketing plan. A business cannot really get off the ground until they sell something. And that is what marketing is all about. If marketing is how sales are made, then a marketing plan is about figuring out how sales will be made. Developing a good plan is a way to overcome your shortcomings and increase your business’s income. No plan equals to no sales. Which in turn means your business is not going to make it. This is why a solid marketing plan is a MUST.

Read more on Why Your Marketing Plan Is Important To Your Business…