When customers see your company’s employees, they gather impressions about your business. That’s one reason to exercise some control over what staff members can wear to work and the grooming standards they must follow. Obviously, you want your staff to reflect competence and professionalism. According to the EEOC, a company can impose a dress code and...

For retailers, manufacturers and many other businesses, a significant amount of working capital is tied up in inventory. But how accurate is the amount reported on the balance sheet? To best answer that question, a physical count of raw materials, work-in-progress and finished goods is essential at year end. For calendar-year entities, your year end is...

When a deal is pending, the best negotiators know that the goal isn’t to scoop up everything and leave the other side with little or nothing. The real goal is generally to exchange items of value so that both sides leave satisfied they have protected their basic interests and made a deal that benefits their companies....

Do you have insurance to address an intrusion or breach of your computer systems, or a lost or stolen laptop or even a flash drive? Do you think you have limited exposure? Very large companies, or even the US Government undoubtedly have very sophisticated security over their data processing systems. Yet, T-Mobile, Experian (a credit...

Has your 401(k) plan document been updated within the last 5-6 years to comply with federal tax laws enacted by Congress or issued by the IRS? If not, your plan could potentially lose its tax-qualified status. If your plan uses a prototype plan document, the company that manages or helped you setup your plan should...

There can be negative tax consequences when purported loan payments are recast as corporate distributions to shareholders. In some cases, the courts have ruled that withdrawals from two closely held corporations were constructive corporate distributions rather than loan proceeds and repayments. As such, the withdrawals triggered taxable dividends and capital gains for the shareholders. Corporate Distribution Basics...