Waypoints: Ideas and Insights to Navigate Enterprise Complexity

I recently wrote about the major financial reporting changes in the new lease standard and the potential impacts the changes could have on your business. When I wrote the blog, the Financial Accounting Standards Board was finalizing the standard, and it officially issued the new lease guidance on Feb. 25.

Hidden underneath the significant changes to revenue recognition and leases is the FASB’s update to accounting for share-based payments. And those changes – in an area often perceived to be as complicated as an NFL playbook – just made our jobs a little easier.

We are millennials. We were born between 1982 and 2004, and we’d like to share our perspectives on recruiting and retaining millennials, members of our generation. We certainly don’t pretend to be experts on HR issues, but we think we have some ideas you might find interesting as you work to manage two or three generations in your own workforce. Here we go:

At the beginning of December, I finally decided to buy a nice insulated cup, a purchase I had debated for some time. I decided which cup I wanted, and started looking for it in my neighborhood. Three different retailers were out and told me they would not have another shipment until after Christmas. I was disappointed and a little irritated.  I finally decided that I wanted it, and now, I couldn’t have it. Who knows exactly where the problem lay – Did the store place the order in a timely way? Did the manufacturer have problems? Was shipping an issue? Either way, it all came back to supply chain management.

I’ve always heard that you never know how strong you are until you’re faced with adversity. If that’s the case, companies in the oil and gas industry, as well as businesses that provide services to them, have had plenty of opportunities to demonstrate their strength lately. Time and time again the oil and gas industry has been faced with serious challenges and has always emerged stronger and more competitive.

Volkswagen is in trouble. Independent testing revealed last fall that VW had cheated diesel emissions tests in the United States. This news precipitated a dramatic decline in the company’s stock price, investigations by the EPA and Congress, and threats of lawsuits from VW owners.

Consider these facts about the trucking industry in the U.S.:

Lesson #1 – Never Underestimate the Value of Relationships

I recently witnessed the sad decline of a once powerful company, and I can trace many of its problems to mistakes made just after the company was sold. This company was a giant in its industry. Its team seemed to do everything right, and its standing in the marketplace seemed unassailable. At least, that’s what the buyers believed – nothing could shake this company’s position in the marketplace. 

I was talking with a CFO recently, and he shared with me how hard it is for his company to hire and keep qualified employees. He asked me how HORNE has managed to establish and grow a loyal, talented workforce, and I told him about some of our initiatives to develop our team members and help them to grow personally and professionally. His comments raised an important question. Are you finding it harder to recruit and retain qualified, talented employees?

If the recent financial crisis taught us anything, it taught us the value of a high-functioning board of directors. An educated, involved board can help steer an organization away from needless risk and into a balanced governance structure – the board handles oversight while management handles day-to-day operations.

Imagine this – you are a company with hundreds of thousands of customers. As part of doing business, you also have multi-year contracts with each of your customers.

Now imagine planning for the new revenue recognition standards. I know … it’s daunting. 

In the waning days of 2015, Santa stopped by the U.S. Capitol, loaded his sleigh with goodies and delivered them to taxpayers from coast-to-coast.

With 2015 almost in the books, it’s time for most companies to focus on getting their Form 10-Ks issued and to begin planning for 2016.  To help prepare for both of those tasks, we need not look much further than the comments provided by Mary Jo White, SEC chairwoman, and others during the December AICPA Conference on Current SEC and PCAOB Developments.