If there’s one thing a CFO hates, it’s surprises. Whether on the revenue, expense, or legal front, we do everything we can on a daily basis to mitigate or eliminate this risk. One of the biggest areas for risk, based on the potential cost impact, are lengthy and costly legal battles. I’ve had to [...]
CorpFinCafe
Prompting discussions on Financial topics….
Archive for August, 2009
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Jul | Sep » | |||||
| 1 | 2 | |||||
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| 31 | ||||||
Recent Posts
- Achieving Your Annual Goal with Base Hits….
- Ken Tudhope: Think Globally!!!
- What’s Your Corporate Contribution – Expense or Accretive Asset?
- S&OP, Inventory Levels, A/O, & Your Forecast….
- Book Review: Competing On Analytics
- Ken Tudhope: CFO or Controller…?
- Core Competencies vs. Key Inputs: Manage your risk….
- Ken Tudhope notes: Techno-Networking….
- Creating & Communicating a Financial Mission….
- Woodruff-Sawyer Board Panel: Conclusion
Recent Comments
- Jesse in What’s Your Corporate Contributio…
- Jesse in Ken Tudhope: Think Globally!!!
- job search in Ken Tudhope on CFO Opportunities . …
- corpfinblog in Alright....Maybe It's Not Always Ab…
- JEiler in Alright....Maybe It's Not Always Ab…
- Twitter Trackba… in CFO's - Are you an Executive Chef o…
- corpfinblog in CFO's - Are you an Executive Chef o…
- Mike Campbell in CFO's - Are you an Executive Chef o…
- corpfinblog in CFO's - Are you an Executive Chef o…
- martykoenig in CFO's - Are you an Executive Chef o…
SEC updates
- SEC and CFTC Issue Joint Orders on Volatility Indexes and Security Futures November 20, 2009The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued two joint orders related to security-based futures contracts that clarify each Commission's respective jurisdiction and allow additional products to underlie security futures.
- SEC Names Senior Officials to Investor Education and Advocacy Efforts November 19, 2009The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the appointments of three senior officials to its Office of Investor Education and Advocacy (OIEA) to help continue its increased focus on individual investors. OIEA serves the Commission as the "investors' office" and provides educational resources to help individual investors make inform […]
- SEC Charges Former Executives at Silicon Valley Company for Inflating Financial Results November 17, 2009The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged two former Silicon Valley executives for improperly inflating the reported financial results at Santa Clara, Calif., semiconductor company Tvia, Inc.
- President Obama Establishes Interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force November 17, 2009Attorney General Eric Holder, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan, and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairwoman Mary Schapiro today announced that President Barack Obama has established by Executive Order an interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to strengthen efforts to combat f […]
- Federal Regulators Issue Final Model Privacy Notice Form November 17, 2009Eight federal regulatory agencies today released a final model privacy notice form that will make it easier for consumers to understand how financial institutions collect and share information about consumers.
CorpFinCafe - Twitter
Start-Up CFO / Mark Macleod
- Usage-based billing modelsI bought some credits for my long distance calling service Mobivox last week. I use this service at least once a week and yet this was the 1st time I had bought credits since April 2008 (when I was working there). I have to be one of the better users on this service, yet it has only extracted $ 20 from me in a year and a 1/2. That's not the path to rich […]
- We're all friends - the end of Non-CompetesTechcrunch reported about Don Dodge joining Google today. That's great news for the startup World and a great hire for Google. What was not reported on here is that this hire must mark the end of the Non-Compete as we know it.I think we can all agree that Microsoft and Google consider each other competitors. So, for Don to pick up and immediately take o […]
- When should you hire a CFO?At last month's National Angel Summit there was a great discussion on when startups should hire CFOs. Bryan Watson from NAO sent me the video. Check in just before the 6 minute mark.Highlights:When: right before you raise your 1st capital?Don't hire a full time CFOHire someone with startup experienceRun things right from the startReally important f […]
- Yultide 2009: Montreal's Tech Community Holiday Party!Like all CFOs, I used to be a nightclub DJ, pumping out house tunes at some of Montreal's coolest venues. I am pleased to report that I'll be dusting off the vinyl for a special appearance along with Alistair Croll and Sean Power of Watching Website's fame on Thursday Dec. 10 for Yultide 2009: Montreal's Tech Community Holiday party.All t […]
- Looking at the World's most valuable Internet StartupsA couple of weeks ago Silicon Alley Insider published its list of the World's most valuable Internet Startups. I thought it would be interesting to dig deeper into the numbers to see what we could learn and apply to our own startups. Together with my research department (aka - Jonathan), we crunched some numbers.Recognizing that we have imperfect data s […]
CFO Wise - Ken Kaufman
- Revenue Recognition Updates – Clarity and ComplexityAnytime a presentation starts with “Implementing EITF 08-1 and EITF 09-3,” we know we may be in for a long meeting. Gregory P. Randall, Partner with KPMG, made a very technical topic interesting yesterday. The topic – the changes in revenue recognition guidelines for software companies and others with multiple deliverables packaged in […]
- Staffing Accounting/Finance Department from Start-up to Medium-Sized CompanyI have had a lot of conversations recently about staffing the accounting and finance function in the company. As companies grow and shrink, their needs in this area change. We certainly do not want to be over-staffed, and we also want the most cost-effective staff doing as much of the work as possible. For example, we [...]
- Is There Such a Thing as a Lifestyle Software Business?A respected professional @chrisknudsen said something to me a few months ago that I have reflected on several times since that occasion. We were discussing a company that has amazing, break-through technology with a wide-open market space. Their leadership just does not seem to be in a hurry to seize the opportunity. They’re growing at about [.. […]
- I Cannot Predict the Future…Budgeting is Worthless!I have heard this statement more often than I care to admit: “I cannot predict the future so a budget would be worthless for my business.” An article entitled How to Create a Budget in BusinessWeek prompted me to recollect some of my experiences with helping people who have the above attitude towards budgeting gain a [...]
- Build Your Business Model Around PeopleThis is a real situation experienced by a real emerging company. Names and figures have been altered to protect anonymity. A company has a new opportunity and they create a financial model to try and forecast how their general assumptions for this opportunity will materialize. Specifically, they made significant assumptions about the direct labor co […]
Ben Paramore/Beyond Beans
- Keys To Great RelationshipsGreat relationships take work to build and can be destroyed very quickly. This is particularly true for CFOs who are focussed on numbers and results and are usually driven to performance. Its easy to get lost in the job and...
- The Major Attributes of LeadershipNapoleon Hill, in his all-time bestselling success book Think and Grow Rich, outlined 11 Major Attributes of Leadership. They are as follows: UNWAVERING COURAGE. Based on knowledge of self and of one's occupation. SELF-CONTROL. People who cannot control themselves can...
- CFO Responsibilities ExpandingThe new Financial Executives Research Foundation's Annual Financial Executive Compensation Survey shows dramatic changes in the responsibilities of CFOs, both private and public. Areas where private CFOs are spending significant more time than ever before are Planning, Legal, Purchasing, Operations,...
Bradford Van Siclen / Novo Companies
- Bernanke Recovery, Updated Trickle Down Economics - 7 / 29 / 09
- Perspective 2009 - 7 /26 / 2009
- There and Back Again - 7 / 15 / 2009
- When Will We Begin To Improve? 7 / 10 / 2009
- 7 / 1 / 2009
Wine news...
- 12 Whites for the Thanksgiving Table (Wine Spectator) November 20, 2009
- 2009 Beaujolais Nouveau (Wine Spectator) November 19, 2009
- Prince Charles Falls for Niagara (Wine Spectator) November 19, 2009
- 12 Reds for the Thanksgiving Table (Wine Spectator) November 17, 2009
- Arsonist in $200 Million Wine Warehouse Blaze Pleads Guilty (Wine Spectator) November 17, 2009
Meta
Social Network
Translators
Pages
Categories
- .CorpFin Cafe White Papers
- Audit
- Book Reviews
- Budgeting / Forecasting
- CorpFin Cafe
- CorpFin Careers
- Corporate Governance
- Domestic
- H.R.
- IFRS
- International
- Investor Relations
- Legal / I.P.
- M&A
- Management
- Mfg / Costing
- Projects
- Retail / Apparel
- Risk Management
- Sarbanes Oxley
- SEC developments
- Success Stories
- Working Capital
Archives
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
CFO magazine updates
- And Now for the Good News... January 6, 2009Here are ten bright spots to savor amid the economic gloom.
- Madoff Case Triggers Wider Probe of SEC January 6, 2009"Many of us have lost confidence in the SEC," a Congresswoman declares.
- Insurance Outlook: Higher Prices by Year's End January 6, 2009But if the global recession continues to spiral downward, many companies will try to slash their insurance bills by resorting to various forms of self-insurance, a new report predicts.
- Deals: Nowhere to Go but Up January 6, 2009In our M&A Roundup for the week ended Jan. 4, a mere 16 North American transactions are arranged, with only Chesapeake Corp.'s billion-dollar bankruptcy buyout topping $150 million.
- All Eyes on Treasury January 6, 2009The function that no one likes to think about is now getting plenty of attention, and even a little respect.
- GE Capital Taps Debt Market for $10B January 6, 2009The largest offering to be backed by the FDIC, it includes two-year notes, 3.5-year notes, and one-year and 18-month floating-rate notes.
WSJ - U.S.
- Hershey Trustees Back Cadbury Bid November 20, 2009The trust that controls Hershey is pushing it to launch a rival $17 billion bid for Cadbury that would include more cash than Kraft's offer.
- AIG Trustee Sought Exit, But Will Remain November 20, 2009One of the three trustees who oversees U.S. taxpayers' nearly 80% stake in AIG recently said he wanted to quit his post, but was persuaded to stay on. Separately, the government is seeking possible candidates to add to the insurer's board.
- SkyTeam Willing to Invest More in JAL November 20, 2009Richard Anderson, chief executive at Delta Air Lines, said the SkyTeam alliance of global carriers would be willing to invest more than $1.02 billion into ailing Japan Airlines as it tries to cement a trans-Pacific partnership.
- Ohio AG Sues Credit Raters November 20, 2009Ohio's attorney general filed suit against ratings agencies Standard Poor's, Moody's and Fitch, alleging they provided misleading ratings in exchange for money.
- TD, Lawyer Sued in Ponzi Case November 20, 2009Investors contend a high-profile Florida attorney orchestrated a claim-sharing fraud with the help of TD bank's U.S. unit and several accomplices.
WSJ - Europe
- ECB Takes Step Toward Crisis Exit November 20, 2009The European Central Bank announced its first active step to unwind the stimulus measures it has used to support the financial sector since the global crisis last year.
- Deal Eases Risks of Europe Gas Cutoff November 20, 2009A compromise reached between Russia and Ukraine curbs the risk of another serious cutoff of gas to Europe this winter, but financial problems and political tensions inside Ukraine still pose a threat.
- Low-Profile Picks Take EU Posts November 20, 2009EU leaders chose Belgium's Van Rompuy as the bloc's first president and British trade representative Catherine Ashton as foreign minister.
- Brown Ahead of U.S. on Afghan Policy November 20, 2009Brown has beaten the Obama administration to the punch with some stands on Afghan war policy, many of which proved to be previews of similar stances later taken by the White House.
- Sarkozy Receives Spending Proposals November 20, 2009Sarkozy received proposals from a high-profile commission to invest $52.36 billion to boost economic growth in the medium term, but the plan has been criticized for increasing the country's already spiraling debt.
CNBC alerts
- Thanksgiving Week Stuffed With Economic News November 20, 2009Investors will take in a heavy helping of economic reports in the shortened holiday week, but the main course remains the dollar.
- Credit Markets on Edge About When Fed Will Raise Rates November 20, 2009
- Bove: Expect Goldman To Increase Dividend Meaningfully November 20, 2009
- Bullish Sign for Gold: Central Banks Are Big Buyers November 20, 2009
- Victoria's Secret Hopes to Rekindle Desire for Lingerie November 20, 2009
Harvard Business
- Of Goldman Sachs, the Yankees, and Level Playing FieldsHave you noticed that the two most successful teams in New York City both engender passionately mixed emotions of admiration...
- Stop Wasting Time on VoicemailEvery time you make or receive a phone call that involves leaving or listening to a message, you're wasting time....
- What Innovators Can Learn from Bill Belichick Even non-football fans probably heard about Bill Belichick's "blunder" of a call on Sunday night. Believe it or not, the...
- Summoning the Courage to Tear Down WallsOn November 9th, the world rejoiced in recognition of the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall coming down. The...
- Can Good Journalism Also Be Profitable?Featured Guest: Umair Haque, director of the Havas Media Lab and author of the Edge Economy blog on HarvardBusiness.org....
- It's Time to Embrace Evidence-Based Medicine Evidence-based medicine is gaining momentum in the US, which is a good thing. What's EBM? It's an approach to delivering...
Seeking Alpha
- 25 Reasons We Will Not Have a Depression November 20, 2009One particularly vitriolic reader of my last article on The Distorted Shape of the Recovering Economy seemed to think I was predicting a doomsday scenario. I was not at all. Richard Duncan’s tentatively predicted Fall of Rome scenario is a true doomsday scenario, not mine.My focus of late has been much more on the need for transparency and can […]
- Stock Market Optimists Revisited: This Is Not Your Father's Stock Market November 20, 2009Joe Eqcome submits:Having the privilege to have met Sir John Templeton, the founder of The Templeton Funds, I was stuck not only by his crushing intellect but also by his sense of optimism regarding investing. Warren Buffett, a fellow optimist, who upon acquiring Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. (BNI) for $26.3 billion said, “It was a bet on […]
- The Problem with Geithner: David Brooks Misses the Point November 20, 2009Gary Weiss submits: David Brooks' New York Times op-ed column today on Tim Geithner (mentioning in the lead my Portfolio cover story) misses the point, I think.The problem with Geithner's approach is not whether or not the banks are recovering because of the TARP program, but the degree to which the profits of the biggest banks have not b […]
- Market Volume: Still an Unanswered Question November 20, 2009Vinny Catalano submits:So, here we are. More than two years into what started out as a credit crisis, one plus year after the Lehman collapse and a question that pertains to the one of the central workings of the equities market cannot be answered.At last evening's Market Technicians Association Educational Foundation seminar, the question your […]
- Commercial Real Estate Cliff-Diving Continues November 20, 2009Rolfe Winkler, CFA submits: Moody’s/REAL released September data for their commercial real estate price index. Month over month drops have been fast and furious this year. -8.6% Mar to Apr-7.6% May-1.0% June-5.1% July-3.0% Aug-3.9% Sept Since the peak in October 2007, CRE prices are down 43%.Complete Story
