Strategy and the Fat Smoker: Doing What’s Obvious But Not Easy by David Maister was given to me at the recent Winning Is Everything Conference, where he was a keynote speaker. This is the same David Maister who wrote the critically acclaimed Managing the Professional Firm (1993). I read that book twice and have heard him speak a number of times, and was always impressed by what he said, but always thought it was a bit theoretical.

KPMG is holding a five-week competition among auditing students from more than 27 colleges and universities around the country.

Benefits such as health insurance are nearly as popular as salary in convincing accounting professionals to join a company, according to a new survey.

The Foundation for Financial Planning has awarded nine new grants totaling $565,272. The grants went to:

Intuit has introduced an online resource for small business owners, “The Guide to Hiring and Paying Employees.”

Staffing service provider AccountAbilities has introduced AccountingEmployees.com, an online job board.

CFOs remain concerned about their companies' ability to recruit skilled professionals, according to a new survey.

Private employment added some 130,000 jobs from December 2007 to January of 2008, according to the latest ADP National Employment Report. Employment within the service sector grew 141,000, while employment in the goods-producing sector declined 11,000, the 14th consecutive monthly decline in that area. Small and midsized businesses, defined as those employing fewer than 500 workers, added 122,000 jobs, while employment among larger companies with 500 workers or more added 8,000. Manufacturing employment in January was flat, thereby halting 18 consecutive months of declines. In January, construction employment fell 13,000, the 14th consecutive monthly decline. The February ADP report will be available March 5.

Billy Beane, vice president and general manager of the Oakland A’s, the keynote speaker at the recent Winning Is Everything Conference, explained how mathematics is transforming America’s pastime. Yes, I said mathematics.

The Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul will continue to face a competitive job market for finance and accounting professionals this year, according to a new study.

Fortune magazine's list of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" included several accounting firms and software developers.

KPMG has created a Web portal with accounting and business resources for university professors.

New York University's School of Continuing and Professional Education plans to begin offering a new certificate in not-for-profit accounting and governmental reporting.

Ernst & Young has been holding a conference in New York this week to attract ethnically diverse college students to the tax profession.

Want to know how to encourage younger people to stay at your firm?Re-assess their supervisory relationships.

Few firms are willing to do what it takes to attract the best and brightest talent. How many CPA partners have a son or daughter in public accounting? If you can't make the profession attractive to your own children, how can you sell it to their peers?Today's workforce is not as complex as some may think. In fact, most employees are merely looking for the basics: challenging assignments, opportunities to grow as professionals, authentic work/life balance and economic rewards.

'So, what do you use?" That was one of the frequently asked questions floating around Sage Summit, the recent annual customer conference organized by Sage Software.More than 2,200 attendees met here to discuss and dig deeper into their systems of choice, learn about other offerings in the company's portfolio and, of course, network.

Hiring activity in accounting and finance is expected to remain at its current pace in the first quarter of 2008, according to a newly released survey of CFOs.

Private sector employment increased by 189,000 in November, according to a report by payroll processor ADP, which sent stocks sharply higher on Wednesday.

A survey of accounting industry leaders from around the world found overwhelming support for convergence of accounting standards.