Accounting Services for Businesses

Whether you have an existing business, are deciding if you should purchase or start a new business, or simply need guidance in establishing business strategies, Steven Lissner & Company is here to assist through every step of the financial growth process. 

Professional Tax Services

Economic and legislative changes, including tax laws and regulations, require constant monitoring. We advise business owners on how to best minimize liabilities and maximize opportunities, while assuring your business needs are met.

Our team tracks industry trends to give you the latest information and ensure that you remain fully compliant.

Customized Services For Your Needs

Small Business Accounting

We maintain your books, so you can concentrate on running your business.

As part of our bookkeeping services, we will:

• Reconcile bank and credit card accounts
• Review and revise the general ledger
• Generate financial reports, including balance sheets, income statements, and general ledgers 
• Advise you regarding accounting and bookkeeping
  

Financial Reporting: Reviews & Compilations

Reviews

A review consists primarily of analytical procedures we apply to the financial statements, and inquiries we make to your company’s management team. If the financial statements or supporting information appear to be inconsistent or questionable, we may need to perform additional procedures.

A review report expresses limited assurance in the form of the statement: “We are not aware of any material modifications” for the financial statements to be in conformity with the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). Reviewed financial statements must include all required footnotes and other disclosures.

Compilations

In compiling financial statements for a client, we present information that is the “representation of management” and expresses no opinion or assurance on the statements. Compilations do not require inquiries of management or analytical procedures. Instead, we rely on our knowledge of accounting principles and general understanding of your business.

Banks often call for compilations from an independent CPA as part of their lending agreements.

Which Report Should You Use?

Each report is specifically tailored to requirements from your bank, other parties or pertinent fiscal circumstances. In choosing the most appropriate report it is vital to have an experienced professional to help you identify the right one for you.

Cash Flow Management

Our cash flow management services can assist you with:

• Forecasting when, where, and how your cash needs will occur
• Identifying the best sources for meeting your additional cash needs
• Preparing to meet these needs when they occur, by maintaining good relationships with bankers and other creditors

To avoid a potential cash crisis, we will develop a cash flow strategy for you. In the short term, our cash flow projections can help you manage daily cash, while our long-term projections can help you implement necessary capital strategies.

Strategic Business Planning

A strategic business plan can help clarify your company’s direction. We can help create one that ensures your key leaders are aligned and your management and staff are focused.

A strategic plan is beneficial when:

• Starting a new venture, product or service
• Expanding an organization, product or service
• Buying a new business, product or service
• Reviving an underperforming business

The strategic plan provides a blueprint. It describes your company, its products, the competitive environment, your management team, financial health and business risks.

The plan outlines:

1. Your target customer profile, features, advantages and benefits of your new venture, product or service
2. The need being filled with your new venture
3. Marketing strategies including targeted promotional campaigns with implementation timelines
4. Market conditions, the nature of your customers, as well as your competitors, sales potential, and projected results of your promotional campaigns
5. Staffing, including identifying the key players, skills, attitudes and expertise needed to build the venture
6. Management plans, systems and timelines for implementation
7. Financial plans, including projected startup costs, operating costs, revenue, profits, and break-even analysis for the first 3 to 5 years to predict and prevent potential problems
8. Building and equipment needs including vendors and cost estimates
9. Company milestones and timelines for upcoming products and services in development
   

New Business Formation

We can help you avoid the common pitfalls that many new small business owners make when starting their new ventures by:

• Preparing an initial business plan to clarify your marketing, management and financial strategies
• Determining your start-up capital needs, sources of capital and your borrowing power
• Selecting a business structure, evaluating tax advantages, legal exposure, ease of operation, and portability should you need to relocate
• Selecting the right accounting software by evaluating your budget, needs and IT infrastructure
• Preparing a cash flow budget
• Establishing billing and collection procedures
• Implementing procedures to monitor and control costs
• Setting up a home office to maximize your tax deductions
• Preparing and filing all required state and local licenses, permits and papers, including the application for your Federal Employer Identification Number
• Identifying your business insurance needs
  
  

Succession Planning

If you own a family business, we can help you outline what will happen to the business when you are no longer running it and design a strategy to make sure you have enough money to retire.

Succession planning should be a priority for a family business to ensure the business survives the transition from founder to the next generation.

Developing and implementing a well-designed succession plan is essential to the survival of your family business.

Our team can analyze these key issues to help you make important decisions:

• Weighing the advantages and disadvantages of keeping the business in the family or selling it to a third party.
• Determining future management and equitable ownership shares.
• Minimizing potential tax burdens when transitioning a family business.

The resulting succession plan will focus on business valuation, business restructuring, tax consequences, retirement projections and tax projections.

Non-Profit Organizations

We can help you set up and maintain your non-profit organization’s tax-exempt status by managing all the IRS reporting for you.

Each year the IRS requires most tax-exempt organizations to submit Form 990 and related reporting, which includes the following:

1. An Income Statement with specific revenue and expense categories such as donations, salaries, postage, rent, etc.
2. A Balance Sheet with cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable, etc., as categories.
3. A Functional Expense Statement with all expenses allocated to program services, fundraising or operations.
4. An Individual Program Expense Statement reporting expenses for each program or service, such as seminar programs or educational mailings.
5. Revenue Support Schedules that detail the organization’s sources of income in specific categories like charitable donations, membership fees or investment income.

The IRS uses these specific revenue and expense classifications to determine if your organization will retain its tax-exempt status. It is critical that you build and maintain your accounting system around these parameters.

We can provide the following services:

• Review and compile your financial statements
• Design, install, and maintain your accounting system
• Provide guidance for your accounting personnel
• Complete and file your non-profit status application
• Prepare and file the 990 and 990T tax forms
• Prepare your initial start-up documentation, including incorporation, federal employee identification number (FEIN) with federal and state agencies

If you are establishing a not-for-profit organization, we can also help prepare your 501(c)(3) application for tax-exempt status.