Small Business Helper

Hi. My name is Jeannette Riley. I am not a writer. I am an accountant by trade; a CPA in fact although I do not work in public accounting. I am what is known as a managerial or financial accountant. However, I am an accountant who happens to like to write. But mostly, I am an accountant who is passionate about helping small businesses succeed. I don’t know what the statistic is these days, but I have heard it said that only 1 in 10 new businesses will make it past their first year. Of those that do, only 1 in 10 will make it past their second year. I think we can, and should, do better than that.

When people ask me what I do for a living, I tell them that I am responsible for the financial health, wellbeing and success of the company that I work for. Sounds impressive, doesn’t it? But it’s true; I have a very important job. As an accountant, I am responsible for the life blood of the company – its money. It’s my job to know where the money is coming from and when it’s coming, as well as where the money is going to and when it’s going to go. I am responsible for reporting that information – and a whole lot more – to management so that together we can make decisions that will ensure the success, and in the long run, the life of the company.

My goal with this blog is to help small business owners grow, flourish and be profitable. Because isn’t that your goal? I don’t think there are enough accountants out there who are really listening to small business owners and providing them with the information that they really need to succeed. Just completing your tax return is not enough. I also strongly believe that not enough small business owners are out there actively searching and asking for help from accountants. Maybe because they think they can’t afford it or don’t realize that they need it. But which is easier to afford, paying for some accounting advice or going out of business?

I hope that by providing information via this blog, I can help you with your small business. I want to help you to see and understand what your business and your money are doing. Because I also believe that regardless of how great your product or service is, if a small business owner doesn’t understand the “business” part of his business, he will wind up being a statistic.

For those of you who crave a more personal connection or just want to make sure that I’m not a quack, following are some relevant career and personal statistics about me:

•  I graduated from Oakland University in Rochester, MI with a Bachelor’s degree in Finance
•  Later, from Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, FL with a Master’s degree in Accounting & Taxation
•  I hold an active CPA license from the State of California (#116699)
•  I have been a cashier and food service worker, a bookkeeper, an officer manager, a claims manager, a financial manager, a sales tax auditor, an accounting manager (with some HR thrown in), and most recently, a controller
•  I have also been a general contractor (owning and operating my own company as a residential builder and remodeler), a freelance bookkeeper, and an accounting consultant
•  I am a published co-author having had a college paper published in the Journal of Business and Economics Research (SFAS141(R): GLOBAL CONVERGENCE AND MASSIVE CHANGES IN M&A ACCOUNTING, April 2009)
•  I contribute occasionally to reader forums and Q&As when I stumble across them (http://www.realestate.com/advice/how-to-avoid-capital-gains-tax-while-renting-out-your-house/#comment-445151); www.accountantforums.com)
•  I am the third of five children but have no children of my own
•  I like to garden and walk to the frozen yogurt shop on Sundays
•  I love my family, my boyfriend, my cat, my country, accounting and Barbra Streisand

Thank you for visiting my blog and taking the time to read something. I hope you find the content informational, educational, helpful and not boring. I could probably talk all day about what I think is important but I would very much like to hear from my audience regarding what you think is important. Send an email to [email protected]. I can’t promise to answer each one individually. If I see a common subject, I will address it in a post.

JER