Alerting CFOs And Tax Executives – Tax Reform Has Big Impact On Hiring For Corporate Tax Departments

Written by Kat Jennings | Posted in TaxConnections

There is something about to happen that most companies are totally unprepared for with tax reform. How do I know? I was right in the middle of the impact of tax reform on corporations during President Reagan’s TRA (Tax Reform Act) of 1986. There is no doubt many of today’s CFOs and corporate tax executives are totally unprepared for what is to come under President Trump’s tax plan. President Trump’s tax reform is guaranteed to create many new jobs in corporate tax just like it did in 1986. Here is why…

Throughout Silicon Valley, I was being retained by company executives at Apple Computer, Hewlett Packard, Intel, Fairchild Industries and many others to hire more corporate tax experts to study the impact of tax reform on their organizations in 1986. The companies who hired in-house corporate tax professionals benefitted considerably from these initiatives. The reason is all of these changes have an impact and you need the resources to figure out how they affect each organization and its entities around the world. Tax reform will create many new tax jobs and opportunities for the tax experts in the profession. Companies unprepared will lose millions in tax savings to the government!

Tax experts have a much better handle on the impact of tax laws than anyone else in the market. They see the bottom line quicker than any other because they are interested in gathering the facts and looking at the results. There are likely some very interesting reforms in the new tax bill and the companies who hire the talent to figure it out will be way ahead in the long run. It is more important than ever that every CFO have the very best tax organization possible to protect them. This means having the very best corporate tax team and giving them the resources they need to succeed. The corporate tax department is where you want to increase your headcount if you are serious about keeping company profits!

The smart CFOs will start hiring now so they do not find themselves in the unenviable position of the war for tax talent that is to come. Do not leave your already overworked corporate tax executive with less help when more work is about to land on their desk. Finding top tax talent with a wide breath of technical experience is not easy. Years ago you could hire someone out of public accounting who had a wide range of skills, now the emerging talent pool has highly specialized tax skills in one area. The landscape has changed! While many born in the 1950s still work 60 hour work weeks, new generations are leaving the tax profession as they discover the demanding lifestyle. History is about to repeat itself and many of you will be unprepared for the war for tax talent!

Also, corporate tax professional’s compensation should not be confused with accounting and finance salaries. Pay corporate tax professionals well because the cost to an organization which loses tax executives is high. Our Corporate Tax Compensation Report provides an insightful view of what you should be compensating your senior tax executives. CFOs need to get it right with your tax organizations – or you will lose your best talent to other companies in the upcoming war for tax talent.

Stay ahead of the competitive environment that will arise with tax reform. It will affect us all! If you currently have a need for your tax organization, please contact kat@taxconnections.com to discuss our highly specialized retained tax executive search services.

Have a question? Call 858.999.0053 or email me to arrange a time to discuss your needs. We are here to help you!

Kat Jennings

Kat Jennings, TaxConnections, CEO and Founder and Advisory Team provides three areas of services: 1) Internationally recognized, retained executive search services for multinational corporations, public accounting firms, and law firms; 2) Introductions of sellers to buyers of small and medium size accounting firms; and 3) Provide brand building and education services that support and prepare accounting firm owners to buy/sell an accounting practice. We focus on educating the journey to sell a practice and how to increase firm revenue prior to any sale. Our program ensures you start years prior to a sale by learning what is expected of you during the selling process, and introducing firm Partners to cross selling opportunities that are easy to implement and reduce your workload at the same time. We introduce you to value added connections to smartly grow revenue in your accounting practice.

Kat Jennings has been retained by organizations worldwide to locate tax professionals with highly specialized tax knowledge and expertise. She has a thorough understanding of the tax business community, with a proven record of stellar performances matching professionals with organizations. Bringing two parties together to work successfully is the art of understanding personalities, cultural fit, expectations by both parties, flexible or inflexible work environments, understanding what drives and motivates each party, and revolves around the personality and ethics of each executive team.

Kat is a widely recognized expert in high level, tax executive search, as well as connecting buyers and sellers of accounting firms. TaxConnections provides and educates small to medium size accounting firms owners and Partners how to prepare and sell their firms so they can build a succession plan for their retirement. With larger firms seeking to acquire smaller accounting practices, there is a real need to help firm owners prepare to be acquired. Most firm owners are unaware they are not ready to sell when they decide to retire. TaxConnections educates firm owners’ what they need to do years in advance of selling an accounting firm practice.
Senior tax executives expect the utmost privacy when being introduced to multinational organizations about a new tax opportunity under consideration. Having said that, companies searching for a new head of tax expecting tax executive candidates to submit their resume through a resume portal, will never see a full slate of outstanding tax executives available due to a candidates’ desire for greater privacy. This is why privacy focused Uber Tax Recruiters consistently outperform in-house recruiters on tax executive searches.

We offer our clients a Performance Retainer Agreement arrangement so their HR department can still recruit and compete with the tax candidates we present on Head of Tax searches. The client pays us a partial fee upfront, and if they find a candidate they deem better than we introduce to them, we forfeit the final fee. Most of the time, they love and prefer our private introductions to tax executive candidates better than what they source through their own resume portals.

When we represent selling/buying small to medium-sized firms, firm owners/partners also demand greater privacy when considering the sale of their practice. TaxConnections provides a safe place to discuss their business needs, elevate their practices’ online reputation, and increase revenue through new streams of business development by outsourcing work and partnering with other firms. Over three decades, we have worked tirelessly to build relationships between firm owners most organizations rarely have access to in the world of tax. There are numerous possibilities you may never have considered previously to bolster the value of your practice and service offerings.

As a globally recognized consultant to multinational organizations, accounting firms, and law firms searching for tax expertise, Kat has been retained by public accounting firms, law firms, and corporations worldwide including Apple Computer, AC Neilson, Accenture, Agilent Technologies, Allergan, Alza, American Express, American Media, Aon, Baker & McKenzie, Barclays Bank, Bechtel, Cargill, Carl Zieuss Vision, Century Aluminum, Chevron, Clorox, Citigroup, Commercials Metals, Constellation Energy, Countrywide, Del Monte, Deloitte Touche, DFS, DLA Piper, E&J Gallo Winery, Electronic Arts, Ernst &Young, Fox Entertainment, Fremont Investments, General Electric,General Motors, Herbalife, Hewlett Packard, Hyatt, Intel, Jones Lang LaSalle, Kimco Realty, KLA Tencor, Koch Industries, KPMG, Levi Strauss, Liberty Mutual, LKQ, Loews, Logitech, Lucas Film, Maersk, McKesson, Nalco, Newell Rubbermaid, Nissan, Oracle, Orbitax, Pacific Gas & Electric, PwC, QAD, SAIC, SanDisk, Sanmina, Sempra Energy, SONY, Synopsys, Ticketmaster, Trimble Navigation, Toyota, Univar, Wal-Mart, Wells Fargo, Vertex, Yahoo, Xilinx, and many more not listed here.
Contact Kat at 858,999.0053 Office/858.232.4415 Cell or kat@taxconnections.com to request a private consultation regarding the sale of your practice, adding top talent to your organization, or merging your practice with another firm owner with a book of business. The possibilities are endless; if you have a dream of a new vision for your professional life; we will scout opportunities throughout the market to make it happen.