Christopher Brody to Step down From Intuit Board of Directors; Richard Dalzell Nominated

Intuit Inc. (Nasdaq: INTU) announced that director Christopher Brody will step down from the company’s board of directors after 25 years of service. In addition, the board has nominated former Amazon.com Inc. executive Richard L. Dalzell, to stand for election to the board at Intuit’s annual meeting of shareholders in January.

“His experience running engineering for one of the largest Internet-based companies will be extremely valuable as Intuit continues to accelerate growth in the cloud.”

Brody’s relationship with Intuit spans 25 years, beginning in 1993 with the company’s acquisition of ChipSoft Inc., where he had served as chairman since 1989.

“When ChipSoft merged with Intuit, Chris joined the Intuit board and today Consumer Tax and ProTax are among our largest businesses,” said Brad Smith, Intuit president and chief executive officer. “Chris has made many valued contributions and on behalf of the board and everyone at Intuit, I want to thank him for being a constant source of wisdom and support.”

Brody will continue serving on the Intuit board until the annual shareholder meeting, after which time he will serve as director emeritus.

Dalzell served as chief information officer in addition to several other technical leadership roles at Amazon.com from 1997 until his retirement in 2007. He serves on the boards of AOL Inc. and Twilio Inc.

“Rick is a seasoned technology leader and we are excited to welcome him to Intuit’s board of directors,” said Smith. “His experience running engineering for one of the largest Internet-based companies will be extremely valuable as Intuit continues to accelerate growth in the cloud.”

Xero 3Q cash burn accelerates for a second quarter \ The cash burn was more than twice the $4.52 million in the 2013 September quarter, and the company has been eating into the $180 million war chest it raised last year to help fund its push into the US.

Suze Metherell for The National Business Review writes: Xero [NZX: XRO], the cloud-based accounting firm, accelerated its quarterly cash burn in the September quarter from the June period as marketing spend and fit-out costs rise.

Net operating and investing cash outflow was $22.6 million in the three months ended Sept. 30, compared to an outflow of $17.3 million in the June quarter as the software developer ramped up its spending on advertising and marketing, and paid for the fit-out of offices in Milton Keynes and Auckland. That's the second quarter of an accelerating cash burn after Xero slowed its spending in the first three months of the year.

The cash burn was more than twice the $4.52 million in the 2013 September quarter, and the company has been eating into the $180 million war chest it raised last year to help fund its push into the US.

The software developer wants a million customers, and is targeting growth in the US market where it sees the potential to take market share of an estimated 29 million small to medium sized business owners.

Xero had a cash and short-term deposit balance of $170.8 million at Sept. 30, down from more than $230 million a year earlier, when it sold 9.92 million shares at $18.15 apiece.

Shares bought in the capital raise have since come out of escrow, boosting the stock's liquidity. Xero's share price has fallen more than two thirds from its record high of $45.99 in March, and touched a low of $15 earlier this month. The shares were unchanged at $15.85.

The company doubled staff numbers to 758 in the 12 months ended March 31 and has continued to hire workers as it attempts to scale up to a profitable size.

Xero told shareholders at the annual meeting last month that it is considering a listing in the US after it reaches annual revenues of US$100 million, expected in this financial year, and has tapped former Microsoft chief financial officer Chris Liddell as chairman.

Accounting for startups \ Numerous accounting systems, such as QuickBooks, Peachtree and Xero, can help new-business owners track the key metrics such as sales and expenses in the early stages.

Mary Ellen Biery for Forbes writes: When you first bring a newborn home from the hospital and want reassurance the baby is doing ok, you’ll probably listen periodically for breathing sounds. It’s unlikely that you’ll track the number of breaths per minute and compare it to the average for all newborns. Of course, as the child grows, you’ll incorporate additional ways to monitor whether physical, mental and emotional development are on the right track.

In the same way, your need for accounting services as you’re starting a business is going to be quite different from your needs once the business has, with a lot of hard work, grown to, say, $20 million a year in revenue. According to Brian Hamilton, chairman of financial information company Sageworks, a lot of inexperienced entrepreneurs may be confused about whether they need to hire an accountant early on,  or even before they’ve started operating.

“Most businesses are very simple, and the vast majority of them are sole proprietorships,” Hamilton says. As a result, all of the owners’ energy goes toward getting revenue and getting customers. “In most cases, you don’t need an accountant on day one. If I’m going to start, for example, a landscaping company, I’m not going to count money until I make money.”

Numerous accounting systems, such as QuickBooks, Peachtree and Xero, can help new-business owners track the key metrics such as sales and expenses in the early stages. And tax-return software makers like Intuit make it easier for these sole proprietors to file their Form 1040 with a Schedule C attached.

“If you’re running a fairly simple business, why do you need an accountant on the first day? You might need an accountant for advice, because you usually need advice once you get going,” he said. Accountants can provide financial and strategic advice for your business, and they can help with services like estate planning or getting a loan. A startup tech company raising money might also need an accountant in some cases, he said.

But the need for an accountant is mostly dependent on the type of business you’re starting and where the business is in its life cycle. And most of the time, people are starting a simple business and simply need to jump on the task of getting customers.

“A lot of the time, entrepreneurs and others seem to have a kind of checklist in their head about what ‘real’ businesses do and have. They think that all businesses ‘need’ an accountant, a lawyer, a business plan, to be incorporated. All they’re doing is setting big obstacles to getting the first customer,” he said. “My advice would be to go get a customer and then get an accountant.” [snip]  The article continues @ Forbes, click here to continue reading...

6 Tips for Tax-Smart Investing / Good planning now could potentially reduce your tax bill this spring.

Teri Cettina for Wells Fargo Conversations writes: Autumn is the prime time for smart investors to start their tax planning. After all, most investment purchases or sales need to be completed by Dec. 31 to have an impact on the current tax year.

This year may be a particularly good one to consider how your investment strategies may impact your tax situation, says Darrell Cronk, Deputy Chief Investment Officer for Wells Fargo Private Bank. "We're in the midst of the fourth-longest bull market in U.S. history, and for much of the year, market volatility has been relatively low. Because investments have been earning so nicely, some of them may begin issuing pent-up capital gains distributions." And big capital gains payouts can quickly translate into hefty tax bills for investors if they're not careful, says Cronk.

Here are six ways to help make your overall investment strategy as tax-friendly as possible:

1. Spread gains over multiple tax years. If you plan to sell an investment that has appreciated significantly, consider selling some of it in December and the rest in January. That way, your capital gains taxes are spread out over two tax years instead of one, and you may be able to avoid bumping yourself into a higher tax bracket.
2. Consider tax-loss harvesting. This can be a tricky strategy, so it's usually wise to undertake it with the help of your financial team, says Cronk. If you have investments that are now worth less than you paid for them, you may wish to sell them before year-end so you can report the loss on your upcoming tax return. It's especially helpful to strategically harvest tax losses in years when you will also have significant taxable gains to report. Those losses help offset your gains and reduce your taxable income.
3. Be charitable. "When it comes to donations, cash isn't always king," says Cronk. If you have an asset with a very low cost basis (meaning you paid a low price and the asset has appreciated considerably and will therefore generate a big tax bill), consider donating the asset to your favorite charity instead of writing a check. You'll need to do so by Dec. 31 for the 2014 tax year. As a nontaxable entity, the nonprofit won't pay taxes on the investment's sale. You'll have given the organization a generous financial gift — and sidestepped some taxes at the same time.
4. Don't pay gains taxes on new-to-you investments. During the fourth quarter, many mutual funds issue any capital gains distributions and dividend income they've realized during the year, netted against any losses. "If you buy certain mutual funds at the end of the year, you didn't get the advantage of their growth, but you could still end up with a big tax liability," says Cronk. Fortunately, distribution information is announced publicly, generally on a fund's website. If you are planning a purchase, your financial team can find out which funds are planning to issue distributions by year-end, allowing you to plan when to buy funds without incurring a big tax bill.
5. Guard against excessive trading and turnover. When you buy and sell investments quickly, trying to time the market, you can tally up a big tax bill. Why? "Most of your capital gains will be short-term, which could be taxed at a rate of close to 50 percent, depending on your tax bracket," explains Cronk. On the other hand, investments you sell after holding for one year will be taxed at the maximum long-term capital gains rate of just 20 percent.
6. Pay attention to asset "location." If you have both taxable accounts and tax-advantaged accounts — like your workplace retirement plan or Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) — you don't need to hold the same types of investments in each. Tax-smart investors keep investments that could generate significant taxes in their tax-advantaged accounts, and lower-tax options in their taxable accounts. Your financial team can help you plan your investments to hold in the appropriate accounts, tax-wise.

The bottom line, says Cronk: "Whenever possible, try to control your own tax destiny." Of course, avoiding taxes should never be the main driver of your investment strategy. At the same time, Cronk says, there are many ways to make investment choices thoughtfully, with reducing taxes as one of several key considerations.

WooThemes Selects Avalara to Solve Sales Tax Challenges for Small Businesses and Online Stores - Helping WooCommerce Users with Sales Tax Management

WooThemes, a leading developer of themes, plugins, and shopping cart functionality for WordPress, and Avalara, Inc., a leading provider of sales tax and other transactional tax compliance solutions, today announced a partnership that will bring simple, affordable sales tax management solutions to WooCommerce businesses selling online.

As a result of this partnership, Avalara's sales tax calculation software will be offered in the WooCommerce Extension marketplace, and will be hosted, supported and maintained by WooThemes. WooCommerce is WooTheme's flagship product and one of the most popular shopping cart functionality plugins available for WordPress.

For online stores, calculating and collecting the correct sales tax on each shopping cart transaction is challenging because tax rates and taxability rules vary by state and within each state. Avalara's service allows businesses of all sizes to stay current with constantly changing rates and rules across more than 12,000 tax jurisdictions in the US and instantaneously delivers the right rate during the checkout process.

The WooCommerce Tax Connector Extension, powered by Avalara, will help online store owners deliver quick, accurate sales tax calculations for every purchase. WooCommerce customers will further benefit from Avalara's reporting and easy sales tax filing for small businesses. By eliminating the complexities of calculating taxes, creating detailed reports, and preparing and filing returns, small businesses and ecommerce entrepreneurs can focus on growing their ventures and servicing customers.

"We couldn't be more thrilled to be partnering with a global leader in sales tax automation," said Joel Bronkowski, Chief Business Development Officer of WooThemes. "As WooCommerce grows we are seeking opportunities to partner with companies offering services that improve the process of selling online and running a business. Avalara does just that by removing the headaches and challenges of taxation."

"This partnership allows WooThemes to offer Avalara's comprehensive solutions to WooCommerce online store customers in a fast, easy and cost effective way," said Marshal Kushniruk, EVP of Global Business Development at Avalara. "We are thrilled to join WooThemes in providing innovative ecommerce tools that make building online stores easy and enjoyable for small businesses and entrepreneurs."

Avalara pioneered a web-based compliance platform for sales tax automation a decade ago and now provides an end-to-end suite of transactional tax compliance services for businesses of all sizes. Today its SaaS solution integrates into numerous ERP systems, accounting packages, ecommerce shopping carts, Point of Sale systems, and mobile payment platforms.

About WooCommerce
WooCommerce is the world's most popular eCommerce platform. Powered by WordPress and built by WooThemes, the goal of WooCommerce is to allow businesses to sell anything online - beautifully. Users can integrate with payment processors, easily manage shipping methods and inventory, set up flexible tax rules, and view detailed store reports all from your WordPress dashboard.

With a free core platform and hundreds of premium add-ons available, WooCommerce allows businesses to set up an online shop with functionality catered to their store's needs. http://www.woothemes.com/woocommerce

About Avalara
Avalara helps businesses of all sizes achieve compliance with sales tax, excise tax, and other transactional tax requirements by delivering comprehensive, automated, cloud-based solutions that are fast, accurate, and easy to use. Avalara's end-to-end suite of solutions are designed to effectively manage complicated and burdensome tax compliance obligations imposed by state, local, and other taxing authorities in the United States and internationally.

Avalara offers hundreds of pre-built connectors into leading accounting, ERP, ecommerce and other business applications. The company processes millions of tax transactions for customers and free users every day, files hundreds of thousands of transactional tax returns per year, and manages millions of exemption certificates and other compliance related documents. Founded in 2004 and privately-held, Avalara's venture capital investors include Battery Ventures, Sageview Capital, Arthur Ventures, and other institutional and individual investors. Avalara employs more than 700 people at its headquarters on Bainbridge Island, WA and in offices across the U.S. and in London, England and Pune, India. More information at: http://www.avalara.com