Planning what to do with the money you earn today, the assets you accumulate throughout your lifetime, and the distribution of those assets at the time of your death is, for most of us, the elephant in the room. While there are plenty of people to help you, and plenty of friends that will offer referrals, the best thing you can do is to consider your financial needs, goals and objectives. These are not cast in stone. Throughout your lifetime they will change. How you consider the following questions can help you determine what professional relationship is best suited for your needs.

What financial needs/goals/objectives do I need to plan for? The list can be as long or as short as you need it to be-college savings, retirement planning, long-term care planning, investment advice, small business planning, trust and estate planning. Let your needs match the expertise you require.

CPA/Accountants-A certified public accountant is licensed by the state in which you live to prepare taxes, prepare financial audits and perform accounting services for individuals, small business, or large business.
Financial planners-Think big picture. Think managing everything from your savings account to your 401k to your stocks and bonds. Financial planners are experts at identifying your goals and developing the strategies to achieve them.
Stockbrokers-Traditionally, stockbrokers are sellers of stocks and bonds. However, today stockbrokers can also function as financial planners. The reverse is also true, financial planners sometimes sell investments.
Insurance agents-From property, life, casualty and annuities, insurance agents can help manage your short and long-term insurance needs.
Estate planning attorneys-Attorneys are focused on developing strategies to ensure that your estate will pass to your heirs in the most efficient manner possible. More specifically, the most tax efficient manner possible. They are best suited to help manage the tax liabilities of your estate. They also prepare wills, trusts, durable powers of attorney and health-related legal documents.
How do I pay? Like any purchase you make, you need to know how much it costs and what are the payment terms. Most importantly, the terms have to meet your expectations and comfort level. Below are the most common methods of payment for professional services:

Hourly rate-note that all services do not have the hourly rate; research done by the stockbroker will be different from that of a lawyer preparing a will.
Retainer
Percentage of the value of the assets managed
Fixed fee for a particular service
Commission on what is bought or sold
Combination of the above methods of payment
Are you comfortable with the big, well known firms or the small, independent companies? You’ve heard the big names all of your life-they advertise and they have big advertising budgets. They also have glossy brochures, sophisticated technology, research departments and support staff. But they can also be large and impersonal. Their professional opposites, independents, do it all themselves and are unencumbered by policies, procedures and quotas. Personal attention is their specialty.

Getting Started
Implement your plan by asking for referrals and interviewing several candidates. Remember, as perfect as they seem on paper, you have to like them, be honest with them, and have mutual respect. Know what services they offer, what licenses are needed to do the work, their education, and how they will work with you. Next, you must check credentials.

CPA or public accountant-Contact your state board of accountancy; http://www.CPAdirectory.com. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants lists CPAs who are certified as Personal Financial Specialists.
Financial planners-Check the following databases: The Financial Planning Association’s PlannerSearch, Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors
Stockbrokers-Contact your state securities regulator to check licensing; and SEC registration at http://www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
Insurance agents-Contact your state insurance commissioner.
Estate planning attorney-Visit the websites of the American Bar Association, The National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel.
Gregory McTaggart is CEO of Christian Credit Counselors, a non-profit organization that has been in business for over 20 years and has helped over 200,000 individuals and families get out of debt. Credit Counseling is the safest choice when looking to get out of debt fast.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gregory_McTaggart

The finance management section is one of the most important departments in any organization. While hiring the wrong people can lead to the failure of the entire company, good finance management will keep your business in full control and will give the entire organization all opportunities for success and growth.

Experts have estimated that the cost of inefficient hiring and poor hiring decisions range from at least 20% to up to 200% of an employee’s yearly salary, the exact figure of which will depend on the position on hand. This will mean hundreds of thousands of dollars for a medium-sized company with an annual turnover rate of 15%. The loss may be even more in the finance and management section. Thus, before you hire the next person to be part of your accounting and finance staff, make sure you evaluate your current recruitment methods.

If your current recruitment method does not include a financial test, then you might not be taking the least possible risk in your hiring decision. You see, there are five key questions you have to ask before hiring an employee:

1. Do they have what it takes to do the work?
2. Based on their past work history, would they make a good employee?
3. Will the candidate need training or can they be incorporated immediately?
4. Is the candidate’s attitude positive enough to enhance and promote productivity?
5. Does the candidate’s interests fit the job well enough to make them stay for a (ideally long) while?

Although interviews and background checks remain important, all these five questions cannot be answered fully without a financial test. It is only through a financial test that you can pinpoint accurately and precisely, in the most objective manner, a job candidate that is fit for the job. Financial tests include a wide range of subject areas including Financial Accounting, Financial Analysis, Financial Forecasting, Financial Auditing, Financial Management, Financial Reporting and Statements, as well as Financial Terminologies.

Whatever your organization’s needs are, there surely will be a financial test that is best suited to meet your needs. This part should be stressed further – that it is very important to design your financial test in such a way that it meets your organization’s needs. If you have no time to design your own financial test, it will be best if you source them from professional experts who provide this service.

Financial tests have been carefully crafted by experts in finance and accounting, who have already identified the most important subject areas, topics and tasks in the field of finance. The tests include real-world examples as well as illustrations that can precisely and accurately measure the capabilities of the potential employee. It has been made even more convenient as it can be done online, allowing more opportunities for your recruitment program.

A financial test allows you to know more about your job candidates. It allows you to know what they know, and to know what they don’t. It does not only gauge knowledge, but it also provides you information about their critical thinking skills, problem solving ability, training needs, among many others. Financial tests are an indispensable tool for hiring people in your finance department. Coupled with a good interview and some background check, a financial test will allow you to make the wisest hiring decision possible.

Ron Buening became a CPA in 1970 and has been a consultant to small and medium size companies since. He founded http://www.employmentskillsonlinetest.com in 2006 to pre-qualify applicants for clients. You may want take a free demo at http://www.testskills.net/demologin.php to see how it works.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ron_A_Buening

A financial analyst job involves reviewing and analyzing the broad number of financial instruments available within a particular investment market. Based on their analyses, the financial analysis will then provide an interpretation as well as recommendations to the companies or individuals that they are working for. Financial analysis provide information that guides decisions in personal finance, corporate investments, company mergers, acquisitions and initial public offers (IPO). A financial services job can be found in a number of different companies.

Financial analyst careers based in a stock brokerage, investment firm or financial services company will be tasked with undertaking extensive research on the various options of investment that are available, analyzing the pros and cons of each depending on the companies short, medium and long term objectives, preparing the pertinent reports, making presentations on the data and recommendations to the key decision making organs within the organization. The sources of research for financial analysis are diverse and can include data on credible websites, company reports, business news, industry journals, company announcements and industry regulator reports.

A financial analyst job based in what can be termed as an ordinary non-finance business will be involved in preparing company budgets, end of year company accounts and performing financial audits to some degree. The financial analysis will be one of the key point persons in the design and negotiation of financial instruments that the business is contemplating. Such instruments or products would include foreign currency future contracts, price hedges and syndicated loans. If the business intends to raise funds through the public, financial analysis will be heavily involved in the process of structuring the IPO, rights issue, debenture, corporate bond, commercial paper etc. The financial analyst job will also prepare or oversee the preparation of dividend payouts as well as the financial reports for distribution to the shareholders.

So what do you need in order to succeed in financial analyst careers? First, you must be good in mathematics and statistics. This is because the financial analyst’s job demands a great deal of calculation and statistical data analysis. The need for mathematical aptitude cannot be overemphasized given that the reports that financial analysts develop will usually be used to make major and sometimes high value investment decisions on behalf of the institution he or she works for. But financial analysts will often be asked to make presentations to management so good presentation and reporting skills are of paramount importance. It is one thing to have accurate data-but it is completely another to communicate the data in a way that makes sense for an audience.

A financial analysis job will favor persons with an undergraduate degree in a business related field such as finance, commerce, business analysis, economics, business administration, business management, accounting etcetera. A minor, a separate degree or a postgraduate qualification in mathematics or statistics will be an added advantage. Senior financial analysts’ jobs will often have much more stringent requirements such as the need to have a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) or a Masters in Finance. In addition, many firms now require that one have professional qualifications such as Certified Public Accounting (CPA), Certified International Investment Analyst (CIIA) or Chartered Financial Analysis (CFA).

According to a PayScale.com salary survey, entry level salaries for financial analysts as of March 2010 ranged between $40,000 and $53,000. Financial analysis with five to ten years of experience earned between $50,000 and $67,000.

For more information on Financial Analyst Job

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Faria_Eagle

“I retired early because I had Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and could no longer work. Since retiring, my health insurance denied me critical medication and my disability insurance told me that I am no longer disabled…. I face a daily battle with my insurance companies.”

Former hospital CEO, William Blaine of Minnesota

———————————————————-

Throughout the 1980′s and early 1990′s, disability insurance companies aggressively marketed and sold policies known as “own-occupation” or “occupational” disability policies to physicians and other medical professionals. Marketing efforts were directed at medical professionals in particular because they were actuarially determined to be less likely to stop working due to physical limitations, even severe limitations, since they had already invested years into their education and training, enjoyed working and were earning high salaries.

In addition to insuring specific occupations, most of the disability insurance policies from the 1990′s were non-cancellable and premiums could not be raised. Due to competition in the industry, several insurance companies dramatically reduced underwriting standards on, and underpriced, this block of business. Certain highly advantageous “bells and whistles” were contained in these policies, many of which were available without the physician completing a long application, providing a detailed medical history or submitting to various medical tests:

• Occupation-specific coverage

• No mental health exclusions or limitations

• Lifetime benefits instead of benefits payable to age 65

• Cost of living increases

• Benefits not offset from other income sources

• No limits or relaxed limits on maximum coverage amounts

Disability insurance companies planned to invest premiums from these policies and earn substantial returns based on the high interest rates in effect during the early 1990′s. Although the companies projected that high interest rates would continue, they actually plummeted. This coincided with the emergence of managed care, resulting in a significant decrease in income for many medical professionals. Many medical professionals grew frustrated and refused to continue working through their physical limitations, opting instead to make claims for disability benefits on policies that were equal to, or greater than, their modified salaries. As a result, “own-occupation” policies turned into a “bad block” of business that would cost the industry hundreds of millions of dollars.

This acute lack of profitability caused the insurance industry to focus on claim administration. Insurance companies began hyper-scrutinizing the terms of their policies and any claims made thereunder, utilizing novel, creative and often improper theories to justify denial of benefits. NBC’s Dateline and CBS’ 60 Minutes ran stories about UnumProvident, the largest disability insurer of its kind in the United States. The 60 Minutes segment was entitled “Did the Insurer Cheat Disabled Clients?” During the episode, one UnumProvident employee told Ed Bradley that bonuses were awarded to some managers who closed especially large claims. Another employee, Gina Hartley, who was a claims handler, said that her department had monthly monetary savings goals set for them, amounts which they had to hit by shutting down claims. Ms. Hartley said that the pressure to reach these goals often led to the termination of legitimate claims.

As a result of the media attention, UnumProvident became the prime target of repeated investigations by insurance regulators, resulting in a Multistate Market Conduct Examination Report. The Report identified four serious areas of concern in UnumProvident’s conduct toward its insureds:

• Excessive reliance on in-house medical professionals

• Unfair construction of attending physician or IME reports

• Failure to evaluate the totality of the claimant’s medical condition

• Inappropriate placement of burden on claimants to justify their eligibility for benefits

Ultimately, UnumProvident entered into regulatory settlement agreements with the insurance commissioners of all 50 states, agreeing to promptly, fairly and objectively investigate all claims on a going forward basis. The media interest has considerably waned, but the industry’s “bad block of business” remains a serious, outstanding liability. Accordingly, medical professionals with high value policies continue to have difficulty collecting benefits, notwithstanding any lip service paid to the industry’s supposedly reformed practices.

Administration of high-dollar claims remains a billion dollar business, with insurers continuing to lob a seemingly endless barrage of anti-coverage grenades on claimants, including: video surveillance of their activities; field interviews and unannounced investigations; unannounced attending physician interviews; vocational rehabilitation testing; in-house medical evaluations; “independent” medical exams; medical “interventions” and micro-management of medical care; financial auditing; insurance billing audits; re-evaluation of answers on application forms; investigations of prior litigation and board complaints; investigation of circumstances surrounding practice sales; as well as a wide variety of other tactics, all aimed at increasing each company’s bottom line.

Medical professionals must familiarize themselves with their policies and the claims process, and continue paying premiums on any liberalized policies that they may have purchased in the past. Disability provisions vary greatly in the language used, and coverage is often circumscribed and restricted by qualifying words and phrases, which insurance companies interpret to their own benefit. Each policy of insurance must be individually reviewed to determine whether a particular claim is covered and, if so, how and when that claim is best presented to ensure acceptance and, more importantly, continuing payment. Disability insurance companies are financially capable of expertly and vigilantly protecting their own interests, which often means not paying claims. Medical professionals need to be even more vigilant in protecting themselves.

DISCLAIMER

The information in this article has been prepared for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Anyone reading this article should not act on any information contained therein without seeking professional counsel from an attorney. The author and publisher shall not be responsible for any damages resulting from any error, inaccuracy or omission contained in this publication.

*By: Edward O. Comitz, Esq.

* Edward O. Comitz, Esq. heads the Health and Disability Insurance Practice Section at Comitz | Beethe, 6720 N. Scottsdale Rd., Suite 150, Scottsdale, Arizona 85253, (480) 998-7800. Mr. Comitz has extensive experience in disability insurance coverage and bad faith litigation, primarily representing medical and dental professionals in reversing denials of their disability claims. For more information about disability insurance issues, please visit our disability insurance attorney website at http://www.disabilitycounsel.net.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Edward_O._Comitz