Spotlight Employee: Linda Colacicco
by Marisa Salmieri

   This quarter our employee spotlight is on Linda Colacicco, Director of Abacus Payroll, an affiliated company of Alloy Silverstein. Linda began working in Hammonton for Robert W. Gargone & Associates in 1986 and joined Alloy Silverstein in July 2008 when the firms merged. Linda was raised in Cherry Hill and has a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology from the University of Phoenix.

   Linda’s responsibilities include supervising various payroll accounts and assisting clients with their payroll needs, both quarterly and for each pay period.

   Linda currently resides in Marlton and enjoys spending her free time dining with friends and family, going to concerts, and attending Phillies and Eagles games.  She also loves the Jersey shore and vacationing in the Caribbean.

Holiday schedule

Our offices will be closed on:

Friday, December 23

Monday, December 26

Monday, January 2

Alloy Happenings
by Adrienne Onorato

Ren Cicalese, CPA/PFS
   Participated in the Guest Professor Program at Rutgers University School of Business at Camden, November 14.
 
Dennis Vogt, CPA
Charlie Byron
   Attended the 1st Global National Conference in Salt Lake City, UT, November 13-15.
 
Julie Strohlein, CPA
   Spoke to students in six accounting classes at Delran, Moorestown, and Burlington Township high schools about a career in public accounting as part of the NJSCPA's Pay It Forward program, November 14-16.
  
Kim Sheehan, CPA/PFS
Chris Cicalese
   Represented Alloy Silverstein at Rutgers University-Camden's Career Day, October 5. The event allows students the opportunity to meet with local employers.
 
Alloy, Silverstein, Shapiro, Adams, Mulford, Cicalese, Wilson & Co.
   Named best in accounting in South Jersey Biz’s “Best of Biz 2011.” The list featured 75 local businesses as selected by the readers.

Congratulations:

David Thompson, CPA, MST, awarded the Accredited in Business Valuation (ABV) designation by the AICPA.

Amy DeYoung on successfully completing the CPA exam.

Charlie Byron on his marriage to Lori Gardner, September 10.

Sara Chen and her husband Tak Wai Chan on the birth of their daughter, Alina Kaying, August 23.

Duane Miller, CPA and Amy McClintock on the birth of their daughter, Aubrey Ann, September 1.

William Marone, CPA and his wife Carisa on the birth of their daughter, Sophia Grace, October 5.

Happy Anniversary:

Bret Stone, CPA, celebrating his tenth anniversary with the firm.

Nicole Doerr, celebrating her tenth anniversary with the firm.

Julie Strohlein, CPA, celebrating her fifth anniversary with the firm.

On October 16, employees of the firm participated in the American Heart Association’s Start! Southern New Jersey Fall Heart Walk at Cooper River Park. The firm also participated in the Making Strides for Breast Cancer Walk at Cooper River Park on October 23, which brought out over 13,000 participants and raised more than $580,000 for breast cancer research. Thank you to Duane Miller, Amy DeYoung, Maryann Previtera, Michelle Harvey, and Lucy Lee for your efforts in organizing our fall walks.

The Gift of Giving

   To nominate an organization, the employee must write a paragraph about why it is deserving of the donation. The firm's Executive Committee will subsequently select five of the nominated organizations and each employee of the firm will vote on one of those five organizations. We intend to announce the chosen organization by December 9, just in time for the holidays.

Update: The votes have been counted and Alloy Silverstein is proud to announce that the Food Bank of South Jersey (foodbanksj.org) is this year's recipient of the firm's donation!

Tax Season Resources:

Office Hours

Effective February 1, please note that our office hours through April 16 will be:

Monday - Thursday
8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Friday
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Saturday
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Tax Planning Guide

Our 2011 Tax Planning Guide is now available online.  The guide provides a wealth of individual and business tax information including highlights of key provisions of recent tax legislation.

You can access the guide through our website, www.alloysilverstein.com.

Major Tax
Deadlines

It's that time of year again; tax return filing deadlines will be here before you know it.  Please send us your year-end information as soon as possible, preferably in an electronic format.

For calendar year taxpayers, corporate income tax re-turns are due March 15, 2012, while partnership and individual income tax returns are due April 16, 2012.

New Jersey residents, please be aware that we will be electronically filing your federal and state individual income tax returns.  We highly recommend residents of other states e-file their individual income tax returns as well. E-filing typically results in improved efficiency and accuracy, along with quicker refunds.

Go Red news

   Alloy Silverstein is once again one of the top contributors to the American Heart Association’s National Wear Red Day. For 2011, the firm was recently recognized for being the third largest participant in the state of New Jersey and the top Wear Red team in South Jersey. We are the number one contributing accounting firm in the state.

The American Heart Association also lists Alloy Silverstein as one of the top 50 company participants in the nation.

Building a better budget
by Charlie Byron

   In conversations with clients over the years, we have found that most do not have what would qualify as a real budget. Many have a good sense of what their necessary expenses look like, but very few know how much they spend on clothes, dining out, vacations, and the other significant but irregular expenses. Those who do have a budget have generally built it based on income and expenses. They know how much they earn and based on that, they know how much they can spend. If there is anything left after that for savings, it is more or less accidental. If there are not funds being automatically deducted from the paycheck to fund a retirement plan, many people are doing very little, if anything, to build a rainy day fund or to prepare for retirement. One of the most frequently given pieces of financial advice is, “Pay yourself first”, but for many, it is easier said than done. Saving has to be a part of the budget process, and rather than saving what’s left after the bills are paid and the vacations are taken, it makes sense to address personal savings as a required expense.

   The savings rate for U.S. households is consistently among the lowest of developed nations, according to data compiled by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) between 1992 and 2010. The high for that time period was achieved in 1992 at 7.3%, while the low hit in 2005 at 1.4%. This compares to Germany, which had rates of 12.7% and 10.5% in those same two years.*  The main source of funds for economic growth and capital investment is household savings. In spite of troubles with the Eurozone, these numbers at least partially contribute to the resilience of the German economy. This also highlights that saving is not just important for our household, but it is important to fuel the economic growth we count on for the secure future of the nation. There are some strategies we can implement at home to ensure that saving receives the priority it deserves.

   Start making  saving a priority by setting monthly, quarterly, and annual savings goals. The minimum should be 10% of net household income. If income is fairly consistent, set up an automatic transfer the day after pay day into a savings account. Work within your comfort zone but don’t be timid. Great results require bold action! Challenge your family by promoting a positive outcome as a result of saving. This account isn’t meant to be for anything other than the long-term security of your family and as an additional source of retirement funds. If the savings goal is exceeded, there will be plenty of money beyond the safety net for vacations and holidays. Making saving a priority emphasizes the importance of living below your means and maintaining a sustainable lifestyle.

   Better yet, have your paycheck directly deposited into a savings account and set up an automatic transfer into the household checking account to cover expenses. By taking this approach, we are changing our mentality and making saving an initial impulse rather than an afterthought. This also serves to highlight our spending habits. If every dollar from every paycheck is required to maintain your lifestyle, this process can have a significant and lasting impact on your family. Many of us who pursue professional careers must postpone earning for educational reasons. During those years of higher education, we deny ourselves and our families some of life’s pleasures so we fall into the trap of trying to make up for lost time. We buy the toys we never had money for while in school or maybe go a little overboard on our favorite hobby or diversion. Delaying gratification or reducing the level of gratification doesn’t have to diminish the level of satisfaction in an experience. Aristotle is quoted as saying, “…Generosity is a mean between the excess of wastefulness and the deficiency of stinginess…” By saving sufficiently, we are being generous to ourselves, finding the balance between excess and self-denial.

   We live in a rapidly changing world where sometimes even highly educated, talented people find their employment situations less than secure for a variety of reasons. If we are willing to step back and evaluate the position saving takes in our lives, we will allow ourselves to experience a level of security that will not only teach our children valuable lessons, but will prepare us for a satisfying future. 

*Source – OECD Factbook 2010: Household savings. 

  Stay Connected:

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