Let us venture into an industry that most people do not enjoy, some people avoid, no one really wants to talk about, and everyone is relieved to know it is over for another year. Let's talk taxes!
Considering the service industry of preparing taxes, this essay will review how individual income taxes began, along with the industry growth and its value today. Specifically, we will review the corporation of H and R Block, its history, the products they offer, their marketing mix, their ranking in the industry, their stock value and annual revenues, and the contributions which they make back to society. I currently have the title of tax associate at H and R Block in Thayer, Missouri and am working toward my certification for tax specialist.
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The current CEO of H and R Block is Jeff Jones, who works alongside Henry Bloch (founder), Tony Bowen (CFO), and Robert Gerard (chairman). The company employs approximately 70,000 tax professionals annually. The home office location remains in Kansas City, Missouri, where the Bloch brothers originally began their business venture. From 1955 to current, H and R Block has approximately 12,000 retail offices worldwide. In addition to the United States, they service clients in Puerto Rico, Canada, North America, Australia, India, and multiple U.S. Military bases around the world. In 1986, Henry Bloch worked with the Internal Revenue Service to introduce electronic filing of a tax return. Today, H and R Block offers electronic filing, online tax preparation, banking products, payroll services, after the fact payroll, bookkeeping, tax specialist consults and financial advisors. H and R Block business products include Approve Online, Tax Pro Review, Emerald Advance, Emerald Card, Emerald Savings, H and R Block Advantage, My Block, Peace of Mind, Refund Transfer, Second Look, Tax Identity Shield, W-2 Early Access, and Refund Advance (H & R Block DNA documents, …show more content…
Why should they do this? Changes in the industry have shifted with more consumer options, web based programs, electronic filing, and mobile apps. As the tax preparation process has become faster and more efficient with the digital age, the market has become even more competitive. Businesses within this industry must focus on strategies to service both online and offline offerings. H and R Block joined with IBM's Mr. Watson in 2016. This strategy is to keep up and surpass the competition with company experience, advanced security, computing technology, and innovation. Teams for H and R Block are constantly seeking ways to improve their system and the products they offer, in continuance to “look at your life through taxes and find ways to
Last week, we talked about the IRS Criminal Investigation unit, which just released their Fiscal 2012 report. That report was filled with the sort of dry statistics you would expect from an IRS annual report: 5,125 total investigations launched, 202 crooked tax preparers indicted, 199 identity thieves sent to prison, and 64 months average time behind bars for money launderers. But the report also includes dozens of stories of tax cheats who really just should have known better — and some whose stories are so entertaining we just had to share them. Are you having a bad day? Well, be glad you're not one of these people!
Last weekend, while attending Lexington, KY’s Southland Christian Church, I received an invitation to attend a “Poor Man’s After-Tax Dinner.” Located on a 115-acre plot that occupies a stretch of the rapidly disappearing farmland between Lexington and Jessamine County, Southland will host the gala, which includes a catered meal and a performance by the Dale Adams Band. On the church’s website, an announcement for the event asks, “Did you have to pay when you filed taxes? This month’s Gathering is designed to help you to forget your IRS woes.”[1] The After-Tax Dinner will minister to those still reeling from the April 15th deadline, and, with any luck, it will foster solidarity among Southland’s flock, the majority of whom are members of the tax bracket whose wallets ache most severely after just having rendered unto Caesar the money that belongs to him.
The FairTax Act will replace these costly, oppressively complex and economically inefficient taxes with a progressive national retail sales tax, which would be levied on the final sale ...
Our current system of taxation is a varied rate percentage based on different income brackets. Many say that it violates our constitutional rights through unequal taxation. Multiple deductions, loopholes, special rates, and a complex system of regulations all characterize our Federal Income Tax System, prompting many to question why it is still being used (Peters, 2013). The current system although bringing in over $3 trillion, taxes income multiple times, and includes the taxing of estate, labor, savings, and investments (National Priorities Project, 2013). The system itself is complex with over 20,000 pages of regulations, requiring a massive filing system, which is set up and maintained by an even larger IRS, requiring over $225 billion in compliance costs (Hall, 2001). One can be hard pressed to find an advantage in the current system, other than the fact that it provides the government with an enormous amount of funds, and it has...
Mehan, C.. N.p.. Web. 19 Jan 2014. . . N.p.. Web. 6 Mar 2014. . Kirkland, Stephen D. "Should We Have A Flat Tax?." Business & Economic Review 49.1 (2002): 27.
I. You might have heard politicians in the news, talk about overhauling our tax system with a new fix-all idea, the flat-tax. This would simplify our overly complicated tax system and might seem appealing at first glance, however there are serious problems with it.
Would you like to have more money in your pocket? Most people believe that there will be more money in the packet if the worker’s paycheck is larger. Some people believe the solution is found in regulating the minimum wages paid to employees. There is a good reason you are earning more money, spending more money, but retaining less for personal use. There have been eleven recessions since the decade of the Great Depression beginning in 1929. We must do something about this national financial problem before it becomes a crisis. We may not recover from the next recession. This essay describes the attributes of the “Fair Tax” system, which many informed analysts will be in the best interest of the government of this country, and the people , who live here, especially you and your family. In this essay you will discover how we can alleviate the country’s major issues in financial management, enhance enforcement of immigration laws and improve the financial support of our education system. All this is proposed with change to just one government agency.
Named after IBM’s first CEO Thomas J. Watson, Watson is a supercomputer able to answer questions posed in natural language. It first became famous in early 2011 for beating a couple of the best players of Jeopardy in a 3 day streak game. He beat Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter, the first had 74 winnings in a row and the second had earned a total of $3.25 million. At the time Watson was about the size of a room. It was hot and very noisy because of the cooling systems. He was represented in the room by a simple avatar. Today, Watson has changed a lot. Now it is more business friendly and has lost a lot of weight. From a Jeopardy winning computer it has become a successful commercialized supercomputer. In the following chapters I will talk about its origins, its actual situation and a little bit about its future.
In a competitive economic environment, human resource management has taken more of a strategic, hands-on role in many companies to handle the challenges they face to stay competitive. Companies must find ways to bring in customers and keep good, well-motivated employees on the job. With this in mind, companies that are successful must have sound HRM practices and provide a positive workplace for employees. Looking at the Top 10 Companies to work for, we want to know if HRM practices have an effect on that company being one of the best places to work. We will look at REI, number 9 in the top ten companies to work, to see if Strategic Human Resource Management plays a role in their success.
In today's society income taxes are something in which almost everyone is familiar. However, the tax law and general purpose of income taxes is something in which the general society gives little thought. In addition, few tax preparers are aware that differences exist between the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and tax accounting, not to mention the ramifications of avoiding or evading to proper complete the reporting of income taxes. This paper will discuss the objectives of modern tax law, the differences between Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and tax accounting as well as the differences between tax evasion and tax avoidance.
(2012) "QinetiQ cares for the people who know how: New HR boss keen to engage directly with employees", Human Resource Management International Digest, Vol. 20 Iss: 7, pp.9 – 12
The case study “Too Hot to Hold” (Katz & Green, 2014, pg. 182), describes a business buying opportunity available to Gwendolyn Bonnefille, a struggling single mother. The business for sale is a small, apparently home-based, hot sauce making business. Sly, the current owner, makes, bottles, and labels the Caterwauling Coyote hot sauce from his kitchen, and then distributes the finished product to gift and specialty shops in Texas (Katz & Green, 2014). In her quest to purchase the business, Ms Bonnefille discovers that there are some inconsistencies between the business’s financial statements and the Sly’s personal tax returns. The case study provides the Sly’s explanation for the discrepancies and provides some information regarding the terms of the business sale. The case study then goes on to ask three questions regarding the Sly’s explanation of the financial discrepancies, the accuracy of the selling price, and other information the Ms Bonnefille should consider prior to making a decision to purchase Caterwauling Coyote from its current owner (Katz & Green, 2014). Although I might not address the questions in order, this essay will address all of these concerns and evaluate whether this purchase may or may not be a good option for the Ms Bonnefille.
The Web. 6 Apr. 2012. The. Gueutal, Hal G., and Dianna L. Stone (eds.). "Chapter 9 - The Next Decade of HR—Trends, Technologies, and Recommendations".
Upbin, Bruce. "IBM's Watson Gets Its First Piece Of Business In Healthcare." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 08 Feb. 2013. Web. 17 Mar. 2014.
The IRS (Internal Revenue Service) is the government agency responsible for tax collection and tax law enforcement in the U.S. (IRS, 2014). It has been striving to fight against Identity theft. They have rec...