Jobs Accountant

As Moerdler makes clear, nothing the software-as-a-service company is doing is illegal, their practices are well disclosed, and the company’s approach has been approved by its auditor. But the Bernstein analyst makes clear that Salesforce certainly does appear to be taking an approach to financial reporting that is less conservative than some peers.

What do yesterday's east coast earthquake, our infrastructure and antiquated Federal accounting systems have to do with jobs? A lot, it turns out.

The earthquake yesterday was the largest east coast trembler in 67 years. But earthquakes of moderate intensity are not rare. The U.S. Geological Survey counted an average of 1,300 earthquakes each year that range in magnitude from 5 to 5.9 on the Richter Scale. Yesterday's was on the high end, at 5.8. Earthquakes -- even in areas like the East Coast that is the middle of a tectonic plate -- happen regularly and should not come as a surprise. The same is true of floods, hurricanes, tornadoes and huge snow storms. Natural disasters don't happen every day or every year, but they are definitely going to happen. And when they do they test our infrastructure.

WASHINGTON — An accounting oversight board agreed on Tuesday to seek public comment on whether companies should be required to change their auditors every few years, a move that supporters say they believe would strengthen the independence and objectivity of accountants that inspect corporate ledgers for accuracy.