CASE SIMULATION WEEK $2$

Eastern Economic Development Corporation $($EEDC$),$ a local community$-$development office, operates a program called Business Assistance Service $($BAS$).$ It is a mentorship service for entrepreneurs. EEDC forms volunteer advisory boards of three to five knowledgeable businesspeople with strengths in different areas. The advisory boards are paired up with businesses requesting BAS. The service is available to businesses within two to five years of inception and can be provided for up to five years. The volunteers meet with the entrepreneurs on a regular basis and critique the business and offer suggestions for improvement. All aspects of the business are considered: financial accounting, operational, strategic, marketing, finance, tax, and human resources.

You are a CPA with Black and White, Chartered Professional Accountants. On July $30,2016,$ you had your semi$-$annual performance review with your partner, Bill Black. Bill noted that the firm values community service and thinks that, now that your studying is over, you should do more of it$.$ As a result, you volunteered to become involved as a mentor with BAS. Bill thinks this will help you expand your business knowledge and make useful contacts with fellow volunteers and with budding entrepreneurs that could become valuable clients. He said to come see him if you need help.

On August $5,$ you met with the volunteer board that you were assigned to$.$ Your board has three other members: a lawyer, a marketing professor, and a successful small$-$business owner. Your first $$client$,$ Security Plus Inc. $($SP$),$ operates a security business and is new to the BAS program. The volunteer board met briefly and was given some information from a meeting the account manager at EEDC had with Joe Rush, the owner of SP $($Exhibit I$)$ and some background information from SP$$s application to the BAS program $($Exhibits II$,$ III, and IV$).$

You are responsible for advising on the accounting and tax aspects of the business. This is important given that EEDC requires the financial statements to be in accordance with ASPE. The other volunteers will look at marketing, human resources, strategic, and operational issues. However, you are welcome to contribute your views on these other areas. The volunteers will get together for a group discussion before meeting with the client. You decide to consult with your partner on how to proceed. He suggests you draft a memo summarizing your observations for the upcoming meeting.

Reprinted from the $2006$ UFE Report, with permission Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada, Toronto, Canada. Any changes to the original material are the sole responsibility of the author and have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada.