WHEN YOU'VE HIRED BOOKKEEPERS, HAVE YOU MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE?

Were you able to tell from the interview and their resume that they would be the best fit for the job? Now the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers (AIPB) is offering a free 20-minute test you can give a candidate that lets you evaluate his/her skills beforehand. It's geared toward businesses that are on an accrual basis, not a cash basis.

Here are some sample questions:

1. On October 1, your calendar year company, which is on the accrual basis, signs a $15,000 painting contract and makes a $5,000 advance, which you record in Painting Expense. If, on December 31, management tells you that 20% of the work has been completed, you will:

a. credit Painting Expense for $2,000

b. debit Painting Expense for $2,000

c. debit Painting Expense for $3,000

d. credit Painting Expense Payable for $5,000

2. While doing the bank reconciliation, you discover in your company's bank statement a debit of $150 for another company's check. To correct this error, you will:

a. add $150 to the end-of-month bank balance

b. add $150 to the end-of-month Cash balance

c. deduct $150 from the end-of-month bank balance

d. deduct $300 from the end-of-month Cash balance

The test contains 10 questions on journal entries, adjusting entries, bank reconciliation, error correction, and other key bookkeeping and accounting skills, AIPB CoPresident Stephen Sahlein says, and optional sections are available on payroll, depreciation, and merchandise inventory. Applicants won't see the hiring test ahead of time, he adds, because each 10-question test and each optional added section are randomly drawn from a bank of over 250 questions.

To order the test, call (800) 622-0121, e-mail info@aipb.ore, or visit the association's website at www.aipb.org and click on the "Free Bookkeepers Hiring Test" bar.

MANAGING PERFORMANCE

Pilat NAI international human resources consulting and software firm has published a free booklet on "Seven Fables and Potions of Performance Management." It's a quick-tips guide to such issues as individual performance planning, managing alignment of objectives, feedback, and the use of technology to underpin the relationship between managers and their staffs. CEO Clinton Wingrove, author of the booklet, says 'It is imperative that companies recognize the relationship between how people operate in the workplace, how their work is planned and evaluated, and what consequences they experience."

Also available are "Building a Successful Succession Planning System" and "The Myths of 360: From Witchcraft to Reality in Multi-Rater Feedback."

To order the guides, call (800) 338-9701 or e-mail info@pilat-nai.com.