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il Some years from now the American people and American business may- well look back on 1974 as a pivotal point in the development of the U.S. economy. Double-digit inflation, stagflation, recession and depression, the large-scale swing from the FIFO (first-in, first-out) to the LIFO (last-in, first-out) method of inventory valuation, the energy crisis that underlined most clearly the interdependence of all nations—all these factors exerted a profound effect on what had up to then been the "traditional" American way of life. The sharp reappraisal of what had been considered economic "truths" was only one manifestation of the dramatic shift in perspective triggered by the forces affecting this country For Haskins & Sells, which in 1974 was completing eighty years of expanding service to clients in the United States and abroad, the year marked an equally important reassessment of its role in the business community as well as its plans for future growth. The seminar held for the Firm's small business specialists in St. Louis last November signalled a new emphasis on this segment of our practice. The message was carried from Executive Office to St. Louis by Philip J. Sandmaier, Jr., partner in charge of Domestic Practice Office Operations, and partner Allan A. Gilman, who shortly before had been named EO coordinator for the Firm's small business practice. In his talk before the more than ninety partners and managers attending the seminar, Mr. Sandmaier said that Small Business Services now ranked as one of the four major services offered by H&S SCHWYN, SAN FRANCISCO along with Audit, Tax and MAS. He said "no segment is of more significance" to Haskins & Sells. He said, "We need our best people in Small Business Services, too." A talented speaker, Mr. Sandmaier told the assembly what it had been waiting to hear. And when he finished, he received a long, loud and enthusiastic standing ovation. By the time the seminar was completed, two points had been made most clearly: W-> Executive Office, through Allan Gilman, will be playing a stronger role in the direction and development of the Firm's small business practice. M > Small business most definitely offers a career path leading to partnership in the Firm for the competent, qualified accountant. Some explanation is necessary to put these developments in perspective. First, small business does not mean a business that is small. For H&S, small business is "any organization that does not have the full spectrum of required in-house financial and accounting expertise and must rely on professionals to supply such expertise." Indeed, a large number of our small business clients are substantial organizations with quite respectable sales and income figures. Detroit partner Ralph J. Kliber, a member of the Firm's Small Business Advisory Committee, pointed out at the St. Louis seminar that there are some eight million small businesses in the United States at the present time, a figure representing some 95 percent of all domestic business organizations. Because of the possible confusion that the term "small business" may cause in the minds of potential clients, however, a change in the name is one of the questions scheduled for study. The second point is that the Firm's small business practice is most definitely big business. Actual figures are hard to come by and may even be misleading because the distinction between a small business and any other client is often blurred. However, several H&S partners long active in small business say almost any office can build its SBS practice to the point where it represents between 15 and 20 percent of total office dollar volume. While there may be disagreement over actual and potential percentages, there is unanimity on the fact that no matter what its size, no matter where it is located and despite the economic conditions that may prevail, any office can develop a most respectable small business practice. Small business is by no means a new facet of the H&S operation. In his talk at the St. Louis meeting, Phil Sandmaier pointed out that an ad hoc long-range planning committee of which he was a member recommended in 1961 that increased emphasis be put on developing a small business practice. The same recommendation was made by a similar group headed by Michael N. Chetkovich in 1969-70. More recently, small business was on the agenda of the last four annual regional meetings of partners in charge of offices. Historically, the record shows a particularly strong groundswell of interest in the expansion of our small business practice in the opening years of the present decade. Lawrence M. Walsh, now partner in charge in Miami and in 1971 head of Copyrighted -- License from Black Star