By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, today announced that Tufts Medical Center (Tufts MC) has selected its Click^® Portal software to automate administration and management of financial conflict of interest (COI) disclosures and pre-award grants processes required for research.

Tufts Medical Center has a robust research program that includes groundbreaking bench research, clinical trials and developments in health policy. The Medical Center ranks among the top ten percent of the nation’s independent hospitals receiving federal research funds. The Click Portal solution will also enable Tufts MC to accelerate pre-award grants processes, including proposal creation and submission, as the system provides a comprehensive forms library and helps ensure accurate electronic submissions to government funding organizations.

The federal COI rules issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services cover a wide range of areas, including disclosure frequency, training, and conflict management, all of which are directly addressed by Huron’s Click Portal software.

Nick Stier, managing director, Huron Education comments:

“Applying for a grant is hard enough, so having COI checks efficiently managed is important to keep the research process moving,”he says. “Integrating these two systems simplifies and streamlines tasks nearly every researcher and administrator must perform. It also improves collaboration between the research administration departments and overall institutional compliance.”

from Huron Consulting files

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By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, today announced that Jeff Catanzaro has joined the Company as a managing director in its Huron Legal practice focused on legal process outsourcing (LPO) including contract management and intellectual property.

Catanzaro specializes in providing legal process outsourcing solutions to corporations and law firms relating to litigation, corporate transactions, contract management and due diligence. He also has business development, supply chain management and experience building LPO centers in Asia and India.

Shahzad Bashir, executive vice president, Huron Legal commented:

“General counsel continue to look for opportunities to improve quality and lower costs, which are necessities given the proliferation of electronic and workflow needs outside of litigation relating to commercial work. Huron Legal has brought tremendous expertise to bear on managing quality and cost with e-discovery solutions, and we are now focused on bringing the same level of expertise to other complex areas within the law department,” he said. “Jeff will be a tremendous resource to our clients and we are excited to have him on board as we look to expand our LPO services to meet client needs.”

from Huron Consulting press releases

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By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

Huron Consulting Group , a leading provider of business consulting services, today announced that Brian Linscott has rejoined the Company as a managing director in its Huron Financial Consulting practice focused on restructuring and turnaround.

Linscott rejoins Huron from The Sun Times Media, LLC where he served as chief financial officer and senior vice president, managing and executing the company’s restructuring plan. He is one of the original founding members of Huron and will be advising clients on financial advisory, restructuring and bankruptcy. Previously, Linscott counseled companies in the airline, automotive and media industries on some of the most prominent bankruptcies in the country.

John DiDonato, managing director and practice leader for Financial Consulting, Huron Consulting Group comments:

“The number of companies facing financial challenges as the U.S. economy recovers from recession is large and Huron’s restructuring and turnaround experts are uniquely positioned to help clients identify and work through their financial priorities,” he said. “We are pleased to welcome Brian back to Huron and are confident our clients will benefit from his tremendous expertise.”

Huron Consulting Group helps clients in diverse industries improve performance, comply with complex regulations, reduce costs, recover from distress, leverage technology, and stimulate growth. The Company teams with its clients to deliver sustainable and measurable results

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By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, today announced that Eric Mazur and Jamie Berry have joined the Company as managing directors in its Huron Legal practice focused on forensics and e-discovery.

Mazur has more than 20 years of experience in e-discovery and computer forensics and has led highly sensitive and complex data analytic investigations. He has also conducted hundreds of computer forensic examinations for federal, state and local law enforcement agencies while serving as a detective with the Metropolitan Police Department’s Financial Investigative Unit in Washington, D.C.

“This expansion will further our efforts to integrate our discovery offerings across the business and, in particular, in the Washington, D.C. and New York markets,” said Shahzad Bashir, executive vice president, Huron Legal.

Both Mazur and Berry join Huron Legal from Capstone Advisory Group and bring with them a team of five skilled professionals to provide seamless discovery and forensics solutions for clients.

Berry has more than 15 years of experience in the litigation support industry, developing and implementing defensible strategies for law departments and law firms. He has also crafted and managed proactive readiness programs and discovery response solutions for litigation, investigations and document review.

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By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

Huron Consulting Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, recently announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2012.

Revenues for the fourth quarter of 2012 were $180.8 million compared to $163.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2011. The Huron Consulting’s fourth quarter 2012 operating income was $34.5 million compared to $18.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2011. Net income from continuing operations was $18.6 million, or $0.83 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to $7.8 million, or $0.35 per diluted share, for the same period last year. Operating income and net income from continuing operations in the fourth quarter of 2012 and 2011 include $0.8 million and $2.5 million, respectively, of restructuring charges.

Huron Consulting’s results reflect a portfolio of service offerings focused on helping clients address complex business challenges. The Company has three operating segments as follows: Health and Education Consulting, Legal Consulting, and Financial Consulting, representing 67.0%, 29.5% and 3.5% of full year 2012 total revenues, respectively.

Based on currently available information, the Company provided guidance for full year 2013 revenues before reimbursable expenses in a range of $655.0 million to $685.0 million. The Company also anticipates EBITDA⁽⁷⁾ in a range of $118.5 million to $127.0 million, Adjusted EBITDA⁽⁷⁾ in a range of $120.5 million to $129.0 million, GAAP diluted earnings per share in a range of $2.25 to $2.45, and non-GAAP adjusted diluted earnings per share⁽⁷⁾ in a range of $2.45 to $2.65.

In evaluating the Company’s financial performance and outlook, management uses EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of revenues, adjusted net income from continuing operations and adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations, which are non-GAAP measures

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By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com        

Huron Consulting Group  a leading provider of business consulting services, has announced the expansion of its Huron Education Strategic Enrollment Alignment offering to help universities better coordinate their enrollment strategy with academic mission, objectives, resources, and financial goals.

Huron recently acquired the Slover Linett higher education division to enhance its quantitative and qualitative research for higher education clients about the opinions and behaviors of prospective, admitted, rejected, and current students.

“Universities are preparing their campuses for a future that includes decreased government financial support, changing demographics, tighter budgets, and increased global competition,” said Laura Yaeger, executive vice president, Huron Education. “We partner with universities and colleges to align their enrollment priorities with their academic mission. Our enrollment management offering helps our clients set goals and develop action plans to achieve strategic enrollment objectives by utilizing data-centered processes to ensure long-term success for the institution.”

Huron Education is the premier provider serving the unique needs of the higher education industry. Our team of professionals, each with extensive knowledge and experience in the business of higher education and academic medical centers, delivers comprehensive services to the industry and partners with institutions to improve business performance across the enterprise.

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The Vault Accounting 50 Rankings for 2013 have been released, and Ernst & Young has skyrocketed to first place.
In 2012, the firm was ranked 22nd, behind the other Big4 firms, but in a year it has reached the top spot with a score of 7.941.  The firm was ranked second in prestige and seventh in diversity.
Despite the top spot, Vault cited long work hours and a heavy workload, office politics, and tedious work as downsides to working for the firm. On a more positive note, Vault cited “lifelong relationships” amongst employees and the firm as well as flexible schedules and “challenging engagements” as benefits.
Immediately behind Ernst & Young was Grant Thornton, which had been the top firm in Vault’s rankings for 2012. This year, the Chicago-based firm earned a 7.818 and was ranking fifth in prestige and eighth in diversity.
Third place went to Deloitte, whose ranking remain unchanged from 2012. The firm was cited as providing a lot of challenging projects to younger employees and giving more learning opportunities than other firms. Deloite’s employees were also cited as being “intelligent, driven, and bright.” Long work hours and cumbersom administrative tasks were cited as downsides to working with the firm.
The top ten was rounded off with the following firms:
5. KPMG (up from 23rd place)
6. Plante Moran (up from 27th place)
7. Moss Adams (down from 6th place)
8. Baker Tilly Virchow Krause (up from 16th place)
9. Rothstein Kass (down from 4th place)
10. Eide Bailly (up from 11th place)
The full rankings can be found at Vault.com’s website.

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I recently placed a candidate in a considerably lower level role than I normally do. Most of my recruiting assignments are for senior level positions with experienced executives. It’s always personally rewarding to enhance someone’s career, both professionally, financially and personally, but this recent placement gave me a different buzz. One I remember liking from earlier in my own career. It’s the great feeling of making a difference in someone’s life, probably one they’ll always remember and knowing I helped create a turning point in their careers.

This also put me in mind of experiences placing  candidates coming directly out of Big 4 for the first time. I did my fair share of these transitions in the good old pre-IPO, pre-SOX days, circa mid-late 1990’s. Hard to believe the many changes that have occurred since, from Enron to the great recession. The one thing that hasn’t changed though is how young talent feels, making the leap of faith from a public accounting firm to private industry. I’m quite sure attorneys and accountants struggle with some of the same questions when leaving the world of prominent law firms and the Big 4. After all, they’ve been groomed for success and high expectations, pitted against their peers for recognition, fostered in an environment of similar professionals; all hard working, bright and ambitious up and comers. Some see a clear path towards partnership while others dread yet another busy season.

And then someone like me comes along – whispering in their ear of opportunity, title, compensation increases, the chance to have a more structured lifestyle. Maybe they’ll work just as hard, after all I believe cranking out the hours is just ingrained in the Big 4 psyche. Regardless of the inducement, there comes a time when the right opportunity hits a nerve and the considerations of change come into play.

What makes transitioning out of Big 4 so different? In addition to their accounting firm experience usually being their first role out of a college they were recruited from, there’s the comfort level of professional commonality and equality. Everyone starts off in a comparable position, with similar skills and education. Everyone is working towards the same goal. Expectations are set and met; there are mentors and an established pattern for growth.

It’s no wonder the thought of leaving the prestigious society created in their firms is such a difficult decision. Here the CPA can rely on mentorship, interesting work and variety. Their peers share the same workload, similar challenges and are bound together in a culture of hard work and long hours. And even though they have worked with and alongside their clients, going to work for them is a completely different ball game. Contemplating submitting their work for the Auditors to review, getting involved in everything from journal entries to financials and often a big challenge in learning how to motivate and lead non professional staff.  Leaving the cocoon of a big 4 environment is a daunting proposition and let’s face it – Managers and Partners will always encourage their star performers to stay.

Despite all the inducements to stay (excluding the long hours!), Big 4 talent often does make it’s way into the private sector. Most do it successfully, embracing private industry, thriving in new challenges and learning how to lead and motivate. Transitioning into the corporate world is almost a right of passage. Their talent is welcomed and embraced whichever side of the fence they ultimately choose.

Cindy Cremona, CPC has over twenty years experience as an Executive Recruiter. Her main focus is in Accounting and Finance, primarily placing senior level roles for clients mainly in the technology sectors.

The post Musings From Cindy Cremona, CPC – Recruiter Of Big4 Candidates appeared first on Big4.com.

Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

Rick Wyman recently joined Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN) as a managing director in its Huron Legal practice.

Huron Legal provides advisory and business services to assist law departments and law firms to enhance organizational effectiveness and reduce legal spend. Huron Legal advises on and implements strategy, organizational design and development, outside counsel management, operational efficiency, and discovery solutions, and provides services relating to the management of matters, contracts, documents, records, digital evidence and e-discovery.

Wyman joins Huron Legal from Hitachi Consulting where he served as the vice president of Operations. He has also held executive and senior leadership roles at The Harbour Group, Inc., Electronic Data Systems, Cap Gemini/Ernst & Young, LLC, and Accenture during his more than 30 years of professional services experience.

Expressing confidence in Rick Wyman’s ability to lead the global Advisory business and welcoming him to the Huron Legal leadership team, Shahzad Bashir, executive vice president, Huron Legal commented:

“Law departments and law firms are under extreme pressure to control costs and manage information. Our Advisory business implements strategy, cost containment, and efficiency programs, which are imperative for organizations looking to streamline operations.”

In his new role, Wyman will lead the Company’s Legal Advisory business and will ensure seamless collaboration between all aspects of law department management, strategy consulting, and information management consulting to address the needs of law department and law firm clients.

Huron Consulting Group helps clients in diverse industries improve performance, comply with complex regulations, reduce costs, recover from distress, leverage technology, and stimulate growth. The Company teams with its clients to deliver sustainable and measurable results. Huron provides services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including healthcare organizations, Fortune 500 companies, leading academic institutions, medium-sized businesses, and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Learn more at www.huronconsultinggroup.com.

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

A new Huron Healthcare report shares insights from hospital executives, CEOs, and experts outside the healthcare industry who participated in the second annual Huron Healthcare CEO Forum. Attendees represented a broad range of organizations, from larger multi-hospital systems to smaller community hospitals, across urban and rural communities.

“The Forum provides hospital CEOs an opportunity to exchange ideas and share ways to enhance quality and improve affordability of healthcare,” said Gordon Mountford, executive vice president, Huron Healthcare.

The report entitled, Leading Through Transformation: Top Healthcare CEOs’ Perspectives on the Future of Healthcare, Insights from the Huron Healthcare CEO Forum, outlines the opportunities and challenges for hospitals, health systems, and academic medical centers addressed by leaders from many of the nation’s top hospitals and health systems attending the Forum. Key issues include:

• Moving from the current volume-based business model to a value-based healthcare model will require a fundamentally different approach to the way healthcare is delivered in the U.S.
• The main imperative for moving the healthcare business model from volume to value involves re-imagining the care delivery model in ways that make care more efficient and effective.
• Physicians play a crucial role in remaking the healthcare delivery system with their decisions affecting care quality, cost, and outcomes. CEOs are challenged with developing the kinds of relationships with physicians that drive positive, economical clinical outcomes.
• In addition, fundamental changes to the care delivery system, including reducing utilization and transforming the care delivery model, are unquestionably the path to containing costs. The report states this is not only an imperative for individual organizations, but also for the country, as healthcare spending continues to grow.

The CEO Forum report also shares valuable insights on transformative leadership and innovation from the CEO attendees, and from experts outside the healthcare industry. A few of the key themes discussed were modeling optimism, communicating in ways that inspire, engaging multiple generations, and developing physician leaders.

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Senior Manager, Global Retirement

AECOM is a global provider of professional technical and management support services to a broad range of markets, including transportation, facilities, environmental, energy, water and government. With approximately 45,000 employees…

http://www.big4.com/jobs/career/39590/Senior-Economist-Pennsylvania-Pa-West-Chester

Senior Economist

Moody’s Analytics Pennsylvania (PA), West Chester

Moody’s Analytics located in West Chester, PA, is a leading independent provider of economic, financial, country, and industry research designed to meet the diverse planning and information needs of businesses,…

http://www.big4.com/jobs/career/30255/Sr-Manager-Human-Resources-Organizational-Change-Management-California-Ca-El-Segundo

Sr. Manager Human Resources – Organizational Change Management

Mattel, Inc.  California (CA),                       El Segundo

At Mattel, we have a vision to Create the Future of Play. We will achieve this vision because our people are creative and energetic, thriving on innovation and passion for…

http://www.big4.com/jobs/career/30251/Senior-Accountant-Cpa-Georgia-Ga-Alpharetta

McKesson  Georgia (GA),                       Alpharetta

Healing the healthcare system starts with you. It starts with the chain of events you initiate when you work with McKesson Provider Technologies – a chain that extends across…

The post Jobs Of The Week For Big Four Alumni and Professionals Jan 2012-2 appeared first on Big4.com.

ACME Business Consulting helps organizations achieve specific and critically important business objectives. We are leaders – catalysts, augmenters and force multipliers. ACME teams are comprised of senior-level managers with Big 5 experience, advanced educations and past successes. In other words, it takes a lot to rattle us.

As an ACME Senior Manager, you will tap into your left and right brains. With your left you will bring real-world analytic skill, methodology and planning. From your right you will hone creativity, sensitivity and smarts as you navigate and lead business transformation projects. This position requires strong leadership skills, project management discipline and an understanding of the methods and tools used to achieve success.

http://www.big4.com/jobs/career/39633/Senior-Consultant-Oregon-Or-Portland

As an ACME Senior Consultant, you will be a critical player on large, complex projects. You will excel at bringing real-world analytic skill, methodology and planning to ACME-led engagements. You will be responsible for managing and delivering key components and deliverables on large projects and programs. This position requires strong analytical skills, project management discipline and an understanding of what it takes to be a successful member of a high performing team.

http://www.big4.com/jobs/career/39617/Senior-Manager-External-Reporting-California-Ca-Sunnyvale

Senior Manager, External Reporting Yahoo

Role: Manages and participates in the preparation of all external financial reporting – including earnings releases, annual report and other required SEC filings. Coordinates the information gathering process involving interactions with finance personnel across the organization and also interacts with the Company’s external auditors. Provides technical consulting support to financial management at the corporate and divisional level on the treatment of accounting issues, implementation of new accounting standards, compliance with U.S. GAAP, and SEC regulations. Monitors compliance with U.S. GAAP, SEC and PCAOB regulations in the context of financial reporting. Also, manages and participates in the monthly preparation of internal financial reports.

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC) has selected Huron’s Click™ Portal software to automate financial disclosures required for all research within the institution. The software will be fully integrated with CCHMC’s existing Click-based grants management and Institutional Review Board (IRB) systems.

The software will be implemented before the new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) rules on conflict of interest (COI) go into effect in August 2012. The new HHS rules cover areas ranging from reporting thresholds to public disclosures to creating and tracking COI management plans. Currently, CCHMC uses the Click Portal software for grant proposal submissions, award management, and IRB collaboration and review. The COI system will be able to pull needed data from these other applications, making it easier to complete disclosures and simplify compliance requirements.

CCHMC has a tradition of leadership in research dating to its founding in 1931, which includes the Sabin oral polio vaccine and the first practical heart-lung machine. Today the institution looks to genomics, molecular medicine, and pharmaceutical therapies to treat a wide range of pediatric afflictions. This research effort involves nearly 5,000 researchers, staff members, relevant collaborators, and consultants.

Nick Stier, managing director, Huron Education commented:

“Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center is working to ensure transparency and accountability while also managing the complex new requirements placed on researchers,”he said. “Deploying the Click Portal to improve the mechanics of COI disclosure will help lessen the burden on researchers and make meeting the new HHS regulations easier for everyone involved in research.”

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and many other leading research institutions use Huron’s Click Portal platform to automate a wide range of administrative and compliance processes, including those associated with IRB, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC), COI, Grants, and Clinical Trials.

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, one of the leading research universities in the southeastern United States, has selected Huron’s Click™ Portal software to automate its clinical trials business processes.

Many leading academic medical centers and research institutions throughout North America use Huron’s Click Portal platform to automate a wide range of administrative and compliance processes, including those associated with IRB, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), Conflict of Interest (COI), grants and clinical trials. Huron Consulting Group acquired Click Commerce in November of 2010 to expand the Company’s solutions for the business of research within Huron’s Education practice, where professionals have worked with 90 of the top 100 research universities in the U.S.

The new software will be fully integrated with Wake Forest Baptist’s existing Click-based electronic Institutional Review Board (eIRB) and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (eIACUC) solutions, as well as its other business systems including budgeting, sponsor billing, participant tracking, and reporting, integrating all business information relevant to a research study.

Commenting on Huron’s ability to create an integrated research administration system,  Nick Stier, managing director, Huron Education said:

“Wake Forest Baptist will achieve measurable and sustained improvements for its IRB and clinical trials offices by connecting business and compliance processes. The Click CTMS will improve reporting across all areas and also reduce noncompliance risk for the institution.”

In addition to the Click software automation The Huron Life Sciences practice is also assisting Wake Forest Baptist research leadership to re-engineer specific processes, streamline information flows, provide accurate detailed budgets, and eliminate billing inconsistencies.

“In short, our goal is to help ensure that research administration process execution does not impede the progress of the research itself,” concluded Stier.

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN) has expanded its Click(TM) Portal-based Institutional Review Board (IRB) software solution to all Kaiser Permanente’s Center for Health Research (CHR) locations.

With research sites in Portland, Ore., Honolulu, and Atlanta, Kaiser Permanente’s Center for Health Research, founded in 1964, is a non-profit research institution whose mission is advancing knowledge to improve health.

Nick Stier, managing director, Huron Education, explains the Click Portal platform allows an organization with multiple research locations to access one unified system for processing.

The CHR expansion incorporates geographically dispersed IRB processing at all three research sites on a single, central Web site platform. The resulting electronic Institutional Review Board (eIRB) will simplify and streamline compliance collaboration and decision making among all three CHR research sites, allowing stakeholders to access, track, and manage study proposals, related documents, and meeting setup and outcomes online.

“Click is proud to play a key role in helping CHR extend the benefits of eIRB automation throughout the organization.” Said Stier.

Click Portal software is installed at leading academic medical centers and research institutions throughout North America. Kaiser Permanente’s Center for Health Research and many other leading research institutions use Huron’s Click Portal platform to automate a wide range of administrative and compliance processes, including those associated with IRB, Conflict of Interest (COI), Grants, and Clinical Trials.

Huron Consulting Group helps clients in diverse industries improve performance, comply with complex regulations, reduce costs, recover from distress, leverage technology and stimulate growth. The Company teams with its clients to deliver sustainable and measurable results. Huron provides services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including healthcare organizations, Fortune 500 companies, leading academic institutions, medium-sized businesses and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Learn more at www.huronconsultinggroup.com.

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

The Research Foundation of State University of New York (RF) has selected the ecrt^(R) solution from Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN) for effort reporting.

Founded in 1951 as a private non-profit educational corporation, the RF is the largest, most comprehensive university-connected research foundation in the country, supporting over $1 billion in research activity annually for the State University of New York (SUNY) and facilitating university-industry-government partnerships to accelerate the growth of sponsored program and applied research opportunities.

The RF processes more than 16,000 certifications per year for SUNY campuses. Huron’s ecrt solution facilitates a compliant approach to effort reporting by integrating with an institution’s various financial, payroll and research administration systems.

The ecrt solution provides the RF with an official record of grant related effort and addresses reporting needs with an at-a-glance dashboard of certification completeness. The automated functionality of the ecrt solution enables quick management follow-up, minimizes mathematical errors in quantifying effort, improves data accuracy, provides audit capabilities, and facilitates greater compliance.

The web-based ecrt solution will allow the RF to enable a certifier to quickly and easily complete the certification task; foster a simplified and standardized institutional approach to effort reporting; and provide for increased institutional compliance.

“The functionality of the ecrt solution minimizes an institution’s effort reporting compliance risk and is very straight-forward for faculty members to use in completing their certifications,” commented Gregory Bedell, managing director, Huron Education.

The RF works with academic and business leadership to support essential research and discovery that translate into invention, innovation, entrepreneurship, economic opportunity and public benefit across New York and worldwide.

“We look forward to supporting and standardizing effort reporting at such an important university system,” said Bedell.

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

Andrew Ziskind, M.D. has joined Huron Consulting Group as a managing director in its Huron Healthcare practice where he will lead the Clinical solutions service line focused on building clinical performance, physician alignment, and care continuum optimization at hospitals, health systems and academic medical centers.

An interventional cardiologist with extensive clinical and administrative experience, Dr. Ziskind has developed and led innovative primary care and specialty delivery systems. During his career, Dr. Ziskind has served as vice dean for Clinical Affairs and Health System vice president at the University of Washington, president of Barnes-Jewish Hospital, and group president at BJC HealthCare. Currently, Dr. Ziskind serves as an adjunct professor of medicine at Washington University in St. Louis.

Welcoming Dr. Ziskind to the Huron Healthcare team, Gordon Mountford, executive vice president, Huron Healthcare acknowledged his extensive executive and clinical leadership experience.

“Our clients are increasingly looking for ways to create healthy, sustainable, mutually beneficial relationships with physicians — relationships that drive positive clinical and economic outcomes. While this remains a complex and sometimes elusive goal, Andy’s unparalleled background in this area will be a tremendous asset to help our clients achieve their objectives,” Mountford commented.

Dr. Ziskind joins Huron Healthcare from Accenture where he provided leadership for the Accountable Care Organization and Academic Health System practices and was a senior executive in the Health & Public Service operating group.

Huron Consulting Group helps clients in diverse industries improve performance, comply with complex regulations, reduce costs, recover from distress, leverage technology, and stimulate growth. The Company teams with its clients to deliver sustainable and measurable results. Huron provides services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including healthcare organizations, Fortune 500 companies, leading academic institutions, medium-sized businesses, and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Learn more at http://www.huronconsultinggroup.com.

The post Huron Consulting Group: Appoints Clinical Solutions Leader In Healthcare Practice appeared first on Big4.com.

Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, has announced eight senior level promotions to start off 2012.

Six individuals have been promoted from director to the role of managing director in Huron Healthcare.

Gerri Birg helps hospitals and health systems utilize outcome data to coach, guide and train staff to improve strategic direction and outcome management techniques for enhanced quality;

Sandra Dodds specializes in providing hospitals and health systems with financial business solutions, optimizing the revenue cycle and improving operational processes;

Scott Pillittere specializes in helping clients with their revenue cycle including operational redesign, organizational transformation, financial management, and revenue optimization;

Joe Sneddon focuses on optimizing hospitals and health systems’ revenue cycle including overseeing project execution, design, and implementation of new processes;

Michael Gladson focuses on helping clients increase revenue and cash flow through revenue cycle optimization, operational redesign, and financial management;

Neera Gupta experience includes overseeing project execution, designing and implementing new processes, revenue cycle enhancements, and facilitating culture change.

Promoted to managing director in Huron Legal, Michael Kemper brings a focus on providing project management and comprehensive e-discovery solutions to law firms and law departments.

In addition, Jason Moebius was promoted to managing director in Huron Education. He helps higher education institutions and academic medical centers plan, design and implement large scale technology solutions to improve business performance and management reporting.

Complimenting these individuals for their focus on teamwork, collaboration, and delivering excellent client service, James H. Roth, chief executive officer and president, Huron Consulting Group, said:

“We thank each new managing director for the role they have played in the growth and success of our Company, and congratulate them on this well-deserved career achievement.”

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

In today’s challenging economy, more institutions are turning to Huron’s higher education solutions, including the efacs solution, to optimize reimbursements from external sponsors to support the research enterprise.

Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, recently announced that three academic research institutions, University of Central Florida, University of Nebraska Medical Center, and University of Nevada, Las Vegas, are further developing their partnership with Huron by deploying its recently introduced web-based efacs™ (electronic facilities and administrative cost system) solution and expertise to calculate their facilities and administrative (F&A) cost rates.

Huron’s efacs solution takes into account the specific needs of universities and academic medical centers (AMCs) that require a sophisticated tool to measure, track, and ultimately improve the recovery of their F&A costs. Institutions either license the software or retain Huron Education personnel to manage the process utilizing the efacs solution. Working with an institution’s existing system, the efacs solution does not require expensive maintenance or complex setup.

Huron’s efacs solution is web-based and written in Java, the most commonly used platform at higher education institutions. It produces the schedules necessary for inclusion in the institution’s F&A cost rate proposal, and its design utilizes tools and structures already in place at most institutions. The efacs solution is supported by Huron Education experts and resources. Learn more at www.huronconsultinggroup.com/efacs.

“Optimizing F&A reimbursement is a critical component for financial success in the short and long term at higher education institutions across the country,” said Michael M. Smith, managing director, Huron Education, noting Huron’s efacs solution software streamlines the complex process of calculating costs, making it easier to negotiate favorable rates.

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Rob Starr, Big4.com Staff Reporter

It was recently announced that Daniel L. May has joined Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, as a managing director in its Huron Healthcare practice. May brings more than 20 years of healthcare consulting experience to his new position, having assisted clients with large financial improvement projects for integrated health systems.

Welcoming Mr. May to the Huron Healthcare team, Gordon Mountford, executive vice president, Huron Healthcare acknowledged his considerable experience helping hospital and health system clients redesign processes to optimize performance. His wide-ranging knowledge of supply chain and deep experience with healthcare operations will help Huron Healthcare clients manage comprehensive process redesign and margin improvement engagements.

“Today’s budget constraints require that hospitals adopt an approach to expense management that is broader, deeper, and more strategic than ever before,” he said. “In an increasingly uncertain healthcare environment, hospitals must prepare now for the challenges ahead.”

Prior to joining Huron Healthcare, May served as a partner and managing director at Computer Sciences Corporation where he led large financial improvement, process redesign, and technology optimization projects for integrated health systems.

At Huron Healthcare, May will be working with multi-facility health systems, community hospitals, and children’s hospitals across the country to optimize margins by improving supply chain, revenue cycle, and labor management processes.

Huron Consulting Group helps clients in diverse industries improve performance, comply with complex regulations, reduce costs, recover from distress, leverage technology, and stimulate growth. The Company teams with its clients to deliver sustainable and measurable results. Huron provides services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including healthcare organizations, Fortune 500 companies, leading academic institutions, medium-sized businesses, and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Learn more at www.huronconsultinggroup.com.

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Joel Feliciano recently joined Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN) as a managing director in its Huron Legal practice advising global corporate legal departments and law firms.

Feliciano joins Huron Legal from Deloitte, where he served as a business development executive and provided electronic discovery (readiness and response) consulting services to Fortune 100 corporations and AmLaw 100 law firms.

At Huron, Feliciano will support legal department and law firm clients in managing operations and controlling costs including those related to document review. He will focus on clients in the Northeast region and work with Huron Legal’s V3locity(R) solution, a streamlined e-discovery process that makes discovery costs more affordable and predictable.

With more than 20 years of experience assisting the efforts of corporate legal departments and law firms to streamline operations, manage document review services, and control costs associated with e-discovery, Joel will assist general counsel in understanding the most effective processes and technologies to manage large volumes of documents and electronic data.

Welcoming Mr. Feliciano to the Huron Legal team, Shahzad Bashir, executive vice president, Huron Legal noted that legal departments and law firms are under increased pressure to improve efficiency and streamline operations while also maintaining and enhancing quality.

“In the current environment of doing more with less, Joel has an unparalleled background advising clients on cost saving strategies for e-discovery and helping them implement business efficiencies for the office of the general counsel,” he said.

Huron Consulting Group helps clients in diverse industries improve performance, comply with complex regulations, reduce costs, recover from distress, leverage technology, and stimulate growth. The Company teams with its clients to deliver sustainable and measurable results. Huron provides services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including healthcare organizations, Fortune 500 companies, leading academic institutions, medium-sized businesses, and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Learn more at www.huronconsultinggroup.com.

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Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center is one of the leading research universities in the southeastern United States, with more than 40 institutes and centers focused on research in areas ranging from alcohol abuse to women’s health. The medical center expects to increase its clinical trials through innovative research in promising developmental areas such as organ replacement.

Huron Consulting Group (NASDAQ: HURN), a leading provider of business consulting services, announced recently that Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has selected its Click™ Portal software to automate clinical trials business processes, including budgeting, sponsor billing, participant tracking, and reporting.

Kevin High, M.D., director, Clinical Research Resources, at Wake Forest Baptist’s Translational Science Institute comments:

“The Click Clinical Trials Management System (CTMS) will enable us to more accurately schedule and track research visits for enrolled subjects and assure both study sponsors and patient care providers that research procedures are appropriately reimbursed. In addition, by linking to our Click eIRB for human studies oversight and other systems for tracking clinical charge code data, the Click CTMS will integrate all business information relevant to a research study, further speeding trials from startup to completion.”

Click Portal software is installed at leading academic medical centers and research institutions throughout North America. Huron Consulting Group acquired Click Commerce in November of 2010 to expand the Company’s solutions for the business of research within its Huron Education practice. Huron Education’s professionals have worked with 90 of the top 100 research universities in the U.S. More information can be found at www.clickcommerce.com.

Huron Consulting Group helps clients in diverse industries improve performance, comply with complex regulations, reduce costs, recover from distress, leverage technology and stimulate growth. The Company teams with its clients to deliver sustainable and measurable results. Huron provides services to a wide variety of both financially sound and distressed organizations, including healthcare organizations, Fortune 500 companies, leading academic institutions, medium-sized businesses and the law firms that represent these various organizations. Learn more at www.huronconsultinggroup.com.

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This week Big4.com brings you KPMG’s financial results on Strong Business Growth Leads To US$22.7 Billion In
Revenues, Ernst & Young’s report on Risk Amid Continued Uncertainty In 2012
For Life Insurers, PwC’s findings that Gaming Revenues To Reach US$182.8
Billion, Accenture’s report on Cities Missing Smart Opportunity To Measure
Hidden Value, Deloitte’s Proposed Reform To Family Justice System, and Ernst
& Young’s analysis of Growth Expected In India’s Media and Entertainment
Industry.

Each week
Big4.com covers key news, events, happenings, opinions and blogs relating to
all the Big Four accounting and consulting firms. You can view this video our
website and on Big4.com’s channel on Youtube. So, let’s start with this week’s
round-up of the top news!

KPMG: Strong Business Growth Leads To US$22.7 Billion In Revenues

KPMG recently announced member firm
combined revenues totaling $22.7 billion for the fiscal year ending September
30, 2011.  The company recorded strong
growth across all functions. Audit revenues rebounded to grow 5.8 percent in
U.S. dollars, or 1.8 percent in local currency terms, to US$10.48 billion
against strong competition in the marketplace and a difficult business
environment. Tax revenues grew 13 percent in U.S. dollars, or 8.5 percent in
local currency terms, to US$4.69 billion. Advisory revenues rose 14.8 percent
in U.S. dollars, and 11.2 percent in local currency terms, to $7.54 billion.

Ernst & Young’s Risk Amid Continued Uncertainty In 2012 For Life Insurers

According to Ernst & Young’s new Global
Insurance Center US Outlook, there are several issues US life and annuity
insurance companies will need to grapple with in 2012. Among these are low
interest rates that should persist until at least 2013, increasing the risk of
spread compression for existing products. Insurers may also be challenged by
future Congressional efforts to reform the federal tax code. Implications exist
here for both corporate-level taxes and policyholder tax issues.

However, life insurers can leverage web technology to develop stronger ties to customers amid these other concerns.

PwC’s Gaming Revenues To Reach US$182.8 Billion

The release of PwC’s new annual report
“Global Gaming Outlook: The casino and online gaming market to 2015″ has some
interesting findings including the fact that spending in the US will rise by
5.0 per cent from US$57.5 billion in 2010 to US$73.3 billion in 2015.

Future casino upgrades and a
new casino licence will enhance the South African casino market as well, but
compared with the prior decade—when a number of new casinos opened—there will be relatively little growth from new casinos during the forecast period.

Accenture: Cities Missing Smart Opportunity To Measure Hidden Value

A new report published by
The Climate Group, Accenture, Arup
and Horizon Digital Economy Research at The University of Nottingham states
that cities are missing the opportunity to turn unused data and infrastructure
into new low carbon solutions and services.

The report Information
Marketplaces: The new economics of cities, indicates that while cities are using
information and communications technology (ICT) to improve their sustainability
and efficiency, they are not recognizing or measuring the full value of smart
initiatives. The report suggests cities should start with a common set of
metrics that can be translated into financial and non-financial values.

Deloitte: Proposed Reform To Family Justice System

Building
on the recommendations set out by the Family Justice Review panel in November
2011, Deloitte has proposed a new
model of service integration in the family court service.

These recommendations include Data analytics being used to measure service
effectiveness and predict when outcomes for children or young people may be
compromised by the system, enabling the organisation to be accountable to local
children, young people and citizens and commissioned targeted services on
behalf of a region with alternative financing vehicles for funding implemented.
Ernst & Young: Growth Expected In India’s Media and Entertainment Industry

A new study by Ernst & Young shows that India’s
growing digital media consumption and favorable demographics are key drivers
for future growth in the country’s media and entertainment industry.

With registered revenues of US$16.3 billion in 2010,
the Indian Media and Entertainment (M&E) industry is expected to see
revenues in excess of US$25 billion over the next four years according to the
report, ‘Spotlight on India’s Entertainment Economy’. The report notes India’s increasing per capita income,
growing middle class and working population are generating huge domestic demand for leisure and entertainment.

The post Check out the latest Big Four video (Dec 2011-2) appeared first on Big4.com.

By Kalen Smith, Big4.com Blogger

Huron Consulting continues to grow its healthcare sector. They recently hired two new managing directors to facilitate growth and cut operating costs throughout the healthcare divisions.

Huron’s Healthcare industry has worked with a number of clients in the medical field to develop processes for running their businesses more effectively. These processes can be used to lower expenses, improve productivity and increase revenue. Huron also works with its clients on developing new programs to improve employee satisfaction and employee morale.

According to a list from Modern Healthcare, Huron was ranked the 3rd largest healthcare consulting firm in the United States. They have extensive experience working with many clients. They assert that they are able to bring a level of knowledge and expertise to their practices their competitors are unable to match.

On August 29, Huron announced its intention to bring Michael Cadwell and Andrew Schramm onto the team. Gordon Mountford, the CEO of Huron says that the healthcare industry is struggling to maintain its profitability. Hospitals are operating on smaller profit margins. This is partly because government assisted insurance programs such as Medicare and Medicaid aren’t reimbursing hospitals as well. Also, more patients are covered under Medicare and Medicaid than in prior years.

Hospitals are also increasingly concerned about the impact health care reform will have on their industry. Huron professionals have made previous statements that hospitals need to prepare for health care reform ahead of time in order to prepare for the effects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Michael Cadwell will be working closely with Huron’s clients to make their businesses more cost efficient. Andrew Schramm will be looking for new ways to make workers more productive. Cadwell and Schramm have a combined 45 years of experience. Cadwell has worked extensively in the healthcare consulting industry. Schramm has spent most of his career helping clients implement new programs to maximize productivity.

Huron anticipates it will be happy with the results Cadwell and Schramm will bring to the team. Their experience and track record have convinced Mountford and other executives that they will bring value to Huron and its clients.

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