It’s all about profit, practice value, and retirement planning!

This year’s practice management course will take place Wednesday, Noon-6pm. There has been so much interest in the past years’ courses that we have decided to expand it to a half day program. The course will include three speakers in two sections. First, Dean Firmani and J. Truitt Smith will present on "New Small Business Retirement Plan Options", 12pm-2pm over lunch. Next, Dr. Dick Goebel will cover "Focus on Profit and Practice Value", 2pm-6pm. Please see details below.

After two recent tax act changes, there are exciting new options for the small business owner in choosing a retirement plan. We will explore some of the options you need to be aware of including those that may allow annual business deductions of $300,000 or more for the business owner. If you are not familiar with Cash Balance Plans, New Comparability Profit Sharing Plans, or the possibilities of combining other plans with Safe Harbor 401(k) Plans, you need to attend. Help yourself gain larger business deductions and more retirement income.

Truitt is a Certified Pension Consultant through the American Society of Pension Actuaries. He has been in the insurance industry 37 years and has specialized in pensions for more than 30 years. He has been a pension consultant with William Mercer Consulting, and with New York Life, and has been head of pensions for Security Benefit Life and Lafayette Life. He is a member of the LOMA Pension Committee, the ACLI Pension Committee, and past president of the National Pension Directors Association. Truitt is currently Vice President – Pension Sales at American National. They have developed the systems, documents, procedures, and products to make ANICO a heavyweight in the pension marketplace. Their current market niche is the small business plan and they specialize in turnkey design, administration, and funding of small business pension plans.

Dean is a Chartered Retirement Plan Specialist through the College for Financial Planning. His career began in 1984 as Vice President of Firmani Pension Services, Inc. a full service pension consulting, design, administration and actuarial firm specializing in qualified and non-qualified retirement plans for small businesses. He served as Vice President Retirement Services for USI New England and was a Managing Partner of Retirement Strategies Group, Inc. Dean and RSG were a "Member Only Discount Program Partner" of the Better Business Bureau serving Eastern Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont providing retirement programs to their members. Dean and RSG were endorsed by leading national associations including the International Chiropractors Association, the American Academy of Neurological & Orthopedic Surgeons, and the American Academy of Nurse Anesthetists. As founder of Firmani Retirement Services & Consulting Group, LLC, he helps small business owners and professionals design and implement retirement plans. He has developed a "Retirement Plan Feasibility Study & Audit" process to help small business owners and professionals maximize business deductions and retirement savings.

• $$How Well Are You Doing?$$: What is happening to practice profitability? Participants will learn of an emerging and worrisome trend regarding profit, be introduced to a tool to diagnose profit problems, and become familiar with the tool’s use.

• Optimizing Practice Profit, Part I & Part II: Once the profit problem is diagnosed, what can we do? Parts I and II will explore the most common barriers to profit that range from revenue deficiencies to out of control expenses in the area of personnel, cost of professional services (drugs, supplies, lab, and imaging), and facility costs.

• Optimizing Practice Value: How does profit relate to practice value? What other factors affect practice value? Participants will learn about the various attributes that are attractive in the marketplace and tips on how to influence these factors.

Dr. Goebel was the discussion leader for re-valuing specialty referral practices at the Veterinary Valuation Resources Council of AVPMCA in their 2007 annual retreat.

He is qualified by examination for the AIBA designation by the Institute of Business Appraisers. Final award designation is subject to approval of a submitted appraisal report (in process).

Dr. Goebel is Special Assistant to the Dean at Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine where his responsibilities include practice management education for veterinary and technician students, and leadership in special clinical and development projects. He is President of Simmons & Associates Great Lakes, a practice brokerage, appraisal and consulting firm. Dr. Goebel serves as a faculty member for the Finance Module of the Veterinary Management Institute, a certificate series of the AAHA & Krannert Executive Education Programs, Krannert School of Management, Purdue University. Dr. Goebel has served as a facilitator for Veterinary Study Groups, Inc., a company that spawns and supports veterinary management study groups.

A fee of $100 will include the six hour course, luncheon, and notes.

Firmani Retirement Services & Consulting Group, LLC

American National Insurance Company