Intuit Announces Co-sponsors and Judges for Power to Get More Done Stimulus Grant Competition

Ten Accounting Professionals to Receive Cash, Intuit Products and Services to Grow a Practice or Start a New Firm

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif .– Accounting professionals looking to start new firms or grow existing practices have the chance to win $10,000 in cash and up to $10,000 in products and services from Intuit Inc. (Nasdaq: INTU) as part of the company’s Power to Get More Done initiative. Grants totaling up to $200,000 will be awarded to 10 deserving professionals and firms from May through July 2009.

Co-sponsors for the Power to Get More Done Stimulus Grant competition, announced today, are the National Society of Accountants, the National Association of Enrolled Agents and the National Association of Tax Professionals. As co-sponsors, these organizations are working with Intuit to spread the word about the availability of the stimulus grants and are providing a representative to sit on the panel of judges that will determine the 10 stimulus grant winners.

“I’m really moved by the applications we’ve received so far,” said Georg Gerstenfeld, vice president of marketing, Accounting Professionals Division (APD), Intuit Inc, and stimulus grant judge. “Applicants have outlined their exciting goals for investing the stimulus grants in new client services, programs that help their local community and economy and in hiring new employees to grow their practice. We expect to see many more worthy and unique submissions as the April 30th deadline approaches. It will be difficult to narrow them down to only 10 winners.”

The panel of judges, also announced today, includes renowned accounting professionals and Intuit executives from its Accounting Professionals Division. These judges are:

* Astrid M. Arola, certified public accountant and member of the National Society of Accountants (NSA), has owned and operated Kelly’s Tax Service for 13 years. Working with individuals and businesses to meet their tax and accounting needs, Astrid’s strong desire to help people goes beyond her practice. She assists various professional and charitable organizations and serves on the boards for Lakewood Rotary and Washington Association of Accountancy. She also is on the NSA Education Committee.
* Sally A. Fahey, enrolled agent and member of the National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP) since 1992, has been in the tax business 29 years. For the past 19 years, she has owned and operated Fahey Associates Tax Services located in Endicott, NY, serving individuals and businesses. She was the 2001 NATP Chapter Person of the Year and is serving her sixth year as a NATP National Board Director.
* Dave Levine, enrolled agent and National Association of Enrolled Agent (NAEA) member since 1991, recently opened a tax practice, D.M.L. Consulting, in Reno, NV. A former Revenue Officer with the Internal Revenue Service, Dave now represents individuals and businesses before the IRS as well as all state taxation boards in many states. He is the only Master Graduate Fellow, a distinction received through the NAEA’s National Tax Practice Institute™, in Nevada and one of six in the United States.
* L. Gary Boomer, certified public accountant and CEO of Boomer Consulting, Inc., is recognized in the accounting profession as a leading authority on technology and firm management. For the past 11 years, he has been named by Accounting Today as one of the 100 most influential people in accounting. He consults and speaks around the globe on management and technology related topics, including strategic and technology planning, compensation and developing a training/learning culture.
* Randolph P. Johnston, certified public accountant and executive vice president of K2 Enterprises, is a nationally recognized educator, consultant and writer with over 30 years experience in strategic technology planning, systems and network integration, accounting software selection, business development and management, disaster recovery and contingency planning, and process engineering. Randy has a monthly column in CPA Technology Advisor and is frequently quoted in technology, computer and accounting publications.
* Steve Blundell, certified public accountant and senior manager vendor/partner relations for Intuit Inc., is customer advocate for accounting professionals. Steve has held a variety of roles during his 20-year career at Intuit, including the role of vice president of the ProSeries Tax Group. Steve co-authored the Accountant’s Trial Balance software for the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
* Georg Gerstenfeld, vice president of marketing, Accounting Professionals Division (APD), Intuit Inc., leads the marketing teams in development of acquisition and retention strategies. Georg joined Intuit in 1999, serving in various leadership roles, including Intuit’s Retail Channel Group, Quicken, and Accountant Central teams. Georg is also responsible for the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program for accounting professionals and consultants who serve clients that use QuickBooks to run their businesses.

Power to Get More Done Stimulus Grants Competition Details

Applications for the stimulus grants have been pouring in since March. Some applicants want to use the grants to offer more specialized services, such as client technology consulting or tax preparation to condominium associations or Spanish-speaking customers. Others want to develop programs for hiring and training single moms or laid-off workers struggling to find employment. And still others have outlined plans to hire new employees to handle growing workloads, purchase furniture and phone systems to open office space or pursue advertising and marketing campaigns to increase community awareness of their firm.

To enter the Power to Get More Done Stimulus Grant competition, accounting professionals can download the entry form at http://accountant.intuit.com/GetMoreDone and prepare a brief, high-level business plan that explains how they will use the money to stimulate growth. Entries are due by 9:30 p.m. Pacific time on April 30, 2009. A group of 25 finalists will be announced on May 15th. Winners then will be determined and announced in three phases: three winners will be announced on May 26th; three on June 16th; and four on July 21st. Submissions will be evaluated on quality of business strategy, expected ROI on use of grant funds in generating new business or new jobs and on ability to execute the business plan. For Official Rules and information, go to http://proadvisor.intuit.com/product/getmoredone/stimulusgrant_rules.jsp.

Intuit launched the Power to Get More Done initiative to help accounting professionals succeed in these uncertain economic times. In addition to the stimulus grants, the initiative offers significant savings on several accounting professional products and services and on new training tools to help firms increase productivity and generate growth.