U.S. companies are keen to expand into Latin America's biggest market, but CFOs report that Brazil poses unique challenges.

by Kate O'Sullivan 

As the world's 10th largest economy and one of the fastest to emerge from the global recession, Brazil is the hot market of the moment, and not just because of its famous beaches. With a stable currency; a growing, consumption-oriented middle class; and a gross domestic product expected to rise at 4% to 5% per year over the next 10 years, it's no surprise that Latin America's biggest market is attracting CFOs' attenti... more >>

Please click the link above to access the article on the WSJ site, or read text below:

Three Best Ways to Expand Overseas
By EMILY MALTBY

Expanding overseas in the current economy may seem like a pipedream for small-business owners. But many have taken the plunge despite the recession, allowing them to diversify their risk and client base in markets abroad. In fact, the U.S. Commercial Service, which helps U.S. companies expand into foreign markets, says that 23% of its client... more >>

Painful Conversions:  As currency risk intensifies, companies of all sizes are taking steps to protect cash flows
by Kate O'Sullivan
CFO Magazine

Just two years ago, EXL, a business process outsourcing company, didn't have a treasury department. The finance staff and senior management watched currency fluctuations carefully, but they lacked an explicit policy to address the risk to their cash flows.

That risk hit with a vengeance in 2008, when the $180 million company confronted a $9 million foreign-exchange loss, largely as a resu... more >>

How to Avoid VAT-Related Problems
by Larry Harding
President, High Street Partners

If you are selling a product or service in Europe, you should be aware of the many ramifications of the Value-Added Tax (VAT). Yet our U.K. team reports that 95, if not 100 percent, of our U. S.-based clients lack clear understanding of the issues involved. Most resort to head burying until they get whacked with a big bill. All 27 European Union member states have a harmonized VAT system, and the non-EU countries follow similar principles. Rates are high, from 15 percent to 25 percent, and there is litt... more >>

In a refreshing turn from a spate of pre-Olympic pieces, this article in Treasury & Risk Magazine by Russ Banham profiles Brazil's business attractions. Includes a discussion of the country's links with China, and compelling reasons for its status as destination for multinationals.

Click here to view the article.

Welcome to Going Global, a new CFOZone.com column geared to the needs and concerns of CFOs dealing with the challenges of overseas expansion. In this first column, I offer a brief primer for those new to international expansion. Future contributions will discuss specific accounting, legal, HR and compliance matters involved in the management of international entities. My goal is offer expertise on optimizing efficiencies and containing costs, minimizing the risks associated with local non-compliance, and identifying best practice. Going Global will also provide inf... more >>

Tips for European VAT Recovery
by Larry Harding

European Value-Added Tax (VAT) can pose a number of problems for U.S. companies unfamiliar with the procedures involved, but taking control of your company’s VAT has never been more important.

The New Year brought about a number of important VAT changes related to such issues as European Community (EC) sales listings and time/place of supply rules, making now the right time to examine your VAT structure and put in place operating procedures that will enable you to maximize VAT recover... more >>

A World of Interest:  More and more companies are looking overseas for growth and outsourcing opportunities

by Kate O'Sullivan, for CFO.com

With a so-so U.S. economy expected in 2010, many companies are looking abroad for high-growth markets and low-cost outsourcing locations. China and India are still favorite destinations, but experts say interest in Brazil and Africa is growing.

The outsourcing industry roared back to life in the fourth quarter of 2009 after a dismal performance in the first half of the year, as companie... more >>

Expanding Abroad?  Avoid Cultural Gaffes 
Entrepreneurs Looking Overseas Often Neglect to Learn Local Business Etiquette; In Britain, a 'Scheme' Carries No Taint
by Emily Maltby  

Please click the logo above to read the article on the WSJ website

Most small companies seeking to tap overseas markets know they’ll have to navigate foreign laws, taxes and regulations. But they also need to figu... more >>

Adjusting to Government Intervention
by Larry Harding, High Street Partners

The 20-plus year trend towards generally decreasing government intervention in the world of business has come to a screeching halt.

The reasons are numerous and well chronicled. Yes, a great deal of the momentum shift has been a reaction to the global recession. Policy make... more >>

The Forgotten Europe
by Gail Dutton

Export opportunities in Europe have been overshadowed in the rush towards Asia, but it’s time to give that region another look. Conditions are converging that give Europe an edge as an American export market.

“The EU is weathering the recession in decent shape,” Larry Harding founder and CEO, High Street Partners, points out. He predicts that Europe will exit the recession sometime in 2010 and will resume spen... more >>

High Street Partners today announced a strategic alliance with ICS Consultores. This expanded relationship allows HSP to offer its clients enhanced support capabilities in the fast-growing Latin American market.

ICS has been one of HSP’s premier local partners for several years. Based in San Jose, Costa Rica, the firm specializes in Tax & Legal Compliance, Risk Consulting and Outsourcing. Its client roster includes many of the region’s top employers, including Phillip Morris, Gensler, Kimberly Clark, Chiquita, Amadeus Global, Indra and Kraft Foods, as well as numerous venture capital-backed companies. ICS is managed by founder Francisco Villalobos Brenes, an attorney and professor of tax law at the Law School of the University of Costa Rica.

“As U.S. and E... more >>

Please click the link below to access recent press featuring High Street Partners.

The Boston Herald - October 11, 2009

Transfer Pricing: A World of Pain
China, India, and other once tax-friendly domains look to squeeze U.S.-based multinationals on sales between subsidiaries.
by Alix Stuart, CFO Magazine

Yet another unwelcome side effect of the global recession: hungrier international tax authorities. Experts say that officials in previously tax-friendly countries, including China and India, are looking to fill their coffers by extracting more from U.S.-based multinationals. Among their favorite areas to probe: transfer pricing, or the pricing of sales between subsidiaries and subsequent allo... more >>

 Please click here to visit the Inc. website for more information, including rankings and company profiles.

High Street Paves Road to Atlanta
by Julie Bryant Fisher

International advisory services firm High Street Partners Inc. (HSP) is expanding its presence in the Southeast with a new office in Atlanta. HSP has helped more than 170 companies and leading universities manage international operations.

“High Street Partners continues to gain momentum as organizations turn to us for assistance in dealing with the challenges associated with overseas expansion,” said Larry Harding, pres... more >>

Accessing Talents and Capabilities Away From Home
Ten tips for outsourcing the right way.
By Larry Harding

Despite today's gloomy economic environment, small and mid-size companies continue to cross borders in search of new markets. While global expansion provides many exciting opportunities, the process of setting up overseas entities can be a protracted, expensive and painful process. Too often, the process diverts attention and resources from a company's core mission. When handled ... more >>

Please click here to visit the Entrepreneur.com site to view the article by Marc Peruzzi and Pieter van Noordennen.

CFO magazine's Alix Stuart covers international tax issues in timely article featuring quotes from HSP President Larry Harding.  Please click here to access "Last Tax Break Standing" on the cfo.com website. Stuart's article was reported as the most widely read posting that day.

Could Your Business End Up Owing Taxes in Other Countries?
by Anita Campbell for Small Business Trends

With the world getting flatter everyday, a company doesn’t necessarily need to be a big corporation to do business in other countries today. Your business can be relatively small and still have overseas operations outside the United States.

But once you start hiring people in other countries or establishing offices or a base of operations, certain tax implications can kick in. Unless you take steps to minimize and/or comply with th... more >>

For BridgeCo, India is music to the ears

Electronics chipmaker opens Bangalore office

ZURICH, Switzerland – A decade ago, CD albums accounted for the vast majority of music sales in the United States. But with the onset of the MP3 file format and peer-to-peer file-sharing sites in recent years, music fans around the world have begun to abandon CDs in favor of downl... more >>

HIGH STREET PARTNERS ANNOUNCES INVESTMENT FROM SVB FINANCIAL GROUP

ANNAPOLIS, MD – February 23, 2009—International consulting firm High Street Partners announced today that it has received a minority investment from SVB Financial Group (SVB), parent company of Silicon Valley Bank. High Street Partners offers cross-border finance, accounting, compliance and HR-related services to U.S. companies operating overseas, including registration, payroll, accounting and bookkeeping, tax compliance, advisory, and HR localization services. The investment from SVB is the first external investment the firm has undertaken.

High Street P... more >>

The Boston Business Journal has named HSP a "Pacesetter" for 2008.  The BBJ annually recognizes the area’s fastest-growing private companies, ranked by revenue growth. On Friday, April 17, the 60 companies so named will be recognized for their achievements in making this year’s list. The morning event will be held at the Boston Park Plaza hotel and will feature a panel of 2009 Pacesetters executives who will share their strategies for successfully managing and growing their enterprises. Approximately, 600 people from the private, public and non-profit sectors are expected to attend.

5 Silver Linings (That's right!) of the Recession
The recession has a hidden bright side

by Matthew Bandyk
February 19, 2009

It's a dumb idea to make light of a recession when the US is smack in the middle of one. Phil Gramm, a former U.S. senator and John McCain presidential adviser, got in big trouble last summer when he deemed the U.S. "a nation of whiners" because of our economic complaints. More recently, Bishop Richard Chartres in Great Britain f... more >>

Please click here to access the article "Expanding Overseas: What you need to know when growing overseas" by Larry Harding

Please click here to access the article.

Inc. magazine today ranked High Street Partners No. 84 on its 27th annual Inc. 500 list of the fastest-growing private companies in the U.S. The list is the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy – America’s independent-minded entrepreneurs. Companies such as Zappos, Intuit, GoDaddy, Under Armour, Jamba Juice, American Apparel, Oracle and hundreds of other powerhouses gained early exposure as members of the Inc. 500.

“If you want to find out which companies are going to change the world, look at the Inc. 500,” said Inc. Editor Jane Berentson. “These are the most innovative, dynamic, fast-growing companies in the nation – the ones coming up with solutions to some of our knottiest problems, creating systems that let us co... more >>

Going Local: You can't do it all on your own, especially in a new country.
by Laurel Delaney, Entrepreneur
 
Creating a presence in one or more international markets requires a team of local service providers. They are your point people who can facilitate global trade, whatever the business process--fi... more >>

You Do What?  Going global: International finance vet helps firms expand

Are you wondering what the compliance issues are in Belgium when it comes to issuing stock options to employees of your technology company?

Larry Harding can probably walk you through it, and hopefully steer you clear of a huge tax liability in the process.

The former vice president of international finance for Ciena Corp. launched High Street Partners in Annapolis in 2003. The idea was to bring his experience helping companies expand internationally to bear for clie... more >>

Useful Tips for Operating Overseas
Having a solid game plan is paramount to doing business in foreign countries.
By Tosin Mfon

Looking to sell abroad? Do your homework, first. Having a sustainable plan seems obvious enough, but many small businesses often get caught up in the excitement of new profits overseas and fail to plan for long-term growth.

Small business managers should first ask themselves: Why exactly are we going abroad? Tax reasons? To diversify the revenue base? To be closer to clients? Getting a handle on the objectives will make it easier to develop an effective strategy.

“You’ve got to wrestle with where and... more >>

TIME TO TEST FOREIGN WATERS
by Rachel Solomon

May 16, 2008 - While EFashion Solution's lone, remote warehouse facility in Secaucus, N.J., is far from cosmopolitan, the e-commerce provider — which builds web sites and ships merchandise for fashion apparel brands — is quite the worldly small business. Shipping to more than 4,000 cities in 200 different countries, the company has built an international infrastructure to reach "basically any city that's got a paved road," says CEO Edward P. Foy, Jr. And... more >>

Please click the links below to hear a wide-ranging discussion of the challenges of doing business overseas, some practical advice for undertaking expansion, and some macro insight on how global politics affects business. Two part interview with Larry Harding of High Street Partners by Beverly Cornell for Global Business Perspectives.

Part I
http://globalbusinessperspectives.com/blog/2008/04/09/podcast-22-interview-with-larry-harding-from-high-street-partners/

Part II
more >>

Small Firms Hire Guides As They Head Abroad: Tax, Labor Laws Hold Snags Galore; Dealing in Rupees
By PHRED DVORAK
November 5, 2007; Page B3

Is Now the Time to Expand to Global Markets?
by Denise O'Berry, AllBusiness

April 14, 2008
HSP offers tips on international expansion. Please click the logo at left to access the article.

"Go East, Young Man! (that is, the Middle East)" by Geoff Williams
Posted on Walletpop.com, an AOL owned site, on March 12, 2008

"Go west, young man," urged newspaperman Horace Greeley in an 1851 newspaper editorial, and, well, if you're a history buff, you know the rest. Families, individuals and even shopkeepers packed their belongings into a wagon train, moseyed past the Mississippi River and pretty soon were shooting it out with Jesse James and Clint Eastwood. Well, something like that. I watch a lot of westerns.

Anyway, today, it probably seems like all the new frontiers providing possibilities and mystique are gone, except for out... more >>

In the past month, HSP has been picking up media steam.  Please see the articles and blogs below.





Tips for Small Businesses Looking Abroad
By Matthew Bandyk
Posted February 22, 2008

The game of international trade is not just for big multinational corporations. Small businesses are increasingly outsourcing administrative and other tasks to other countries, while the knowledge work is done back in the States. They're also getting more involved in directly selling their goods to foreign markets becaus... more >>

"Foreign Intelligence" by Kate O'Sullivan explores some of the particular challenges faced by the finance team when operating overseas, with an especial focus on corruption in foreign markets.  Please click here to access the article, which includes coverage of HSP's services and clients.

Smaller and Younger Companies Get Overseas Presence
by Anita Campbell December 7, 2007 

High Street Partners was founded 3 years ago to help companies deal with the challenges and frustrations of doing business overseas.

We’ve written previously about the growing trend of the micro-multinational. That trend is about companies that are very small and very young, yet have a global presence almost from the get-go.

Today, many of these micro-multinationals are operating in W... more >>

From Smart CEO's new i3 feature: iNDIVIDUALS, iDEAS, iNFORMATION on Growth 

"What Advice Do You Have to CEOs of Growing Companies Who Are Looking to Expand?"

When looking to expand overseas, don't feel like you need to recreate the wheel. There is a vast network of people who have done this before who have maybe made the mistakes you're making, who can provide helpful insight.  I tend to believe that almost every business has to have some sort of global strategy because if you don't, your competitors do.  It is a little more expensive and frustrating at times.  It won't be the smooth... more >>

High Street scores helping U.S. companies into India
In three years, Maryland firm chalks up 90 customers

BY CHRIS NELSON 

Globalization made it possible for businesses to market their products and services and form partnerships around the world, but it didn’t eliminate the challenges and frustrations that companies must deal with when expanding internationally.

Enter High Street Partners Inc. – an Annapolis, MD-based firm that ... more >>

As New England area high tech companies deal with VAT (value-added tax) problems in the United Kingdom and continental Europe, the movie Groundhog Day often comes to mind. Just as Bill Murray's character, Phil Connors, found himself repeating the same experiences day-in and day-out, companies, whether first-timers or well established entities, fall into the same avoidable traps. These include an assumption that VAT works just like sales tax in the United States (it doesn't), a belief that VAT doesn't apply to non-European businesses (it does), or a failure to acknowledge that VAT is an inescapable part of doing business in Europe. Sometimes, it is all of the above.

The 27 European Union member s... more >>

In an issue devoted to global operations, Private Equity Manager headlines an article profiling three US private equity firms seeking to add value through Asian expansion.  Larry Harding discusses the entity structures, support processes and ongoing operational requirements typically involved.

This article is currently available to subscribers only.  For more information, please visit www.privateequitymanager.com.

CFO Magazine coverage of the challenges smaller companies face when “going global” highlights HSP’s assistance to Isilon Systems, Digital Focus and Ellacoya Networks. Please click here to access the article.

Eastport consultant guides businesses expanding overseas

Larry Harding of Annapolis remembers the night he was being entertained in Tokyo by a company's managing director and some junior staff members.

The director poured a cup of sake for Mr. Harding and raised his own cup in a toast to the American. Carried away by the moment, Mr. Harding, founder and president of Eastport-based High Street Partners, turned and poured some sake into the cup of a staff member.

The younger staffer nearly fainted.

"Oh, Mr. Harding," the man exclaimed. "You shouldn't pour my sake. I'm too junior." ... more >>

Former RSA exec sues over Singapore tax flap by Alexander Soule

Download: Boston Business Journal 12/9/05 re Singapore taxes & HSP
62.6K application/pdf

Ten Compass Points to Track When Taking Business Global - by L. Harding

Download: MHT article pdf
71.7K application/pdf

By Craig Douglas, Journal Staff

Download: BBJ: High Street Opens Overseas Avenues
158.5K application/pdf

Globalization Adds to Our Prosperity

To the Editor:

Fearful European voters are certainly voicing their anxiety about globalization ("The French disconnection," editorial, June 1).

Yet fear should not be allowed to override sensible economic policy, either in Europe or the United States.

The globalization of business is not a theory but an established fact: Commerce now moves across borders at the touch of a computer button. Western nations continue to prosper because of - not in spite of - the free flow of goods, services, capital and ideas.

The United States, with its history of entre... more >>

Download: Before you go: Prepare operations for offshore gig
1.27MB application/pdf

CFO Magazine coverage of how overworked CFOs are turning to interim finance managers for help features Larry Harding’s assistance to Sapient Corporation.  Please click here to access The Ephemeral Finance Executive by Don Durfee on the CFO.com website.