Benjamin Underwood, EA

Experience

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  CCH Small Firm Services

  Jun 2004 - Sept 2011

  Tax Development Manager

  Significant duties and accomplishments:• Supervised up to 14 staff members responsible for the tax-related development of the TaxWise income tax compliance software.• Developed federal 1120S, 1065, and 1041 tax modules, including mapping data transfer to 1040 module. Simultaneously developed various state business and individual tax modules, requiring extensive understanding of the reconciliation between state and federal tax compliance requirements for all entity types .• Supervised development of the federal 1040 module, including analysis of changes necessary to convert from EMS to Modernized e-File. Supervised development of the federal 1120, 990, 706, 709, and 5500 modules.• Oversaw expansion of the TaxWise product business e-file suite to accommodate Modernized e-Filing with all participating states. Converted the e-file architecture of the federal 1065 module from EMS to MeF. Successfully implemented electronic filing of the federal 1041 and 990 family of forms.• Implemented the creation of modules to support filing of Puerto Rico corporate and partnership returns.• Analyzed functionality of competitor products to determine future product enhancements and development plans.• Developed training methodology for new staff, allowing interaction and immersion in a live production environment in a shorter time frame. • Administrative duties included budget planning and implementation, staffing and annual review responsibilities, and development of departmental business plan. Show less

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  CrossLink Professional Tax Solutions

  Oct 2011 - now

  Business Team Manager

  Significant duties and accomplishments:• Ownership of the CrossLink business tax compliance product, including product life cycle guidance, strategic planning, tactical activities, and continuous process improvement.• Requirements elicitation, analysis, design programming, troubleshooting, modification, and enhancement determination for CrossLink Business.• Supervise team of business tax analysts and software programmers in the design and development of the CrossLink Business federal and state tax modules.• Coordinate activities between programmers and analysts to ensure timely completion of software development and its subsequent release to customers.• In close consultation with senior team members, establish milestone dates and development requirements for each phase of the business tax compliance product.• Maintain and develop multiple software modules, including the federal 1120S module and state business modules for California, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Delaware.• Work with senior management to accurately relay information regarding the objectives and direction of the core business among all stakeholders.• Provide feedback to staff each year and establish competitive compensation policies while operating within budgetary constraints.• Coordinate with multiple teams including Quality Assurance, Engineering, Forms, and Technical Support to ensure a successful product annual life cycle.• Monitor and address any issues identified by customers, and provide a satisfactory resolution in a reasonable amount of time. Show less

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  Alpenglow Tax Consulting, LLC

  Jul 2015 - now

  Managing Member/Owner