Guest blogger: Margo Thomas, owner, Marlynn Consulting
The other day, while driving home from a doctor’s appointment, I noticed a gentleman shooting arrows at a target. It was amazing to see that he didn’t have any trouble hitting his mark, even from a far distance.
His ability to successfully hit his target probably came from the following:
- Learning from others’ experiences
- Determining which type of bow was best
- Implementing the tools and skills he learned
I immediately thought about the Qualified Targeted Industry Tax Refund (QTI) program and how many businesses miss their QTI target goals because their aim is off. I can appreciate that there are a number of required targets a business must hit before it can qualify for its annual QTI payments. With that being said, do you know how close you are to meeting your QTI goals this year? You only have 4 more weeks left……
I’ve learned, over the years that many businesses celebrate receiving a QTI award. And obtaining a QTI award is awesome! However, a business will not receive the scheduled payments unless it demonstrates that it has successfully hit all of the established QTI target goals.
Determining that you have successfully met your QTI requirements is not difficult. However, it does take some time and effort to learn what needs to be done. Just like someone participating in the sport of archery for the first time, you have to learn the rules of the game.
To successfully hit your QTI target on the first try, you must do the following:
- Learn from others who have had experience with the QTI program
- Determine why one method of documenting your QTI goals is better than another
- Master the skills you need to track and report your QTI project results
- Implement the tools and skills you’ve learned to accurately report your QTI results to the State
To avoid the headache and frustration that some businesses experience with their QTI analysis and reporting, it is best NOT to wait until the reports are due. I often suggest that my clients be proactive, rather than reactive when it comes to their QTI project.
Knowing ahead of time what is required eliminates the “unknown”. When it comes to any economic incentive project, you must ensure that your target goals are in sight at all times. For this reason, I usually recommend that my clients start aiming at their economic incentive target goals as soon as an incentive agreement is executed. Waiting until your incentive report is due to determine if you have met your goals is TOO LATE.
