Cray, Kaiser Ltd.

Trust isn't built overnight. It's earned through years of conversations, decisions, and milestones shared with the people we work with.

This year, we're proud to share that CK earned a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 79, which is well above the "world-class" benchmark of 50.

We're grateful to every client who shared their feedback and proud of the CK team members who live out our Core Values in every interaction. We're also listening closely to what we can do better because the trust behind this score is what matters the most.

Here's to another year of strengthening these relationships and helping our clients achieve even more.

We're honored to share that Cray Kaiser has once again earned a spot on Inside Public Accounting's 2026 Top 500 List of CPA firms nationwide.

This is a recognition of firms that are making a real impact across the country. It reflects our firm-wide commitment to being trusted advisors for our clients and we're grateful to everyone who's been a part of our journey.

Learn more about our recognition: https://hubs.li/Q04s7wfY0

In the latest episode of CK Small Business Focus, Tax Manager Eric Challenger explains the differences between LLCs and S corporations: taxes, liability protection and how much paperwork each involves.

Here's the short version:

🔹LLCs are the flexible, low-maintenance starting point. This means simple tax filing, easy income allocation and minimal admin. But as your business grows, self-employment taxes on your full net income can add up fast.

🔹S Corps aren't a separate legal entity; they're a tax election. Once you make it, you can split your income into salary + distributions, potentially cutting your SE tax bill and maximizing the QBI deduction. The tradeoffs are payroll requirements, W-2s, a separate business return and IRS scrutiny on what counts as "reasonable" compensation.

🔹So when should you consider making the switch? Many practitioners point to around $150K in annual net income as the tipping point where S-corp tax savings start to outweigh the added compliance costs.

The right structure for your business today might not be the right one in a year. Listen to the audio blog to see which one fits where you are right now. https://hubs.li/Q04pRMkw0

Have questions about your entity structure? You can call us at 630-953-4900.

Is your accounting software doing the work or is your team?

If your monthly WIP (work in progress) reporting still means exporting data to Excel, manually updating numbers and reworking spreadsheets after the fact, it might be time to ask why.

Is your system incapable of handling this or just underutilized?

In our blog, we talk about the questions worth asking before you assume "that's just how it's done." Spreadsheets are familiar and flexible, but they also carry real risk. The goal isn't to get rid of Excel overnight. It's to begin asking better questions about where your time is going and why.

Read the full blog here: https://hubs.li/Q04pTRxn0

If your business makes taxable sales in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, or Will County, you need to take note that local sales tax rates are increasing by .25% beginning on August 1, 2026.

This increase applies to the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA) portion of the local sales tax in these six counties.

✅What you need to do now:
🔹Verify your updated rate using the MyTax Illinois Tax Rate Finder
🔹Update your POS, invoicing and accounting systems ahead of time
🔹Make sure your team knows how to report pre-August 1 sales correctly (Line 8a of Form ST-1/ST-2)

The new rate applies August 1st, so getting ahead of this now helps you avoid under-collection issues down the road.

Find out more information on our blog: https://hubs.li/Q04pPPcb0

Have questions about how this affects your business? CK is here to help!

Sun is (finally) shining ☀️ and loving us some tacos 🌮 with The Taco Man! Fresh food, fresh air and time with team members is win all around! 😎💙