Companies are getting nervous about tax issues related to their expatriate employees and business travelers. And rightly so.

Mercer today released some findings from its soon-to-be-published Global Mobility Compliance Issues Survey of businesses in the U.S. and Canada. The biggest compliance worry, reported by 61 percent of respondents, was the potential for tax return problems resulting from inaccurate reporting by expats of their worldwide income. Another 25 percent identified the associated fines and penalties as an important compliance risk.

A couple of findings point to tax risks related to international business travelers who, as the report amusingly puts it, “often fly under the radar.” Forty-five percent of companies don’t bother to track the movement of these folks, and nearly 60 percent lack a policy to ensure that they track their own travel. more

Self-help books and newspaper advice columns, such as the famous Ann Landers column, are prevalent for issues involving relationships, money, or etiquette. What if there were an advice column for CEOs?

Dear CEO:

– Confused and Dismayed

Dear Confused and Dismayed:

Executive teams are one of the more interesting social groups for research and behavioral study. Even the most talented executive teams fail to reach their full potential due to their lack of trust and confidence in one another and the inevitable conflicts, reduced commitment, and avoidance of accountability that result from mistrust. more

It’s the end of the week, the beginning of a new month, and it’s been a busy couple of days on the tax news beat. Here are some stories that caught my eye:

Study: California Tax Breaks Are Job Killers. California voters are being asked to overturn three tax breaks for businesses that passed a couple of years ago. A new study estimates that taxes account for only 1.8 percent of the cost of doing business in the state, so the tax breaks have a negligible effect on private sector jobs — but the loss of revenue will force the state to lay off 22,000 employees. The San Bernadino Sun has the story here, or you can download the full study (a 13-page pdf) here. more