Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2014

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Nature of Operations

Nature of Operations. Robert Half International Inc. (the “Company”) provides specialized staffing and risk consulting services through such divisions as Accountemps^®, Robert Half^® Finance & Accounting, OfficeTeam^®, Robert Half^® Technology, Robert Half^® Management Resources, Robert Half^® Legal, The Creative Group^®, and Protiviti^®. The Company, through its Accountemps, Robert Half Finance & Accounting, and Robert Half Management Resources divisions, is a specialized provider of temporary, full-time, and project professionals in the fields of accounting and finance. OfficeTeam specializes in highly skilled temporary administrative support personnel. Robert Half Technology provides information technology professionals. Robert Half Legal provides temporary, project, and full-time staffing of attorneys and specialized support personnel within law firms and corporate legal departments. The Creative Group provides project staffing in the advertising, marketing, and web design fields. Protiviti provides business consulting and internal audit services, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. Revenues are predominantly derived from specialized staffing services. The Company operates in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The Company is a Delaware corporation.

Basis of Presentation

Basis of Presentation. The unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (“Financial Statements”) of the Company are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The comparative year-end condensed consolidated statement of financial position data presented was derived from audited financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of only normal recurring adjustments) necessary for a fair statement of the financial position and results of operations for the periods presented have been included. These Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the audited Consolidated Financial Statements of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2013, included in its annual report on Form 10-K. The results of operations for any interim period are not necessarily indicative of, nor comparable to, the results of operations for a full year.

Principles of Consolidation

Principles of Consolidation. The Financial Statements include the accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries, all of which are wholly-owned. All intercompany balances have been eliminated.

Use of Estimates

Use of Estimates. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. As of March 31, 2014, such estimates included allowances for uncollectible accounts receivable, workers’ compensation losses, and income and other taxes. Management estimates are also utilized in the Company’s goodwill impairment assessment.

Advertising Costs

Advertising Costs. The Company expenses all advertising costs as incurred. Advertising costs for the three months ended March 31, 2014 and 2013, are reflected in the following table (in thousands):

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2014		2013
Advertising costs	$	9,753	$	9,903

Internal-use Software

Internal-use Software. The Company capitalizes direct costs incurred in the development of internal-use software. Amounts capitalized are reported as a component of computer software within property and equipment. Internal-use software development costs capitalized for the three months ended March 31, 2014 and 2013 are reflected in the following table (in thousands):

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2014		2013
Internal-use software development costs	$	5,892	$	1,170

New Accounting Pronouncements

Income Taxes. In September 2013, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued authoritative guidance in regards to the presentation of unrecognized tax benefit when a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward exists. The amendment states that an unrecognized tax benefit or a portion of the unrecognized tax benefit should be presented in the financial statements as a reduction to a deferred tax asset for a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward. This authoritative guidance is to be applied for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2013. The adoption of this guidance as of March 31, 2014, did not have a material impact on the Company’s Financial Statements.

Reporting Discontinued Operations and Disclosures of Disposals of Components of an Entity. In April 2014, the FASB issued authoritative guidance in regards to the criteria for reporting discontinued operations while enhancing disclosures in this area. Under the new guidance, only disposals representing a strategic shift in operations should be presented as discontinued operations. In addition, the new guidance requires expanded disclosures about discontinued operations that will provide financial statement users with more information about the assets, liabilities, income, and expenses of discontinued operations. The amendments in the authoritative guidance are effective in the first quarter of 2015 for public organizations with calendar year ends. The Company does not expect the adoption of this guidance to have a material impact on its Financial Statements.