CPE + Events Catalog

Based on an AICPA Enhancing Audit Quality study, 23% of all single audits subject to enhanced oversight were materially non-conforming with professional standards due to failure to properly test controls over compliance.  This course will provide an overview of internal controls over compliance specifically related to Single Audits. We will discuss how to apply the concept of internal controls to various compliance requirements. Additionally, a common finding in the audits of governmental entities receiving federal grants is misidentifying controls and mistaking compliance for a control. That's why this course will also focus on identifying compliance versus controls over compliance.

This course corresponds to our Controllership series. Within this course, we specifically address the Controllers role and pro-active potentials in organization Strategic and Annual Planning. This series of courses is dedicated to exploring the traditional controller role and stepping out of the box to identify areas where the Controller can add strategic value to their organizations. Controllers are essential to the day-to-day accounting for organizations. Yet, the role is not often readily understood. In today’s world of acronyms such as CFO, CEO, COO, CAO, etc. the Controller function may get lost in the shuffle. However, they are a critical group of professionals who ensure the adequacy and transparency of accounting and financial reporting information. When it comes to the task of strategic planning, many feel this role is primarily the responsibility of the executive team and board. However, in this course, we delve into the various steps of the strategic plan and explore where the Controller can add strategic value through providing functional input and insight. Strategic planning is a process used to identify goals, the strategies necessary to accomplish those goals, and the internal performance management system that will be used to monitor and evaluate progress.  

The AICPA has determined that one in ten audit firms are not compliant with the risk assessment standards. This course will discuss how to properly identify risks and assess risk under AU-C 315. We will then review how to respond to identified risks under AU-C 330. The course will focus on the audit risk model and cover both inherent risk and internal controls. We review common deficiencies and how a proper risk assessment drives a more efficient and effective audit. 

Ethics and professional skepticism are a cornerstone of public accounting. This course will review the Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants that practitioners must adhere to. This course will outline the pressures, opportunities, and rationalizations that lead to instances of fraud. In addition, this class will walk through some interactive examples to illustrate various scenarios of noncompliance during engagements. 

Based on real life experiences! This program addresses the many issues impacting CPA practice with a world in crisis. The unique challenges facing practitioners are related through actual practice situations - and then analyzed for their ethical implications. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Power Query and Power BI offer great opportunities for accessing your data and making it more useful in reporting scenarios. Learn how to benefit from these tools in this session.

This workshop explores how each of us can play a part in helping to make the world a more fair and gentler place. This one-hour webinar includes an overview of Aristotle's virtue ethics and its application to present day life. We will focus on the virtue of compassion both individually and organizationally and its impact on individual, organizational and world wellbeing. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Network forensics - defined as the investigation of network traffic patterns and data captured in transit between computing devices - can provide insight into the source and extent of an attack. It is used in forensic accounting and with the expansion of information technology it has become a growing field. Network forensics is a relatively new field of forensic science. Computing has become network centric. Data is now available outside of disk-based digital evidence. Network forensics can be performed as a standalone investigation or alongside a computer forensics analysis. When used alongside a computer forensic analysis it is used to reveal links between digital devices or reconstruct how a crime was committed. Network investigations deal with volatile and dynamic information and is a sub-branch of digital forensics. It relates to the monitoring and analysis of computer network traffic for information gathering, legal evidence, or intrusion detection. This course is a complement to our other courses in the series on becoming a forensic accountant.  

The well-informed tax practitioner will want to attend this two hour program in order to stay current on recent updates on partnership tax! Content includes recent court decisions on partnership tax issues as well as current updates to the new Forms K-2 and K-3. **Please Note:  If you need credit reported to the IRS for this IRS approved program, please download the IRS CE request form on the Course Materials Tab and submit to kori.herrera@acpen.com.  

Add an invaluable skill set to your career. Showcasing a comprehensive cost accounting system of an actual company. Precisely identify direct costs for individual products and services. How to link direct costs with other direct costs. Identify certain fluctuating variable and semi-fixed costs that are, in fact, direct costs. Budgeting techniques for setting accurate standard costs and guidelines for revising standards during the year.

You are likely familiar and/or have experience with IRS levies and wage garnishments. BUT - Did you know that there's a lot of technicalities and procedural requirements that go into issuing an IRS levy or wage garnishment that you can exploit as a practitioner? This program will focus on the basics of an IRS levy or wage garnishment along with breaking down common errors that IRS employees tend to make in the issuance of a levy and remedies that can be used to obtain relief from a levy or wage garnishment. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Non-fungible Tokens (NFTs), unique, identifiable digital assets based on blockchain technologies, have become a fast-growing industry. This course will provide a background on how NFTs came into the mainstream marketplace.  These materials will assist the practitioner to understand the tax implications of the creation, purchase and sale of these assets.  **Please Note:  If you need credit reported to the IRS for this IRS approved program, please download the IRS CE request form on the Course Materials Tab and submit to kori.herrera@acpen.com.

Stay in compliance as you manage, prepare, compile and review engagements.

One of the most cost effective methods for storing your files safely and economically in the cloud is with Microsoft 365 OneDrive and SharePoint apps. If you use either or both of these cloud storage apps, this course is a "must take." There are often times when you want or need cloud based files to be stored on your local laptop or desktop PC. With the OneDrive Sync app, you can have the best of both worlds. You can have copies of a file stored locally and in the cloud simultaneously. The Synch app will update both copies of the file in real time for any changes that are made in the local or cloud copy of the file. A classic example is if you have a QuickBooks Desktop data file that you need to store locally to work with the files in QuickBooks. However, you also want the file stored in the cloud for anytime, anywhere access and enhanced security. The Sync app facilitates this scenario effortlessly. Nationally recognized accounting technology advisor and thought leader, John Higgins, will take you through the step-by-step process of setting up and using the Sync app. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Since its inception nearly 30 years ago, many have continued to struggle with applying the current model for accounting for income taxes, ASC 740. But this does not have to be you. This course will provide you with the basic knowledge necessary to understand the complexities of this challenging topic. Through discussions and use of exercises, this course will analyze the authoritative literature to provide a thorough understanding of such topics as deferred taxes, income tax expense, uncertain tax positions and other classification and disclosure requirements related to income taxes. We will also explore some specialized areas of income tax accounting, such as intra-period allocations of income tax expense and accounting for changes in tax laws and rates, and we will review proposed updates to ASC 740 disclosures on which the FASB is contemplating. In summary, this course is the place to be to enhance your accounting for income taxes IQ.

Most professionals routinely use Word, Outlook, and PowerPoint, but many are self-taught and, as a result, have not been exposed to the best features of these three applications. Consequently, they often use “brute force,” inefficient means when working with these three components of Microsoft Office. If that describes you, ensure you carve time out of your schedule to participate in this fourhour session. In it, you will learn how to work much more efficiently when using these tools to get better results in less time.  

Think about how much time you spend reviewing and creating PDF files. This course teaches you how to take advantage of a multitude of features and functions available in Adobe Acrobat to create, review, organize, edit and secure your PDF files more effectively and efficiently. Like many personal productivity software applications, it is very likely that you are using only a fraction of the potential of Adobe Acrobat when working with your PDF files. For many CPAs, a PDF file is the final presentation of your work product, whether it is a tax return, financial statement, audit report or other financial reports. This course will teach you how improve the quality of those report presentations. The tips you learn in this course will save you time on a daily basis. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Designed for accounting and attestation practitioners at all levels in both public accounting and business and industry, this course provides a comprehensive review of recent standard-setting activities of the FASB and AICPA. In addition to providing a detailed review of SAS No. 145, this course will bring you up to date on FASB and AICPA standards issued over the past few years. The course also provides many hands-on examples and illustrations to help you apply the guidance in practice. In addition to a financial accounting update, the course will discuss what you will need to do differently as you adopt new audit standards 142-149 over the next few years, including a detailed review of the new audit requirements under SAS 142. The course will also cover the key changes related to SSARS No. 25. Finally, the course reviews the AICPA's quality management project. In summary, the course is your go-to source for all things A&A and will prepare you for your upcoming engagements throughout the rest of the year.

Successful organizations, both large and small, must understand the importance of effective internal controls and be able to develop a system of controls that will keep the entity on its intended course. Moreover, those that design policies and procedures benefit by knowing why control measures are necessary. This session sets forth internal control concepts and explains the importance of strong internal control policies. The material highlights some of the reasons that measures are needed and it also provides an overview of control creation methods. Finally, it discusses ways to successfully implement the developed policies and procedures. Participants that take this course will gain a well-rounded understanding of internal control procedures of all types. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Join us for a discussion on what has changed in 2024 for the CTA. This course covers the latest on the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). We will discuss the new filing timelines, including the recent extension, and will make sense of the broadened definition of "beneficial owner". We will also discuss the ruling in Alabama that has changed things. By the end of this, you’ll have the know-how to craft solid compliance plans that don't just check boxes but work seamlessly in the real world. Expect to leave armed with concrete tips for keeping your clients while staying away from any fines. Make sure you are up to date with the newest financial regulations. **Please Note:  If you need credit reported to the IRS for this IRS approved program, please download the IRS CE request form on the Course Materials Tab and submit to kori.herrera@acpen.com.