CPE Catalog & Events

Accountants are expected to demonstrate a questioning mindset. While such professional skepticism is an obvious requirement for assurance engagements, it is applicable elsewhere in the practice of public accounting. In fact, a skeptical mindset offers benefits to both public accountants and those who work in industry. This course provides specific examples of professional skepticism while suggesting best practices.

The updated revenue recognition standard outlines five steps for proper compliance. At the surface, these steps seem simplistic. However, there are many considerations that should be considered within each step based on your process and industry.  

The standard also requires information about the following categories:  disaggregation of revenue contract balances performance obligations This webinar will deal directly with disclosure requirements for the standard. Several courses currently exist on the platform related to an overview of the standard and deep dive into individual steps of the standards.   

This program addresses the critical issues and special opportunities facing S-corporations, with a focus on reporting shareholder basis and distributions.  **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.

Award winning discussion leader Mark Hugh discusses both nexus basics and new developments in the dynamic, ever changing world of state income and sales tax nexus. This valuable course answers your frequently asked questions, reviews key factors in examining potential nexus consequences, takes a tour through the rules in states comprising 50% of the US, and identifies free, online multistate resources.  *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

In this comprehensive course, practitioners gain a deep understanding of strategic planning considerations and potential hurdles encountered when clients face difficult circumstances. Delving into an array of scenarios often classified as "challenging," the course offers tax insights. From divorce and personal bankruptcy to intricate personal relationship matters, participants will equip themselves to adeptly guide clients through these challenging scenarios by understanding the tax implications. **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.

This seminar will introduce the process from filing a tax return to the IRS audit, IRS Appeals, Collections and litigation at courts of original jurisdiction.  We will discuss the options taxpayers have at any point in the process with reference to real-life stories from the trenches.  **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.  

Today’s economy and all of the digital enhancements have impacted the way companies engage with their customers as well as how the company manages their internal practices. The business control function needs to keep pace. The rising importance of analytical capability is critical when defining the role of the modern controller. Execution of analytics can vary but there are still key questions that must be asked. What are the options and what we need to understand to decide the best way forward? This course focuses on the value that can be brought by the Controller when becoming involved with data analytics powered by technology and also Big Data. The digitized world we live in has made it important for the Controller function to evolve and take on this advanced task.  

Managerial accounting provides economic and financial information for managers and other internal users. Managerial and Financial Accounting have similarities and differences. Each field of accounting deals with the economic events of a business. Both managerial and financial accounting require that a company’s economic events be quantified and communicated to interested parties. This another course in our series on the controller’s role. The controller’s role encompasses many traditional functions. Within this segment of our controllership series, we discuss the area of managerial accounting and the basic concepts that surround this discipline as it primarily relates to cost accounting issues.  

Why do for profit organizations exist??? To make money!!!!! What a great concept. But if the organization does not have the proper collections and credit procedures in place, they may not be able to access that money. Hence the importance of the credit and collection process.Credit and collections are critical areas for the financial statement controllers. Customer credit is a form of payment that allows small business customers to purchase a product or service before paying for it in full. The process works similarly to the way a credit card does - you procure something and pay it back later. Collections is a term used by a business when referring to money owed to that business by a customer. When a customer does not pay within the terms specified, the amount of the bill becomes past due and is sometimes submitted to a collection agency. The sales and collection process includes business activities related to selling products and services, maintaining customer records, billing customers, and recording payments from customers. It also includes activities necessary to manage accounts receivable, such as aging accounts and authorizing credit. This course delves into the topics that impact the sales, credit and collections process for management. We discuss strategic steps management can take to ensure their processes are efficient and that they are able to actually collect their revenue.  

A common challenge for the controller role is in closing the month-end and period-end books in preparation to issue financial statements. This duty requires precision, timing and efficiency. In today’s digital world, many organizations have access to financial accounting software that will assist with the steps in the financial close. However, even with this aid it is critical the accountant understand the various steps for the close process and how they inter-relate to other accounting processes. This course gives you an insight into the inter-relationships between many processes that impact the financial close. The closing process has traditionally been a slow one with many companies taking two weeks to close its subsidiary’s books and another two to three weeks to roll up and consolidated the results. With the introduction of technology much has been done to help accelerate that process with integrated enterprise resource planning systems and general ledger and consolidate software. Within this segment we will discuss the elements of the financial close and also important concepts to assist the controller in accelerating their close timeline. This includes addressing all functional areas of the close including payroll, invoicing, payables, inventory, cash, and the general ledger. We will also discuss important concepts of ensuring your financial close is accurate by discussing bank reconciliations, overhead allocations, bad debt reserves, unpaid wages and accruals for vacation time, account reconciliations, deprecation and overall financial statement review. Note: This course does not address utilizing technology in the financial close. Its focus is to understand the varied procedures involved in the financial close whether or not technology is utilized.  

This course corresponds to our Controllership series. This course is dedicated to exploring the traditional controller role and stepping out of the box to identify areas where the controller can continue to add strategic value to their organizations. Within this segment of our controllership series, we discuss the area of cash and investments and explore how the controller can move these responsibilities into more of a strategic role. In today’s world, the role of cash management is often a pivotal role in the organization. In economically difficult times, controllers may find that they spend a great deal of their time on understanding and managing the organizations' cash position. This is certainly important and, in some areas, can be seen as a staple of the lifeblood of the organization’s ongoing viability. This course takes a look at some of the typical objectives involved in Cash management and then evaluates how those objectives can be further stretched into strategic pillars of the organization.   

What do people say about you when you leave the room? Is it what you want them to say? How you show up in the room, get listened to, build trust, and are known amongst your colleagues are all critical components of your future success. In this workshop Michelle Tillis Lederman, CEO and Founder of Executive Essentials, will discuss how to determine you brand attributes, demonstrate the nuances of body language on your professional presence, and discuss how to strengthen trust and the lasting impressions you make on your network, expanding upon lessons from her books The Connectors; Advantage and The 11 Laws of Likability. 

Schedules K-2 and K-3 are promulgated by the IRS in order to standardize the reporting of foreign-related tax information for pass-through entities. Even pass-through entities that have no foreign activities, investments, or partners may have a reporting requirement. Schedules K-2 and K-3 for reporting partners' income, deductions, and credits from foreign activity are now required for passthrough returns (Form 1065, 1120-S and 8858). This requirement starts with returns with a tax year that ends in 2021. This course discusses each part of these schedules and explain these new reporting obligations in detail. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

This program is an in-depth analysis of the Section 754 election and the two adjustments associated with the election under Section 743(b) and Section 734(b). The 754 election is a highly technical provision that provides great tax benefits to the owners of the partnership, and particularly in the case of Section 743(b), a new partner. This course covers the most common questions encountered by practitioners in their daily practices. The program includes a number of examples that provide insights into the mechanics of the two adjustments that follow upon a Section 754 election.

With over 50% of marriages ending in divorce, forensic accountants are frequently used in uncovering hidden income and assets. It is not uncommon for one spouse to hide money from another, sometimes for nefarious reasons. As a CPA, your services are valued by high-net-worth individuals who hire attorneys in their divorce proceedings. In this course, you will learn the art of financial investigations and how to uncover the truth in divorce cases, whether from offshore accounts to lifestyle analysis. Step by step, the course will teach you the valuable skills necessary in finding, analyzing, evaluating, and presenting your findings to your client and if needed, ultimately in divorce court. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

This course will help you master individual income tax return preparation! It will improve your understanding of the basics, focusing on the law and compliance associated with Form 1040. It is an excellent overview of the process for new preparers and a refresher for the more seasoned professional.

This course is an overview of control creation methods and strategies to implement policies and procedures successfully. Many organizations successfully create a system of internal controls. However, some fail to implement established measures correctly. Moreover, entities need to pay more attention to the critical process of testing, monitoring and updating control procedures, weakening the internal control structure. Receive an array of control maintenance checklists adaptable to your organization to improve policies and procedures. Grasp the need for dynamic, fluid controls that adapt to business tools and methods changes. Gain a strengthened ability to implement and maintain an internal control system.

Participants will go over the changes on preparation, compilation and review engagements using SSARS rules, followed by a general overview of how to perform these services. This interactive workshop is designed for practitioners in small and medium-sized CPA firms and will include a lecture with generous time for questions and case studies.

This course offers an in-depth look at retirement needs models, their flaws, and ways to overcome associated drawbacks. You'll explore holistic retirement planning while reviewing threats to a successful retirement. You'll also hear about recent retirement planning changes, including the elimination of the "Stretch IRA" by the SECURE Act and the new SECURE Act 2.0 changes. We'll address key questions to plan a comfortable retirement and discuss strategies to draw down retirement assets over an extended period.