CPE Catalog & Events

This course covers basic legal principles that every accountant should be familiar with to avoid common legal disputes and costly litigation. By analyzing business law issues from the standpoint and background of accountants and auditors, this course will help you develop an approach to client and practice issues with a sensitivity and appreciation for potential legal ramifications.

The budget and the forecast are two common tools used by controllers and CFOs across almost every industry. However, are we really getting the most out of these tools? Or are we merely replicating whatever was done last year? In this course, we will use examples and illustrations to demonstrate various budgeting and forecasting techniques. We will discuss traditional approaches, as well as newer approaches such as flexible budgeting, in an effort to show how companies can gain more value. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Participants will learn how to interpret the most common IRS correspondence, adhere to response deadlines, and effectively communicate with the IRS to resolve issues and minimize risks. It provides professionals with knowledge and strategies needed to handle the most common notices including audit requests, collections & return inquiries as well as error notices. Focusing on best practices to ensure compliance and avoiding penalties or escalation. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Since 1919, the Internal Revenue Service had a civil and criminal function in the United States tax system. Little do people know, the IRS has an elite criminal function that started with five United States Postal Inspectors. From its early days in taking down Al Capone to now solving cybercrimes, the IRS special agents are tasked with investigating tax fraud, money laundering, and other white collar crimes. This presentation will show you the importance of this law enforcement function, the training, techniques, expertise, and actions that cause them to be known as the "world's finest financial investigators." This presentation has been prepared by a 20 year veteran with the IRS-Criminal Investigation. The presenter investigated crimes, and trained and mentored other special agents. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Leading on New Terms is a fast- paced, one-hour course that challenges leaders to rethink everything they thought they knew about leadership. Built on Steve Cadigan’s Workquake philosophy, it confronts the collapse of the old stability-based leadership model and equips leaders with a new mandate: fuel growth, build trust, and lead with agility in a world where certainty no longer exists. Through provocative stories, real-world case studies, and practical “plays,” participants will learn how to shift from command to connection, harness technology without losing humanity, and redefine loyalty as learning and movement. Leaders will walk away with a sharper understanding of today’s realities and a personal “Future Leadership Charter” to start leading confidently on new terms.

Peer review deficiencies commonly relate to the design, documentation, and evaluation of the results of analytical procedures.  This course will provide examples of how to strengthen evidence resulting from preliminary, substantive, and final analytics. It will reinforce the elements of strong analytical procedures that may enhance the quality of audits.

This program addresses the most recent developments impacting partnerships operating as LLCs, with a focus on legislative, administrative, and tax form changes. Emphasis will be placed on partners "tax basis" capital accounts - now required for tax form reporting.  *Please Note:  If you need credit reported to the IRS for this IRS approved program, please download the IRS CE request form on the Coursw Materials Tab and submit to kori.herrera@acpen.com

This course provides a concise overview of how artificial intelligence, particularly ChatGPT and other AI tools, is transforming accounting research methodologies and practices. Students will explore the shift from traditional search engine-based research to AI-driven insights, learning how to leverage various AI platforms for enhanced financial analysis, regulatory compliance, and strategic decision-making. The course emphasizes practical applications of AI in accounting contexts while addressing critical considerations such as data verification, ethical usage, and professional judgment. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

The IRS believes, perhaps with some justification, that many workers classified as independent contractors are actually employees and should be treated as such for tax purposes. The result is that worker classification audits are frequent and often costly for business clients, both in terms of time as well as money expended. This program prepares accounting and finance professionals to assist their clients with worker classification audits, and to avoid them if possible, by discussing and explaining the circumstances under which workers will most likely be characterized as employees or as independent contractors. The program also deals with the first line of defense against the IRS in worker classification audits — Section 530, as well as the common law factors distinguishing an employee from an independent contractor. This program also explores the IRS Voluntary Classification Settlement Program and discusses whether a practitioner should advise a client to request admission into this program.

Understanding unconscious bias is key to creating an inclusive workplace and to making the best business decisions. This course explores the concept of unconscious bias, the science behind it, and how it can affect the way employers hire, evaluate, and treat employees. We will also discuss strategies employers can use to reduce unconscious bias and create a more inclusive workplace.

Storytelling makes wisdom stick.

Due to the constant stress of a fast paced life, overwork, and family demands, it’s easy to feel one’s life is out of balance. When this happens, all areas of your life can suffer. By learning key methods for setting priorities and goals, overcoming stress, and deciding what’s most important to you, you can achieve new levels of balance and greater results. Having more balance in your life will allow you to do less of what you don’t want and more of what is truly important to you.

Retaining Talent in a Competitive Marketplace -Creating a Benefits Program Employees Care About In today's competitive marketplace, retaining talented employees is becoming increasingly difficult. A solid benefits program can make a difference in the fight for talent - but only if those benefits matter to the employees you are trying to hire! Through statistics and case studies, this course will explore what benefits are most valuable to employees. We will also explore the basic types of retirement and health insurance plans and discuss what financial leaders should consider before adopting a benefits package. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Workpapers are the primary support for findings, conclusions and opinions on any audit or other attest engagement.  This course will provide the essential tips and techniques for ensuring workpaper documentation is of a high quality, yet efficient, nature.

This program provides an update on the latest tax developments, rules and regulations impacting individual and business taxpayers, including a review and integration of the most recent legislation. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Many professionals use OneDrive but don't realize-or use-its full capabilities. Whether you have a business or personal account-or both-OneDrive offers features to enhance productivity and improve data security. Join this exclusive session to discover the advantages of using OneDrive for data storage and collaboration. In it, you will learn how to manage relevant risks and integrate OneDrive seamlessly into your daily workflows. Don't miss this chance to enhance your efficiency and security. Sign up now and unlock the full potential of OneDrive for you and your team.

In this course, we will share tips and tricks for working remotely.  You will learn what to do/what not to do in a virtual working environment, strategies for leading teams remotely, employee engagement ideas, and techniques and tools for teleworking.

Session Overview: If you’re leading a small or mid-size company preparing for rapid growth — or you’ve just hit that thrilling, chaotic stretch where success creates new challenges — this session is for you. Everyone wants growth. Few are ready for what it really takes. In Scaling at the Speed of Trust, Steve Cadigan — LinkedIn’s first CHRO and architect of its legendary hyper-growth culture — shares the inside story of how the company scaled from 400 to 4,000 employees in just four years, and the lessons every growing business can apply today. Steve speaks to his experience scaling one of the most successful scaling ventures in business in the past two decades: LinkedIn. Cadigan was at the table building what many consider to be the gold standard of a high performing culture while going through rapid growth - through stories and real world examples, Cadigan provides an invaluable a unique insight into this critical phase of an organizations growth. This isn’t a talk about hiring faster — it’s about scaling smarter. Steve reveals how trust, transparency, and culture became LinkedIn’s greatest competitive advantage — and how small and mid-size firms can use the same principles to grow without losing what makes them great.  Who This Session Is For: Founders and CEOs navigating early-stage or mid-stage scale HR and People leaders building culture through rapid change Executives and managers preparing their teams for the next growth phase Anyone facing the tension between speed and sustainability

In today's fast-paced and interconnected workplace, success depends as much on how we show up as what we know. Business Etiquette and Mindfulness is a training designed to help professionals strengthen their communication, presence, and emotional intelligence. Participants will learn practical strategies to demonstrate professionalism, navigate workplace relationships with respect, and stay composed under pressure. Through engaging discussions, real-world scenarios, and mindfulness exercises, this course helps individuals build the awareness and confidence needed to lead with empathy, manage stress effectively, and represent their organization with excellence. Whether you're an emerging professional or an experienced leader, this session provides actionable tools to enhance focus, foster collaboration, and create a more mindful, inclusive workplace culture.

Discover critical insights from the latest Department of Labor studies on employee benefit plan audits and tackle the pressing issue of audit deficiencies head-on. This course dives deep into the most common errors undermining audit quality and explores the underlying causes of these issues. Through practical strategies, engaging case studies, and regulatory guidance, participants will learn how to close gaps in compliance, enhance audit execution, and protect plan participants and beneficiaries. Whether you're an experienced auditor or new to benefit plan audits, this course will equip you with the tools needed to elevate audit quality and ensure regulatory compliance.