CPE & Event Calendar

In this course, you'll review what ethics means for a CPA firm and how to use the rules. The interactive workshop is designed for practitioners in small and medium-sized CPA firms and includes generous time for questions and case studies. This course meets the California Board of Accountancy's requirement for four hours of technical (regulatory) ethics.

Are you ready to move past Excel's simple functions, such as SUM" If so, participate in this session to learn about many of Excel's advanced functions, including XLOOKUP, SUMIFS, and SWITCH. You'll also learn about the revolutionary Dynamic Arrays feature.

This comprehensive training is designed to get the accountant up to speed quickly with S corporation formation and preparation issues as well as a complete understanding of calculating a shareholder’s stock and debt basis. The cornerstone of this course is the in-depth line-by-line analysis of the Form 1120S Schedule K and K-1 and how these items affect the shareholder’s Federal individual income tax return.   *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 terri.storer@acpen.com  

The ancient Romans had a saying about using caution when appointing someone to a position of trust, "don't set a wolf to watch the sheep". That saying is in use today and has changed to include "don't put a fox to guard the henhouses";. The thought is similar, but the wolf and fox are vastly different animals. Wolves rely upon their strength to survive while foxes rely on their cunning. Like foxes, fraudsters rely upon their cunning to defeat or circumvent internal controls. This session reviews the investigation of a deputy court clerk who exploited a weakness in internal controls and committed fraud in the courthouse.

In this cutting-edge course, participants will gain a deep understanding of how to leverage ChatGPT, OpenAI's powerful language model, to innovate and enhance business advisory services in the accounting sector. The course integrates theory and practice, demonstrating how various enterprise evaluation methodologies can be applied in conjunction with ChatGPT for increased business analysis efficiency, profitability, and growth. It also provides hands-on training for implementing these techniques in real-world scenarios. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Join our course on Multistate Taxation – Issues and Planning Opportunities designed for financial professionals. Learn about crucial topics like nexus implications, state taxable income calculations, and audit defense strategies. Gain practical insights to integrate these considerations into client financial plans effectively. From deciphering complex formulas to understanding state-specific regulations, this course equips you with actionable knowledge to excel in finance. Explore multistate business activities, choice of business entity, and interstate commerce clauses. By course completion, you'll be ready to identify common pitfalls, mitigate risks, and ensure compliance with multistate taxation. Join us and navigate the complexities of finance confidently. **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 current on key developments affecting governmental audits with this focused update on the 2024 revision of the Yellow Book. This course highlights significant changes related to quality management and updates affecting key audit roles, with an emphasis on how these revisions impact audit planning and execution. The course also addresses the GAO's implementation delay and its implications for 2026 audit planning. Participants will gain context around recent leadership changes at the U.S. Government Accountability Office and what those transitions may signal for future guidance and oversight priorities. In addition, the course includes an overview of recent updates to the Green Book, helping auditors understand changes to internal control guidance that may affect governmental entities and Single Audit engagements. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Building on Part 1, this course will review the application of sampling in financial statement audits with a focus on sampling for tests of controls. We'll also review the requirements for sampling in Single Audits with a focus on tests of controls and tests of compliance. 

Gerald Ford once said that "[n]othing in life is more important that the ability to communicate effectively." Public speaking remains a centuries-old skill that allows individuals to effectively communicate both at a personal and professional level. The benefits of good public speaking run long, whether it be the ability to persuade others, lead a team, or encourage critical thinking. This course is designed to refresh and refine speaking skills for professionals. Through this webinar, participants will gain a better understanding of the core skills of how to communicate effectively in groups — big or small. The webinar is intended to help those who already speak in public better improve their skills, while at the same time teaching more novice speakers how to approach a task that so many professionals dread — speaking in front of others.

This course offers a comprehensive exploration of the cannabis industry, delving into essential topics such as cannabis regulations, business models, financial management, and ethical considerations. A key focus is on distinguishing between Marijuana and Industrial Hemp, including their respective tax treatments. Participants will gain a thorough understanding of the unique challenges and opportunities within the cannabis sector, covering federal and state tax implications, licensing requirements, and market trends. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Audit Risk Assessment in Plain English, is a 2 hour webcast highlighting the AICPA’s clarified risk assessment standards, along with a new Statement on Auditing Standard (SAS 145) related to understanding the entity, the entity’s environment, the entity’s internal controls, and assessing the risks of material misstatement.  This session will attempt to simplify the requirements using common sense examples and language.

Part of one's duty as a CPA working in industry is to safeguard the assets of the organization. Cost cutting is one way to preserve assets and maintain a company's competitive position in the industry. However, what keeps us from ridding our organizations of unnecessary costs? In this course, we will look at the factors that prevent our companies from being as streamlined as they could be. By using statistics and survey data, we will attempt to show how to better negotiate and navigate budgeting and contracting decisions. We will also discuss financial statement analysis techniques, benchmarking, and cash flow management in an effort to better cut costs and maintain the long-run viability of an organization.

Many clients end up selling one or more residences during their lifetimes. Accounting and finance professionals must be aware of the tax rules that relate to such sales in order to assist their clients regarding these sales. This program provides accounting and finance professionals with the tax rules they need to know to help their clients when they sell a personal residence. This program is a comprehensive survey of the various tax issues associated with the sale of a residence.

Starting with tax year 2021, Form 7203, S Corporation Shareholder Stock and Debt Basis Limitation, may be required to accompany shareholders’ Individual Income Tax Returns (Form 1040). This form is essential for reporting a shareholder's outside basis and debt basis to properly apply loss limitations under I.R.C. §461 and at-risk limitations. This course will provide a detailed overview of Form 7203, including its mechanics and strategies for completing it accurately. Additionally, strategies for reconstructing shareholder basis when it has not been maintained in the past will be discussed, helping practitioners handle these scenarios effectively. *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 today's rapidly changing world, finance professionals are required to wear many hats and are often the keys to the success of the organization. On one hand, they need to be abreast of the latest proven financial skills for making the best decisions, and on the other hand, they need the best skills to motivate, manage, and lead people. Being pigeonholed into one area or another is neither good for career building nor good for the organization. We'll cover the latest issues that all CFOs and controllers need to know about and provide how-to guidance to allow for immediate use in their organizations.

New personal financial planning strategies are emerging due to passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill and evolving personal goals in difficult economic and legal environments. Drawn from recent publications and government directives, this course reviews the latest financial strategies and planning changes from the past year in insurance, investments, tax, estate and retirement, including Social Security and Medicare. Additionally, Randy covers estate and tax planning strategies that enable practitioners to better serve clients by allowing them to take advantage of new opportunities.

If you're ready to move beyond Excel's fundamental features, participate in K2's Advanced Excel. This course will teach you about collaboration options, security techniques, tables, data models, PivotTables, and advanced formulas.

An in-depth coverage of ASC Topic 842, Leases . Leasing is popular among corporations for needs including office space and equipment. Since ASC Topic 842, Leases has been adopted by most entities, it is time to review the topic, including any recently issued updates. Excerpts from publicly traded companies' recent disclosures on Leases are also examined.

Difficult conversations tend to be avoided because professionals shy away from the uncomfortable, and the fear of polarizing their relationships. Participants will learn strategies and tactics to engage in productive conversations which address challenges and deepen relationships. They will understand where and why they are avoiding having difficult conversations. 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 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.