CPE Catalog & Events

This course will allow you to get reacquainted with the statement of cash flows. We will refresher your skills regarding both the preparation and utilization of the statement of cash flows. Significant emphasis will be placed on the informational role of the statement of cash flows and insights that can be obtained using the statement of cash flows in concert with the other elements of a company’s accrual-basis financial statements.

Gift taxation is a critical component of estate planning, and Form 709 serves as the key reporting tool. This course provides a comprehensive line-by-line guide to preparing Form 709, ensuring accuracy and compliance. Participants will learn how to determine taxable gifts, apply exclusions, and utilize available deductions. Special attention will be given to valuation techniques, gift-splitting, and generation-skipping transfer tax (GSTT) considerations. Additionally, this course will examine any new legislative changes from the current administration and how they may impact gift tax planning and 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 Course Materials Tab and submit to kori.herrera@acpen.com

Many organizations struggle to keep budgets current in an ever-changing business climate.  Twenty-first century performance metrics focus on determining what budgets should be rather than what they were in the past.  Using performance metrics effectively reduces work, reduces politics, provides flexibility and substantially improves the performance management process.  This session will show you powerful techniques to drive your organization’s performance.

Are you considering becoming a fractional CFO, or possibly a public CPA firm or consulting practice that wants to offer fractional CFO services or advisory services? Either way, do you truly know what to do and how? Are you aware of the many pitfalls? Becoming a successful fractional CFO is complicated and it is not a trivial career change! Review the lessons learned from experienced fractional CFOs on how to enter, engage and run a thriving fractional CFO practice. Whether you are in public practice, a consultant, or in industry - be prepared for this as a possibility. Many fractional CFOs do not execute their practice as they could, and that is why they are not very successful. This discussion includes over fifty (50) recommendations to strengthen your fractional CFO practice. What do clients typically need? Are you better as a solo practitioner or should you join a firm? How to manage the relationship(s)? Every effective organizations make plans and if you want a winning fractional CFO business, come join us and learn how. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

We are bombarded with information continually. So how do we determine what is valid and what isn't? This course points out common pitfalls inherent in data interpretation and gives practical tips to overcome those pitfalls by using real life examples. The course incorporates information from key thought leaders including Adam Grant, Alex Edmans, and Hans Rosling. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Buying and selling a business can be a complex transaction with many tax issues. These issues include whether the transaction is or should be a stock or an asset sale when the business involved is a corporation, as well as the tax consequences associated with the sale of a partnership or a C or S corporation. Accounting and finance professionals who advise clients who are buying or selling a business primarily focus on the tax issues that apply. This program explains and analyzes the tax issues practitioners must address in order to properly advise clients who are either buyers or sellers of businesses.

Specifically designed for preparation, compilation, and review practitioners, this course provides a comprehensive review and hands-on application for performing financial statement preparation, compilation, and review engagements. You will learn the ins and outs of applying SSARS No. 21, Clarification and Recodification, as well as additional guidance related to SSARS engagements through the issuance of SSARS Nos. 22-27 by the AICPA's Accounting and Review Services Committee (ARSC). The course also reviews recent peer review feedback on SSARS engagements, providing insights on how to successfully apply this guidance. Not only will this course bring you up to date on SSARSs requirements and guidance, but more importantly, it will provide you with practical examples and illustrations to help you effectively and efficiently perform compilation, preparation, and review engagements.

Many leaders in business organizations of all sizes view the system of Internal Control almost purely as a protective security measure. A well-designed internal control system can and will drive all entity objectives which includes successful operations. This session uses information gathered from years of creating internal control systems as well as concepts from well-respected authoritative pronouncements and frameworks to illustrate the power of a strong and well supported control system as well as actions that can help establish such a system. Those that work with internal controls who are tasked with developing ways to improve operation level capabilities should strongly consider this session. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

This comprehensive session is a must-attend event for accountants who prepare financial statements and want to explore best practices for discerning the stories told by financial statements. We discuss salient requirements for presenting financial information while considering the critical role of disclosure for lending relevance to financial statements. We also explore techniques that will allow participants to perform meaningful financial statement analysis and effectively communicate conclusions to decision-makers and other stakeholders. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

The employer-employee relationship strains both sides in uncertain times, and businesses need CPAs, controllers, and other advisors to provide understanding of the complex legal, tax, and health care issues associated with all aspects of employment. This course provides in-depth coverage of this critical area. It will be updated and supplemented throughout the year to cover breaking developments.

In today's data-driven world, spreadsheets serve as the backbone of business and personal productivity. However, creating complex and error-prone spreadsheets can lead to critical mistakes and inefficiencies. This course aims to equip you with the knowledge and tools to build robust spreadsheets, implementing a range of controls and safeguards to ensure data integrity, streamline processes, and maximize accuracy. 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 builds on the foundational knowledge from Part 1, Fundamentals of the 1040 - Core Concepts. It expands into business income taxation and additional reporting requirements. Participants will learn how to accurately report self-employment income, income from pass-through entities on Form 1040. This course covers Schedule C, Schedule E, and essential forms such as Form 7203 and Form 7217 to ensure accurate tax preparation for clients with business activities. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Collecting data is easy; visualizing it is an entirely different concept, which is why dashboards have become an important tool among nonprofit board members and staff. Identify practical uses for dashboards, including the organization of data, monitoring trends, tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) and more.

This session will address the complex rules of retirement distributions, review key provisions of the SECURE Act 2.0, and provide practical strategies of maximizing tax benefits for your client. **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 session reviews the three elements of fraud, how fraudsters think, how proper internal controls can prevent and detect fraud, and the red flags to look for to identify fraud. It looks at Radar O'Reilly, one of the most beloved characters of the TV show M*A*S*H. He was trusted by his boss to run the administrative side of the US Army medical unit. Were there red flags all around Radar? Did he have the opportunity to steal? Was he a fraudster? We'll find out? Attendees learn to recognize the traits of this type fraudster that are present in many organization. Case studies of various Radars are included.

It's been 20 years and counting since the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation was passed. In theory the legislative requirements outlined are still in place. Although the requirements haven't changed, time has changed and as a result, execution of the processes has most likely changed.

Many for-profit entities receive government assistance or are required to have financial statement or compliance audits due to law or regulation. This course will discuss the requirements under Generally Accepted Auditing Standards relevant to for-profit entity audits.

This course provides tax and accounting professionals with a comprehensive overview of overtime requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Participants will explore the statutory definition of overtime, exemptions, and the calculation of the "regular rate of pay." Through practical examples and compliance-focused scenarios learners will gain the skills to identify risks, properly compute overtime pay, and advise clients or employers on best practices. The course emphasizes regulatory compliance, accurate application of rules, and strategies to avoid common pitfalls in wage and hour audits. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

The Quality Management Suite of Standards was required to be implemented by December 15, 2025. The standards modernize the firm's approach to quality to reflect an increased focus on risk assessment, technology use, and the presence of outside experts on many engagements. Beginning with performing a risk-based approach, the standards provide accounting firms with the ability to enhance their quality control by shifting their focus to a proactive approach (management) from a reactive approach (control). The results of the firm's risk assessment will form the basis of its new Quality Management document. This is not just a tweak of the old document but a more robust document that adds new requirements from the new standards. We will cover how to perform a risk assessment, including the key provisions of the standards, and how to effectively implement a monitoring plan. We will also review how the firm will evaluate its System of Quality Management beginning in 2026.

One of the important roles of any member of the financial team. Including the controller, may be involvement in the preparation of the company’s financial statements. Even if that responsibility falls within the office of the CFO, the controller and other finance personnel must understand how their transitions recorded impact the financial statements. Financial statements (or financial reports) are formal records of the financial activities and position of a business, person, or other entity. Relevant financial information is presented in a structured manner and in a form which is easy to understand. They typically include four basic financial statements accompanied by a management discussion and analysis: A balance sheet or statement of financial position reports on a company's assets, liabilities and owners’ equity at a given point in time. An income statement may have varying names including profit and loss report (P&L report), statement of comprehensive income, or statement of revenue & expenses. These report on a company's income, expenses, and profits over a stated period. A profit and loss statement provides information on the operation of the enterprise. These include sales and the various expenses incurred during the stated period. A statement of changes in equity or “statement of equity” also called “statement of retained earnings” reports on the changes in equity of the company over a stated period. A cash flow statement reports on a company's cash flow, particularly its operating, investing and financing activities over a stated period. A balance sheet represents a single point in time, where the income statement, the statement of changes in equity, and the cash flow statement each represent activities over a stated period. For large corporations, these statements may be complex and may include an extensive set of footnotes to the financial statements, management discussion and analysis and supplementary information. The notes typically describe each item on the balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement in further detail. Notes to financial statements are considered an integral part of the financial statements.