CPE Catalog & Events

Stop struggling with PDFs! Adobe Acrobat and other PDF tools provide access to features that make working with PDF files a breeze. In this course, you will learn how to use tools and features such as PDF forms, redaction, converting PDFs to Word and Excel files, and electronic signatures. You will also learn how to create and apply tick marks, build indices, catalogs, and portfolios, and secure PDF documents to their fullest. The popularity and usefulness of PDFs increase daily, but most PDF users have not learned how to manipulate PDF documents effectively. Accordingly, they struggle and strain with these standard files. You do not need to let this be the case. Join us in this very timely session where you will learn the top features necessary to optimize your work with PDF documents.

The Not-for-Profit Advisory Committee (NAC) has been meeting with FASB to discuss the impact of various standards on the nonprofit community. In this course, we will explore the work of the NAC and the impact they've had. We then transition to the Accounting Standards Updates (ASUs) issued by the FASB that are impacting nonprofit entities, including a review of year 2 issues with respect to the leases standard including modification accounting. We will close with a look at common deficiencies found in nonprofit financials.

New features in Excel provide tremendous opportunities to improve Excel-based operational and financial reports. For example, Data Models, Power Query, Data Analysis Expressions, Power Pivot, and many others can help you create more powerful summaries and schedules in less time than ever. Bundle these tools with some of Excel’s “legacy” features, and you have significant new opportunities to improve your Excel-based reporting environments. In this fast-paced seminar, you will learn about the importance of using Power Query to link data into Excel data models and how you can manage these data models to facilitate better and more efficient reporting. Additionally, you will learn how to incorporate Key Performance Indicators, Slicers, and Timelines into your reports to enhance the analytics and understandability of the data. Further, you will learn best practices to quickly and easily format your spreadsheets to give them a polished and professional appearance. This course should be at the top of your professional development list if you use Excel for any reporting process.

When the leadership in any organizations carries out their responsibilities of establishing, maintaining and monitoring internal controls, it significantly reduces the possibility of fraud occurring.  When and if it does occur, a good system of internal controls will often detect it early on.  This presentation is an illustration of what can happen when top management fails to carry out their responsibility of protecting an entity’s assets through a good system of internal controls.

A recent IFRS Foundation survey found that 167 jurisdictions now require the use of IFRS Accounting Standards for all or most publicly listed companies, while 12 jurisdictions permit its use. With this global acceptance, and as more than 1,000 foreign companies are reporting to the SEC using IFRS, learn how to read and understand the differences between US GAAP and IFRS financial reports. This course. The last three-course series concentrates on the miscellaneous topics not covered in the first two courses, such as business combinations, consolidations, and revenue recognition, as reported in the financial statements. Excerpts from public company financial reports will be reviewed. Be sure to register for all three parts of this series: Financial Reporting: Presentation-U.S. GAAP vs. IFRS Financial Reporting: Assets and Liabilities-U.S. GAAP vs IFRS Financial Reporting: Miscellaneous Topics-U.S. GAAP vs IFRS

Learn the basics of FASB's Accounting Standard Update for Leases (ASC Topic 842), the key differences between ASC Topic 842 and ASC Topic 840, Leases, and the practical challenges and complexities within the new standard and how they apply to you. We will focus on lessee accounting, and will discuss key issues within the standard, required analyses, critical judgments, policy elections, disclosures, and the lessons learned from public filings. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event

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.

We all want to be successful and deeply fulfilled, but most of us have not learned what really leads to a life of abundance, happiness, purpose, and great relationships.  In this seminar, you will learn the most effective methods for creating the life you really want.  In his interviews with such people as Oprah, the Dalai Lama, Deepak Chopra, Tony Robbins, Ted Turner, and dozens of others, Jonathan has learned what really works and what does not.  In this seminar you’ll learn the best personal and professional growth techniques he’s acquired over his career.  Once you know these great ideas and methods, you'll be able to take your life and career to a whole new level. 

Accounting standards affecting not-for-profit (NPF) organizations have become increasingly complex, and, as a result, a great deal of confusing exists as to how to properly account for certain transactions unique to these organizations. This course will clarify proper accounting and reporting for these troubling areas. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

It's happened to all of us. We open our inbox in a calm frame of mind, and then, Pow! We read an email that sets our blood boiling. Whether the email is critical, insulting, or just plain upsetting, we feel shaken and tempted to bite back. In this program, you will learn strategies for dealing with upsetting emails to keep cool and retain relationships. We will review the process of responding (or not responding) to the email and tips about managing our emotions.

Form 1065 is the tax return filed by partnerships, which is one of the most common forms of business organizations in the United States. This course provides an in-depth understanding of the preparation and filing of Form 1065. The course will cover the basics of partnership taxation, including how partnerships are taxed, the different types of partnerships, and the tax obligations of partners. It will also discuss the importance of keeping accurate financial records, the role of the partnership agreement in tax reporting, and the filing deadlines for Form 1065. Participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of the various sections of Form 1065, including the Schedule K-1, which reports each partner's share of the partnership's income, deductions, and credits. The course will also cover how to report partnership income, expenses, and deductions, as well as the tax implications of buying and selling partnership interests. In addition, the course will provide an overview of common errors and omissions made when preparing Form 1065, and how to avoid them. It will also cover recent changes in tax laws that affect partnership taxation. Overall, this course is designed for tax professionals, accountants, business owners, and individuals who need to understand the intricacies of partnership taxation and the preparation and filing of Form 1065. Upon completion of the course, participants will have a solid understanding of partnership taxation and will be able to prepare and file Form 1065 with confidence. **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.

Supervisor Skills - Coaching Staff to Stay on the Right Track provides tips and techniques for critical coaching responsibilities. Being a successful coach requires tackling various responsibilities, including motivating, providing positive and constructive feedback, and otherwise getting the best performance out of engagement team members in the given situation. Note: This course is recommended as a part of a 16-hour audit skills curriculum for supervisory or managerial auditors, while it is also appropriate for anyone who has responsibilities for coaching others. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Fourth, in a four-part series, new and experienced leaders dive deeper into the keys to becoming more effective. In this course, we'll explore three critical skills to being an effective leader: delegation, feedback and time management. You'll learn the important role delegation plays in developing staff and in elevating your career by freeing you up to take on more challenging tasks. Provide valuable, actionable feedback as a final step in the delegation process to ensure that growth and learning continue. Finally, explore new structures to help you balance your time and energy as you juggle your new leadership responsibilities. Be sure to register for each course in this series: New Manager Series: Making the Shift from Individual Contributor to Supervisor 2024 New Manager Series: Balancing Leadership & Likeability 2024 New Manager Series: Making the Shift from Individual Contributor to Supervisor 2024 New Manager Series: The How To's of Leading 2024

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.

In today’s real estate market, IRC §1031 tax-deferred exchanges can be one of the most important planning tools available to the real estate investor. The use of this technique is filled with pitfalls and traps. This new course will assist the practitioner in understanding the mechanics of a tax-deferred exchange and the value of a tax-deferred exchange in both tax and financial planning. Updated August 2022

How grateful are you? In this critically important webinar, we will explore exactly what gratitude is and why it is a crucial component of your work as a CPA. Even if you believe you're already a deeply grateful person, you'll still learn some new strategies for expressing gratitude effectively. Forbes Contributor Bruce Weinstein, The Ethics Guy, will show you how to use LinkedIn in a novel way to say "thank you." You'll also find better and worse ways of letting clients, team members, family members and friends know that you care about them. You'll understand why gratitude is a matter of ethics and not merely etiquette. Finally, you'll discover how to use questions about gratitude in job interviews and performance reviews. Why not hire and promote people who are not only knowledgeable and skilled but also grateful? You will be thankful for having taken this valuable webinar! This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

This session will focus on the most common types of fraud in the procurement and contracting arena, with a focus on fraud in construction.  The session will examine fraud vulnerabilities in the four key phases of the procurement process: Presolicitation. Negotiation. Performance. Closeout and Claims.  Within each phase, “red flags” will be discussed.  These are the indicia of possible fraud that managers should be alert for.  Also, within each phase, the most common fraud schemes will be highlighted and discussed.  Finally, the session will describe the generally accepted safeguards or controls that should be established to prevent the various fraud schemes that can occur.  This part of the program will make extensive use of actual fraud case studies designed to demonstrate fraud risks and fraud detection strategies.

It is easy for us to get caught up in our work, but it is better to examine the ‘big picture’ by studying the outside factors that impact our business beyond our internal processes and day to day responsibilities. We are sometimes so busy with our tasks that we miss new developments until the developments have a profound impact on us and the organization. This session is designed to review many of these current trends, while thinking and discussing how these trends can impact our organizations and us. This is a fun and lively session that is intended to be interactive with participants either live, virtual or both. Our ever-changing world is evolving more than many realize.

Demands for an excellent user experience are at an all-time high. But how do you solve for easy collaboration, compliance, and workflow? What features do you need to be effective? How do you integrate payments, eSignatures, and other technologies to make interaction convenient? This session will explain the necessary features, provide an overview of the best technologies for collaboration, and help you think through how to solve your business problems. You'll learn about the options available from client portals, workflow management, payments, eSignatures, and more. Attend this session and arm yourself with the tools you need to succeed!

Enterprise Risk Management for SMEs