Professional Development and Event Catalog

Although Windows incorporates the OneDrive app, you may not have configured it correctly for your specific needs. Using the OneDrive app and the related Cloud storage service to their fullest potential means you can access your files when and where you need them. Further, sharing your files and collaborating with others is easy when using OneDrive correctly. In this session, you will learn best practices for taking full advantage of OneDrive.

The mad scramble to remote work and utilize apps like Teams has been trying for most organizations over the past couple of years. With a rush to install and no time to plan, most team members did their best, prioritizing remote meetings as the primary concern. Therefore, as a result, Teams is vastly misunderstood and underutilized in most organizations. Join us in this session to go beyond the remote meetings aspect of Teams and to learn how to optimize efficiency, communication, and workflow with Teams.

AI is an extremely popular topic these days, and for good reason! However, does AI present yet another threat to your privacy? Get answers to this question and more in this session.

Small businesses have better options now than ever before in the market of accounting solutions. Participate in this session to learn more about these options and which might be best for you or your clients.

Are you ready to maximize the utility of ChatGPT? If so, participate in this session so you can learn the best ways to leverage this tool.

Most small and mid-sized businesses are at least considering cloud-based suites for business management, performance management, and productivity. Unfortunately, many owners and accounting professionals need to learn the difference between using cloud-native tools, employing a managed service provider, and utilizing a desktop hosting provider. This session helps participants understand the differences in the levels of service provided by these offerings and will also highlight some of the regulatory barriers which could create problems for your organization. Attend this session and learn what you need to know before saying “see ya” to your servers.

Many organizations have implemented Microsoft 365/Office 365 at a basic level, but few have truly explored the breadth and depth of tools included with their subscriptions. Some less commonly known apps help you manage shared email boxes, create and use web forms, schedule appointments, trade shifts, create real-time closed captions, and translate presentations. Attend this session and learn more about the hidden features in Microsoft 365 that you can use to level up your productivity.

The ACFE/COSO Fraud Risk Management Guide (FRMG) was published in 2016 (and updated in 2023).  It has quickly gained acceptance as the set of best practices for preventing, detecting, and thus deterring fraud. The fraud landscape is constantly changing and evolving. The FRMG sets out a rigorous set of principles and leading practices for managing fraud risk for forward-thinking organizations to follow.  It covers: How to establish fraud risk management governance. How to conduct rigorous fraud risk assessments. How to design and implement fraud control activities. How to establish reporting mechanisms and investigative procedures. How to monitor the overall fraud risk management program. Fraud risk can be managed.  All anti-fraud and accountability professionals will benefit from this session's focus on effective fraud risk management.

Governmental accounting is very unique. This course will introduce the financial reporting basics for governments, including fund accounting and the modified accrual basis of accounting. Attendees will analyze the layouts of the fund financial statements as well as the government-wide financial statements. The course will also cover the concept of component units, Management Discussion & Analysis (MD&A), and the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report.

This course focuses on recent FASB updates with an emphasis on implications for private entities. We will also explore significant elements of the FASB’s technical agenda.

The SSTS are tax standards that apply to all members who provide tax services and provide the framework for the AICPA ethical guidance for tax practitioners.  This program explores the revised AICPA Statements on Standards for Tax Services, effective January 1, 2024.   **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.

Every business needs capital, and capital has a cost. Providers of debt and equity demand a return and the combination is the cost of capital for the business. This session discusses how to calculate the cost of capital, how to use it to make superior business decisions every day and some common ways organizations misuse this number. Who should understand your organization’s cost of capital? Even if you are not yet the CFO, you need to thoroughly understand the cost of capital and its use. The cost of capital allows managers to, “Get the biggest bang for the buck.” If you want to enhance your corporate finance skills, this session is for you.

Yellow Book and Single Audit engagements are considered must-select engagements for peer review. This course will review the common deficiencies noted by peer reviewers and federal agencies. We'll focus on the requirements of Yellow Book independence, CPE, and reporting. We will also review deficiencies related to internal controls over compliance, compliance testing, and major program determination for Single Audits. We'll close the course with a look at the deficiencies often identified in COVID-related funds.

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.  The same theory applies to departmental performance—the overall result is only as strong as its weakest contributor.  Leave our interactive and entertaining session with insight for developing and sustaining the best team you can possibly assemble.  The four elements in this process are (1) development, (2) leadership, (3) hiring and (4) environment.  Discuss how to effectively use these elements in your creation of an outstanding organization. Discover the power of the 10 Attributes for Leadership Success and the negative impact of Leadership’s Fatal 13. Above all, learn how to combine these four elements as a successful catalyst for sustained high-quality output and results.  

Yellow Book and Single Audit engagements are considered must select engagements for Peer Review. This course will cover the Yellow Book independence requirements which are required any time an auditor is performing a Yellow Book or Single Audit even when the engagement is for a for-profit entity.  We'll take a look at the major changes in the 2024 Compliance Supplement as well as the changes to the Uniform Guidance. We'll close with major deficiencies identified by the federal agencies and peer reviewers. 

The AICPA's Auditing Standards Board has several large projects that will be impacting entities in the near future. We'll take a deep dive into the changes related quality management as well as group audits. We'll also review common audit deficiencies. This course will keep auditors up to date on the work of the ASB. 

The standard audit report will soon receive an overhaul. This course investigates major changes to the contents and format of audit reports for private entities while exploring the influence of changes to audit reports for public companies. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Most business professionals have used Excel for years, often without the benefit of any formal training. Thus, they don't know about key features in the application and, therefore, don't use them. Of course, this leads to inefficiencies and errors. Isn't it time to stop this madness? This session is for you if you're ready to become more efficient and effective with Excel! You will learn ten critical features that can help you get more work done in less time and improve your accuracy. We encourage you to make plans to join us for this session to learn the best ways of working with Excel!

Arthur Werner will provide financial professionals with the information their teams will need to successfully plan and execute mergers and acquisitions. For major topics covered, see below. This course may be customized or tailored based on the needs of your organization.

Section 199A is still the hottest tax topic related to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. The Act created new reporting requirements for relevant pass-through entities (RPEs). Each RPE is required to report the relevant data needed to calculate the 199A deduction to each recipient of Schedule K-1. Your clients will trust you to ensure that the relevant data is properly reported. The IRS has added disclosure lines to Schedules K-1 for S corporations, partnerships, and trusts. This course will cover the new reporting requirements on those forms and discuss uncertainties that still exist related to the reporting requirements. The course includes examples and case studies relevant to the new disclosure lines of Schedules K-1. This program will include the latest relevant IRS guidance.