CPE Catalog & Events

Boost quality management through improved processes (bold) With an emphasis on more proactive and continual improvement, the monitoring and enforcement of quality management (QM) systems for audit and accounting practices have changed. The revised QM standards take a proactive approach to quality management, with an increased emphasis on monitoring, remediation and improvement. Firms are now required to evaluate their system and annually conclude on its effectiveness. Third in a four-part webcast series (bold) This is the third webcast in a four-part series on the Auditing Standard Board's (ASB) new quality management standards. In this webcast, you'll take a deep dive into the monitoring and remediation component of the ASB's Statement on Quality Management Standards (SQMS) No. 1, A Firm's System of Quality Management (ital). Attendance in each webcast in this four-part series will earn you one CPE credit. You can participate in one or all based on your interest in the topics. A rebroadcast of this webcast is scheduled for Dec. 13, 2022, at 2:00pm ET.

Unlike a traditional financial audit objective (Are the financial statements materially misstated), performance auditing can address a wide variety of objectives.  Is this program working? Can it be improved? Where can we save money? How can we operate more efficiently and effectively? Are management’s assertions supported? And so forth.  This session will explain what a performance audit is, describe the applicable standards, and provide examples that indicate the value of a performance audit.  Performance audits can add value to any entity and practitioners can profit from adding these assurance services to their practices.

This course is intended for practitioners and advisors who provide advice to both owners and beneficiaries of IRA and 401(k) accounts. Recent law changes in the SECURE Act 2.0, the SECURE Act, the CARES Act, and the issuance of proposed regulations in February 2022 (87 FR 10504), have created much confusion about required distributions and the various exceptions and special rules contained in them. This course provides an overview of the distribution options available for beneficiaries concentrating on provisions that allow for more spread out and tax advantageous distributions from inherited accounts. It also provides guidance for the accommodation of special beneficiaries such as surviving spouses, the disabled, minor children, and the use of trusts.

Preparing GAAP financial statements can be treacherous. GAAP has become so voluminous and complex that it is easy to overlook accounting, reporting and disclosure requirements, potentially affecting the accountants' liability. Nonpublic entities, however, are not necessarily required to apply GAAP, and there are less complex financial reporting frameworks that may be much easier to apply without sacrificing the quality of financial reporting. Even when using GAAP, the less complicated business entity may find that numerous requirements, including disclosures, need to be more relevant to users of their financial statements, may not be material to users, and often overshadow the most pertinent information. This course will present alternative accounting frameworks that may be more suitable for the more straightforward business entity, including income tax basis and the modified cash basis of accounting. We will also discuss approaches to GAAP, including developing disclosure checklists unique to each set of financial statements, identifying when disclosures may be omitted or complex accounting approaches may be avoided, and how to document those decisions to minimize adverse effects. When the cost of financial reporting to the small business enterprise exceeds the benefits, entities will lose the motivation to issue financial statements that conform with GAAP, and both the business entities and the related capital markets suffer. This course provides alternatives that help alleviate that dilemma.

A significant amount of information is electronically initiated, recorded, processed, or reported and information to be used as audit evidence may be available only in electronic form. During this session, we will look at different types of information commonly presented to an auditor during the audit of an employee benefit plan and identify considerations for auditors when evaluating information to be used as audit evidence. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Welcome to a management course that helps CFOs and Controllers lead the Accounting Department. It is essential that the Accounting Department have a Vision which is aligned with the Business goals. Controllers must also be comfortable with wearing multiple 'hats' in the business. The head of the Accounting Department must be skilled in a variety of leadership skills, technical skills, managerial skills and current management techniquest.

You are likely familiar with the various forms of penalty relief (reasonable cause, administrative remedies, and first-time penalty relief), BUT can you apply this and consistently expect a favorable outcome? This program will focus on crafting a well-executed request for penalty relief, along with exploring a lesser-known option which can be employed as an effective case resolution tool. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

The AICPA issued new Quality Management Standards that require all accounting firms that perform audit, review, compilation, attestation, and agreed-upon procedures engagements to comply with the enhanced Quality Management Standards by December 15, 2025. The most significant change in the new Quality Management Standards is the requirement that firms identify and assess quality risks specific to their practices and then design and implement responses to each identified quality risk. This program will help you understand the new Quality Management Standards, provide practical guidance for adoption, and respond to the requirements of the new Quality Management Standards.

Taking money from a retirement plan before age 59-1/2 or failing to withdraw funds after age 73 leads to penalties. Plan beneficiaries have a separate set of rules as well. There are penalty exceptions and waivers, but some issues have no possible resolution. A withdrawal from a retirement plan is taxable unless it's returned to a plan within 60 days. Some withdrawals cannot be returned and there are some ways to make a late rollover tax-free. Early and late distribution penalties and 60-day rollover failures are prevalent issues that tax preparers must handle despite the size of the firm or the wealth of their clients. Learn the rules of the road in this class. Note: This class presents an in-depth discussion of issues presented in the instructor's class Retirement Distributions: Planning Options.

*** Save 15% on this event when you use the code FALL24 at checkout *** This course includes an analysis of all of the relevant authoritative pronouncements that a CPA must have an understanding of in order to properly perform preparation, compilation and review engagements. Explore the changes made by SSARS 25 along with implementation guidance, and review troublesome areas as identified in peer reviews and litigation. Participants who take this course will enjoy a smooth sailing in their peer reviews - guaranteed! Delivery Method: Group internet-basedCPE Credit: Accounting, AuditingProgram Level: Intermediate

This session will expand on methodologies to employ when owner-employee compensation is at issue. The session will focus on determinations of reasonable replacement compensation for individuals who both provide services to a closely held business or professional practice and also have an ownership stake in the enterprise. Executive Compensation in the form of options and restricted stock will also be covered in the context of marital dissolution proceedings. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Comply With All Standards As You Prepare, Compile and Review Engagements This webcast is a go-to reference for staying in compliance with all professional standards surrounding engagements performed in accordance with Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARSs).

Trusts are not cookie-cutter documents. In fact, they can be rather unwieldy, especially in explaining the functions to a client and then having the client comply with the trust terms. This course delves into best practices. Given common scenarios, what are the best trusts to use? And how can the client be best protected?

Not-for-profit entities have recently applied critical new standards related to contributions of nonfinancial assets, leases, and more. Now is the time to know more than just what the standards say - we need to know what they mean and how they will affect not-for-profit entities. This course is designed to do just that! The course materials utilize a highly illustrative and innovative format. Over 15 focused exercises are included to provide an enhanced working knowledge of the challenges in not-for-profit accounting.

Valuation techniques and cash management activities are two other tool categories that can round out your analytical toolbox. In this course we will initially discuss how to turn your financial plan into a powerful valuation engine.  We then will discuss the formation of an efficient cash management program based on solid banker relationships.  Finally, we will review Ten Steps for keeping your financial toolbox full.

Understand the intricacies of the ever-popular S corporation form of doing business and consider the tax effect that various types of S corporation distributions will have on the corporation's shareholders. Updated for the latest guidance on recently enacted tax legislation, this course examines planning and reporting successful complex S corporation transactions. The uses of Qualified Subchapter S Subsidiaries are also explored to help you minimize your client's tax bill with winning strategies related to this type of entity.

This program compares and contrasts the financial and tax accounting differences of partnerships, LLCs, and S corporations, as well as discuss the tax accounting for these entities. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Don't let the title frighten you. It is critical that staff be trained on the increasingly complex forms-related issues that challenge them each busy season. This course will help experienced staff focus on the essential amidst the cacophony of IRS and legislative changes and avoid costly mistakes. This course brings to the forefront advanced preparation issues, from individual returns to flow-through entities such as S corporations, LLCs, and partnerships.

The process of closing out the books every month can make year-end accounting a breeze! But isn't this time consuming? Not when you know the steps to take on a monthly basis. We'll show you what to do in QuickBooks Online as well as what you can do monthly to ensure a tax return that will stand up again an IRS audit. 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 tax practitioners 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.