CPE Catalog
Note
AICPA On-Demand & Self-Study courses take up to 24 hours to process.
ACPEN: Fiduciary Accounting & Tax Planning for Estates & Trusts
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Online
4.00 Credits
This course will review the fundamentals of fiduciary accounting and provide a reporting guide for determining whether receipts and expenditures are assigned to income or principal/corpus. Critical issues, rules, and special opportunities when preparing your clients' Form 1041 U.S. Income Tax Return for Estates and Trusts will be examined, including what is considered taxable income and allowable deductions. Planning and potential pitfalls will also be explored. This course only qualifies for 2 IRS credits. *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 Presented by: Doug Van Der AaType: Live Webcast Replay
Corporate Storytelling in Financial Reporting
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Online
1.00 Credits
Developments in the Management Commentary and MD&A Narrative reporting is entering a new era-one that moves beyond compliance checklists to focus on cohesive, decision-useful communication. This seminar examines the evolution of corporate narrative reporting through the revised 2025 IFRS Practice Statement 1: Management Commentary and the U.S. GAAP-based MD&A under SEC Regulation S-K, with key comparisons to help practitioners understand how each framework supports investor-focused disclosure. Using real-world examples and excerpts from the actual annual report of an IFRS reporting company, this seminar highlights how the revised Management Commentary guidance aims to improve the quality, relevance, and connectivity of narrative insights. Participants will explore its emphasis on strategy, risks, sustainability factors (ESG), key performance indicators (KPIs), and the integration of financial and non-financial information. The session also analyzes the modernization efforts in U.S. MD&A, including principles-based guidance, reduction of boilerplate disclosures, and expanded expectations for entity-specific analysis and trend-based insights. Through a comparative approach, participants learn how both frameworks are converging around common principles: enhanced connectivity, balanced presentation, entity-specific content, and alignment of strategy, performance, risk, and value creation. This practical seminar provides accounting, finance, and business professionals with the knowledge needed for better understanding the management commentary and MD&A. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.
Tax Update: "One Big Beautiful Bill"
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Online
2.00 Credits
This course provides a focused analysis of the individual and small business provisions in Pub. L. 119-21 (H.R.1), "One Big Beautiful Bill." Tailored for tax professionals working with Form 1040 filers, the course explores impactful updates, from the no-tax-on-tips provision to enhanced bonus depreciation. Designed to inform planning strategies and compliance for the 2025 tax year and beyond. Participants will gain actionable insight into newly proposed deductions and expanded credits. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.
ACPEN: Strategic Government Budgeting: Tools for Long-Term Sustainability
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Online
1.00 Credits
This course equips participants with the tools and strategies needed to create sustainable, long-term budgets that align with policy goals and ensure fiscal responsibility. Participants will explore key budgeting frameworks, learn techniques for forecasting revenue and expenditures, and analyze scenarios to mitigate financial risks. The course incorporates practical exercises and case studies to provide hands-on experience with scenario planning, enhancing budget transparency and resilience. By the end of the session, attendees will have the knowledge and confidence to design and implement budgets that support long-term governmental priorities and strengthen financial stability. Presented by: Alex RomeroType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: The Ethics Hour: Accounting Scandals: What Happened and Why? Can We Prevent Them?, featuring Tracy Cooper and Don Minges
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Online
1.00 Credits
The staggering volume of accounting scandals is a scandal. What has happened and what were the root causes? Why do many financial professionals choose to do the wrong thing? What has been the cumulative impact on the profession? What can we do to enhance our professional reputation? We will discuss the many "fixes" imposed to address previous accounting scandals, including COSO; were they effective? We must understand that accounting fraud is prevalent and what should we look out for? Be aware. We do not want history to repeat itself. Presented by: Don Minges, Tracy CooperType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: The Controllership Series: The Controllers role in ESG
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Online
1.50 Credits
As ever more jurisdictions move toward mandatory disclosure of ESG metrics, (ex: the European Union’s new Corporate Sustainability Reporting directive and impending U.S. SEC requirements) the urgency to get those disclosures right has gone up. This course to as an introduction to the concept of requirements for Controllers and financial personnel to understand ESG disclosures .Whether the role related to ESG disclosures and information falls into the job responsibility of the controller or not is yet to be seen. However, it is clear the Controller must maintain some level of knowledge and expertise around the types and timing of such disclosures. Presented by: Lynn FountainType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: Roadmap to Ethical Decision Making
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Online
2.00 Credits
Practitioners need to exercise caution to ensure they maintain independence as they assist their clients with reviews, audits, and compilation engagements. This course provides a roadmap to best practices and guidance provided by the AICPA's Code of Professional Conduct and analyzes and applies it to actual scenario-based case studies, providing accounting professionals with ethical standards to integrate into their practices. Presented by: Dr. Chris HarperType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: K2’s Excel’s Best New Features
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Online
2.00 Credits
With the latest updates in Microsoft 365 and Office 2024, Excel is more powerful than ever. Packed with cutting-edge features, more innovative functions, and seamless collaboration tools, the newest version is designed to take your productivity to the next level. Whether you're crunching numbers, building dashboards, or collaborating across teams, these enhancements unlock faster workflows, deeper insights, and more thoughtful decision-making. Don't miss your chance to stay ahead of the curve-discover Excel's most exciting new features and learn how to put them to work for you. Your spreadsheet game is about to change-let's make it extraordinary! Presented by: Thomas StephensType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: Interview Techniques & Detecting Deception
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Online
2.00 Credits
The ability to create and ask good questions as well as the ability to know when someone is being deceptive are important skills for managers, auditors, and investigators. This session will improve your interview techniques and your lie detection abilities. Multiple videos from various movies, TV shows, and public figures showcasing the behaviors of liars are included. Presented by: Daniel PorterType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: Asset Misappropriation You Have It – They Want It
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Online
2.00 Credits
Have you ever thought about stealing? If the answer is NO, then you need to find another profession because you will never be a successful fraud examiner/investigator or a financial auditor. To find fraud, you must first determine, given the opportunity through weak internal controls, how a person would steal. You have to say to yourself, given the opportunity that exists, how many ways could I take advantage of it? In other words, you must be able to think how you could steal and not be caught. So yes, to find fraud, you must first think about stealing. For a fraudster to be successful, they must make you think fraud is a legitimate transaction. They must make you think it is something that it is not. There are so many places where fraud can be hidden. It is up to you to evaluate where the risks of fraud are in an organization, then design effective investigative procedures to determine if someone took advantage of the opportunity. If they did not, how else may they have taken advantage of the opportunity? One must remember that one weakness in internal control may create several ways to take advantage of it and you must examine every such one. During this session, the many ways fraud can be hidden in asset misappropriations will be discussed. Remember, the number of ways is only limited by one’s imagination. Presented by: Dennis DycusType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: Procurement Standards 2026: What You Need To Know
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Online
2.00 Credits
Federal procurement requirements under the Uniform Guidance were significantly revised effective October 1, 2024, introducing new expectations for procurement methods, internal controls, contractor oversight, and domestic sourcing preferences. This session will provide grant recipients and subrecipients with practical guidance on implementing compliant procurement procedures under 2 CFR SS200.317-200.327 and aligning procurement policies with updated federal standards, and thresholds from the FAR. Attendees will learn how to strengthen procurement documentation, apply revised competition requirements, and prepare for federal agency or Single Audit procurement system reviews. This session provides the regulatory application to develop your own SOP. Presented by: Paul CalabreseType: Live Webcast Replay
ACPEN: Strategic Use of Trump Accounts: Planning Opportunities for Tax Professionals
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Online
2.00 Credits
This course provides tax and accounting professionals with a focused overview of Trump Accounts and their practical application in client planning. Participants will examine eligibility requirements, contribution rules, tax treatment, and reporting considerations. Through practical examples, the course emphasizes evaluating suitability, identifying planning opportunities, and avoiding common compliance pitfalls when incorporating Trump Accounts into client strategies. *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 Presented by: Arthur WernerType: Live Webcast Replay
The CFO Who Went to Prison
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Online
2.00 Credits
Joshua, a CFO from Chicago, did not go to prison for stealing the $2 million in liquid cash he had access to on a daily basis. Instead, Joshua ended up in prison by rationalizing that he was entitled to a few small perks of the profession. This course explores Joshua's story and covers how and why executives with high annual incomes make short-sighted decisions that can cost them their job and freedom. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.
ACPEN: Eliminating Busy Season: Transforming Your Practice to Year- Round Advisory Services
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Online
8.00 Credits
This course provides tax and accounting professionals with a comprehensive framework for transitioning from a compliance-driven busy season model to a sustainable, year-round advisory practice. Participants will explore strategies for expanding services into tax, financial, and estate planning. The course addresses both transitioning existing clients and attracting new, higher-value clients while improving efficiency, client value, and revenue stability. Presented by: Arthur WernerType: Live Webcast Replay
Workforce Transformation and Talent Management in 2025
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Online
1.00 Credits
The accounting profession faces unprecedented workforce challenges that demand a fundamental rethinking of traditional firm structures. This course examines why the century-old pyramid practice model is becoming obsolete and presents the inverted pentagon framework as a sustainable alternative. Based on comprehensive research showing that 52% of firms expect to shrink by 20% or more in the next five years, participants will learn how to restructure their firms to thrive with fewer entry-level staff while expanding specialized expertise. The course explores the "6 Ps of Business Model Transformation" - Precision Hiring, Proactive Retention, Practical Technology Implementation, Pricing Expertise, Practice Area Expansion/Focus, and People Acceleration. Drawing from success stories in manufacturing, healthcare, and technology industries, attendees will discover proven strategies for accelerating staff development, implementing effective knowledge transfer programs, and building sustainable talent pipelines in an era of technological disruption and demographic shifts. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.
Unlock the Power of AI with Copilot in Excel
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Online
2.00 Credits
In the ever-evolving world of data analytics and business intelligence, Microsoft Excel continues to be an indispensable tool for professionals across industries. With the introduction of Copilot, Microsoft has integrated the power of artificial intelligence directly into Excel, revolutionizing how users work with data. This 2-hour interactive course, Unlock the Power of AI with Copilot in Excel, provides a comprehensive overview of how Copilot transforms traditional Excel workflows into dynamic, AI-driven processes, enabling users to accomplish tasks faster, more accurately, and with less manual effort. During this course, you'll discover how Copilot leverages AI to enhance productivity and streamline operations. Whether you're a seasoned Excel user or just beginning your journey, this course will guide you through practical applications and best practices to make the most of Copilot's capabilities. Through hands-on demonstrations and real-world examples, you'll see how Copilot can save time, improve decision-making, and elevate your analytical skills to new heights. This course not only focuses on the technical aspects of Copilot but also highlights its potential to transform your day-to-day work, from automating repetitive tasks to uncovering trends and insights you might otherwise overlook. By the end of the session, you'll be equipped with the knowledge and confidence to integrate Copilot into your workflows and unlock its full potential in Microsoft Excel. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.
ACPEN: Group Audits: Who is Responsible for What?
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Online
2.00 Credits
Financial statement audits often involve audits of components of a larger entity. This course will focus on the responsibilities for both the group auditor and component auditor, including implementation of SAS No. 149 relate to group audits. Presented by: Jennifer LouisType: Live Webcast Replay
Surgent's Home Office Rules
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Online
2.00 Credits
Since 2017, employees have not been eligible to take an itemized deduction for a home office. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act suspended all miscellaneous itemized deductions for tax years 2018 through 2025. That deduction is scheduled to go into effect in 2026. Self-employed individuals can deduct office expenses on Schedule C, Form 1040. The home office deduction includes typical office-connected expenditures such as supplies, postage, computers, printers, and all the other ordinary and necessary expenses a person would have in connection with running a home office. The home office tax deduction for the self-employed would cover expenses for the business use of a home, which includes mortgage interest, rent, insurance, utilities, repairs, and depreciation. This program discusses many of the most important issues relating to the deductibility of home office-related expenses.
Surgent's The Accountant as the Expert Witness
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Online
2.00 Credits
As litigation becomes more complex, attorneys are relying more on accountants to serve as consulting experts or expert witnesses at trial. Serving as an expert witness is not as difficult as you might expect. Accounting experts educate lawyers and jurors on issues such as valuation, tax liability, and forensics. Learn how accountants become expert witnesses, the role they play during pre-litigation through to trial, and the techniques experts employ to avoid challenges from opposing counsel.
Surgent's Taking Advantage of Installment Sales and Like-Kind Exchanges
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Online
4.00 Credits
When real property is sold for a gain, we always try to find ways to defer recognizing income so it won't be necessary to send a check to Uncle Sam. There are two provisions within the Internal Revenue Code that allow the taxpayer to defer recognition of immediate taxable gain in the year of sale: installment sales and like-kind exchanges. Knowing how and when to utilize these provisions makes the Accounting and Finance Professionals very valuable to either their client or the entity they work for. We will also discuss recent proposals which could impact the future of these two provisions. Please Note: due to overlap with the INS2 and LKE2 courses, customers should not take ISL4 if one or both of these other courses has already been taken.