Professional Development and Event Catalog

An operational audit is a method of examining how an organization conducts business. It identifies areas where an entity can improve to be more effective and efficient. This course will focus on how to plan and perform operational audits, as well as delivering value-added recommendations as a result.

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Staff accountants have specific needs when working with Excel – needs that are often not met by their existing Excel knowledge. Chief among these are the needs to quickly summarize data, prepare accurate and aesthetically pleasing reports, and create accounting-centric calculations for elements such as depreciation, amortization, and interest. By participating in this eight-hour session, staff accountants will gain the essential skills they need to maximize their efficiency and accuracy when working with Excel. This session begins with a quick overview of Excel best practices. It then progresses rapidly into discussions that address PivotTables, sophisticated formulas, Tables, formatting, and working with dates in Excel. Throughout the session, you will learn from accounting-centric examples to reinforce key learning points. In this session, you will learn in a “laptop-friendly” environment, and participants will have access to all the demonstration files used in the session. In sum, this seminar is a “must” for all staff accountants seeking to improve their efficiency and accuracy when working with Excel.  

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Business Intelligence (BI) is perhaps the hottest topic in most professional circles in today’s business climate. Increasingly, organizations of all sizes seek to take advantage of the data available to them to identify previously undiscovered insights and gain competitive advantages thought to be out of reach just a few short years ago. A growing array of tools – from Excel add-ins to dedicated solutions such as Power BI – now allow you to leverage your existing knowledge and skills to create powerful, interactive dashboards and analyzes unthinkable until recently. This program will teach you to implement “do-it-yourself business intelligence” using various techniques and tools. First, you will learn to use advanced Excel data query and summarization features to create Excel-based dashboards. You will then learn how to leverage that knowledge to build even more powerful BI objects using Microsoft’s Power BI tools. If gaining better insights into your data to make better decisions interests you, then join us for a fast-paced look at how you can take advantage of these fantastic tools. 

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When it comes to hiring, using a conventional hiring process may not be as reliant as flipping a coin. A coin flip may often be better because it would bypass a lot of hidden biases and inefficient processes. We need to get back with a clean sheet of paper and do it better. In this course we will look at improving a process that is deeply flawed, and we will look objectively and outside the box on things we can do to identify and hire high performers.

Many finance departments spend considerable time managing cash, particularly if the organization is highly leveraged or cash rich.  Many opportunities exist to reduce your financing costs or increase short-term cash returns if you manage cash effectively.  This session will cover a wide variety of day-to-day cash management tools.  

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In forensic accounting, interviewing is used to obtain important information from witnesses and suspects. An important aspect is the ability of investigators to obtain accurate and reliable information from victims, witnesses and the suspects or any interviewee. The interview process is an essential part of information gathering for any investigation. The importance of improving the quality of the interviewing with the potential for visual recording of all interviews should be placed high on the agenda of all organizations across the globe. A properly conducted forensic interview can result in an extreme benefit regarding collection of information. The interviewer’s role is to develop a full understanding of the facts. There is a distinct difference between a forensic interview and a criminal interrogation. Typically, forensic auditors will not be involved in interrogations. The Canadian or U.S. forensic accounting profession does not have a standardized interview model to truly equip its professionals with the interview tools required to elicit confessions ethically. Majority of their skills are developed through experience, and not through a standardized model of training.  This session focuses on various interview concepts and methods.  

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This course provides a high-level overview and introduction into the world of the forensic accountant. Most accountants have an understanding of the concept of fraud and how it impacts companies, but many individuals do not have a full comprehension of the variance in the work performed by a forensic accountant versus a typical management accountant.   This course is meant for those individuals interested in understanding the variances in the job tasks and responsibilities of forensic accountants versus typical financial or management accountants. Forensic accountants or auditors take a unique focus on performing their work.  Typically, when a person with forensic experience is called in to examine financial records, it is due to suspicion of fraud, evaluation of assets, or even to track down fundamentally incorrect accounting – intentional or not. As fraud continues to raise its head in business processes, forensic accountants are discovering new and unique ways to identify, examine, and support their hypotheses and investigative techniques.  The work performed by a forensic specialist can be interesting and full of potential potholes if evidence isn’t examined according to proper protocols and standards.  

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This course is tailored for business leaders and HR professionals who want to enhance their strategic management skills and create actionable plans for success. You’ll learn the overall strategic management process, how to develop both simplified and detailed business and strategic plans, and the crucial role of corporate culture, leadership, and staff development in driving or hindering strategic outcomes. Additionally, you’ll explore how to leverage ChatGPT (Generative AI) as a powerful tool to improve your performance as a key business partner to the management team, helping you make data-driven decisions and enhance organizational effectiveness.

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Those charged with governance, with the assistance of internal audit,  are responsible for overseeing the strategic direction of the organization, and ensuring value is delivered to the entity's stakeholders. This course will provide guidance on fulfilling the responsibility for challenging how much risk and uncertainty to accept through the application of COSO's Enterprise Risk Management Framework.

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The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was a major overhaul of our tax system that lowered the income tax rates for individual and corporate taxpayers and introduced the new 20% qualified business income (QBI) deduction for sole proprietors and pass-through entities. The cornerstone of this course is the comprehensive discussion of the 20% QBI deduction final regulations under IRC §199A.    **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

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This session describes a state agency's quality review of a not-for-profit organization's A-133 Single Audit.  The case study describes the organization audited, its federally- and state-funded programs, and the CPA firm retained to do the audit.  Various anomalies in the financial statements alerted state officials to potential problems, and a detailed quality review followed.  Find out how the entity turned hundreds of thousands of dollars in bank overdrafts into hundreds of thousands of dollars of cash on its balance sheet.  Explore other “creative” ways to deal with fixed assets, accounts receivable, and related-party transactions.  Were the auditors just sloppy, ignorant, negligent?  Or were they active participants in producing fraudulent financial statements?  You be the judge.

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Auditors are required by Generally Accepted Auditing Standards to perform audit procedures to determine if the financial statements are materially misstated due to error OR FRAUD.  Unfortunately, in the past the profession has focused on misstatements due to errors and largely ignored to possibility of misstatements due to fraud.  While SAS No. 122, AU 240, Consideration of Fraud in a Financial Statement Audit sets forth the procedures that auditors are required to perform in each audit to determine if the financial statements are materially misstated due to fraud, this program presents a practical approach to making such a determination.  It’s not a substitute for the requirements in SAS 122, AU 240, but rather an informal supplement to the standard with some common-sense procedures which are designed from my over 30 plus years of directing fraud investigations.  After attending this session, you will more than likely never look at a financial statement audit the same way.

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Breaking the Wall of blind acceptance; avoiding habitual complacency and Yoking the dots between cause and effect.

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How good are you with the technology you use daily?  What new technology tools are available that could save you time and make you more effective?  Technology continues to accelerate rapidly, and the need to keep pace is essential. If you are not an information technology (IT) expert but need a technology update to maintain and improve your skills to serve your companies or clients more efficiently and effectively, this course is for you! In this fast-paced, update-style course, you will survey today’s IT environment, learning about computer hardware, software (including Microsoft Office), operating systems (including Windows 10), and what they mean for you, and peripheral devices. You will also learn about significant trends in information technology and how to take advantage of the opportunities presented by these trends.  Examples include the latest Excel features, working with PDF files, and security and privacy issues. Additionally, you will learn how to improve the overall performance of your IT investment, thereby increasing your return on investment. Throughout this program, you will learn from real-time demonstrations of practical applications of the latest tools, which can provide you with the knowledge you need to harness the power of technology, both now and in the future. Register now for this “don’t miss” opportunity to get the skills required to enhance the value of your IT investment.  

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By far, the biggest contributing factor that leads to a profitable, yet high quality, financial statement audit is the proper identification, evaluation, and response to assessed risk of material misstatement. When designing your detailed audit plan, how and where you decide to spend your time is largely a matter of professional judgment. The proven tips and techniques for critically rethinking how you plan and design your audit taught in this course will help auditors enhance audit quality and manage profitability in all engagements.

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Many employees with ADHD struggle with productivity. It’s heart-breaking to feel you have to let a team member go due to lack of performance. This course is for HR Professionals and Team Leaders who want more tools in their tool belt to help improve retention with ADHD team members. You will learn whole brain strategies to help your team members with ADHD improve performance, so they can not only survive but thrive. This innovative science-based approach is designed to help people with ADHD get more done in less time with a process designed with their creative brain in mind.

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You'll learn about current and upcoming requirements in accounting standards (except financial instruments and leases) and understand how to apply the guidance in practice.

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Unlock the full potential of Excel with our comprehensive training on shortcuts and formulas. This course is designed for CPAs and financial professionals who want to enhance their efficiency and accuracy in Excel. Learn how to navigate and utilize different versions of Excel, discover powerful new functions, and master the art of creating effective tables and automations. With practical examples and hands-on exercises, you'll transform your Excel skills, making your daily tasks quicker and more precise. Plus, benefit from insider tips and tricks drawn from the instructor's extensive real-world experience. Whether it's mastering keyboard shortcuts that save you time or applying formulas that simplify complex calculations, you'll gain practical knowledge that you can immediately apply in your work. This course isn't just about learning Excel; it's about learning to excel at Excel.

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This course will introduce you the different types of business entities and the tax implications of contributions, distributions and earnings, among other topics. **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  

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Discover the real-world power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and equip yourself with the skills to conquer modern challenges in accounting and finance. In this engaging course, we demystify AI and unveil its practical applications, transforming it from theory into a hands-on tool. Learn the essential AI fundamentals and unlock its remarkable potential to boost your productivity and effectiveness alongside your team. Explore the specific problem-solving capabilities of AI, tailored to address the unique challenges faced by accounting and financial professionals. Gain expertise in leveraging AI features integrated into everyday applications, including the ubiquitous Excel. Uncover how these features enable you to effortlessly detect fraud, identify potential transaction errors, and elevate your financial operations to new heights. Witness firsthand how AI is reshaping the present and future of your profession, positioning you at the forefront of this revolutionary wave.  

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