Professional Development and Event Catalog

In the past, entrepreneurs who sought investment capital for their start-ups were subject to the preferences and expectations of a small set of wealthy investors. These venture capitalists and angel investors often played the role of highly selective gatekeepers, denying countless potential business leaders the opportunity to bring their well-thought ideas to market. Much has changed. Today, crowdfunding disrupts many of the traditional models for start-up investing. Crowdfunding provides capital for new businesses by asking the general public for donations. The system works by entrepreneurs creating websites enabling internet users to view information, photos and promotional videos explaining why they seek funding. Instead of receiving equity in the company, investors are often rewarded for pledging their financial support for the start-up business. Investment revenue from crowdfunding has grown globally from $3.9 billion in 2017 to projected growth of $11.9 billion by 2023. Despite its incredible growth, crowdfunding remains underutilized by businesses. This course is intended to provide accounting and other professionals with a basic understanding of the crowdfunding process to better inform their clients and colleagues about this rapidly growing platform.

In today's rapidly changing world, finance professionals are required to wear many hats and are often the keys to the organization's success. On one hand, they need to be abreast of the latest proven financial skills for making the best decisions, and on the other hand they need the best skills to motivate, manage, and lead people. Being pigeon-holed into one area or another is neither good for career building nor for the good of the organization. This reality has proven to be even more true with the advent of COVID-19. This course is designed to give the CFO and controller the skills needed to lead their organizations into the rapidly changing decade, and also redesigned to concentrate on what we have learned from the pandemic. Another unique aspect of this course is its constant evolution. We know change is occurring at an exponential rate, and that has proven to be the case in all areas of finance, management, and leadership over the past year. The course deals with these new issues and will continue to be updated as necessary throughout the year.

Designed for accounting and attestation practitioners at all levels in both public accounting and business and industry, this course provides an overview of recent FASB and AICPA activity, including recently issued and proposed Accounting Standards Updates (ASUs); the latest on the new lease accounting standard, Topic 842; other relevant ASUs. The course also reviews new auditing standards effective in 2021 and beyond and the latest on new standards related to SSARS engagements. The course will also discuss other important A&A practice matters you should be aware of, including an update on peer review and audit quality.

Designed for accounting and attestation practitioners at all levels in both public accounting and business and industry, this course provides an overview of recent FASB and AICPA activity, including recently issued and proposed Accounting Standards Updates (ASUs); the latest on the new lease accounting standard, Topic 842; other relevant ASUs. The course also reviews new auditing standards effective in 2021 and beyond and the latest on new standards related to SSARS engagements. The course will also discuss other important A&A practice matters you should be aware of, including an update on peer review and audit quality.

This one-hour data analytics course will introduce formula arrays and DAX formulas to users in Power BI and Excel. Users will learn the skills to create and evaluate array formulas and DAX formulas. An understanding of implicit or explicit intersections and measures within the formulas will be developed. Users will apply the understanding to data and work alongside the instructor to create calculated columns in Power Pivot using DAX formulas and array formulas. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

This one-hour course will serve as an introduction to artificial intelligence and how artificial intelligence is utilized in Excel. Users will be introduced to correlation and trend functions in Excel. The basics of linear regression and its application in Excel will be discussed. Specific attention will be given to artificial intelligence functions in Excel, including, but not limited to, forecasting, trend analysis, regression analysis, and predictive modeling. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

This one-hour course will focus on the use of Excel with Power BI and Power Query to organize and analyze data. Users will primarily work with calculated columns generated from existing data. They will walk through hands-on exercises to create calculated columns, add dimensions to existing data tables, and create hierarchies within the data tables. Special attention will be paid to Star Schema analytical modelling. To explore practical applications, users will apply the skills to journal entry testing. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

This one-hour course serves as the introductory module to data analytics. Users of the course will learn the basic terminology used in performing data analytic-based tasks or working with data analytics. An understanding of the sources of data and importance in combining multiples sources will be developed. Users will be introduced to and will practice the basics of Microsoft's Power Query. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

This one-hour course will focus primarily on Power Query, Power Pivot, and VLOOKUP skills. Users will learn how to join tables using various techniques and add-ons in Excel. Users will understand how to utilize the tools while maintaining data integrity. The majority of the course will focus on hands-on data exercises. Users will apply skills to create relationships and analyze the data using Power Query. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

In this one-hour course, users will learn to apply Power Query to extract, transform, and load data for analysis. Users will learn how to manipulate data once it is loaded into the platform and will practice the manipulation during the course. Using the same data as the instructor, users will perform an exercise to clean and transform a basic general ledger with an emphasis on preparing the data for analysis. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

In this one-hour course, users will apply Excel and Power BI tools and skills directly to tables in Excel. Users will work alongside the instructor to create named tables, create structured references, enter formulas, and prepare the tables for input into Power Query. Users will be introduced to the preparation of the first level of statistics - descriptive statistics. Emphasis will be placed on mean, median, and standard errors. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

This one-hour course will introduce users to table functions in Excel and Power BI. Users will demonstrate an ability to apply and utilize named ranges and naming conventions to data. Specific focus will be given to common formulas and functions within Excel. Common pitfalls in formula implementation will be discussed. Users will utilize exercises alongside an instructor to practice formula and function skills. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

This one-hour course will provide users with hands-on practice using PivotTables and Excel. Users will learn and apply skills to create, structure, and analyze data using PivotTables. The benefits and limitations of PivotTables will be discussed. Users will be introduced to Power Pivot and Online Analytics Processing within it. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

This one-hour course will serve as an introduction to data visualization and reporting using Power BI and Excel. Users will understand the benefits of using Power BI to create data visualizations and how Power BI differs from previous functions in Excel for visualizations. A hands-on exercise will be applied where the user will work alongside the instructor to create dashboarding for journal entry testing. Specific focus will be on the relation among various tools for data analytics: Power Query, Power Pivot, PivotTables, DAX formulas, and storyboarding. This course is one in a ten-part certification series, Core Data Analytics: Excel and Power BI Skills for Accounting and Finance Professionals, by Surgent IQ.

There is no shortage of data, but relatively few organizations have an environment and process to isolate, capture, analyze, and convert data into actionable information. Too often, we collect as much data as possible, continue to use historic measurements, and communicate data using traditional vehicles. Good decisions are not the result of the amount of data gathered, but of the quality and understanding of the information. The goal of this program is to explore a number of analytical tools and techniques and identify applications for them within an organization. Analytical techniques will be introduced throughout the discussion, and a significant amount of time will be spent addressing the steps needed to establish a data-driven environment and identifying and discussing potential/specific applications. In this way, participants get experience they can begin to use in their organizations. An expanded list of reference books and next level software is also provided.

Data analytics and mining are the fastest growing disciplines in accounting and general management. Many organizations are either planning programs or have them already underway. Unfortunately, a number of these attempts fail due to poor planning/preparation and a lack of commitment, training, and clear vision of the program's goals. Today there is no shortage of data, but relatively few organizations have established an environment and ongoing process to isolate, capture, analyze, and convert data into actionable information. At times, even organizations that are employing leading-edge analytics are doing it with traditional, limited sets of data. This session explores how an organization can successfully become data driven. The discussion includes numerous examples demonstrating how accounting and financial professionals can build upon their current analytical skills to better perform traditional tasks and assume a role as a business partner with others in their organization. The program is aimed to assist those just beginning the journey, as well as those who want to test their current efforts or are considering the need for a restart. In addition to discussing a number of analytical tools, including available software, lists of reference books and next-level software are provided. This program continues to build upon the Controllership Update Series.

Data security is a front-of-mind topic for most businesses because the risk and cost statistics are sobering. Each of us is in the crosshairs because a typical internet-connected computer faces a cyberattack every 39 seconds. Businesses of all sizes should be cognizant of the ethical issues that must be considered when planning their approach to privacy and data security. In this webinar, we will explore both the risks we have traditionally faced in the workplace personally, as well as the novel set of data privacy threats and compliance challenge issues employers face with a remote and mobile workforce.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 has had a tremendous impact on commercial real estate, including liberalizing the depreciation provisions. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) included several provisions that allow taxpayers to revisit projects completed in earlier, more profitable years, and generate even more value. In this webinar, we will explore the impact of these important laws on commercial real estate owners and delve into what Accounting and Financial Professionals need to know. We'll also examine these opportunities to "turn back the clock," including the retroactive correction of QIP's recovery period and the option to revoke electing-out of the business interest limitation. Finally, we will review other strategies that are crucial parts of a comprehensive tax plan this year and will discuss a strategic hierarchy for employing those strategies most successfully. Relevant Rev. Procs. and multiple real-life case studies will be reviewed.

This course provides an overview of the disclosure requirements for SEC Form 8-K, the broad form used to notify investors in U.S. publicly traded companies of certain events that may be important . This course provides an overview of the key disclosure requirements for several of the triggering events requiring the filing of a Form 8-K with the SEC. This course also provides information about how the Form 8-K requirements have evolved over time.

This course provides an overview of the disclosure requirements regarding risks and uncertainties. The disclosure requirements related to risks and uncertainties are prescribed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) in ASC Topic 275. For public business entities that file their annual and interim reports with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), there are also additional disclosure requirements required by Regulation S-K. This course focuses on general disclosure requirements outlined in U.S. GAAP. This course also provides illustrative examples from both the GAAP implementation guidance as well as actual SEC filings from public business entities.