CPE Catalog & Events
ACPEN: Mastering Charitable Remainder Trusts and Form 5227 Compliance
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Online
2.00 Credits
Introduction to Charitable Remainder Trusts (CRTs) Types of CRTs and their Benefits Formation and Funding of CRTs Identifying Suitable Candidates for CRTs Understanding Form 5227: An Overview Line-by-Line Breakdown of Form 5227 Reporting Trust Assets and Income Distributions and Charitable Beneficiaries Compliance Updates and Recent Changes to Form 5227 Best Practices for Accurate Completion and Filing
Surgent's Controllership Skills Update – Budgeting, Forecasting, and Big Data
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Virtual
1.00 Credits
Why forecasts and budgets are frequently wrong: behavioral finance; improper goal setting, games, continuing the status quo, traditional budgeting techniques Incorporating strategy into budgets: improving measurement systems; common errors, developing strategies and appropriate measurements Expanding the budgeting framework: rolling forecasts; mission-based budgeting, zero-based budgeting, post-completion evaluations, contingency planning, black swan events, identifying improvements Big data: definition, challenges, goals, current uses/examples, sources of information Analytical tools: ration analysis, benchmarking, Pareto analysis, trend analysis, regression, simulation, dashboards
Surgent's Governing Agentic AI: Cybersecurity, Data, and Risk
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Virtual
0.00 Credits
Cyber risks: prompt injection, drift, model manipulation, data leakage Red-teaming and simulation exercises (CSA, IBM frameworks) Controls mapping: COSO, SOX, and NIST AI RMF Regulatory context: GDPR, CCPA, EU AI Act, SEC guidance Platform security discussion and comparisons
Surgent's Improving Your Profits: Identifying Cost Cutting Opportunities
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Virtual
2.00 Credits
What keeps companies from becoming streamlined? Behavioral biases Information processing biases Emotional biases How to deal with behavioral biases Connecting behavioral biases to cost cutting Creating a culture of cost cutting Rules of thumb for cost cutting Managing headcount Post-COVID common areas of excess cost Budgeting techniques Budget variances Benchmarking Common size financial statements Horizontal analysis Negotiation and contracting techniques Cash flow and the business cycle
Surgent's The AI-augmented Professional: Practical Tools, Real Risks, and Immediate Use Cases
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Virtual
0.00 Credits
Explore from the history of automation to the current landscape of large language models (LLMs) and generative tools to demystify the technology Free, accessible apps to enterprise-grade solutions and specialized accounting software tailored for tax, audit, and advisory workflows Ethical obligations and professional standards that govern AI use, including data privacy, client confidentiality, and the management of "hallucinations" or inaccuracies Through specific use cases and prompting demonstrations, understand how to use AI to draft complex communications, summarize research, optimize Excel workflows, and enhance client advisory services
ACPEN: Creating A Coaching Leadership Style
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Online
3.00 Credits
What the Coaching Leadership Style Coaching Leadership Style Competencies Solution Focused Coaching Framework Leadership Competency Pillars Historical and Current Views of Coaching Coaching Culture Definition and Framework Coaching Results Measuring Success of Coaching
How SAS Nos. 134-145 Improve Risk-Based Audits
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Virtual
4.00 Credits
The major topics that will be covered in this class include:Key changes to audit report elements intended to improve the understandability of the nature and results of financial statement auditsEnhanced required by-product communications with management and those charged with governance to promote more reliable financial statementsClarifications related to obtaining sufficient and appropriate audit evidence, including significant unusual transactions, related parties, going concern uncertainty, and accounting estimatesNew definitions and requirements related to identifying and evaluating risks of material misstatementOther important matters contained in SAS Nos. 134-145
Reviewing Partnership Tax Returns: What Are You Missing?
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Virtual
4.00 Credits
Common errors made involving the following: Form 1065 Schedules K and K-1 Schedules M-1 and M-2 Calculating recourse and nonrecourse liabilities Partner inside and outside basis Partner's capital account analysis Sections 704(b), 704(c), 721, 722, 732(b), 734(b), 737, 743(b)
Surgent's You’ve Got This: An Introduction to Yellow Book and Single Audits
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Virtual
0.00 Credits
What’s included (and excluded) in a Yellow Book audit Key qualification, performance, and reporting standards under the Yellow Book How single audits differ from financial statement audits, plus core concepts like the SEFA, major program determination, and findings reporting Fundamentals of testing internal controls over compliance and performing compliance testing
Surgent’s Weekly Expert Hour
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Virtual
1.00 Credits
Each week’s topics will change based on the most critical issues affecting financial professionals
ACPEN: IFRS SMES vs IFRS
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Online
2.00 Credits
Overview of IFRS for SMEs General pervasive similar concepts Differences with financial instruments Differences with business combinations Differences in investments in other entities Differences in intangible assets Differences in income taxes Differences in employee benefits Differences in revenue and expenses
ACPEN: S Corporations: How to Calculate Shareholder Basis
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Online
2.00 Credits
Discuss the calculation of basis when the entity is formed including the impact of contributed property Explain the importance of shareholder loans to the entity Uses a comprehensive example to illustrate the mechanics of the basis determination process Discuss how basis is impacted by distributions of corporation property and sale/or liquidation of the S corporation interest Explain how S corporation losses impact Form 1040 Schedule E reporting Show how to get from the Schedule K-1 information to the basis calculations
S Corporations: Calculating Shareholder Basis
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Virtual
2.00 Credits
The major topics that will be covered in this course include:Discuss the calculation of basis when the entity is formed including the impact of contributed propertyExplain the importance of shareholder loans to the entityUses a comprehensive example to illustrate the mechanics of the basis determination processSchedule K-1 Basis and Form 7203Discuss how basis is impacted by distributions of corporation propertyExplain how basis is impacted by sale/or liquidation of the S corporation interestDiscuss how S corporation losses impact Form 1040 Schedule E reportingShow how to get from the Schedule K-1 information to the basis calculations
Surgent's Artificial Intelligence for Accounting and Finance Professionals
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Virtual
0.00 Credits
What artificial intelligence is and how it differs from automation Current AI technologies: generative AI, large language models (LLMs), and machine learning How AI enhances accounting financial analysis, auditing, tax compliance, and client advisory services Risks and limitations of AI: bias, data integrity, and over-reliance on automation Data governance, security, and privacy in AI-enabled systems Case studies of how accounting firms and finance teams are implementing AI today Future skills for accounting and finance professionals in an AI-driven environment
Surgent's Key Roth IRA and Roth 401(k) Rules for Funding and Tax-free Distributions
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Virtual
2.00 Credits
Funding options for Roth accounts Roth IRA contribution eligibility and income limits Enhanced catch-up contributions and age-based limits The Roth catch-up mandate for employer plans Roth 401(k) contribution rules, including catch-ups Roth SEP and Roth SIMPLE IRAs 529 plan rollovers to Roth IRAs Backdoor Roth strategies and pro-rata considerations The tax impact of rolling a 401(k) to a Roth IRA Who can start the Roth IRA 5-year clock? The 5-year rules for Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s Direct and indirect Roth conversions Direct and indirect rollovers from Roth 401(k) plans Ordering rules for Roth IRA distributions FIFO treatment and when it applies The risk of recapturing the 10% early distribution penalty Case studies and practical cheat sheets to reinforce key concepts
Surgent's Six Common Barriers to Investment Success
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Virtual
2.00 Credits
Availability bias Herding Loss aversion Present bias Anchoring Home country bias
NotebookLM Use Cases for Accountants
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Virtual
2.00 Credits
The major topics that will be covered in this course include:NotebookLM fundamentals: notebooks, sources, prompts, and outputsTurning financial PDFs into searchable, conversational knowledge basesAudit and assurance use cases: workpaper synthesis and issue trackingTax and regulatory research: comparing guidance across sourcesCross-referencing: tracing claims back to documents for defensibilityDrafting deliverables: memos, client notes, and executive summariesRisk controls: confidentiality, data handling, and “trust-but-verify” habits
The 10 Must Know Excel Features
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Virtual
2.00 Credits
The major topics that will be covered in this class include:Excel Tables: Master the use of Excel tables for efficient data management, including sorting, filtering, and structured references, to manage data more effectively.Custom Sorting: Get to grips with custom sorting options to organize data in a way that best suits your needs, enhancing data readability and analysis.XLOOKUP: Discover the power of XLOOKUP for advanced data retrieval, a game-changer for complex analysis, allowing you to extract specific data from extensive datasets with ease.SUBTOTAL: Gain proficiency in using the SUBTOTAL function, a versatile tool for calculating data in visible cells, ideal for analyses that require dynamic calculations.SUMIF(S): Explore the functionality of SUMIF and SUMIFS functions for conditional summing, crucial for precise budgeting, expense tracking, and financial reporting.Array Formulas: Dive into array formulas to perform multiple calculations on one or more items in an array, enhancing the efficiency of complex accounting computations.Data Validations: Learn to implement data validations to ensure data integrity and prevent errors in financial data entry, a critical skill for maintaining accurate accounting records.Slicers: Learn to use slicers for interactive data segmentation in tables and PivotTables, enabling accountants to quickly filter and analyze specific subsets of financial data.Conditional Formatting: Understand how to apply conditional formatting to highlight critical financial data points, trends, and variances, making data analysis and interpretation more intuitive.PivotTables: An introduction to PivotTables, one of the most powerful Excel features, for summarizing, analyzing, and presenting large sets of financial data in a digestible format.
ACPEN: SAS 145: Modern Risk-Based Auditing
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Online
2.00 Credits
Introducing SAS 145 Revisiting audit risk Risk assessment in the SAS 145 Era Analyzing SAS 145 Documentation requirements
ACPEN: Mergers & Acquisitions: Tips and Speed Bumps to Avoid
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Online
2.00 Credits
Making strategic acquisitions Identifying potential acquisition candidates Alternatives to M&A Identifying and understanding organizational culture Understanding the keys to effective and efficient due diligence Planning and executing an effective integration Key considerations