CPE Catalog & Events

When the leadership in any organizations carries out their responsibilities of establishing, maintaining and monitoring internal controls, it significantly reduces the possibility of fraud occurring.  When and if it does occur, a good system of internal controls will often detect it early on.  This presentation is an illustration of what can happen when top management fails to carry out their responsibility of protecting an entity’s assets through a good system of internal controls. Speaker - Dennis Dycus

How good are you with the technology you use daily? Are new technology tools available to save time and make you more effective? Technology continues to accelerate rapidly, and keeping pace is essential. This course is for you 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! 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 11), peripheral devices, and what they mean for you. 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, best practices for 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. So register now for this "don't miss" opportunity to get the skills required to enhance the value of your IT investment.Speaker - Steve Yoss

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A common challenge for the controller role is in closing the month-end and period-end books in preparation to issue financial statements. This duty requires precision, timing and efficiency. In today’s digital world, many organizations have access to financial accounting software that will assist with the steps in the financial close. However, even with this aid it is critical the accountant understand the various steps for the close process and how they inter-relate to other accounting processes. This course gives you an insight into the inter-relationships between many processes that impact the financial close. The closing process has traditionally been a slow one with many companies taking two weeks to close its subsidiary’s books and another two to three weeks to roll up and consolidated the results. With the introduction of technology much has been done to help accelerate that process with integrated enterprise resource planning systems and general ledger and consolidate software. Within this segment we will discuss the elements of the financial close and also important concepts to assist the controller in accelerating their close timeline. This includes addressing all functional areas of the close including payroll, invoicing, payables, inventory, cash, and the general ledger. We will also discuss important concepts of ensuring your financial close is accurate by discussing bank reconciliations, overhead allocations, bad debt reserves, unpaid wages and accruals for vacation time, account reconciliations, deprecation and overall financial statement review. Note: This course does not address utilizing technology in the financial close. Its focus is to understand the varied procedures involved in the financial close whether or not technology is utilized.   Speaker - Lynn Fountain

The ACFE/COSO Fraud Risk Management Guide (FRMG) was published in 2016 (and updated in 2023).  It has quickly gained acceptance as the set of best practices for preventing, detecting, and thus deterring fraud. The fraud landscape is constantly changing and evolving. The FRMG sets out a rigorous set of principles and leading practices for managing fraud risk for forward-thinking organizations to follow.  It covers: How to establish fraud risk management governance. How to conduct rigorous fraud risk assessments. How to design and implement fraud control activities. How to establish reporting mechanisms and investigative procedures. How to monitor the overall fraud risk management program. Fraud risk can be managed.  All anti-fraud and accountability professionals will benefit from this session's focus on effective fraud risk management. Speaker - David Cotton

This course provides in-depth information to enable the practitioner to make a well-informed decision as to whether a trust is the appropriate vehicle for a client’s financial, estate, and/or asset protection plan, and, if so, how the trust can best be implemented and operated. Participants will learn about the many different types of trusts that can be harnessed to save clients income, estate, generation-skipping, and other taxes, at both the federal and state level. Speaker - Arthur Werner

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Artificial Intelligence has jumped to the forefront of technology, and perhaps no other technology receives as much attention as AI. Yet, most accounting and financial professionals struggle to take full advantage of the productivity gains that AI can provide. Change that paradigm by participating in K2’s Artificial Intelligence Conference!In this event, you will learn how to get started with the AI tools available today and the risks and benefits associated with AI. Further, you will discover some of the advanced options related to AI, including creating your own AI tools. And importantly, you will learn about various risks associated with using AI and how to mitigate those risks. If you’re seeking to improve your productivity and efficiency with AI – without compromising data security or privacy – this Conference is a “must-see” event!

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Microsoft 365/Office 365 continues to grow and evolve, yet most utilize only a fraction of the tools available in their subscription. For example, powerful resources such as SharePoint Online and audio and video conferencing can change how your organization communicates and collaborates. In contrast, more personal apps such as Teams, Planner, Flow, and Sway allow individuals to work more efficiently and effectively in virtually all facets of their jobs. Further, security enhancements to Office 365 mean that your organization can take advantage of all these features in a highly secure environment. Isn't it time you learned how to move beyond the traditional Microsoft 365/Office 365 applications such as Excel, Word, and Outlook and unleash all your subscription offers? Join us in this fast-paced and highly interactive seminar where you will learn what you need to know to succeed with Microsoft 365/Office 365.Speaker - Steve Yoss

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Accurate documentation is a cornerstone of quality management This "QM Conversation" offers participants a detailed framework for documenting their QM systems. With guidance from the subject matter expert, attendees will learn techniques to organize, maintain, and update QM documentation, enabling consistent recordkeeping and streamlined compliance. The webcast also includes hands-on exercises to create effective documentation templates, focusing on capturing essential information without unnecessary complexity. Included with your registration Documentation, peer review and the QM standards Tuesday, August 12 1:00 - 2:00pm ET 1 CPE CreditSpeaker - Melissa Bonsall

Internal controls are more important than ever, and their importance increases daily. However, internal controls present a challenge for many smaller organizations. This program will teach you how to evaluate, develop, and implement an effective internal control structure in a small business environment. You will identify how to assess risk in smaller organizations and implement preventive, detective, deterrent, and compensating controls to mitigate these risks, even without proper segregation of duties. Additionally, participating in this program will teach you technology-focused techniques for preventing and detecting fraud and securing information systems and sensitive data. For small organizations, maintaining an effective system of internal controls presents a significant challenge. Realistically, implementing many theoretical concepts surrounding internal controls may sometimes be impossible. Consequently, many internal control structures foster an environment where too much risk exists. This factor and uncontrolled information systems can often lead to disastrous results. Participate in this program to learn the necessary insights and tools to design, implement, and monitor small organizations' internal controls, security, and anti-fraud measures.Speaker - Steve Yoss

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Charts and graphs are nothing new. However, many professionals struggle with building compelling visualizations. If that statement describes you, participate in this session to improve your skills in creating Excel charts and other visualizations. As a result, you will create visualizations to enhance your communication skills. This session is much more than just a seminar on fundamental charts. Instead, in this session, you will learn how to create advanced charts that are interactive, dynamic, and aesthetically pleasing - three qualities that will help to ensure that your readers and audience will understand the data you are presenting. This seminar is a must if you want to improve your communication skills.Speaker - Steve Yoss

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Most professionals routinely use Word, Outlook, and PowerPoint, but many are self-taught and, as a result, have not used many of the best features of these three applications. Consequently, they often use "brute force," inefficient means when working with these three components of Microsoft Office. If that describes you, carve time out of your schedule to participate in this four-hour session. In it, you will learn how to work much more efficiently when using these tools to get better results in less time.Speaker - Steve Yoss

Mag Bickford will cover the latest legislative, regulatory, and judicial trends affecting employers and employees—from workplace policies to compliance risks—helping you navigate an evolving legal landscape with confidence. Mag will share best practices to fine-tune your operation.This lunchtime, 2-hour program gives you time to take care of business before and after the presentation. And it all happens live — giving you the chance to ask presenters the questions you need answered.This lunchtime, 2-hour program gives you time to take care of business before and after the presentation. And it all happens live — giving you the chance to ask presenters the questions you need answered. Qualifies for 1.67 CLE credits NOTE: This product is for the individual Webcast Lunch & Learn course. Save when you buy the Lunch & Learn Webcast Bundle! Learn more. 2025 Lunch&Learn Small Business Series includes: May 20 Cybersecurity: Managing Evolving ThreatsLes Nettleton • IT ConsultantCategory: TechnologyJune 17 SECURE 2.0: Impacts to Retirement Savings PlansAnne Oestriecher, CPA, CFP • Advisory RepresentativeOestriecher Financial Management Services • Alexandria, LACategory: Taxation • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsJuly 22 Hot Topics in Employment Law in the Current Presidential TermMag Bickford, JD • Managing Member, New Orleans OfficeMcGlinchey Stafford • New Orleans, LACategory: Management • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsAugust 19 Louisiana Tax Legislative Update, Tax Reform and MoreRobert S. Angelico, CPA, JD • ShareholderLiskow • New Orleans, LA Category: Taxation • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsSeptember 16 Fraud in the Real World: Assessing Risk & Response Ralph A. Litolff, Jr., CPA/ABV/CFF, CVA, MBA • FounderRAL Forensics, LLC • Metairie, LACategory: A&A • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsOctober 21 Succession Planning: Strategies for Business Continuity & GrowthNene Glenn Gianfala, CPA/ABV, ASA-BV/IARiley J. Busenlener, CPA/ABV, ASA, AEP®, JDChaffe & Associates • New Orleans, LACategory: Management • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsNovember 18 Federal Tax Update Greg Booth, CPA • PartnerEisnerAmper • Metairie, LACategory: Taxation • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsDecember 16 Year-End Economic Outlook: Cheers or Jeers? Stephen D. Morgan • Senior Vice President, Investment Director?Hancock Whitney  • New Orleans, LA Category: Specialized Knowledge

Microsoft Teams is one of the most exciting personal and organizational productivity tools ever appearing on the business landscape. With Teams, you can communicate and collaborate easily and securely with others, including colleagues outside your organization. Further, you can extend the already-robust functionality in Teams by incorporating add-in solutions with just a few mouse clicks. Unfortunately, despite Teams' power and relatively simple interface, many organizations struggle to deploy and use Teams. In this session, you will learn how to get up and running quickly in Teams to take full advantage of this powerful tool. More specifically, you will learn how to get started in Teams and critical decisions affecting your deployment. Also, you will learn how to work in Teams, take advantage of the chat, voice, and video call services, and share documents securely with others. Moreover, you will learn how to extend your Teams platform to external organizations for improved communication and collaboration. Additionally, you will identify how to add other applications to Teams and optimize Team's configuration for the best overall efficiency and security. If you are working with Teams or plan to do so, this is one CPE session you can't afford to miss!Speaker - Steve Yoss

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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.Speaker - Steve Yoss

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Chief Investment Strategist, Tom Stringfellow, CFA®, CPA®, CFP®, CIC, will provide an analysis of both the economic indicators and the state of the financial markets (at the time of broadcast). Viewers will gain a better understanding of how markets are interpreting the state of the economy and whether investors are becoming more confident or cautious.Tom will look at where investment dollars are flowing in terms of Sectors, Industries or Regions and /or asset classes and will economic trends support the market valuations. Purchase this webcast as an individual program, or get the members-only First Look Bundle and save! 2025 First Look Webcast Series May 28401k & Employee Benefits Update Mary Hogan • Director, Advisory - HR Advisory & OutsourcingEisner Advisory Group LLC • Pittstown, NJCategory: Management   CPE: 1 credit   CLE: 50 minutes June 18 Disaster Planning Beyond the Calculations Gerard H. Schreiber, Jr., CPA • PartnerSchreiber & Schreiber, CPAs • Metairie, LACategory: Taxation   CPE: 1 credit   CLE: 50 minutes July 30Investment Strategies in a Volatile Market Tom Stringfellow, CFA®, CPA®, CFP®, CIC • Chief Investment StrategistArgent Trust Company • San Antonio, TX  Category: Management   CPE: 1 credit  August 27SSARS Engagements – What You Need to Know Kurt Oestriecher, CPA • Managing PartnerOestriecher & Company, CPAs • Alexandria, LA  Category: A&A   CPE: 1 credit   September 27Managing Change in a High-Speed World Laila Morcos Zissis, PCC, NBC-HWC, CMC • OwnerLaila Morcos Zissis, LLC• New Orleans, LACategory: Personal Development   CPE: 1 credit   October 29Creating a Positive Workplace Culture Jim Schneider, CPA, CIA • President & Managing PartnerThe Personnel Consulting Group • New Orleans LACategory: Management   CPE: 1 credit   November 12Tax Credit Shake-Up: What the New Incentives and ITEP Rules Mean for You Keri Hart • Senior Manager, Business IncentivesKim Wallett  • Senior Manager, Business IncentivesAdvantous Consulting, LLC • Baton Rouge, LACategory: Taxation   CPE: 1 credit   CLE: 50 minutes December 9Practical Accounting Automation Using AIAndrew Schwartz, PhD • ProfessorStephenson Department of Entrepreneurship & Information SystemsLouisiana State University  Category:  Technology   CPE: 1 credit   CLE: 50 minutes

The QuickBooks platform - including the desktop and online environments - is one of the leading accounting solutions for small and growing businesses. Further, Intuit has incorporated numerous advanced features and changes into the tools over the past few releases. This seminar will teach you how to use many new and advanced features in the desktop and online environments to help you solve critical issues. For example, you will learn advanced inventory management techniques, including changing the default costing methodology and implementing lot and serial number tracking. You will also learn how to build complete sets of financial statements in Excel that link in real-time to underlying QuickBooks data files and how to create multi-company financial statements. Additionally, you will learn how to use the Client Data Review feature to streamline how to identify and correct errors and close accounting periods in QuickBooks. Knowing how to take advantage of the advanced tools and features available can determine your level of success when working with QuickBooks. So, take advantage of this opportunity to learn about QuickBooks' "deep" features to maximize your effectiveness with QuickBooks.Speaker - Steve Yoss

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Fraud plagues businesses at epidemic levels, and technology control failures are a major contributing factor. Using a case study approach, in this session, you will learn about the pervasiveness of fraud, the control failures that contribute to fraud, and what you can do to mitigate fraud risk. A specific focus of this course is the application of information technology general controls and information technology application controls. In this course, you will examine numerous reported fraud cases and identify the general control and application control failures that contributed to each fraud. By learning through these real-world case studies, you will be better positioned to reduce fraud risk.Speaker - Steve Yoss

Quality management (QM) implementation Q&As The fast-paced and interactive QM series offers condensed, high-impact Q&As and live participant-driven discussions on focused topics that change each session. You will get practical answers to your specific QM implementation questions to support effective QM implementation within your organization. This series is free for AICPA members.Speaker - Renee Rampulla

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Staff accountants have specific needs when working with Excel. Unfortunately, their existing Excel knowledge often does not meet these needs. Chief among these are summarizing data quickly and accurately, generating accurate and aesthetically pleasing reports, and creating 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 to maximize 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. In sum, this seminar is a "must" for all staff accountants seeking to improve their efficiency and accuracy when working with Excel.Speaker - Brian Tankersley

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A perennial favorite, Bob Angelico, gives you the annual recap you've been waiting for. Louisiana has experienced a significant amount of state and local tax reform over the past several months, and the 2025 fiscal session of the legislature may prove to likewise involve additional state tax reform. This presentation will cover that tax reform as well as further explanation and analysis of the 2024 tax reform, in all areas of Louisiana taxation, income and franchise tax, sales and use tax, ad valorem property tax, credits and incentives, and severance and excise taxes. This lunchtime, 2-hour program gives you time to take care of business before and after the presentation. And it all happens live — giving you the chance to ask presenters the questions you need answered. Qualifies for 1.67 CLE credit NOTE: This product is for the individual Webcast Lunch & Learn course. Save when you buy the Lunch & Learn Webcast Bundle! Learn more. 2025 Lunch&Learn Small Business Series includes: May 20 Cybersecurity: Managing Evolving ThreatsLes Nettleton • IT ConsultantCategory: TechnologyJune 17 SECURE 2.0: Impacts to Retirement Savings PlansAnne Oestriecher, CPA, CFP • Advisory RepresentativeOestriecher Financial Management Services • Alexandria, LACategory: Taxation • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsJuly 22 Hot Topics in Employment Law in the Current Presidential TermMag Bickford, JD • Managing Member, New Orleans OfficeMcGlinchey Stafford • New Orleans, LACategory: Management • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsAugust 19 Louisiana Tax Legislative Update, Tax Reform and MoreRobert S. Angelico, CPA, JD • ShareholderLiskow • New Orleans, LA Category: Taxation • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsSeptember 16 Fraud in the Real World: Assessing Risk & Response Ralph A. Litolff, Jr., CPA/ABV/CFF, CVA, MBA • FounderRAL Forensics, LLC • Metairie, LACategory: A&A • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsOctober 21 Succession Planning: Strategies for Business Continuity & GrowthNene Glenn Gianfala, CPA/ABV, ASA-BV/IARiley J. Busenlener, CPA/ABV, ASA, AEP®, JDChaffe & Associates • New Orleans, LACategory: Management • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsNovember 18 Federal Tax Update Greg Booth, CPA • PartnerEisnerAmper • Metairie, LACategory: Taxation • 2 CPE credits/1.67 CLE creditsDecember 16 Year-End Economic Outlook: Cheers or Jeers? Stephen D. Morgan • Senior Vice President, Investment Director?Hancock Whitney  • New Orleans, LA Category: Specialized Knowledge