Performing high quality audit engagements starts with a strong system of quality control. Learn about common quality control issues identified by the AICPA Peer Review and Ethics teams as well as the steps you can take to avoid them.
Learning Objectives:
- Recognize common quality control issues identified by the AICPA Peer Review and Ethics teams
- Identify steps you and your firm can take to avoid these common issues
This session will cover:
- Cyber Risks: Over view and Importance to CPAs
- Profiling a Hacker:
- Understanding the Methods
- Mindset and Motivation
- What to Do After a Breach Occurs
- Best Practices for Establishing an Effective Data Breach Response Plan
- Review of Cyber Insurance Coverage Options
- Moving Forward: Establishing an Effective Date Security Strategy
- Latest Cyber Attack Methods
- Data and Security Regulations under the new Administration
Cyber risk management is on many boardroom agendas. And for good reason. The past several years have seen some of history's most high-profile cyber breaches and attacks, and the magnitude of stolen information is staggering. The proliferation of cybercrime is putting organizations under intense pressure from boards, regulators, investors, analysts, business partners, customers, and other stakeholders to respond to inquiries about the effectiveness of their cyber risk management program. Yet there’s still a growing need for greater transparency and uniformity when it comes to evaluating and reporting on an organization’s cyber risk management program and related controls. This is further compounded by the fact that there’s no single approach for doing so today.
Paychex and Dimensional Fund Advisors are pleased to highlight key defined contribution plan design considerations necessary when building effective and efficient next generation retirement plans. Topics covered will span both the accumulation and decumulation phases of retirement planning and include: plan design structures (defined contribution plans-new comparability versus Individual Retirement Accounts), Traditional versus Roth 401(k)s, and investment menu considerations. When designing outcome-focused defaults, we will present the four step design process required of any Defined Contribution investment portfolio by 1) defining the goal of the solution, 2) addressing the risks relevant to accomplishing the goal, 3) staffing the solution with a purposeful asset allocation, and finally 4) communications and evaluation criteria. Learning objectives:
This presentation will:
- Discuss next generation default investment alternatives and introduce key concepts such as ALM and how to address the risks facing participants as they target retirement income replacement rates.
- Highlight the building blocks to accumulate assets through design alternatives as well as pre and post tax considerations.
- Review advances and key components in qualified default investment alternatives and how to appropriately match assets to participants’ liabilities when in and near retirement.
New renewal requirements for AICPA credentials went into effect January 1, 2017. This session will provide an overview of these new requirements and the expanded opportunities for credential holders to develop the professional competencies necessary to support continued success in their specialized area of practice.
Learning Objectives:
- Recognize the new renewal requirements and related process for AICPA credentials
- Identify both structured and unstructured learning opportunities to meet the new requirements for the credentials you hold
- Recall how to record your learning plan and activities on the AICPA Competency and Learning site
Join the AICPA's PFP Section for an interactive discussion. Get up to date on new developments, learn about new resources within our profession and get a view of what lies ahead.
Specifically, you'll:
- Understand the information, resources, and tools available to members who serve individuals in the core areas of personal financial planning
- Explore key initiatives in the PFP Division that support the long-term success of the profession
Join the AICPA's Center for Plain English Accounting (CPEA) for an interactive discussion. Get up to date on new developments, learn about new resources within our profession and get a view of what lies ahead. Specifically, you'll gain an understanding of common SSARS 21 implementation issues and learn about recent audit issues practitioners have been facing.
This session provides an overview of the latest developments and trends in key areas of accounting and auditing.
Attendees will learn about:
- The current A&A environment and changes on the horizon
- How attendees can stay ahead of these changes
- AICPA initiatives to support continued A&A quality
In this presentation, Samantha Azzarello, Global Market Strategist for J.P. Morgan Funds, will share ideas on how to use the Guide to the Markets, JPMorgan Funds' industry-leading publication, to address key client concerns including politics and debt, Europe, oil and more. The Guide is designed to provide a clear understanding of both markets and the economy, as well as to help investors avoid common behaviorally-driven pitfalls.
At the conclusion of this session, participants should be able to:
- Clearly explain the current state of the global economy & capital markets using stories and analogies.
- Discuss the risks facing investors over the coming 12 months, along with ideas on how to navigate them.
During this session, attendees will participate in an interactive discussion of current Board initiatives with respect to audits and attestation engagements.
Participants will:
- Learn of recent standard-setting activities including the ASB's Going Concern, Auditor Reporting and Direct Engagement projects
- Hear updates on upcoming projects, including estimates and fair value, quality control, group audits and professional skepticism.
- Discuss audit guide releases on engagements on cybersecurity and sustainability
Learning Objectives:
- Become familiar with newly issued standards and audit quality initiatives.
- Identify opportunities to expand profession involvement in non-traditional reporting areas.
At some point in the 70+ age range, longevity risk creates more financial uncertainty for retirees than being 100% invested in equities, and so becomes a serious issue that should be confronted explicitly. What are the options for dealing with this issue? How can annuities be integrated into a portfolio structure? Learn how for most individuals, an advanced life deferred annuity (longevity insurance') is a more sensible solution than an immediate annuity, because of a little-known relationship between deferred and immediate annuities. Find out the trio of financial goals that most retirees desire and how a deferred annuity fits into these goals.
Attendees will learn:
- The relationship between an immediate annuity and a deferred annuity.
- Why a deferred annuity is typically a better longevity solution than an immediate annuity.
- The role of a deferred annuity in a retiree's portfolio.
Mr. Steiner will discuss how common sense wisdom from everyday life can also make you a better wealth manager – and a better advisor to clients.
He will discuss principles such as:
- Start with the client’s core values – and ensure the client’s financial plans and investment strategies are aligned to them.
- Always ask why – and don’t assume you know how your client would answer.
- Know your firm’s niche – and capitalize on your specialties.
The stock market is random in the short-term and highly predictable over the longer-term—periods of 5-10 years and longer. This presentation identifies and explains the key drivers of longer-term returns and closes with portfolio-level implications. This presentation not only provides essential information about the current and upcoming market environment, but also imparts vivid graphics and insightful layman descriptions that investment professionals find to be useful with clients.
Attendees will learn:
- All key drivers of the stock market are signaling a period of below-average returns on the near horizon.
- There are ways to structure portfolios to limit market risk and enhance overall returns
- The presentation includes numerous graphics and analogies that investment professionals find useful with clients
This session will discuss a survey of the duties and responsibilities of persons serving as trustees.
Learning Objectives:
- Help attendees understand implications of accepting appointment as trustee.
- Help attendees control responsibilities accepted.
This session focuses on the breadth and depth of accounting, business, and technology topics being covered in university accounting programs today.
- You will learn about the breadth and depth of topics covered in university accounting programs - significant advances in both the technical and the experiential aspects of accounting education will be covered.
- You will learn about how the practicing profession - public practice, business & industry, and nonprofit - are helping the educational process and how to go about joining in
This session will describe the potential effects of ASC Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, on the construction industry.
Particpants will:
- Identify some of the key changes in practice following the adoption of ASC Topic 606.
- Describe the main benefits and challenges associated with both allowable methods of transition to ASC Topic 606.
- Identify the new disclosure requirements of ASC Topic 606 and how they apply to construction entities.
The tax rules surrounding IRAs and other retirement accounts are complex and constantly changing. Many of the recent changes were made through Court and IRS rulings that are not widely publicized, yet apply to virtually all clients with retirement accounts. Find out the latest in the world of IRA tax planning so you can share this with clients who will be looking to you for guidance on making critical retirement decisions. This will add to your value as a key retirement advisor.
Learning objectives:
- To be aware of the latest tax and IRA distribution decisions from recent cases and rulings. These will apply to your clients who are relying on you for the right advice before making major decisions affecting their retirement savings.
- To learn how to avoid the most costly IRA mistakes made by CPAs. Many of these errors are fatal. They cannot be fixed and the consequences are financially disastrous, to both you and your clients.
- To immediately provide valuable and profitable information to clients who are at risk of making errors. They are not getting this information from their typical financial advisor. Be seen as a proactive retirement advisor, as opposed to reporting on events that happened last year. That’s too late.
The fastest growing firms in the advisory space have figured out a formula for transformational growth. How are the best leaders of those advisory firms growing 31% faster than every other advisory firm? Through 16 years of experience and research consulting over 600 advisory firms of all sizes, Angie Herbers, shares this simple, fundamental method to transformation growth.
Attendees will learn:
- How to grow your advisory firm/division faster
- How to achieve your growth goals
This session provides actionable ideas financial professionals can implement to help 'irrational' investors act more rationally. We begin by discussing and solving for a few faulty assumptions classical economics makes pertaining to investing, with special emphasis on the assumption that 'the investor is rational.' _x000D_We discuss how our DNA basically ensures we are 'irrational' investors and what professionals can do about it. Attendees will be empowered with specific examples (behavioral coaching) to help combat our natural urges, and promote a more deliberate, thoughtful approach to making investment decisions.
Attendees will:
- Correct for faulty assumptions made by classical economic theory.
- Understand how and why investors act irrationally.
- Learn actionable strategies to help investors make more thoughtful decisions.
Many asset protection planning techniques exist for use by those who are concerned about the possibility of potential future creditors. Exemption planning and, specifically, the use of life insurance and annuities in exemption planning, as well as the use of qualified plans and Individual Retirement Accounts, is but one those techniques - albeit perhaps the most important one for financial planners to fully understand.
Learning Objectives:
- Attendees will learn what financial products are exempt from creditors, both inside and outside of Bankruptcy, and under what circumstances, in order to be able to advise clients as to the asset protection benefits of such products.
- Attendees will learn more generally about exemption planning as an important asset protection planning technique, in order to be able to advise clients more broadly about whether and under what circumstances they might be protected from potential future creditors.
This session will provide background on the Uniform CPA Examination including its purpose, structure, and the content that is eligible for testing. It will provide insight into the knowledge and skills required of newly licensed CPAs, recent changes to the Examination that were implemented on April 1, 2017, as well as how candidates can prepare for the Exam. Finally, the session will cover further changes to the CPA Exam that will be implemented in 2018 and how you might assist in development of the Exam.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify the underlying components of the Uniform CPA Examination, including its purpose, structure, and the content that is eligible for testing
- Recognize changes implemented to the CPA Examination effective April 1, 2017
This session will discuss methods of determining and documenting sample sizes in audits of financial statements, and will provide a review of guidance in the AICPA Audit Guide Audit Sampling and common peer review and inspection comments regarding sample sizes.
Learning Objectives:
- Illustrate several methods of determining defensible sample sizes for samples of internal controls and substantive tests of detail.
- Review guidance on setting parameters for determining sample sizes
This session will focus on complex financial instruments that are liabilities under ASC 480-10. I will be providing tips and tricks for identifying, analyzing, and measuring such instruments.
After this session, participants will be better able to:
- Identify and analyze ASC 480-10 liabilities
- Measure ASC 480-10 liabilities at issuance and on Day 2
Many CPA planners are skeptical of Variable Annuities, and therefore disregard them as a financial planning possibility. This mostly due to higher costs and a skepticism of investing inside insurance products. The presentation will highlight both the negative and positive aspects of variable annuities. Attendees will get a better understanding of the negatives and perceived negatives of variable annuities. They will also be presented with benefits of variable annuities that are not offered with any other product. There will be a review of case studies in which the presenter has utilized variable annuities, with an explanation as to why a variable annuity was the correct solution.
As financial planning shifts from the founding generation of planners (and their clients) to the next, so too does the world around us, as we enter the digital age. Thus far, however, financial planning has been slow to effectively adopt the emerging digital age technologies, from cloud computing to video 'phone' calls to internet-driven workflows. In this session, we will explore how financial planning will undergo radical change in the coming decades as we truly enter the digital age, from financial planning 'apps' for various devices, to what technology will - and won't - replace in the financial planning relationship, to how financial planning practices must market and communicate to survive and thrive.
Objectives:
- Explore how technology is changing effective client communication techniques.
- Understand the essential aspects of building trust and rapport with clients.
- Learn how technology can accelerate or hinder the trust-building process with clients.
The Center for Plain English Accounting (CPEA) addresses one of the most complicated areas of GAAP—consolidating variable interest entities (VIEs). Join the CPEA staff as they discuss the accounting guidance for VIE consolidation, cover key practice issues, and provide insights on applying the VIE literature to situations commonly found at private companies.
Learning Objectives:
- Identify critical aspects of FASB Accounting Standards Codification 810, Consolidation.
- Select best practices for variable interest entity (VIE) consolidation guidance to common situations encountered at private companies