Advanced Personal Financial Planning (as part of ENGAGE 2020)

Clients are looking to their CPA financial planners for answers. They are asking about their investments, the market, volatility, and tax planning opportunities, as well as other financial planning concerns. You will hear from two CPA financial planners who will share effective communication techniques when dealing with clients during a crisis, as well as how they respond to the common questions clients are asking.

Learning Objectives:
· Learn communication techniques to help clients deal with the stress from the pandemic.
· Understand how to discuss investment planning in a volatile market with your clients.
· Discuss tax planning opportunities related to the Cares Act.

Join this exciting special Town Hall with AICPA Leadership to hear about the latest issues affecting the profession and how we're working to help guide the way forward. We'll cover things like:

- the Firms role in business relief and restarting of the economy 

- How firms are operating in new normal environment, and;

- Online platforms and new firm strategies to drive success.

Learning Objectives:
· Identify your role in business relief and restarting of the economy
· Identify how to operate in the new normal
· Recognize the AICPA resources and tools

Summary:
Small-business owners secured a major recruitment tool and an enhanced tax credit offering with the passage of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement (SECURE) Act. The bill is the most significant retirement savings reform legislation in nearly 15 years, and addresses many of the hurdles facing small-business owners who put off starting a retirement plan due to start-up costs, administration, and compliance requirements.

Attend this webinar and learn about the details of the bill and why small businesses should put a retirement plan in place to take advantage of increased tax credits and other benefits of the act.

Learning Objectives:
· Review the provisions of the Act
· Discuss details on the new tax credits and how your clients can qualify for them
· Highlight the advantages of a 401(k) plan and discuss tax strategies that can benefit your clients

Come hear a presentation on political trends in the US and across the globe, with a concentration on how those trends impact global economies and the financial markets.

Humans are hardwired with a number of innate traits that make us susceptible to unhelpful decision making - especially when families, money and control are at stake. This presentation identifies key behavioral finance concepts and their implications for portfolio construction and financial planning. Best practices to circumvent the worst tendencies, or embrace the best ones to benefit long term goals will be discussed.

The continuing shift of spending power and wealth from one generation to the next represents one of the largest threats AND opportunities in recent times in the financial services industry.

While the industry has been faced with this challenge for many years, the temptation is to believe that traditional approaches to retaining clients and assets through life cycles will work in 2020 and beyond. The reality is that wholesale changes may be required within the business to change the conversation with clients and to reverse trends in asset depletion.

GSAM's "Multi-generational Wealth Transfer" discussion begins to address this issue, taking a distinct and differentiated view.

The volume of RIAs bought and sold has significantly picked up pace over the last decade, and based on current industry trends, the next decade should see a record number of deals. But, short term, the market has been impacted by the current COVID-19 pandemic – yet deals continue to get done and a significant increase in deal volume is expected once a market rebound occurs. This session will share the most current M&A trends for the first half of 2020, how business valuations and deal structures have been impacted, as well as strategies for increasing the value of your advisory business, equity sharing strategies, financing options, and tax considerations for buying and selling a financial services business.

Artificial intelligence was known to have an enormous impact on investment management and financial planning prior to COVID-19, which has in some ways accentuated its impact on small and medium sized practices. Rather than replace human intelligence, however, AI will augment it. What is that alchemy? What parts of the industry will be most impacted? How do owners of small-to-medium sized wealth managers need to respond to survive? Based on industry survey data on AI and thought leadership on drivers of trust in advisory relationships, this session will focus on articulating a skills pathway (a sequential progression of competencies) to help practitioners transition from being individual contributors to become future leaders.

Leading your clients to 'a-ha' moments of understanding and inspiration is at the heart of our work as financial professionals. But topics like risk, diversification, and factor-based investing can seem difficult to explain. Theron Schaub, Loring Ward's VP of Strategic Relations, shares new ideas for talking about these foundational topics and investment principals in ways that will surprise even the most seasoned professional.

Interest rates affect planning -- whether your client is creating a grantor retained annuity trust (GRAT) or making a Sale to a "Defective" Grantor Trust (Sale)...or simply loaning money to children. Understand how interest rates affect GRATs and Sales and how to avoid a "below-market" loan that could have potential gift and income tax consequences.

In our online presentation you will have the ability to ask any Social Security Question you have which is not always the case in the on-site presentation.  come prepared to have an interactive and informative time.

Social Security is in the news more than ever as the baby boom generation is half way through qualifying for benefits. your clients who are nearing retirement want to know the best strategy for them to collect the maximum personal benefit from the program. learn the rules to be able to handle each client since there are no two financial situations that are the same.

Join this session sponsored by the AICPA’s Women Initiatives Executive Committee and National Commission on Diversity and Inclusion, to hear panelists not only present the challenges that women face, but also expand upon how those challenges present for women of color, and how allyship and sponsorship are critical to advancement.

The recent market downturn highlighted a huge issue with AUM fees: that revenues go down at exactly the time when your workload and client communications go up. The panelists will discuss their experience with three alternative models: monthly subscription fees, a pure hourly fee model, and flat monthly fees.

This session will address three core questions regarding factor investing:

1) What is factor investing?

2) Why has factor investing worked in the past?

3) Will factor investing work in the future?