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AST1
SURGENT McCOY's BASIC AUDIT STAFF TRAINING - LEVEL I
Level
I focuses on the basic skill sets that new staff need to quickly master in order to “hit the ground running”,
while not overwhelming them with too much information all at once. This course explains the basics of what new auditors are
expected to know and do, including the nature, timing and extent of common audit procedures. This course will focus on “why”
certain procedures are performed, as well as “how” to perform typical procedures expected of new staff. This course
is critical in establishing the groundwork for the expectation that all staff should critically analyze and understand the
underlying purpose of procedures, as well as how to effectively and efficiently complete assigned tasks.
Major
topics include:
- Scope of services:
Basic requirements of compilations, reviews and audits
- Understanding the
audit process: Common terminology, nature of typical audit procedures, documentation of audit evidence, and the form and content
of typical engagement workpaper files
- Workpaper documentation:
Tips and techniques for documentation of audit evidence, and the form and content of typical engagement workpaper files
- New auditor’s
role on the engagement team: Characteristics of best performers, handling difficult client and engagement situations, and
understanding the roles and responsibilities of various team members
- Interpersonal and
communication skills: Appropriately handling difficult client and engagement situations
- Assessing risk for
a higher quality audit: Understanding the concept of the various components and underlying factors that impact audit risk,
documenting a basic understanding of the client’s business and industry (including internal controls), and the resulting
impact on the nature, timing and extent of planned audit procedures
- Cash case study: Audit
objectives, performing and documenting client inquiries related to cash, and testing bank reconciliations
- Professionalism and
ethics: The necessity of fully integrating these professional standards into all types of engagements
Designed
for: New auditors with 0-4 months audit experience
Level
of knowledge: Basic
Field
of study: Regulatory Ethics (3.5) and Auditing (12.5)
Please
Note: Participants should bring a calculator to the seminar.
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BFTU
THE BEST FEDERAL TAX UPDATE COURSE BY SURGENT McCOY
This course is designed to review the latest tax law changes and
planning strategies for individuals, S corporations, LLCs, estates, fringe benefits, and payroll taxes, in what could be one
of the most important years for year-end tax planning. The purpose is to provide a survey of what practitioners need to know
in an unstable tax environment. Major trends and changes in case and regulatory law will be emphasized.
Major
topics include:
- Get up-to-the-minute
year-end tax planning strategies for the election year.
- Find out about new
guidance in 2008 for return preparers
- Review the key cases,
rulings, and tax law changes affecting individuals
- Understand estate
and gift tax: what should be done in 2008, 2009, and 2010?
- Get a handle on the
Kiddie Tax: new age limits
- Discuss alimony and
other intrafamily transfers
- Find out about new
tax planning issues for IRA Distributions
- Understand charitable
and medical expenses and the choices to make
- Discover recent developments
with business entities, including C corporations, S corporations, partnerships, and limited liability companies
- Find out about self-employment
and other payroll tax issues
- Understand new strategies
for maximizing Social Security benefits
- Review substantiation:
the key to business deductions
- Discuss new depreciation
rules for 2008
- Study practice aids,
including the 2008 inflation-adjusted amounts, mileage rates, and more
Designed
for: CPAs who need to know the latest tax law changes in all areas of practice.
Level
of knowledge: Update Field
of study: Taxes
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Are they devils or angels? Contrast Warren Buffett, legendary investor, who considers them "financial weapons of
mass destruction" with former Fed Chairman Greenspan who considers them a way to manage, control and reduce risk. This
course covers the nature, uses and abuses of these financial products.
Major topics include:
* options, forwards, futures, interest-rate swaps
* credit default swaps
* employee stock
options
* hedging, speculation, arbitrage
* efficient markets (or are they?)
* SFAS 123R and
133
Level - Basic
Area: Accounting and Auditing
Pre-requisite: You should have some knowledge of stocks, bonds, and interest rate risk.
Instructor: John Coughlan, PhD, CPA, CMA
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STRI
SURGENT McCOY'S ADVANCED INDIVIDUAL INCOME TAX RETURN ISSUES
Most CPAs have been preparing individual income tax returns for
years, and while many of the returns are easy, there are always a number of issues that come up in busy season of which experienced
practitioners wish they had more knowledge. This course is designed to explore the tough tax issues for experienced practitioners
and help them provide better planning strategies and results for their higher income clients.
Major topics include:
- Section 179 expense
and bonus depreciation in 2008.
- Incentive and nonqualified
stock options -- Reporting; key strategies for planning; dealing with the alternative minimum tax.
- Alternative minimum
tax -- Understanding it; planning strategies to avoid it; using the minimum tax credit; explaining it to a client.
- Puts, calls, straddling,
and unusual investments -- Understanding the tax laws and reporting them correctly on the tax return.
- Capital gain and loss
issues -- The problem with proper reporting of installment sales issues; capital gains and losses; when is a stock worthless;
and much more…
- Passive loss issues
-- You can't just trust your software. What to watch out for, and the questions you need your clients to answer in order to
do it right!
- Miscellaneous issues
-- Flow through income and deduction issues of estates and trusts; when legal fees are deductible; hobby loss rules; business
expense issues; and much more.
- Special forms and
elections – TDF 90.22.1; 8886 Reportable Transactions; the real estate professional; start-up expenditures; and much
more
- New code and regulations
that impact preparation.
Designed for: Experienced CPAs who want and need an in-depth knowledge of the most difficult individual-income-tax-return
issues.
Level of knowledge: Advanced Field of study: Taxes
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AST2
SURGENT McCOY's EXPERIENCED AUDIT STAFF TRAINING - LEVEL II
Level II prepares new staff for assuming a greater level of responsibility
on engagements. Once staff have “gotten their feet wet” by participating on a few engagements, this course will
help auditors thoughtfully reflect on their experiences, and how to take basic knowledge to the next level. This course will
include many real-life case studies for common audit areas assigned to staff with less than 2 years of experience with minimal
supervision.
Major
topics include:
- Assessing risk for
a higher quality audit: Understanding the concept of a risk-based audit, including linking risk assessment to the nature,
timing and extent of planned procedures specific to each engagement
- Common effectiveness
and efficiency considerations: Discussing typical opportunities to improve the quality of documentation and procedures for
typical financial statement areas
- Workpaper documentation
and review: Efficient format and preparation techniques, and tips for better workpaper review
- Property, plant and
equipment case study: Audit objectives, typical audit procedures, common presentation and disclosure issues, and determining
capital vs. operating leases
- Accounts receivable
case study: Audit objectives, typical audit procedures, evaluating confirmation evidence, and common presentation and disclosure
issues
- Inventory basics case
study: Audit objectives, typical audit procedures, inventory observation tips and techniques, basic inventory price testing,
and common presentation and disclosure issues
- Accounts payable and
accrued liability case study: Audit objectives, typical audit procedures, search for unrecorded liabilities, and common presentation
and disclosure issues
- Income statement case
study: Audit objectives, typical audit procedures, line item analytical review, and common presentation and disclosure issues
- Drafting financial
statements: Basic financial statement components, financial reporting standards, efficiency considerations, and case study
on identifying footnote errors
Designed for: Auditors with 5-20 months audit experience
Level of knowledge: Basic
Field of study: Auditing
Please Note: Participants should bring a calculator to the seminar.
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AST3
SURGENT McCOY's BEGINNING IN-CHARGE TRAINING - LEVEL III
Level III focuses on transitioning staff auditors to performing
more complex audit procedures, and assuming more responsibilities related to engagement and client management. This course
builds on the technical experience of auditors to introduce them to the tips and techniques necessary to begin assuming client
and engagement management responsibilities on smaller engagements.
Major
topics include:
- Tailoring standard
audit programs for a better audit: Linking risk assessments to detailed planning, tailoring standard audit programs for more
effective and efficient audits, and planning an audit engagement
- Client and engagement
management: Budgeting and scheduling engagements, preparing client assistance requests, supervision tips, and improving engagement
wrap-up
- Internal controls:
Enhancing understanding of anti-fraud and corporate responsibility, understanding the common framework for designing a system
of internal controls, the auditor’s responsibility related to internal controls, linking assessed risk to mitigating
control activities, designing tests of controls to reduce control risk, handling exceptions related to internal control, additional
responsibilities related to internal control in a Single Audit, and additional responsibilities related to internal control
in a Section 404 attestation engagement
- Analytical procedures:
Benefits of analytical procedures over tests of details, types of analytical procedures, required steps for designing substantive
analytical procedures, and common pitfalls in using substantive analytical procedures as audit evidence
- Sampling: Sampling
defined, the sampling process, documentation requirements, common sampling terminology, statistical vs. nonstatistical sampling,
and handling exceptions
- Investments case study:
Audit objectives, typical audit procedures, valuation procedures, and typical presentation and disclosure issues
- Debt case study: Audit
objectives, typical audit procedures, debt covenant compliance, and typical presentation and disclosure issues
- Drafting financial
statements: Process for drafting financial statements, drafting footnotes, drafting the cash flow statement, and common efficiency
considerations
Designed for: Staff with 21-36 months audit experience
Level of knowledge: Intermediate
Field of study: Auditing
Prerequisites: Familiarity with SAS’s and FASB’s Please Note: Participants should bring a calculator to the seminar
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Down & Dirty 1040 Tax Preparation – 4 hrs.
Objective: At the end of
this seminar, individuals will be able to successfully fill out 1040 forms and schedules.
Topics that
will be covered:
·
Discussion of form or law changes related
to basic preparation of the Form 1040.
·
AMT
·
Itemized deductions with emphasis on the mortgage
deduction.
·
Rental properties.
·
Charity substantiation rules.
·
Any questions the group brings up will
be discussed.
Level - Basic
Who should
attend: CPAs, anyone interested
in preparing their own tax returns or that want to help family and friends with preparing their tax returns.
Area: Taxation
Pre-requisite: The audience should have some knowledge of the 1040 form and schedules.
Instructor:
Arthur Auerbach, CPA
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BCPE
THE BEST S CORPORATION, LIMITED LIABILITY, AND PARTNERSHIP
UPDATE COURSE BY SURGENT McCOY
If you are a practitioner who wants the latest information on
tax changes affecting your business clients or employers, then you should take this enlightening course. You will learn invaluable
knowledge, strategies, techniques, innovative tax-planning concepts, and income-generating ideas along with other planning
opportunities available to S corporations, partnerships, LLCs, and LLPs.
Major
topics include:
- Choice of entity issues
- Basis issues: at-risk,
passive activities
- Service partners:
capital interests, profits interest, or option
- Self-employment taxes:
are there major changes affecting S corporation shareholders on the horizon?
- Liabilities: recourse
and nonrecourse
- A review of the key
cases, rulings, and tax law changes affecting S corporations, partnerships, limited liability companies, and limited liability
partnerships
- LLCs and LLPs: the
critical tax issues involving admission of new members; the contribution of property or services to the entity; the effect
of liabilities on basis; fringe benefit issues; the death or retirement of an owner; the sale of an interest in the business
- Debts between entity
and the investors: open-account and written debt
- Tax nothings
- Practice aids and
tax-planning worksheets
- Any late-breaking
tax legislation
Designed for: All tax practitioners, both those working in public accounting as well as those in private industry,
who need the latest information on tax changes affecting their business clients or employers.
Level of knowledge: Update Field of study: Taxes
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