MACPA Statement // January 2018

STATEMENT MACPAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

J A N U A RY 2 0 1 8

What You and Your Clients Need to Know Page 4

ALSO INSIDE Less harrassment starts with more respect

Page 6

Why lease accounting laggards face serious risks

Page 8

Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants, Inc.

Your business is important. Your business is important. Your business is important. At M&T Bank, we understand the importance of building long-term At M&T Bank, we understand the importance of building long-term relationships with our customers and communities. It’s what we’ve been doing relationships our customers communities. It’s what we’ve been doing At M&T Bank,with we understand the and importance of building long-term for more than 160 years. It’s why we support our neighborhoods and why we for more thanwith 160our years. It’s why we our neighborhoods and whydoing we relationships customers andsupport communities. It’s what we’ve been keep banking decisions local. keep banking for more than decisions 160 years.local. It’s why we support our neighborhoods and why we See the difference our personal, local and long-term commitment can make. keep banking decisions local. See the difference our personal, local and long-term commitment can make. Contact your local M&T Bank representative today. Contact your local M&T Bank representative today. commitment can make. See the difference our personal, local and long-term Contact your local M&T Bank representative today. Chris Hannaby Chris Hannaby Vice President, Business Banking Vice President, Business Banking 410-832-7847 Chris Hannaby 410-832-7847 channaby@mtb.com Vice President, Business Banking channaby@mtb.com 410-832-7847 channaby@mtb.com

CONTENTS January 2018 | Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants, Inc.

CHAIRâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S COLUMN.............................................................................. 2 FEATURES Tax reform: What you and your clients need to know.......................................... 4 Eliminating harassment starts with adding respect to your culture..................... 6 Why lease accounting laggards face serious risks...............................................8

DEPARTMENTS News & Views...................................................................................................... 12 Public Practice...................................................................................................... 14 Business & Industry.............................................................................................. 24 Tax Corner............................................................................................................ 30 High-Tech Solutions............................................................................................. 33 Talent.................................................................................................................... 36

MEMBER NOTES................................................................................ 39 CLASSIFIEDS........................................................................................... 39 UPCOMING EVENTS & COURSES.................................... 42 ADMINISTRATION

TECHNICAL SERVICES

Pam Bartoshek pamb@macpa.org

Cora Edwards cora@macpa.org

Amy Stumme amy@macpa.org

MaryBeth Halpern marybeth@macpa.org

COMMUNICATIONS

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Bill Sheridan bill@macpa.org FINANCE Margaret DeRoose margaret@macpa.org Laura Swann, CPA lauras@macpa.org MEMBER SERVICES Lauren Baker lauren@macpa.org Rebekah Brown, CPA rebekah@mcpa.org

Natalie Atonakas @macpa.org Pamela C. Devine pam@macpa.org Chris Dougherty chrisd@macpa.org Amy Puente amyp@macpa.org Laura Dorsey-Shaner laura@macpa.org Terri Smith terri@macpa.org

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

Krislyn Suljak krislyn@macpa.org

Akesha Brown akesha@macpa.org

Jennifer Stevens jennifer@macpa.org

Debbie Zizwarek debbie@macpa.org

Dee Sullivan dee@macpa.org

JANUARY 2018

Emily Trott emily@macpa.org Ryan Wey ryan@macpa.org Rebecca Zimmerman becca@macpa.org

Mark Cissell, CPA Robert Jirsa, CPA Keith Parker, CPA Andrew Page, CPA

SENIOR STAFF

2017-2018 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

MACPA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

OFFICERS

J. Thomas Hood III, CPA tom@macpa.org

Kenneth Kelly, CPA, CGMA Chair Samantha Bowling, CPA, CGMA Vice Chair Ray Speciale, Esq., CPA Secretary/Treasurer Lisa Cines, CPA Immediate Past Chair DIRECTORS Christina Aspell, CPA Raj Bhaskar Avonette Blanding, CPA Wallace Boston, Ed.D., CPA, CGMA, CMA

MACPA DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Jacqueline E. G. Brown jackie@macpa.org DIRECTOR OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION Skip Falatko, CPA skip@macpa.org

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! See below to submit content Bill Sheridan | MACPA Dulaney Center II 901 Dulaney Valley Road Suite 800 Towson, MD 21204 FOR CONTENT SUBMISSION: bill@macpa.org feedback@macpa.org TO ADVERTISE IN THE STATEMENT: AmyP@macpa.org AmyM@macpa.org P: 410.296.6250 F: 410.296.8713 Toll free: 800.782.2036 The MACPA reserves the right to edit all submissions for grammatical style and / or length. Statement of fact and opinion are made by the authors alone and do not imply an opinion on the part of the officers or members of MACPA. The Statement is published four times a year by the Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants, Inc. Bill Sheridan, Editor Amy Moran, Advertising Sales

CHAIR’S COLUMN

STOP LOOKING FOR LEADERS. START BEING ONE INSTEAD. BY KEN KELLY, CPA, CGMA

CONSULTANT, KK ADVISORY, LLC We know our profession is being disrupted, and we know what those disruptions are. They fall into three buckets: • Technology: From artificial intelligence to blockchain to cognitive learning platforms, advances in technology are responsible for much of the uncertainties and new opportunities facing our profession. No one is sure what tomorrow’s technological advances will enable us to do, but this much is certain: Given the relentless and exponential march of Moore’s Law, almost anything will be possible. Our explorations of what the future holds must start with that fact. • Government regulation: As disruptions mount, regulators and legislators ramp up efforts to keep them in check. Considering that we’re seeing more disruptions than ever, it stands to reason we’ll continue to see more game-changing regulations and legislation than ever. From SarbanesOxley to Dodd-Frank to the Affordable Care Act, the last 15 years have given this profession some of the most groundbreaking regulations in its history. Now, the current administration is trying to roll back many of those regulations and replace them with something new. The uncertainty in this area undoubtedly will continue for the foreseeable future. • Demographics: With nearly 10,000 baby boomers retiring each day, organizations everywhere are searching desperately for Gen X managers to fill that leadership gap. They’re not going to find them. There simply aren’t enough Gen Xers available to do the job. That’s a hard trend — we can’t do anything about it. What we can do is look for alternative ways to fill the gap.

We’re also beginning to understand the process of anticipation — of spotting tomorrow’s “hard trends” early and identifying the opportunities they provide before those trends turn into disruptions. What’s all too often unclear, especially to those of us in a profession that’s grounded in the past, is who will lead us forward into an uncertain future. We understand the challenges we face; we’re just looking around for someone to take the reins. In a world this chaotic, though, leaders aren’t born or assigned. They are whoever stands up and says, “Let’s go.” In that light, we are all potential leaders. “People like to think of leadership as something that other people do, because then we can outsource it,” past AICPA Chair Kimberly Ellison-Taylor said at the MACPA’s CPA Summit in December. “But we all need to accept the responsibility for growing a profession that is better tomorrow than it is today. “We have a responsibility of leadership,” she added. “Not every leader is standing on a stage, or has 10 initials after their names. Each of us in the profession is a leader.” So leadership can come from anyone. But according to Ellison-Taylor, it can also come anywhere. • We can lead from the front as early adopters. • We can lead from the rear to make sure no one gets left behind. • We can lead from the middle as encouragement to those with whom we work most closely.

For the past few years, the profession’s largest firms have been pumping money and resources into developing A.I. and cognitive learning solutions that will increase efficiency and productivity while better serving their clients. Small and mid-size firms, meanwhile, often feel like they’ve been locked outside with their noses pressed against the windows, unable to find either the capacity or the money to take advantage of the latest advances in technology. Not Samantha. As a partner with Garbelman Winslow CPAs, she was determined to find a way for her small firm to take advantage of game-changing technologies. She found it with MindBridge AI Auditor, an audit analytics software platform that (a) maximizes audit assurance by leveraging A.I. technology, and (b) doesn’t break the bank. Bowling says MindBridge’s solution is as accessible and affordable for small and mid-size firms as it is for the profession’s largest firms — and it allows Garbelman Winslow auditors to look at all transactions rather than just small samples. That’s a powerful differentiator for the firm. That’s leadership today — taking the lead, spotting disruptions, identifying solutions, and seizing opportunities. It’s something each of us can do. More than that, in the interest of our profession’s continued relevance, it’s something each of us must do. “Standing still,” says Ellison-Taylor, “is not an option.” Let’s get moving.

Need an example of that type of leadership in action? Look no further than Samantha Bowling.

STATEMENT

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What you and your clients need to know BY T HE AIC PA AND T HE M A CPA

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Tax reform is a reality. Congress cleared the final hurdle on Dec. 20, and President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act into law two days later. The task now is to make sense of what the overhaul means for individuals and businesses. “Once signed, it’s likely some time will be needed to work through implementation,” said MACPA Executive Director Tom Hood, CPA, “including the production of new IRS forms and guidance to accommodate the many changes involved.” The provisions of the final bill, which the Joint Committee on Taxation estimates will cost $1.4 trillion over 10 years, include the following: • The corporate income tax rate will fall permanently from 35 percent to 21 percent, effective for 2018. The bill also “creates a 20-percent deduction for income of pass-through businesses that pay taxes through the individual code,” The Hill’s Naomi Jagoda and Cristina Marcos report. • Individual income tax rates also will fall, but only through 2025. The number of tax brackets is unchanged at seven — 10 percent, 12 percent, 22 percent, 24 percent, 32 percent, 35 percent, and 37 percent. The individual alternative minimum tax (or AMT) remains, though with a higher exemption than under the previous law. The corporate AMT has been eliminated. • The standard deduction increases to $12,000 for single filers and $24,000 for married couples. • Some personal exemptions and miscellaneous itemized deductions have been repealed. • The bill also effectively repeals the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, which required people to buy health insurance or pay a tax penalty. Most of the legislation’s tax cuts for individuals would become effective in January 2018 and expire in 2025 (and revert to the rules prior to this legislation) to comply with Senate budget rules. However, the reduction in the corporate rate would become effective in January 2018 and be permanent. In a statement issued after passage of the tax package, AICPA President and CEO Barry Melancon, CPA, CGMA, said the legislation contains several provisions that should be welcomed by CPAs and their clients. However, Melancon expressed disappointment over lawmakers’ decision to exclude CPAs from the measure’s treatment of pass-through entities. “Congress should have provided parity for pass-throughs, regardless of their line of business, in order to achieve a fairer, simpler, and more competitive tax code,” Melancon said. “The AICPA pointedly and repeatedly made the case that all professional service firms – including accounting firms – should have received the new deduction.”

CPAs INFLUENCE THE FINAL BILL The CPA profession’s advocacy led to the inclusion of several beneficial provisions in the final tax package. Specifically, Congress expanded the number of taxpayers who may use the cash method of accounting without further restricting its use. Lawmakers also decided to adopt many AICPA supported provisions, including the following: • The business interest expense deduction for small businesses (under $25 million) has been retained. • The current tax treatment of non-qualified deferred compensation has been preserved. • The “kiddie tax” has been simplified. • Inventory rules for small businesses have been simplified. • The exception for small businesses from the uniform capitalization rules has been expanded. • Computer or peripheral equipment have been removed from the definition of “listed property.” • The final bill provides consideration of an inflation index. • Non-resident aliens have been allowed as qualifying beneficiaries of an electing small business trust. • The PEASE phase-out of itemized deductions has been repealed. • The technical terminations rule for partnerships has been repealed. “In anticipation of implementation of these and other changes to the tax code, the AICPA is prepared to guide our members through the legislation’s intricacies and impact,” Melancon said. “The nation’s CPAs can count on us during this time of transition – and beyond.” IRS UNDER SIEGE? One potential consequence of the new law: It will saddle an already under-funded and under-staffed Internal Revenue Service with putting the reforms into practice just as tax season kicks into high gear. “If the budget keeps being cut and the agency keeps being given more things to do, the IRS is simply not going to work,” former IRS Commissioner John Koskinen told New York Times reporter Patricia Cohen, who added: “Either the information technology will fail, forcing the filing and refund systems to collapse, (Koskinen) warned, or enforcement and audits will become so scarce that fewer people will be inclined to pay the taxes they owe.” Will the overhaul work as Republicans hope, boosting personal and corporate spending and giving the economy a shot in the arm? Time will tell. In the meantime, there should be plenty of work for tax practitioners in the short term. To learn more about the CPA profession’s views on tax reform, visit the AICPA’s Tax Reform Resource Center at AICPA.org/TaxReform.

“The nation’s CPAs can count on us during this time of transition – and beyond.” - BARRY MELANCON, CPA, CGMA JANUARY 2018

Eliminating harassment starts with adding respect to your culture B Y K A R L A H L RICH S, SHRM -SCP, SPHR This year promises to be one of accusations and resignations. As organizational leaders, we need to examine how we got here, what we should do now, and what similar challenges are on the horizon once we work through these immediate issues. You may think we are going through a “perfect storm” of harassment in the workplace, but I believe it is bigger than that. After a “perfect storm” passes, the world returns to a normal state. This current wave of harassment accusation appears to be a fundamental climate change in how our culture handles power and ethics. You have two choices — be reactive and live in fear of it happening to you, or be proactive and get ahead of it. There is no easy fix, and many of the “best practices” of the future are now “dead batteries” – they never really worked well, and now they have lost even more effectiveness. This is an opportunity for you to evaluate your organizational strategy for dealing with harassment in all forms – sexual, quid pro quo, toxic environment, and bullying. Each of these are based on power, and all reduce your organization’s productivity and increase your legal risk. As a risk management and human resources expert, I always look to prevent litigation and challenging episodes for my clients, and to help build positive, high-performing anticipatory cultures that will thrive in the future. Here are some basic steps to consider in strengthening your policies and practices: Remember, it’s all about power. Power is often at the heart of harassment and sexual abuse. Power comes in many forms — from the position or title, from relationships, from persuasion, etc. Power benefits from personal maturity; Plato described the ideal leader as a “philosopher king” who was a servant of his people. Training should cover power in all its forms and how to best handle power when it is misapplied.

Diversity and inclusion helps. Fostering a business culture that respects human dignity is key to creating sustainable business results. If you promote civility and respect, you will engender not only loyalty and hard work but also an enviable culture that becomes part of your message to the public and your marketplace. Training should include a foundation of diversity and inclusion. Humans are complex. Don’t treat this as a simple exercise. The issue of hidden bias, implicit bias, confirmation bias, and other psychological factors make us all very complex thinkers. By realizing the hard-wired filters we all work with, we can craft more careful messages and get better traction for behavior change. Do a cultural audit. You can use modern engagement metrics or hire outside experts to do a cultural audit. Get a good read on your organizational culture. The audit process will give you vital information to shape more individualized training, and you should consider other tools that may be necessary to improve reporting, prevention, and compliance. Training should focus on advanced communication theory and measuring soft skills. Build trust in Human Resources. I predict that in this climate of retribution, complaints will initially go up as there is a significant volume of harassing activity that has not been reported. Our national culture of retaliation against whistleblowers needs to be examined and remedied, and Human Resources needs to be seen as a trusted ally. While whispers and rumors are often not reliable, they can alert an employer to look further. Also, look at your reporting mechanism and those who are supposed to receive complaints. Is your system proactive? Does your HR staff have good business rapport with your employees? Is there a choice of individuals, both male and female, to whom complaints can be directed? Have high standards for your HR professionals. Hiring and promoting well-rounded, empathetic and smart HR professionals is invaluable in maintaining solid trust with your employees. Pay attention to their backgrounds, and recognize the certifications that are available that signal competence in the HR body of knowledge.

STATEMENT

Improve your training, both in quality and quantity. Existing training materials are mostly legal compliance language, attempting to change behaviors with threats and using fear tactics. Simply put, they don’t change long-term behaviors. Plan ongoing “Respect in the Workplace” training (the rule of thumb is every two years) and make it interactive and engaging. Make the training mandatory. Obtain the endorsement of the senior team and make sure they participate in the training. Supervisors have additional responsibilities, so there can be some benefit in training them separately. Don’t make the training boring or too long, and look at new delivery technologies and techniques that can give it traction. Pay attention to your metrics. Organizational culture varies by department, and warning signs about toxic work environment may already be found in your HR metrics. Look for turnover of highperforming people by department. If a supervisor isn’t keeping the “good ones,” look deeper for the reasons. So why pay so much attention to this? There are pivotal moments in history where we Americans have examined our attitudes toward fundamental things – civil rights, sexuality, equal pay, and other key components of life in a diverse country. This surge in harassment accusations is another equally pivotal moment, and now we are facing the crucible of confronting the daily revelations of past poor choices and offensive behaviors.

JANUARY 2018

Let me make it more personal: Your brand reputation — that priceless, intangible perception that takes years to build — can be lost in an instant and communicated everywhere via social media. Imagine the intangible costs to the Weinstein Company or NBC or Fox News, then swap in the name of your organization and imagine your personal losses. This “climate change” is real and just beginning. I look at this active shift of power in organizations as the time for leaders to take stock of their systems and step up their game. Leaders should see the changing social landscape as a time to reinforce their commitment to a sustainable high-performing culture, and handle harassment, diversity, and inclusion as the foundational building blocks that they are. It’s not being “trendy.” It’s smart business for all of us. Karl Ahlrichs is a national speaker and author, and a Business Learning Institute thought leader who has broad experience in senior-level problem-solving, with proven skills in handling complex organizational issues with uncommon sense. These issues often include training and coaching work on power and harassment avoidance. Contact him at karl@expertspeaks.com.

Why lease accounting laggards face serious risks B Y K E N TY S I A C Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in CGMA Magazine. For more articles, sign up for the daily email update from CGMA Magazine at http://bit.ly/2svn2AY. Cathy Clarke, CPA, worries that companies are underestimating the amount of work required to implement the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s new lease accounting standard. As chief assurance officer for CLA, Clarke works exclusively with non-public companies and not-for-profits, so she knows the resource constraints smaller organizations face in a lease accounting implementation that is more complicated than it appears. Maybe they have a limited accounting staff and are so busy with another heavy FASB implementation – revenue recognition – that they don’t realize they don’t know where some of their lease contracts are. Perhaps they use spreadsheets for their fixed-asset accounting and don’t know that they will need to consider modifying their software to perform this accounting. Maybe they haven’t considered the effect that new liabilities on their balance sheets will have on their debt covenants with lenders. “Everybody is looking at this standard and thinking the implementation will be easy. Once they get started, they will realize it is more complicated than it appears on the surface,” said Clarke, a member of the American Institute of CPAs’ Financial Reporting Executive Committee (FinREC). Implementation of the new FASB standard is challenging for companies large and small. Like many global companies that are lessees, Bristol-Myers Squibb has real estate, vehicle fleet, and office equipment leases in different languages and formats, often dictated by the many different lessors who contract with the company.

Although there is centralized oversight of real estate and certain equipment leases, document management and limited oversight of other leases maintained at the local level have created challenges for the company to understand its full lease portfolio. But in the past year, the pharmaceutical company began to gather all those leases in an effort to implement FASB’s new lease accounting standard, which seeks to increase transparency in financial

reports. The company has dedicated a multifunctional project team and a thirdparty contractor to the task. Still, the process has proved arduous. “Data gathering is extremely difficult,” said Bob Owens, CPA, Bristol-Myers Squibb’s vice president and head of accounting. “We are a company that has some resources, and for companies that don’t have the resources to apply to it, it’s going to be very difficult, particularly if people have not yet started.”

STATEMENT

The effective date of 2019 for public companies and 2020 for most other organizations might seem distant. (Note that not-for-profits with conduit debt and certain employee benefit plans face a 2019 effective date, a year earlier than others in their sector.) But the lease accounting implementation is so challenging that it reminds Owens, who’s also a member of FinREC, of 15 years ago when public companies were implementing the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) regulations that included documenting internal controls. For many companies, the SOX implementation was costly and challenging, and required substantial in-house and external resources. Owens said lease accounting implementation may be similarly difficult, particularly because its timing is not good for financial statement preparers. Many of them are deeply involved in the adoption of a transformational, highimpact standard on revenue recognition, which takes effect for public companies at the beginning of 2018 and for private companies the following year. Because the lease accounting rules don’t take effect until a year after the revenue recognition standard’s effective date, the leasing implementation has been delayed by some preparers. Almost one-fourth (23 percent) of companies surveyed in May by PwC and commercial real estate services firm CBRE said they haven’t started their lease accounting adoption efforts yet. And a Deloitte survey showed that 31.4 percent of more than 2,150 executives polled in May said their organizations were unprepared to comply with the new standard. SEARCH FOR TRANSPARENCY Issued in February 2016, FASB Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), requires balance sheet recognition by lessees of assets and liabilities created by all leases with terms of more than 12 months. The standard was intended to increase transparency for liabilities that previously were not included on the balance sheet, giving financial statement users a better understanding of companies’ obligations. When the standard was issued, there was hope that implementation would proceed with just a moderate level of difficulty for preparers. Upon issuance, FASB Vice Chairman James Kroeker said it would be possible for some companies JANUARY 2018

to leverage their existing systems with the change, and that indeed may be the case for some preparers. The standard imposed minimal changes on lessor accounting, and FASB chose not to create a transition resource group (TRG) for lease accounting. The board did create TRGs to aid preparers with implementation of new standards on revenue recognition and accounting for credit losses, but the lease accounting changes are easier to understand. “We decided not to develop a leases TRG because the scope of educational changes is not as significant as these other projects,” FASB Chairman Russell Golden said in June at a Financial Executives International event in Philadelphia, while also explaining that the board has monitored the types of questions it has received and provided educational documents, videos, and a webcast on the lease accounting changes. But the challenge with the lease accounting standard is not that it’s difficult to understand. The problem many preparers are facing (aside from their preoccupation with implementing other standards) is that it’s difficult to locate the many leases that are scattered throughout their organizations. Further complicating the problem, many lessee organizations don’t have standard lease contracts, as terms and formats often conform to the wishes of the lessors. Depending on where they are located, the contracts may be in different languages. This makes it a challenge to extract the data that need to be considered and reported to comply with the lease accounting standard. Finally, placing lease data into a system that performs the necessary accounting may be challenging for many companies. Almost half (43 percent) of respondents to the PwC / CBRE survey said they expect to implement a new lease management system to comply with the standard, and an additional 20 percent said they plan to modify their existing ERP system to accommodate the changes. Many companies that have performed lease accounting manually in offline spreadsheets in the past may find they need to embed the data extracted from leases into their overall financial processes. But Owens said there are not a lot of viable system options in the market that are fully developed and tested.

All these challenges lead Owens to conclude that it’s essential for all organizations to start implementing the lease accounting standard now. “This is a fairly complex or challenging standard to update,” he said, “probably one of the more challenging standards I’ve seen in decades of working in accounting.” GETTING STARTED Implementation of the standard starts with building a team or task force to perform the work. The participation of finance and IT leaders, plus whoever handles real estate negotiation and contracts, is essential. In addition to contemplating systems requirements for reporting, IT leaders may need to provide details on equipment they are leasing. Other functions that may need to be involved include procurement, treasury, and tax. Smaller organizations that use a third-party bookkeeper need to make sure there is a clear understanding with the contractor about who is responsible for implementing the standard, Clarke said. While building the team, the organization will want to consider whether to use strictly internal resources or whether to contract for help from third parties, Owens said. Once the personnel involved with implementation is determined, setting a timeline with milestones and accountabilities can keep the work on schedule. With a team in place, organizations can proceed to what may be the most challenging duty of implementation. Locating all the organization’s leases and extracting the data to be reported can be extremely difficult. It’s possible that some organizations may not even be able to find all their lease contracts, especially for leases that have existed for many years. It’s possible that their auditors may have the contracts if they are material leases, Clarke said, but in all likelihood only portions of the lease related to the disclosures were maintained. If they can’t find contracts, organizations may need to rely on lessors to provide a copy for this accounting exercise. Once contracts are located, extraction of data from them can begin, and there are judgments involved in this work.

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KEY CONSIDERATIONS Larger companies in particular may have to work through materiality considerations related to their leases. “You have to go through some sort of initial inventory or initial thought process about what is material and what items are included in the scope of the new standard, and which things can you clearly say it’s just inconsequential,” Owens said. After determining which leases are within the scope of the new standard, organizations need to figure out whether they can apply a portfolio approach if they have many leases of the same kind and substance. This practical expedient may help organizations account for items such as a fleet of company vehicles or leased IT equipment that may be provided to every employee. Separating lease and non-lease components from the payments to the lessor may require a substantial amount of judgment. Many leases may include a single payment that covers the lease plus non-lease items such as maintenance of common areas, taxes, and insurance. If these items are not clearly delineated in the lease, the preparer may want to ask the lessor for an addendum that separates those items from the lease payment. Other items preparers may need to consider include: • Related-party leases. Many times smaller organizations don’t have formalized leases with related parties. These arrangements will need to be spelled out in contracts so that organizations can apply the proper accounting treatment. • Embedded leases. If a company is using all of a vendor’s output under a supply contract, it’s possible that the contract contains an embedded lease that requires lease accounting treatment. Owens said organizations may wish to analyze their supply contracts with their procurement teams and suppliers to determine whether the contracts contain an embedded lease. • Taxes. The lease accounting standard may cause state tax apportionment issues in some states, especially those that are using property factors to apportion taxable business income. The standard may also trigger transferpricing implications associated with

related-party issues. “People aren’t thinking of the tax implications, but there may be some issues that they want to discuss with their tax advisers,” Clarke said. • Lease renewals. Under the standard, lease renewals need to be included in determining the lease term for accounting purposes if the lessor controls the lease or it is reasonably certain that the lessee will renew the lease. • Discount rates. For the purposes of calculating present value, selecting an appropriate discount rate will require significant judgment. • Debt ratios. Bringing more liabilities onto the balance sheet will affect debt ratios in organizations’ lending covenants. A discussion of this issue with banks and other lenders can head off problems that could occur with the issuance of the organization’s first financial statement under the new lease accounting rules. • Below-market rent leases. Not-forprofits sometimes have leases in which a donor provides rent at a discount. The new standard requires not-forprofits to separate the contribution from the exchange in accounting for such leases. • Variable payments. A step-up lease, for example, specifies that the rental price will increase by a predetermined amount in the future and requires specific accounting treatment. • System selection. As companies gather data, they may want to consider what IT system they will use to handle the accounting. “Unless you only have a handful of leases, probably almost all companies are going to need some kind of a lease module embedded in their financial systems,” Owens said. “And it takes time to get that implemented.” • Statutory requirements. Global companies may need to consider how to support the local requirements of their affiliates given upcoming changes under IFRS 16, Leases, and consideration of other accounting rules. The IFRS standard began as a convergence project with the

International Accounting Standards Board and FASB, but the IFRS and GAAP rules that were developed ultimately had significant differences. DELAY AT YOUR OWN RISK The most important consideration of all, though, may be to get started quickly on the implementation of the leases standard. Preparers who plan to hire third parties to locate or extract data from their leases may find that they will pay lower rates if they start now. Waiting until the last minute – especially if lots of preparers delay implementation – could mean paying a substantial premium. “It’s supply and demand, right?” Clarke said. The effective date, more than a year away for public companies, may seem as if it’s in the distant future. But this standard may take a lot of time to implement because creating an inventory of an organization’s leases is deceptively difficult. As a result, Clarke said companies will not want to delay the implementation process. “Just like everything else,” she said, “the earlier you start, the easier it will be.” Bristol-Myers Squibb started plenty early, and Owens considers the company fortunate because its financial reporting platforms do have a real estate module that the company is having updated to conform to the requirements in the leases standard. The update isn’t completed yet, but Owens is confident that the company is in good shape to finish on time. At the same time, he is passionate about the implementation because his experience has given him a full understanding of the challenges that await his peers. “It’s a very, very challenging rule to implement because of the wide scope of it and the broad application of it,” he said. “Although everyone has these arrangements, they were never really all pulled together as part of the normal financial reporting processes. This is going to make it very challenging for companies to implement.” Ken Tysiac is a CGMA Magazine editorial director. © 2017 Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. All rights reserved.

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NEWS & VIEWS Legislative alert: HSAs in Maryland are in jeopardy F RO M T H E MA CPA

Editor’s note: A significant legislative issue related to health savings accounts (or HSAs) and high-deductible health insurance plans (or HDHPs) could impact you and your clients in the near future. Here’s what we know, thanks in large part to MACPA State Tax Committee Chair Jeff Lawson and committee member Karen Syrylo. The Contraceptive Equity Act was enacted in Maryland in 2016. Effective on Jan. 1, 2018, the Act mandates that male contraceptive services (vasectomies) must be covered as a preventive service — i.e., without any deductible or cost-sharing required. HSA-qualified HDHPs are prohibited from covering any benefits before the deductible is met, except for IRS-approved preventive care services. This effectively means HSAs may be no longer be available in Maryland, since the Contraceptive Equity Act made no exemption for HSA-qualified HDHPs.

for HSA contributions (for instance, through the use of words such as “shall” rather than “may”).

Once the General Assembly is in session and we have bill numbers, we will share this information.

In May 2017, the Maryland Insurance Administration asked the IRS to determine whether male sterilization could be added to the list of preventive services. The IRS has yet to respond.

Emergency legislation is expected to be introduced in the upcoming General Assembly session, which convenes on Jan. 10. If this legislation is passed in the 2018 session, there is still a strong possibility it will NOT BE retroactive to Jan. 1, 2018.

HELP PROTECT THE PROFESSION AT CPA DAY IN ANNAPOLIS The HSA issue will be at the forefront of our legislative efforts during the 2018 edition of CPA Day in Annapolis.

If the IRS determines after Jan. 1, 2018 that male sterilization is a preventive service AND that position is treated retroactively, no further legislative action will be needed. However, if no such determination is made, new Maryland legislation would be required to preserve HSA contributions in Maryland.

Until a fix is made, CPAs will need to advise their clients that HDHPs do not exist in Maryland as of Jan. 1, 2018 and that HSA contributions made before the issue is resolved are in danger of being disallowed and potentially subject to penalty.

The MACPA is part of a coalition of organizations seeking a legislative initiative to modify the language of this mandated benefit in a way that will preserve the taxdeductible treatment of HSAs in Maryland. Representatives from the MACPA have participated in meetings with the legislative subcommittee as a technical resource. We are working to ensure proposed language is forceful enough to clearly state that HDHPs would remain eligible

The mandate on male sterilization applies to plans “issued, delivered or renewed in the state on or after Jan. 1, 2018.” For plan years other than calendar-year, this will not apply until the start of the plan year if that year starts after Jan. 1, 2018.

The MACPA will continue to push for a suitable resolution, actively monitor this issue and provide updates on our Federal and State Tax discussion groups as information becomes available.

Scheduled for Jan. 25, the event will match MACPA members directly with their state legislative representatives in an effort to affect real change on the legislative process. You can’t wield that type of influence unless you become involved. Our profession’s voice grows stronger with every CPA who makes an effort to influence the hearts and minds of legislators and regulators. Sign up now. Pledge to join us in Annapolis. The more CPAs who speak up, the more influential our voice becomes. Get details and register to attend at MACPA.org/product/cpa-day-2018.

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NEWS & VIEWS SDAT opens online extensions for existing personal property returns two months early B Y B I L L S H E R IDA N , CA E For the latest example of this ideal in action, see the MACPA’s State Taxation Committee. In a recent meeting with representatives from Maryland’s State Department of Assessments and Taxation, the MACPA panel asked if the SDAT would consider opening online extensions for existing businesses’ personal property returns earlier than the usual Feb. 1 opening date. The SDAT said, “Sure.” In one of those you’ll-never-know-unlessyou-ask moments, members of the SDAT decided to open the online extension system for existing businesses on Dec. 1. For newly created businesses, the system will open on the usual date of Feb. 1, 2018. New and existing businesses can access the extension system at pprextensions.dat. maryland.gov.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” - MARGARET MEAD The online extension system is free of charge and offers the following benefits: • Printed confirmation numbers and lists • Recall and editing of last year’s confirmation number and list • Verification of a previously submitted current-year Internet request • Department ID number search capability • Inactive status indicated (for instance, forfeited, merged, dissolved, etc.) “Given the need for annual maintenance / updates to our primary database / system, all extension requests will be placed in a ‘pending’ status until that work

has been completed in mid-January,” SDAT Personal Property Administrator Brian Berg told MACPA State Tax Committee Chair Jeff Lawson. “Also, the department’s Business Entity Search tool will not include a reference to a 2018 extension until that work has been completed. Nevertheless, the extension system will continue providing a confirmation number for all requests as well as verification of a previously submitted current year request. …Please thank your membership for this excellent suggestion.” Long story short: When you get involved, you make a difference.

JOIN US AT CPA DAY IN ANNAPOLIS It’s an important lesson to take to heart as we approach the 2018 edition of CPA Day in Annapolis. Scheduled for Jan. 25, the event will match MACPA members directly with their state legislative representatives in an effort to affect real change on the legislative process. You can’t wield that type of influence unless you become involved. Our profession’s voice grows stronger with every CPA who makes an effort to influence the hearts and minds of legislators and regulators.

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Sign up now. Pledge to join us in Annapolis. The more CPAs who speak up, the more influential our voice becomes. As the old saying goes, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” Let’s plant some trees. The digging starts on Jan. 25 in Annapolis. Register to join us at MACPA.org/product/cpa-day-2018.

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PUBLIC PRACTICE Building a winning ecosystem for a CPA practice B Y B O R I S F O XM A N Today’s accounting practices face nearly universal demands that lead to creation of an internal ecosystem — yes, an ecosystem, and not a collection of software products that we purchase in advance just to get discounts. I am talking about wellthought-out automation tools, which every practice needs for each type of activity. Client relationships, service offerings, and company efficiency and productivity are all dependent on this ecosystem and how a CPA owner employs it. Let’s determine the components of such an ecosystem and demonstrate how it leads to better business, healthy company culture, and a better lifestyle for the employees. The ecosystem components as they relate to human anatomy are: • Business owner — the brain (until A.I. gets it right) • Production software — the heart • Practice management tools — the muscular system • Client relationship management — the nervous system • Team collaboration and communications — the circulatory system PRODUCTION SOFTWARE In today’s world, it is less about how much we like our tax and accounting software. Accuracy and comprehensiveness of the software aside, it is more about how we collaborate with our clients using that software, and how meaningful, secure, and reliable communications with our clients are. As we focus on trying to connect our favorite accounting software with our favorite tax software, we forget who puts us in a driver seat in the first place. It is our clients. Thus, what drives the process of selection and integration of our production software are the clients. It is our clients who choose cloudbased accounting. It is our clients who want to collaborate and control the process of financial management while outsourcing most of the accounting and tax compliance functions. We must listen carefully to our clients and constantly put ourselves in their shoes.

PRACTICE MANAGEMENT Practice management could be compared to the muscular system, as it requires consistent exercise. A perfect human body would have all muscles trained. There are numerous aspects of practice management, such as workflow, finance, HR, technology, and systems integration. However, the mission-critical component that keeps these practices moving is defined by the pricing policy of the firm. A pricing policy distinguishes the firm and outlines a set of variables that guide strategies for operations and growth of the firm. Occasionally, time-based billing system proves to generate more dollars for an accounting practice. However, it is less transparent, requires more administration, increases the A/R cycle, and does not always fit in the new business world environment. In addition, it makes the final bill to the client rely heavily on discretionary authority of a managing partner / practice owner. A fixed-fee pricing model, on the other hand, brings efficiency and financial strength to the practice, as it helps to automate billing and collection. Regardless of the pricing method, practice management process must be defined long before we face the software selection. CLIENT RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT Like the nervous system of the human body, which is responsible for conscious movement and breathing, client relationship management must be orchestrated by each practice owner to secure the firm’s success. If the information about the clients and prospects is insufficient and not properly organized, we cannot anticipate that client relationships and services per client will expand, or that business development efforts are streamlined and consistent, or that employees are effective at client contact touch points. CRM is not a list of clients with phone numbers, mail and e-mail addresses, but a sophisticated tool that helps operate and

grow the business. Some of the functionality to consider include: • Historic client communications (e-mail and instant messaging) • Project cases as they relate to specific clients • Relationships between different clients and different levels of personal information • Various historic tax information, both personal and business • Division of clients by location, if it applies • Sales and marketing functionality TEAM COLLABORATION AND COMMUNICATION A typical small accounting practice does not usually think of this function as anything special. Many of us believe that as long as we have e-mails and phones, everything seems to be straightforward. However, online team collaboration tools bring fresh and crisp outlook for quick and secure communication, effective file sharing, and even data space reduction. We have electric cars, smart homes, and virtual offices. We hardly see our clients these days. While accounting practices are changing, it is amazing how slow that change is happening and how stubborn and conservative our profession is. It is understandable because, according to The CPA Journal, more than 60 percent of CPA partners are over age 50 and are getting older. When it comes to hiring new employees and bringing in young partners, though, the top priorities become flexibility, firm atmosphere and culture, communications, and professional growth opportunities. This is when practice owners have to put in an effort to adapt changes and embrace the ecosystem to prevent their practices from organizational stagnation and challenges with succession planning. Boris Foxman is founder and CEO of National Business and Accounting Consultants, a Xero Ambassador, and a member of the MACPA. STATEMENT

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PUBLIC PRACTICE Read this before you fire your worst clients 3 steps to help your firm build your client list before you make the cut B Y M I S TY M E GIA A show of hands. How many of you have been told to fire your “C clients” — also known as your bottom 40 percent or bottom 10 percent? I think we all have, and I will say the thought is tempting to let them go and not look back. So those C clients who take up all your time and suck your energy but are less than 1 percent of your revenue ... put them on the chopping block, right? Before you press Delete on your bottompercent clients, consider a few things. I was speaking to a friend of mine who now owns a successful firm. When he was first starting out, he followed the advice of his seasoned peers and cut out the bottom 40 percent of his clients. Shortly after, he panicked. He had no replacement for that revenue, no plan for building out his top clients. His firm flailed and scrounged for work before taking on additional clients, out of panic, to generate the revenue. It wasn’t my friend’s decision to fire his worst clients that bothered me. It was the people who gave my friend this advice who didn’t provide the entire picture. They’d never had to depend on every dollar that came in, so it was easy to for them to say, “Fire your worst clients.” Don’t get me wrong: Firing your bottompercent clients is fair advice, but not everyone who takes it understands the full picture or has a plan in place for after the decision is made. Before you make the cut, take these three steps. 1. Build up your top-of list If you have clients who are considered your top clients, make a plan and talk to them about additional services you could be offering them. Set up faceto-face meetings with each and have a conversation for growth. What are their goals? What tasks could you take off their plate? What are their current processes?

From that conversation, create an implementation plan and increase the fixed fee for your services. As a bonus, you can also ask to shadow your clients to observe their processes, so you can identify opportunities for you to streamline processes and show more of your value. If you increased all your services, even by a small margin, to your top clients, you can fill in gaps left by the clients you’d like to vote off the island. 2. Target your ideal replacement client Maybe you’d like to bring on a more focused client set, so being hyperfocused on the types of clients you take will automatically weed out those you don’t. Establish and target your ideal clients now, before you make those bottom-percent cuts. Put together a streamlined process for reaching those clients and onboarding them into your firm to get them up to speed. When you are ready to bring on clients that fit your desired specialization, you can safely start to release clients. 3. Network with two-way referral sources Don’t leave those bottom-percent clients totally in the dust. Instead, build a network of accounting professionals who will be ready to take them on. Cutting clients isn’t always about a lack of trust or respect, but it’s often a case of mismatched communication styles or values. While they may not be perfect for you, some clients may be a good fit for someone in your network. Referring these clients

ensures you aren’t burning bridges but you are helping a fellow practitioner. The concept works both ways too. Clients who aren’t a great fit for a practitioner in your network could be the ideal client you’ve been hoping for. LET GO OF YOUR WORST CLIENTS AND STILL GROW YOUR BUSINESS It’s always scary to make the move to take clients off your list. But with proper planning, focus, and a process for transition, it becomes less frightening and helps open your firm to exciting opportunities. Of course, you will have some overworked days in the transition of onboarding new replacement clients and offloading the clients that aren’t a good fit. Trust me, the outcome will give you peace of mind and a path to better success. Just rinse and repeat the process and you’ll have a client list full of people with matching values, drive, and goals. Misty Megia is the head of accounting education and programs at TSheets, the top-rated employee time tracking app on apps.com. She has been named the Most Powerful Woman in Accounting by CPA Practice Advisor and has more than 20 years of experience in market strategy, project management, corporate branding, and channel marketing across various industries from hardware manufacturing to the accounting profession.

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PUBLIC PRACTICE To buy or to lease? THAT is the question Clients often stumble over the pros and cons … but CPAs have their own questions to consider practice, and can even be used to fund your and your partners’ retirements. As part of a retirement exit strategy, CPAs often sell their partnership interest in their firm but continue to own the property in which the firm — and, presumably, other tenants — are housed.

B Y STE VE H A ZA N Should I buy or lease? It’s a question CPAs often encounter in counseling clients with growing businesses. And like most issues, there are pros and cons to either choice that any business owner needs to carefully consider before making a major financial commitment. But while CPAs can play an instrumental role in helping their clients reach a sound financial decision, should they consider buying versus leasing for their own firms? Sure, big CPA firms may own their office buildings, but is that even a viable choice for a smaller firm? Perhaps surprisingly, the answer may be yes — especially now. As with other small- to mid-sized businesses, CPA firms can realize a number of benefits from buying their office space. Chief among these is the ability to lock in your commercial mortgage long-term, providing your business with clear, fixed costs. This is particularly true now, with rates at historic lows and real estate in our market still very affordable. By locking in at today’s low rates for as long as 15 years, a CPA firm could potentially reduce or completely eliminate the need to refinance additional times during the life of the loan. Buying your building will also enable your firm to build equity over time. That equity can eventually be used as collateral if and when you expand your

That raises another potential benefit: Owning your office building allows you to rent any extra office space, producing another source of income that can help in subsidizing the cost of the property. Renting to a complementary business can even help drive additional business traffic to your own firm. It also provides for expansion space if and when your firm needs it. Finally, as CPAs well know, there are tax deductions. You can deduct your mortgage interest expense on your taxes, although unlike a lease, you won’t be able to deduct your entire monthly payment. You can also depreciate your building. While you won’t be able to write off the entire cost of the building at once, the IRS does allow you to depreciate it, typically over 39 years. Here’s a brief illustration of the benefits of owning over leasing: If your firm currently pays $4,000 a month in rent, that equates to the monthly principal and interest payment on a $675,000 loan based on today’s rates and a 25-year amortization schedule. With a typical down payment of 20 percent, this puts properties in the $825,000-to-$850,000 range within reach. Note that Small Business Administration guaranty programs may allow for an even lower down payment, which helps in preserving liquidity. While buying may sound like a no-brainer, there are some cons your firm should consider before taking the plunge. Perhaps most important is the upfront cost. Buying office space initially will cost far more than leasing, since you will be hit with property, appraisal, and maintenance costs, along with a large down payment and possible property improvement costs.

Beyond the costs, owning your own building means your firm will have less flexibility when it comes to space requirements. If your business grows faster than anticipated, you may actually outgrow your own building, forcing you to sell the property. Similarly, if you are hit with unexpected costs – such as a loss of a key partner or clients, or the need to purchase new, expensive equipment – you may not have the financial flexibility to adequately address these issues. In addition, there are benefits to leasing office space that should weigh into the equation. For example, leasing provides a CPA firm with the opportunity to operate in a more prestigious property. Leasing also enables you to avoid the headaches which invariably come with property ownership and focus solely on running your business. Finally, leasing is likely to free up more working capital. With your money not tied up in real estate ownership, you have more flexibility to respond to opportunities in the market. Moreover, you will be better positioned to borrow money as needs arise. Bottom line: There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to a decision about buying versus leasing your firm’s office space. Financial, tax, and personal issues all come into play. By all means, make sure you consult with the experts who know you, your firm, and the accounting profession. Their counsel will be essential in making the decision that’s right for your practice. Steve Hazan is assistant vice president of business lending at SECU, Maryland’s largest credit union. For more information about SECU, visit www.secumd.org.

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PUBLIC PRACTICE Ramped up peer review standards more stringent B Y E D I TH O R EN STE IN Practitioners are subject to much more punitive peer review standards put in place by the profession following the Department of Labor’s harsh criticism of employee benefit plan audits. The ramped-up peer review standards, part of the AICPA’s Enhancing Audit Quality initiative, are significant, and practitioners on all types of engagements should take note, said Mike Manspeaker, a past MACPA chair and past chair of the Maryland Peer Review Committee. Manspeaker shared these remarks at the MACPA’s 2017 Annual Meeting. MACPA CEO Tom Hood told the 400plus Annual Meeting attendees that the MACPA has been extremely active on the peer review front. “We’ve actually had several task forces working on this because there are different moving parts,” said Hood. “It started with the AICPA’s project on the future of practice monitoring, setting the tone where they think it needs to go, to the idea of enhancing audit quality (EAQ) and the proposed evolution of peer review administration.” “The AICPA’s EAQ initiative was inspired by pretty significant criticism our profession, received primarily from the DOL and some other studies,” added Manspeaker. The resulting peer review and practice monitoring initiatives, comprising two points of the AICPA’s six-point plan (https://goo.gl/ yEBtLJ), represent “probably the most significant impact to date of the entire EAQ initiative,” Manspeaker said. “There are significant changes impacting peer reviewers and firms being peer reviewed, and finally we are starting to see significant changes to the peer review administration process.” Highlights on the peer review front in 2016 include the following:

• The Enhanced Oversight Program, piloted in 2014 and expanded in 2015– 16, has identified where peer review can be strengthened, and informed the Peer Review Program of changes, particularly regarding issue detection and remediation. • In 2016, the number of engagements subject to enhanced oversight doubled and root cause analysis was added to the process. Reviewers are looking more deeply at certain industries and high-risk areas identified by the Peer Review Board, including employee benefit plan audits and single audits. • New procedures instituted in January 2015 expedite removal from the Peer Review Program of poor performing firms that fail to remediate. • New peer reviewer training requirements now in place facilitate detection and remediation of deficiencies by reviewers. • A new data-matching program instituted in 2016 to increase the likelihood that all firms that should be enrolled in peer review are enrolled and that all engagements that should be subject to review are included in the scope of peer review.

IF IT’S NOT DOCUMENTED, IT’S NOT DONE “From the point of view of firms being peer reviewed, you can’t mince words: It’s a much more punitive process,” said Manspeaker. Peer reviews are now more detail-oriented, with more focus on processes of the firm and quality control processes. The documentation related to audit engagements is going to be critical to helping you get through peer review, Manspeaker said. “As a peer reviewer, if we can’t find it in the workpapers, it’s not good enough to have the practitioner say, ‘Here’s the circumstances, here are my thought processes, here is what I considered,’” he said. “If it’s not documented, it’s not done.” CPAs practicing in the area of ERISA audits, single audits (previously A-133 OMB audits), or audits of broker-dealers — all of which are considered to be highrisk, “must-selects,” said Manspeaker — should be prepared for extra scrutiny in peer review.

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PUBLIC PRACTICE “Even if you only practice in compilations and reviews, make sure you are up to date with the latest standards,” he said. “Make sure your reports, engagement letters and so on comply with SSARS 23, because all of those things come into play and are given much more scrutiny.” He also warned not to underestimate what may appear to be relatively minor issues raised by a peer reviewer. “The peer review committee asks, what’s the systemic cause, what’s the defect in the quality control system, and it gets blown up to a much bigger systemic problem.” PROPOSED CHANGES TO PEER REVIEW ADMINISTRATION Another significant change relates to the peer review administration process, said Manspeaker, and this could have significant implications for practitioners in Maryland. “As most of you know, the MACPA has been administering peer reviews for many, many years. I had the privilege of being past chair of the Maryland Peer Review Commission. They do a tremendous job. We feel it is a very important role we play as an association and Peer Review Committee in helping to have a consistent measure of quality in our profession.” According to Manspeaker, an earlier AICPA proposal would have greatly limited the ability of many states to continue to take part in the peer review administration process. Speaking of the MACPA’s role in administering peer review, Manspeaker said, “We feel it is a very important role we play for Maryland CPA firms. We feel we have a great relationship with the state board that requires peer review as a licensing requirement. We want to stay in that role. We feel we are accessible, so Maryland firms are better served by us continuing to be in that role.” The MACPA will submit a comment letter by the June 30 deadline in response to the AICPA’s white paper on evolution of peer review administration.

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“How that process plays out will have a lot to do with how peer reviews are administered and the role that Maryland is able to continue to play on behalf of Maryland-based firms,” Manspeaker said. “The entire process is in significant upheaval. We hope it all ends with the desired impact of increasing consistency and quality. “ A BALANCING ACT Hood noted that Manspeaker has chaired the MACPA’s peer review committee for quite a while and continues to be active at the state and national level as well. Hood noted that the changes to EAQ and peer review are not only a reaction to DOL criticism of employee benefit plan audits, but an effort to be more proactive. “Our job is balancing the need to be proactive and protective of the future and being over-compliant in terms of our practitioner community,” Hood said. “That’s the tension we face. You never know the right answer until something breaks. Most of this is in the limelight of the DOL investigations on peer review, which were horrendous, and we almost lost our franchise doing EBP audits. Now we are trying to delicately balance that.” Hood hearkened back to another major rulemaking sweep. “Many of you will remember all the way back to the SarbanesOxley days. Those are the kinds of things the profession’s got to be watching.” Referencing the upcoming OMB Uniform Guidance (replacing OMB Circular A-133) required every six years, with the first study slated for 2019 or 2020, Hood noted, “There’s a big study coming out on that, and that could be the next semicrisis that we have to deal with from an audit quality perspective. We have to stay proactive.” The AICPA is helping firms prepare for the single-audit quality reviews through outreach and education efforts.

“I want to reassure you: The number one thing we work on all the time — always — is the CPA license.” - TOM HOOD PRIORITY NO. 1: PROTECTING AND PROMOTING THE CPA LICENSE MACPA town hall meetings are a key touchpoint for MACPA members to interact with the association’s leadership. With more than 400 MACPA members in attendance at the Annual Meeting in-person and online via simulcast, attendees were able to pose questions anonymously via an app called Conferences.io. Responding to questions raised about how the MACPA prioritizes legislative advocacy issues and determines positions to take on those issues, Hood said, “I want to reassure you: The number one thing we work on all the time — always — is the CPA license. Anything related to your license, the State Board of Public Accountancy, and how we function as a licensed profession is absolutely the number one priority that we have in our legislative agenda every year.” Past MACPA Chair Allen DeLeon presented some highlights of current legislative issues, and encouraged members to take part in CPA Day in Annapolis, slated for Jan. 25, 2018. The event offers opportunities to meet with elected officials and network with peers and legislators at lunch, and is worth two hours of CPE. Edith Orenstein is a former associate editor with the Maryland Association of CPAs.

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PUBLIC PRACTICE Clearinghouse eases access to CPA-produced documents for private company clients and their stakeholders B Y K A L I L M E RHIB Banking and investing are being transformed by changes in financial technology, with high demand for easily accessible, comprehensive financial data from trusted sources. No source is more trusted than a CPA, and nowhere is the need for readily available, credible data — the kind found in audited financial statements and other CPA-produced documents — more evident than in private company business transactions. When it comes to public companies, U.S. shareholders and lenders can turn to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR system for financial information in an online, digital format. But there is no comparable clearinghouse for private companies, which make up the vast majority of the nation’s businesses. According to business decision-makers, CPAs are the most trusted financial professionals. In that role, they’ve long played a prominent part in producing financial statements and other critical documentation for their private business clients. But traditional delivery methods for CPAproduced documents in this area can be problematic since, in the absence of a central repository, they typically rely on e-mail, courier, or other methods susceptible to fraud or error. Portals are a better method but aren’t set up to smoothly transmit information to third-party users in a way that eases liability concerns. And portals still require a CPA firm to administer the site and ensure proper privacy and security protections. Banks and lenders, meanwhile, are increasingly relying on verifiable data that can be accessed digitally through centralized sites, and have gravitated toward third-party sources such as IRS tax-filing databases. Convenience and timeliness are JANUARY 2018

key factors as lending decisions become more compressed, with the fintech industry seeking to tap the most accessible and comprehensive data sources. The risk for CPAs: The private company documents they produce, such as financial statements or System of Organization Controls (SOC) reports, may become less sought-after if they are not readily available in digital format. These issues led CPA.com, the technology subsidiary of the American Institute of CPAs, and Confirmation.com to jointly develop the RIVIO Clearinghouse, a secure, online hub for private company financial information. RIVIO stands for Repository of Intelligent, Validated Inputs and Outputs, and it creates a rational workflow of documents that protects the interests of all parties that use it: CPAs, lenders, shareholders, and the companies themselves. Here’s how: • It protects the public interest by ensuring that CPA-reviewed information is presented to authorized users without alteration by company management, reducing the risk of fraud or inaccurately presented data. • It protects CPA firms in three ways: 1. By ensuring that fraudsters can’t easily misuse a firm’s name or letterhead to present manipulated data. 2. By eliminating liability issues that can arise when financial information is shared with someone who isn’t a direct client. 3. By ensuring CPAs remain

a key resource in the increasingly automated, digitized decision-making process for banks and investors. • It gives banks and lenders timely data from a validated, trusted source — a critical component in the loan approval process. • It gives private companies a secure channel that allows them maximum control and flexibility over which authorized users can view their sensitive financial information. RIVIO ensures that CPA firms aren’t in direct connection with end users of their financial statements that a client authorizes — a critical component of privity of contract defenses. But the automated system also includes protections for the firm if it ever withdraws its report. Unlike current practice, in which management is responsible for notifying users of that information, RIVIO tracks and notifies any authorized recipient about the statement’s withdrawal. As the audit evolves to reflect changes in technology, it’s vital that delivery methods for this kind of critical documentation keep pace. RIVIO provides a digital platform for the secure delivery of financial statements and an array of other CPA-reviewed reports, and it can create a competitive advantage for practitioners and their private company clients. Learn more about RIVIO at rivio.com. Kalil Merhib is director of sales at CPA.com.

BUSINESS & INDUSTRY 6 tips for successful enterprise risk management B Y A SH N O A H, CPA , CG M A Editor’s note: The following article was originally published by American City Business Journals. It is reprinted here with permission of the author.

Given the increasingly digital and interconnected global environment we’re living in, business risks are occurring with greater frequency and velocity than ever before. Boards and senior management know this and are calling for more effective risk oversight, including the adoption of a holistic approach to risk management known as “enterprise risk management,” or ERM. A recent survey by the American Institute of CPAs and North Carolina State University, however, found that only 28 percent of companies have a complete ERM process in place. Additionally, fewer than half of companies have a partial ERM process in place, with some (but not all) risks addressed. Those are pretty low numbers. Many people associate the term ERM with a big enterprise initiative — and something too formal, burdensome and unnecessary for an organization to take on, especially if it’s not mandated. Even for companies that do have ERM in place, its true value often isn’t realized since it’s perceived as a mundane checking-the-box exercise. However, risk impacts everyone. It’s not limited to any one industry or company size. And the value that ERM can provide to large and small organizations alike should not be overlooked. In this environment of unprecedented risk, ERM is imperative. If companies want to create and maximize value for their shareholders and stakeholders, they must approach and evaluate risk in a very systematic way.

IMPLEMENTATION: TIPS FOR SUCCESS ERM differs from traditional approaches to risk oversight that focus on managing silos or distinct pockets of risks. ERM emphasizes a top-down, holistic view of key risks potentially affecting an organization’s ability to achieve its objectives. It’s not just about protecting the organization’s tangible and financial assets. Rather, ERM focuses on the enterprise-wide risks that have the potential to derail your business strategy. Implementing ERM in an organization should not be burdensome, however. Here are a few tips to help you get started: 1. G et buy-in from the top. ERM must start at the top with the board and CEO, and include the senior management team being committed to implementing a formal process and proactively managing risks. Also, ensure the importance of ERM and why it’s being implemented is communicated to all levels in the organization. 2. T alk with your CFO. As financial leaders, they are already deeply involved in managing traditional and financial risks, and thus play a critical role in understanding how a structured way of managing business risks will better help to identify and mitigate issues that can take your organization off track.

3. P erform a risk process inventory. Take a look at what your organization is already doing to mitigate risk to avoid duplication of efforts. Your organization may already be doing quite a bit in the risk area, so when you implement a program, you won’t necessarily need to engage in a whole new set of activities that will increase the team’s workload. 4. A dopt a framework. Research and adopt a risk management framework that works for your organization. The framework suggested by COSO is a robust and popular version. 5. P inpoint the biggest threats. Work across the enterprise to identify the risks that have the highest impact and the highest likelihood to occur. This will allow you to focus on major target areas instead of putting effort on every little risk that doesn’t represent a big threat. Use tools such as the CGMA Risk Heat Map to make this process simple. 6. K eep processes up to date. Implementing an ERM process is not a one-off exercise. Review the risk registers and mitigation plans regularly to keep them up to date and ready for deployment. If not viewed as an exercise in compliance, ERM is an opportunity to empower your organization. Engaging in risk management in a systematic way — including looking holistically both within your own organization as well as at external risks that may impact your organization — will improve business performance and governance, and is critical in this volatile business environment. Ash Noah, CPA, CGMA, is vice president of CGMA external relations for the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. STATEMENT

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BUSINESS & INDUSTRY How accounting can empower better project management B Y DO N NY SH IM A M OTO, CPA / CIT P, C GMA Editor’s note: This article first appeared in CGMA Magazine. For more articles, sign up for the daily email update from CGMA Magazine at http://bit.ly/2svn2AY. Accountants are a natural ally for anyone hoping to get things done within an organization. They know the transaction flows of the organization and the risks and controls around its processes, and that knowledge can provide a valuable road map for those tasked with product design, process improvement, and more. To maximize their utility, accountants need to speak one of the most important languages of modern business. They need to understand project management — the methodology by which many business leaders enact business improvements and technology innovation. Accountants who learn the flow and terminology of project work are better able to serve as business partners for teams outside of finance, and they’ll be better positioned to advocate for good financial, data, and process management practices. In short, those in finance who understand project management will be seen more like enablers and less like gatekeepers. FOLLOWING THE PROJECT FLOW A project is defined as a temporary endeavor that creates a unique product, service, or result. That could be a brandnew consumer product, an enhancement, or simply a process improvement. A project represents change, and change brings risk. As accountants, our job is not to minimize that risk but to help manage it. Project management methodologies aim to do that by mapping the elements of the project, identifying their relationships, and evaluating the potential risks that come with them.

By participating in project management, accountants can become better advocates for good financial data, and process management practices. The document that encapsulates all that crucial information is the project charter, created at the start of each project — and it’s the key to understanding the process to come. The charter is essentially a contract between the project team and the rest of the business. Just as you use contracts to manage outside vendors’ performance, you can use this document to set realistic and enforceable expectations within the organization.

These project risks become more obvious — and more real — as the actual work of the project starts. For example, an architect might forget to make a public building accessible to people with disabilities, or an IT person might omit approval threshold controls from a procurement application.

In most cases, the accounting function isn’t in charge of these projects, so the management accountant won’t be the one actually drafting the charter. Instead, your role is to objectively review the information and assumptions that are going into this document.

A few key strategies will help guide you along the way:

Rather than coming down as the gatekeeper at the end of this process, you can be more effective by working earlier with a project manager to ensure that good projects get through the gates. The timing of your involvement will vary from project to project, but it’s ideal to join during or before the drafting of the project charter. MANAGING PROJECT RISK No project charter, no matter how good it is, can predict all of the causes and effects at play around a project. Even if it did, someone would still have to manage those risks.

Anything can happen. That means the accountant’s job becomes more important as the actual project gets under way.

• Stay involved with the project. Attend meetings. Ask to be included with correspondence, and follow along with the team. Monitoring the work as it happens will give you a better understanding of each component’s context and help you identify emerging risks. Your degree of involvement will change with the project — more risk, more involvement — but there’s often a sweet spot between “uninterested” and “over-controlling.” Your goal is to be accessible and present while respecting your role as a supporter and guide. • Think like an auditor and ask the right questions. Stakeholders and subject-matter experts can help you identify the relevant business rules and controls that apply to each segment of the project, which you STATEMENT

BUSINESS & INDUSTRY can then use to “audit” components as they’re completed. For example, an operational person may know that there is a potential problem when a particular ratio goes above 10 percent, and definitely a problem when the ratio goes above 20 percent. A detective control could be designed into the project to appropriately flag transactions that reach those ratios. • Beware of workload spikes around major deliverables. If you only get involved as the deliverable approaches, you’re going to get hit with a pile of work once the deliverable is ready, and you may then be seen as a bottleneck to completion. Continued involvement with the project will minimize the amount of backtracking, retrofitting, and panicking you have to do — all of which becomes costlier as the project progresses.

DEALING WITH SCOPE CREEP Almost every project will run into “scope creep” — the phenomenon that drives projects outside of their original scope or violates the assumptions and constraints described in the charter. As a project evolves, you’re going to encounter unexpected scenarios, find gaps in the original plan, and hear demands for more features without a corresponding increase in resources. Maybe your credit card processing company now requires a new level of security. Maybe a whimsical idea has made its way down from the C-suite. The management accountant’s job through all this is to uphold the project charter — the original contract between the project team and the rest of the business. But that doesn’t mean the project charter is unchangeable. When a change is properly justified, it can add value to a project.

Your role is to act as the validator, treating each proposal similarly to change orders submitted by vendors. Think of project components in terms of “must have,” “should have,” and “nice to have.” If a project component is in one of the latter two categories, the project team needs to provide an assessment of the value the change would provide versus the additional effort or cost. If the benefits don’t justify the cost, perhaps the scope change should be denied. Otherwise, the threat of “scope creep” may draw the project away from its original purpose and beyond its budget. Alternatively, a request for a major change in direction might signal that the project itself is misaligned with the company’s current direction and may no longer be necessary. Sometimes this oversight role can put a management accountant in an awkward situation. Requests for a change in scope CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

CHARTER CHATTER Charters vary by project, but the general template includes these details: • A list of your own key project team members and their roles, as well as the senior-level sponsors who have approved and will support the project. • Your stakeholders. These are the people who will be directly affected and who have the power to affect your project. They often will have a role in accepting the deliverable. This might include your management, accounting, and IT teams. These people can influence your project for better or for worse. By identifying them early, you can keep them on board with the project. • The objectives or outcomes that will determine whether the project is successful. Outcomes are about a desired state, or a condition, such as the reduction of risk or a better understanding of the cost structure. You may also include value statements, describing how accomplishing that objective will benefit the organization. • The specific goals that will serve as the project's milestones. For example, to reduce risk, you might need to create a new way to assess contracts. These goals can be mapped to the deliverables you'll create at various stages. For example, you might need a proof of concept early in the process. These deliverable dates can be detailed in a summary schedule.

• The assumptions governing the project. An assumption is an external factor, outside of your control, that you're dependent upon. This can include your financials, but you also need to document the other resources that you'll need. For example, your project may need an employee from IT. You don't control IT, so you need to document that assumption. You'll also want to list any required approvals and create a summary budget. • Constraints. These are limits on your work, such as a lack of available employee hours, a hard deadline, or a spending limit. Putting these factors in your charter can help communicate the limitations that the project is operating under. • Interdependencies. These show how a project interacts with other work going on in the organization. Maybe your work can't proceed until a piece of software is updated. On the tail end, other projects might be waiting on yours to be completed. If they're not surfaced, these relationships can allow for disastrous ripple effects. • The risks the project faces and the relevant mitigation plans. This is obviously the management accountant's specialty, and documenting these risks can steer your project clear of undesirable surprises.

JANUARY 2018

BUSINESS & INDUSTRY CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27

or direction might have a lot of momentum behind them when they cross your desk. But if you’re involved early and you keep your perspective objective and fact-based, then you’ll help ensure the project is oriented with the best results for the organization in mind. CLOSING THE PROJECT People tend to forget the closing phase of a project’s lifecycle, but it’s crucial to improving the organization as a whole.

Management accountants can use this time to assess whether and how risk management has been enacted at the project level. Did you help the project move faster and more smoothly through the organization? Or were you a gatekeeper who held things up? Donny Shimamoto, CPA / CITP, CGMA, is the founder and managing director of IntrapriseTechKnowlogies, a Hawaiibased CPA firm focused on organizational development and advisory services.

Often, the focus at the end is on getting sign-offs from sponsors and handing over operating procedures to operations. However, the most important aspect of closing is capturing the lessons learned. This is when you can pinpoint problems in your project processes, evaluate the project as a whole, and ensure that the knowledge you’ve gained from the project isn’t lost.

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TAX CORNER Maryland’s Admission and Amusement Tax is no joke: Protecting owners from personal liability B Y J E R E M Y M. VA IDA Maryland’s Admissions and Amusement Tax is one of this state’s lesser known yet most expensive business taxes. Covering activities as disparate as Capital Bikeshare and late-night karaoke, the tax is deceptively broad-based. Furthermore, personal liability provisions permit the comptroller to collect the tax directly from business owners and sidestep any perceived limited liability protections. With record levels of enforcement the past few years, business owners would be well-served to consult with their tax professionals to ensure they are properly complying with the law, or to seek tax counsel if they have failed to file any Admissions and Amusement Tax returns or seriously underreported their liability. BACKGROUND Predating both Maryland’s income and sales taxes, the Admissions and Amusement Tax has existed in some form since the turn of the last century. Conceived first by Maryland’s localities, the tax was enshrined into state law toward the end of World War II. Nevertheless, while the tax is collected by the comptroller, A&A taxes continue to be levied by Maryland counties and municipalities, creating a patchwork of different standards and rates throughout the state. At its most basic, though, Maryland’s A&A tax regime allows counties and localities to impose up to a 10 percent tax on the gross receipts derived from any “admissions and amusement charge” within their jurisdiction.1 An “admissions and amusement charge” is defined as any charge for: • admission to a place, including any additional separate charge for admission within an enclosure; • use of a game of entertainment; • use of a recreational or sports facility;

• use or rental of recreational or sports equipment; and • merchandise, refreshments, or a service sold or served in connection with entertainment at a nightclub or room in a hotel, restaurant, hall, or other place where dancing privileges, music, or other entertainment is provided.2 The tax may be separately stated on receipts to customers, but unlike Maryland’s sales tax, need not be.3 Additionally, while Maryland provides for some limited

exemptions to the tax, they are often reserved only for specific counties.4 The end result is that the A&A tax permits counties and municipalities to levy a broadbased gross receipts tax on a myriad of business activities,5 generally without exception. The tax can be punitive, as the 10 percent rate on gross receipts is calculated without concern for a business’s ordinary and necessary expenses, often resulting in a seller’s entire profit margin being subsumed by the tax.6

STATEMENT

TAX CORNER PROBLEMS AND PITFALLS In addition to the uncharacteristically expansive nature of Maryland’s Admissions and Amusement Tax, the regime also has a number of unique peculiarities that make it difficult to manage. First, and most important, any person who exercises direct fiscal management over any business subject to A&A tax is personally liable for its collection.7 This draconian collection mechanism persists despite the A&A tax being levied on business, as opposed to a trust fund tax, like sales tax or employment withholding taxes. Therefore, even though the incidence of the tax is on businesses, individuals may be assessed personally for any compliance failure. As with any other tax collected by the comptroller, failure to file the appropriate A&A tax return tolls the statute of limitations on collection and allows the comptroller unlimited time to assess the tax. Combined with the comptroller’s frequent use of a 100 percent fraud penalty in failure to file cases, controlling officers and shareholders can face massive exposure. Finally, because A&A taxes are actually imposed by counties and municipalities rather than the state, wholly intrastate business can be subject to wildly different tax rates and tax bases, depending upon where they do business. For instance, while the state statutes provide for a maximum rate of 10 percent and tax base that includes almost all recreational activities, localities are permitted to impose lower rates and exempt any activity they choose. Many counties and localities do, in fact, impose the maximum permitted by law. However, many elect to carve out whole sectors and industries.8 Consequently, businesses must be cognizant of each local jurisdiction’s approach to A&A tax, lest they accidentally collect more or less than is required by law and open themselves up to legal action by either the state or the public.

CURRENT ENFORCEMENT TRENDS Since the Great Recession resulted in declining revenues for all levels of government, states found increasingly creative ways to raise much-needed taxes. One method has been to aggressively enforce previously underutilized taxes, such as the Admissions and Amusement Tax. Over just the last three years, A&A collections have increased between 3 and 5 percent year over year, more than twice the rate of inflation during the same period.9 Additionally, the comptroller has made a particular point of pursuing non-filers and businesses who were previously unaware they were subject to the A&A tax. As a result, taxpayers caught in the comptroller’s crosshairs have faced daunting assessments, excessive penalties and interest, and personal exposure. LIMITING EXPOSURE AND FINDING SOLUTIONS In the face of such tactics, business owners must be proactive. Businesses should consult with their tax professionals to first determine if their operations are subject to admissions and amusement taxes and to assess the extent of their potential exposure. Such an analysis must include a review of both state and local tax statutes and ordinances, as well as the applicable regulations and case law. If a business is found to be subject to A&A tax, companies should seriously consider seeking out a tax attorney. CONCLUSION Maryland’s admissions and amusement tax, while in use for decades, has seen a recent surge in enforcement. As a result, tax accountants and preparers should consult with their clients to determine the extent of businesses A&A tax exposure. In the case of non-filers, or serious under reporters, business owners should consider seeking out tax counsel to help mitigate any potential liability.

Jeremy M. Vaida is an attorney at law with Stein Sperling Bennett De Jong Driscoll PC in Rockville. FOOTNOTES 1M D Tax - General, §4-102(a) and (b). 2M D Tax - General, §4-101(b)(1). 3M D Tax - General, §4-102(f)(2); COMAR 03.06.03.02(C). 4M D Tax - General, §4-104. 5S uch activities include, but are not limited to: night clubs, movie theatres, concerts, billiard halls, miniature golf, batting cages, boat tours, equipment rentals, arcades. 6 See Zorzit v. Comptroller, 225 Md.App. 158, 173 (2015). 7 MD Tax - General, §4-301(b) and (c)(It should be noted that in the case of a coporation, liability extends to “officers” exercising direct fiscal management where in the case of other types of entities, such as LLCs, liability extends to “any person” exercising such control). 8A dmissions and Amusement Tax Rate Schedule, Maryland Comptroller. 92 016 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, Comptroller of Maryland; 2015 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, Comptroller of Maryland; 2014 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, Comptroller of Maryland.

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HIGH-TECH SOLUTIONS Be present or absent … but not both: Four etiquette tips for videoconference calls B Y L O R I SE X TON , CPA , CG M A

We’ve all had those cringeworthy moments on videoconference calls when a colleague or customer forgets that we can see and hear everything they’re doing. We tell ourselves never to repeat such mistakes, and never to cause such distraction or embarrassment. But it’s hard to be our best selves all the time on screen, especially with videoconferences becoming more common as remote work arrangements and widespread teams become increasingly common. Here are four considerations for proper etiquette on a video or any other type of conference call: Maintain a professional appearance. More and more organizations are providing flexible and remote work arrangements for employees, which can be an excellent benefit. But remember that it is still work, and you are still a professional. Don’t appear on screen with bed head or pajama tops. When I work remotely, my routine is the same as if I were going into the office: shower, dress professionally, put on makeup, do my hair, and show up in front of the screen of my laptop. It’s the same JANUARY 2018

approach as showing up for a meeting in the executive conference room. Be known for being a professional, whether in the office or not. Work from home, not at home. Remember that you are on camera, and we can see everything in that little square of your home or vacation spot. Although your children are delightful, when discussing a serious strategic matter, a budget, or really anything, it’s not fun for your fellow attendees to watch your kids fight, jump up and down, or look at themselves on your screen. It’s better when on a call not to be feeding your toddler, walking your dog, or fixing dinner. Don’t make others in the meeting feel as if they’re inconveniencing you. Instead, retreat to a corner or a room where you can take a call with no background distractions and focus on work. Don’t try to multitask. Focus on the meeting at hand. Don’t cook your lunch or walk to the mailbox. And please stay off the treadmill. These activities are quite distracting to the other attendees, and they shouldn’t be done during a meeting.

Look at the screen, not elsewhere. Adjust your screen so meeting participants can see you and make eye contact. Nobody wants to watch you click through email, send texts, check social media accounts, or talk to a colleague who just stepped into your office. Participating and being present in meetings will show that you respect the other attendees. And don’t forget to smile – you’re happy you have flexibility, can work remotely, and can participate in video calls. A smile not only looks better but also can inspire others. Heeding this advice will help eliminate the cringes and lead to comments that we all appreciate hearing: “It’s always great to have Mary on the video call – she is always engaged!” Lori Sexton, CPA, CGMA, is a senior technical manager with the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. © 2017 Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. All rights reserved.

HIGH-TECH SOLUTIONS Big Data, analytics, A.I., and the finance professional Editor’s note: This article first appeared in CGMA Magazine. For more articles, sign up for the daily email update from CGMA Magazine at http://bit.ly/2svn2AY.

B Y A U B R E Y J O A CH IM , FCM A , CGMA Artificial intelligence and robotization will affect many elements of the human endeavour. That includes the way humans interact, how work is done, and what work need not be done by humans. These advancements present an opportunity for finance professionals, provided they embrace these tools. Businesses will still have roles in which insight, transparency, stewardship, and ethical corporate conduct are valued, and strategic finance professionals can fill these roles. Risks remain, but mainly for those who fail to appreciate the new tools and get left behind. Finance professionals must live with this changing, disruptive, but opportune environment and explore opportunities whereby the finance function itself can harness the power of Big Data and analytics to significantly transform itself and the organization. Transformation can manifest itself in a number of ways across the entire finance spectrum, from the transactional space of the finance pyramid to the top end of knowledge and value generation. In today’s age of digitization, there is a major shift in the way transactional data are captured, recorded, verified, and converted into information. All of this is about to change even further with the advent of technologies such as blockchain and distributed ledgers. Inventories and inventory transactions are another case in point. Inventory receipts, issues, stock-takes, and valuations are today automated and digitally tracked using radio frequency identification, which can be reflected directly as transactions in ledgers and financial statements. Human accountants may not be required at all in

Data gathering and accounting’s role in it continues to change. A thought leader explores the opportunities. this once-major role that they played in organizations. Add to this mix all the other data – customer, supplier, human resource, as well as myriad external data. The end game is that massive volumes of organizational data can be accurately captured more quickly and much more efficiently. The challenge now is deriving value from all these data. The era of preparing periodic accounts – month-end, quarter-end, etc. – will be over. An organization’s financial position will be quite accurately ascertained instantaneously and at any point in time. The human accounting involved in the process will also decline. Reporting will take an entirely different meaning in organizations. A report by definition is a backward look. Self-service reporting, where organizational managers will be taught by their finance business partners how to extract the information they need, will replace the need for defined periodic reports. Instead, smart finance professionals will be required to provide insights into the future. This is the challenge for next-generation finance professionals. Already in world-class companies, not only has the volume of standard reports produced been significantly reduced, but also, more importantly, a greater proportion of the remaining reports are forward-looking insights.

It must also be said that reports will need to be automated and dynamic, and take the form of intelligent dashboards based on data visualization techniques that engage the audience. Once again the human element of processing reports will decline, but a different human element will be called for. Finance professionals will be called on to play a major role in this reporting shift if they are to retain their influence in organizations. Finance has traditionally played a significant and sometimes preferred role in respect of organizational controls from simplistic reconciliations to audits, forensics, and even governance. This is perhaps the space that has been impacted the most due to digitization and automation. Processes involving data sharing and distribution from one point to another are digitally verified, and thereby dynamic controls have been embedded. Therefore, the significant involvement of finance professionals in the traditional controls space is disappearing. Instead, there is a need for finance to shift its focus to dynamic and perhaps preventive controls, as well as risk management, using significantly more sources of data. With this shift the transformed finance function should be able to play an even more important role in stewardship and governance within organizations. The top of the pyramid is the space where Big Data and analytics must play the most

STATEMENT

HIGH-TECH SOLUTIONS

significant role in the transformation of the finance function and the shift of the finance professional to the role of a trusted and valued business partner. The pre-digitization era restricted finance to a narrow window of organizational data – mostly financial – and therefore prevented the finance professional from using the significant management accounting tools and techniques that he or she is taught. The current era of Big Data and analytical platforms has opened up an entirely new opportunity in which finance can get involved: strategic decision support. This is perhaps where the future of finance and the finance profession is. Let’s explore this role further. The CFO function has the important prerogative of being able to cut across the entire organization. This opens to the finance professional access to all of the organization’s data, not just the financial data. Thus the opportunities for providing decision support are significant and can lead to more engaging business partnering. Increasingly finance professionals are called upon to play an expanding role in organizational strategy as well as integrated reporting. It is in this context JANUARY 2018

that Big Data and analytics have the most influence. Finance must broaden its perspective to harness all organizational data as well as external data to construct the bigger picture of the organization in its operating environment and, more importantly, to add value. Thus, budgeting will no longer be a simplistic spreadsheet exercise of transposing a set of sales figures provided by the sales and marketing manager to a financial spreadsheet, but rather will involve working closely with the business managers to add significantly more robustness to operational projections based on multiple sources of internal and external data that have been analyzed and related to drivers that influence the bottom-line outcomes. Finance professionals should be able to combine their powerful management accounting skills and exploit management accounting tools to convert data into predictive insights. In this way, finance can definitively claim that it is influencing the organization’s strategic direction. Further, the traditional simplistic budgetto-actual variance reporting must give way to a much more insightful understanding of organizational performance. Combining

the analytics and the A.I. perspective, such performance management will not only be dynamic but also be customizable in order to influence different parts of the organization. A number of analytic and data visualization software platforms allow finance professionals to provide the strategic decision support demanded of them. Many other value-adding opportunities can open to finance professionals in this space. The limit is beyond imagination. The challenges for finance professionals in the fast-shifting era of Big Data, analytics, and A.I. are many, the most important being a willingness to keep an open and changing mindset. The other factors are improving and enhancing technical skills in analytical sciences such as statistics as well as in the use of analytic software platforms. Aubrey Joachim is the founder of Leading Edge Change, a business-partnering firm in Australia. He is a past global president of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. © 2017 Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. All rights reserved.

TALENT 6 tactics that make for happy employees Editor’s note: This article first appeared in CGMA Magazine. For more articles, sign up for the daily email update from CGMA Magazine at http://bit.ly/2svn2AY.

B Y SA B I N E VOLLM E R Accountants and finance professionals could be more productive if they were happier at work, research by staffing firm Robert Half suggests. Happy employees are better employees because they are more engaged and more satisfied, they change jobs less often, and their mental health outside of work is better, according to Marsha Huber, CPA, CGMA, a happiness researcher and associate professor of accounting at Youngstown State University in Ohio. Huber, who was not involved in the Robert Half research, suggested that these benefits can translate into saved recruiting and training costs and even fewer sick days and lower medical costs. Surveys by Robert Half found that two-thirds of employees in North America, Europe, and Australia are generally happy in their jobs, but accountants and finance professionals rank in the bottom half of the happiness scale among eight different professions. Accountants came in fifth and finance professionals were dead last in being happy at work, a survey of more than 12,000 working professionals in North America found. They were also the least interested in their work. “In general, to help any employee become happier on the job is to help them find meaning in their work,” Huber said. “We need to help some accountants progress in their careers. Other accountants may need to feel they are doing something meaningful. For example, an accountant who works for a non-profit may earn less than peer accountants but loves her work because she finds the work rewarding.”

HOW TO WORK HAPPY Happiness at work is shorthand for employees being satisfied because they have a great experience on the job, Robert Half suggests. Needs, goals, and preferences that change from employee to employee make this experience a highly individual one, but Robert Half concluded that the following six factors are key drivers of job satisfaction:

HIRE TO FIT Set expectations by crafting detailed job postings that clearly communicate to prospective hires what the job entails. When you select job applicants that seem suitable, conduct in-depth interviews and thoroughly check references to avoid skills alignment issues. Also, devote attention to interpersonal abilities during the interview process to avoid hiring someone who’s brilliant but is going to irritate other workers. STATEMENT

TALENT Finance professionals that Robert Half polled in the United States and Canada said they do not feel well matched to their work. They said they aren’t able to use their strengths on the job to a high degree. REWARD SMART RISKS Empower employees to make decisions on their own, or with minimal direction, to let them develop problem-solving skills they can use to advance their careers, build confidence, and feel comfortable suggesting new ideas. Invite your entire workforce to brainstorm new ideas and approaches. When somebody tries something that doesn’t work, capture the lessons learned through the failure and celebrate the smart risks taken. About one-quarter of the professionals Robert Half polled in the United States and Canada said they wield little or no control over their work and feel they have few opportunities to be creative. MAKE EMPLOYEES FEEL APPRECIATED Offer gratitude for a job well done. Be specific when you recognize an employee and deliver the praise in a timely manner. Provide frequent feedback not only to individuals or the less experienced workers but to the entire team. Respondents in the Robert Half North America survey who were 55 or older were less likely to receive constructive feedback (44 percent) than those under 34 (54 percent).

Workers at very large companies (2,500 or more employees) feel the lowest sense of accomplishment, according to Robert Half research. PLAY FAIR That means managers must ensure every team member knows what it takes to get promoted or earn higher pay and workers must have an opportunity to say when they feel a sense of inequality. To ensure employees feel their pay is equitable to that of others doing to the same work, employers must periodically benchmark salaries. Knowing the going rate is vital to recruiting and retaining top talent. Only 70 percent of women feel they are treated fairly, compared to 74 percent of men. Likewise, 52 percent of women say they are paid fairly, versus 58 percent of men, according to Robert Half research. HELP EMPLOYEES ESTABLISH SUPPORTIVE WORKPLACE RELATIONSHIPS Managers can promote a positive workplace culture by creating opportunities for employees to forge and strengthen bonds with colleagues. For example, enlist older or more experienced workers to support their less experienced coworkers. Sabine Vollmer is a CGMA Magazine senior editor. She can be reached at Sabine. Vollmer@aicpa-cima.com.

HAPPIEST AT WORK? Based on a survey of more than 23,000 professionals across Europe, North America, and Australia, Robert Half ranked the following eight countries by how happy workforces are on the job: 1. United States 2. Germany 3. Netherlands 4. Australia 5. Canada 6. United Kingdom 7. Belgium 8. France © 2017 Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. All rights reserved.

OFFER WORK THAT’S INTERESTING AND MEANINGFUL Let employees know through multiple channels that their contributions matter and that they are part of something larger than themselves. One way to do this is to allow employees to volunteer and establish ties with the community. Research suggests employees who feel their work is worthwhile are nearly 2.5 times more likely to be happy than those who feel the job they do is “just work.”

JANUARY 2018

Attention CPAs:

Whether A Decision Maker Looking To Upgrade Your Talent, Or A CPA Looking to Upgrade Yourself/Your Skills, Ask Yourself: Who really chose who in joining your company? Are you/your professional staff really at the right level where you should be/you need them to be? Are you/your staff in a position that truly suits your/their personality, values, and professional and personal needs?

Why leave your future to chance? If you’re seriously interested in making the “right” move for your next hire, I can help you. I am an actively licensed CPA in Maryland and Virginia and CGMA with over 20 years of experience including public accounting (E&Y) and consulting (KPMG), financial accounting (American Cancer Society), internal audit (Telerate, now part of Thomson Reuters), and recruiting. As a networker who truly enjoys helping others and sharing my career experiences to guide fellow professionals, including writing articles for the AICPA, here is how I can help you: Decision Makers:  Ask you questions, and most likely ask many more questions than other recruiters about your company, duties involved, skills required, corporate culture and more  Work with you on finding the “right” professional that is the “right fit”  Provide you with valuable information about the professionals I work with, the marketplace, what your competitors pay, and more Career Seekers:  Guide you on career paths available in public accounting and industry  Enable you to capitalize on your strengths  Coach you on how to put your best foot forward to find the “right fit”  Advise you when to stay in your current position if that is the right move If you’re interested in working with a recruiter who understands your background, skills, and is genuinely interested in helping you find the “right fit”, then I welcome meeting you!

BETH A. BERK, CPA, CGMA Independent Recruiter

Phone: 301-767-0670 Email: BethABerk@msn.com

Specializing in CPA Firm, Accounting & Finance Positions in Metropolitan DC/MD/NoVA & Baltimore and nearby Suburbs and Richmond/Tidewater too Connecting You To Your Next Hire

Contingency & Retained Staffing Solutions

matching skills, experience & values with needs

Serving clients and professionals as an Independent Recruiter since March 2005STATEMENT

MEMBER NOTES CLASSIFIEDS Thomas Ashley, CPA, has been named a manager, state and local government in the Baltimore office of CliftonLarsonAllen. Robert G. Borowy, CPA, MST, has been admitted as partner to Deloitte Tax LLP in Baltimore. Christina Bowman, CPA, has been named a principal, higher education in the Baltimore office of CliftonLarsonAllen. Michael J. Chambers, MSM, a member of the Audit Department at Kahn, Berman, Solomon, Taibel & Mogol, P.A., has earned the CPA designation. Leslie Cornelius, CPA, has been named a manager, manufacturing and distribution in the Baltimore office of CliftonLarsonAllen. Michael Flurie, CPA, has been named a partner with Smith Elliott Kearns & Company, LLC. Carter Heim, CPA, MST, CFF, CGMA, CEO of HeimLantz CPAs and Advisors, and a former MACPA chairman, has achieved Gazelles International executive coaching certification. Cheri King, CPA, has been named a signing director, state and local government in the Baltimore office of CliftonLarsonAllen. Kenny W. Lee, a CPA candidate member, has joined Kahn, Berman, Solomon, Taibel & Mogol, P.A., as a staff accountant in the Audit Department. Jeff Miller, CPA, has been named a manager with Lanigan, Ryan, Malcolm & Doyle, P.C. Remi Omisore, CPA, has been named a principal, state and local government in the Baltimore office of CliftonLarsonAllen. Kelly Phelps has joined DeLeon and Stang, Certified Public Accountants and Advisors, as an administrative assistant, where she will provide support for the Common Interest Realty Association. J. Kenneth Rizzo, CPA, has joined Kahn, Berman, Solomon, Taibel & Mogol, P.A., as a tax supervisor in the firm’s Tax and Accounting Department. Jack Slick, CPA, has been named a partner with Smith Elliott Kearns & Company, LLC. Graylin Smith, CPA, CRMA, CFSA, CGMA, CGFM, managing partner and Compliance Practice leader at SB & Company, Inc., and a former chair of the MACPA’s Board of Directors, has been reappointed to a second five-year term as a member of the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board.

Give your company valuable exposure to nearly 10,000 MACPA members by advertising your classified ad in the Statement. Also visit our online classified page for additional ads at www.macpa.org/public/classifieds.

mergers & acquisitions Interested in Buying a Practice? See local and nationwide listings at www.APS.net and register for free email updates or call us at 1-800-397-0249.

THINKING OF SELLING YOUR PRACTICE?

Accounting Practice Sales is the leading marketer of tax and accounting practices in North America. We have a large pool of buyers, both individuals and firms, looking for practices to purchase. We also have the experience to help you find the right fit for your firm, negotiate the best price and terms and get the deal done. We welcome the opportunity to talk to you about our risk-free and confidential services. For more information please call Bradley Holmes with the APS Holmes Group at 1-800-397-0249 or email Bradley@APS.net.

DON’T MISS THE FULL LIST OF UPCOMING CPE COURSES IN-PERSON EVENTS AND COURSES: Page 42

ONLINE EVENTS AND COURSES: Page 49

IN MEMORIAM William F. Laudeman, CPA, a retired director of finance for Baltimore County and an MACPA member since 1961, died on Sept. 15. He was 89. JANUARY 2018

CLASSIFIEDS

FIRM NOTES Arthur Bell has merged with Cohen & Company. The combined

job openings

firm, to be known as Cohen & Company, will be a Top 50 CPA

NORBERG, DAVIS, BOURNE & PAINTER, LLP

is seeking a seasonal tax preparer. Our ideal candidate would have at least one year of experience in tax preparation and be available for between 20 to 40 hours per week from about 2/1/2018 to 4/30/2018. Position may lead to year round part time work. The role is primarily tax return preparation with a small amount of bookkeeping. Lacerte experience is a plus but not required. Please send resume to careers@ndbpllp.com.

SMALL CPA FIRM IN WESTMINSTER

needs a staff accountant with 1 year of audit experience. Flexible hours possible after tax season. Send resume to dahcocpajob@aol.com

SUBURBAN FROM MD TO DC CPA PRACTICE

Retirement minded CPA (former Deloitte) with practice grossing $200K looking to associate with seasoned CPA having at least 10 years client contact and experience. Association will lead to favorable acquisition time frame and terms. Unqualified Peer Review in 2014. Professional practice with significant consulting revenue and NO payroll or bookkeeping. Very profitable. DIRECT INQUIRIES IN STRICT CONFIDENCE TO: krislyn@macpa.org. NO BROKERS.

ALBERT J. BARTLINSKI & ASSOCIATES, LLC,

located in Glen Burnie, MD, is seeking tax preparer with at least two tax seasons experience and availability for about 16 to 24 hours per week from about 2/01/18 to 4/28/18. The position is primarily individual and corporate tax return preparation with some general ledger work. Pro Series experience is a plus. Send resume to Debbie@albartlinski.com.

firm with nearly $100 million in annual revenue firmwide. Bormel, Grice and Huyett, P.A., has been named one of the “Best Accounting Firms to Work For” for 2017 by Accounting Today and Best Companies Group. Bormel, Grice and Huyett was ranked No. 21 on the list. Pictured from left firm partners Ray Plummer, Katherine Grice, Anna Huyett, and Larry Bormel. Glass Jacobson P.A., certified public accountants, a member of Glass Jacobson Financial Group, has entered an agreement to merge in the CPA firm Friedman and Associates P.C. The firms will operate under the name Glass Jacobson. Gross, Mendelsohn & Associates, P.A., has merged with Gurman & Company, a Fairfax, Va.-based CPA and consulting firm. The merger more than doubles the size of the firm’s existing Fairfax office and brings the firm’s total headcount to 125. MACPA members participate in McDaniel College Interviewing Day. The annual event provides McDaniel sophomores, juniors and seniors majoring in accounting, business administration and economics the opportunity to “speed interview” with businesses in the Baltimore/Washington area for internships or jobs, or to gain experience in the interviewing process itself. Over 180 interviews were conducted in approximately three hours. Firms participating in the event were: E. Cohen and Company, CPAs, Gorefine, Schiller & Gardyn, P.A., Gross Mendelsohn, Hertzbach & Company, McLean, Koehler, Sparks & Hammond

HOW TO SUBMIT A CLASSIFIED AD To submit a classified ad, contact Krislyn Suljak krislyn@macpa.org, or 443-632-2307.

(MKS&H), Weil, Akman, Baylin & Coleman, P.A., and William at

REPLIES TO ADS WITH FILE NUMBER:

G. Jones, CPA. Weyrich, Cronin & Sorra has been awarded a 2017 “Top Workplaces” honor by The Baltimore Sun Media Group. The award is based solely on results of an employee feedback survey

Email krislyn@macpa.org, or reply via mail:

that measures several aspects of workplace culture including

Krislyn Suljak MACPA • Classified Ads • 901 Dulaney Valley Road, Suite 800 • Towson, MD 21204

alignment, execution, and connection.

STATEMENT

Technical Learning Accounting DEVELOP Accounting (Governmental) YOUR Auditing AuditingBEST (Governmental) Business Law TEAM. Economics Every course in the Business Learning Institute Course Catalog can be customized for your Finance organization and brought on-site to your office. Information Technology Management Services Regulatory Ethics Specialized Knowledge BLI instructors are known for their expert knowledge (each teaches his or her own curriculum), and also for their engaging and collaborative teaching styles and methodology. BLI is the future of learning.

GOOD STAFF TRAINING ISNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T BORING.

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Learning in all of the NASBA Fields of Study:

Technical Learning Accounting Accounting (Governmental) Auditing Auditing (Governmental) Business Law Economics Finance Information Technology Management Services Regulatory Ethics Specialized JANUARY 2018Knowledge

Statistics Taxes Non-Technical Learning Behavioral Ethics Business Management & Organization Communications and Marketing Computer Software Applications Personal Development Personnel/Human Resources Production

See the full course catalog online at

BLIonline.org/catalog Contact Pam Devine at 443.632.2321 to schedule your on-site training.

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

Upcoming IN-PERSON Events & Courses DATE

COURSE TITLE

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

WEBCAST Events & Courses: page 49 CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

A CCO U N TIN G & AUD ITIN G (IN -PE RSON) $0

Annapolis

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium

8 AM – 5 PM

$270

$370

College Park

Accounting Standards Review for Controllers and Finance Professionals

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

5/17/18

Accounting and Reporting for Not-for-Profit Organizations

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

5/21/18

Auditing Employee Benefit Plans

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

5/22/18

Audits of 401(k) Plans

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium

5/23/18

Hot Topics in Accounting & Auditing (Accounting Updates)

12 PM – 3:30 PM

$150

$200

Columbia

6/08/18

Revenue Recognition — Implementing FASB’s Revenue Recognition Standard and Preparing for the Lease Accounting Revolution

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

6/20/18

Accounting and Auditing Current Developments

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$230

$330

Frederick

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

& Online

1/25/18

CPA DAY 2018 (Members Only)

7:30 AM – 1:30 PM

4/26/18

Recognizing and Responding to Fraud Risk in Governmental and Not-for-Profit Organizations

4/27/18

2018 GOVERNMENT AND NOT-FOR-PROFIT CONFERENCE

4/30/18

BLI LE A D E R S H IP (IN -PE R SON ) 1/25/18

Communications with Executive Presence for Business Success

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

3/15/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 1: External Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

3/22/18

Quarterly Financial Leaders Series ‚Äì 30 New Roles for Strategic Finance

8 AM – 12 PM

$180

$230

Columbia

3/28/18

Introduction to Big Data

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

4/26/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 2: Internal Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

4/27/18

Ethics: 50 Shades of Gray

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

5/24/18

Make it Happen! The Art of Discipline and Getting Things Done

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

DATE DATE

COURSE TITLE COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

TIME MEMBER

MEMBER NON-MEM EVENT ID

NON-MEM. LOCATION LOCATION

MACPA COULDNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T DO EVERYTHING THAT WE DO FOR OUR MEMBERS WITHOUT OUR PREFERRED PROVIDERS & MEDIA SPONSOR Exclusive Preferred Providers

Preferred Providers

Media Sponsor

For information about sponsoring MACPA programs or to learn more about advertising with the MACPA please contact Amy Puente at 443.632.2323 or amyp@macpa.org.

JANUARY 2018

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

BLI LEADERSHIP (IN-PERSON), CONTINUED 5/31/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 3: Soft Skills for the CPA

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

6/14/18

Quarterly Financial Leaders Series - The Business of the Future

8 AM – 12 PM

$180

$230

Columbia

6/26/18

From Compliance to Consulting Workshop

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$1,500

$1,800

Towson

BU S I N E S S & IN DUSTRY (IN -PE R SON) 1/25/18

Communications with Executive Presence for Business Success

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

2/08/18

Excel Boot Camp Refresher

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

3/15/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 1: External Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

3/22/18

Quarterly Financial Leaders Series - 30 New Roles for Strategic Finance

8 AM – 12 PM

$180

$230

Columbia

3/27/18

Excel + Word + Outlook + OneNote + Adobe Acrobat Tips Improve Personal Productivity

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

4/25/18

Excel Pivot Tables in-depth, PowerPivot Tips, and Data Analysis Functions

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

4/26/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 2: Internal Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

4/27/18

2018 GOVERNMENT AND NOT-FOR-PROFIT CONFERENCE

8 AM – 5 PM

$270

$370

College Park

4/27/18

Ethics: 50 Shades of Gray

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

4/30/18

Accounting Standards Review for Controllers and Finance Professionals

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

5/08/18

Excel Advanced Features, Functions, Pivot Tables and the Macro Recorder

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

5/24/18

Make it Happen! The Art of Discipline and Getting Things Done

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

5/31/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 3: Soft Skills for the CPA

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

6/08/18

Revenue Recognition - Implementing FASB’s Revenue Recognition Standard and Preparing for the Lease Accounting Revolution

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

6/14/18

Quarterly Financial Leaders Series - The Business of the Future

8 AM – 12 PM

$180

$230

Columbia

6/19/18

PowerPoint & Excel Data Visualization Create Dynamic Financial Presentations, Charts, Graphs and Diagrams

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

6/26/18

From Compliance to Consulting Workshop

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$1,500

$1,800

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

& Online

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

Towson

E MP LO Y E E B E N EF ITS (IN-PE R S ON ) 5/21/18

Auditing Employee Benefit Plans

E T H I C S (IN - PE R SON ) 4/27/18

Ethics: 50 Shades of Gray

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

5/23/18

A Practical Ethics Update for CPAs: 2018 Edition

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

Tax Cuts & Jobs Act of 2017

NEW TAX REFORM PROGRAMS What You and Your Clients Need to Know

NEED TO GET YOUR STAFF UP TO SPEED FAST? Bring Tax Cuts and Job Act courses to your office, contact 888-481-3500 to learn more.

JANUARY 2018

STRATEGIC LEARNING POWERED BY

BUSINESS LEARNING INSTITUTE

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

GOVERNMENT (IN-PERSON)

G O VE R N M E N T (IN -PE R SON ) $0

Annapolis

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium

8 AM – 5 PM

$270

$370

College Park

7:30 AM – 1:30 PM

Annapolis

1/25/18

CPA DAY 2018 (Members Only)

7:30 AM – 1:30 PM

4/26/18

Recognizing and Responding to Fraud Risk in Governmental and Not-for-Profit Organizations

4/27/18

2018 GOVERNMENT AND NOT-FOR-PROFIT CONFERENCE

LE G I S L ATIV E & RE GULATORY (IN -PERSO N) 1/25/18

CPA DAY 2018 (Members Only)

N O N PR O F IT / NOT-F OR -PR OF IT (IN- P ERSON) 4/26/18

Recognizing and Responding to Fraud Risk in Governmental and Not-for-Profit Organizations

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium

4/27/18

2018 GOVERNMENT AND NOT-FOR-PROFIT CONFERENCE

8 AM – 5 PM

$270

$370

College Park

5/17/18

Accounting and Reporting for Not-for-Profit Organizations

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

5/22/18

Audits of 401(k) Plans

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium

PER S O N A L F IN AN CIAL PLAN N IN G ( IN- P ERSO N) 1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

6/12/18

A Practical Guide to Trusts

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

PRA CT ITIO N E R S (IN-PE R S ON ) 1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

2/27/18

QuickBooks For Accounting Professionals

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

4/30/18

Accounting Standards Review for Controllers and Finance Professionals

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

6/12/18

A Practical Guide to Trusts

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

& Online

Annapolis

TAX ( I N - P E R S O N) 1/25/18

CPA DAY 2018 (Members Only)

7:30 AM – 1:30 PM

1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

1/29/18

AACC: Multi-State Tax Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$50

$60

Anne Arundel

5/15/18

Tax, Financial, and Estate Planning Under the Trump Administration

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

5/16/18

Navigating Your Client Through the Maze of the American Health Care Act

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium

6/12/18

A Practical Guide to Trusts

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Columbia

6/21/18

Estate Document Workshop

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

BUSINESS LEARNING INSTITUTE

CONTROLLER SERIES IMPROVE YOUR

Strategic Financial Leadership How do you make the best business decisions in the face of political and economic uncertainty? The Great Recession is over, but do things feel like business as usual? Not for most CFOs and Controllers. This series of courses will help you learn to lead where there is no path.

With Frank Ryan and Matt Ryan Courses are are available as in-person events, webcasts, or on-demand.

macpa.org/ControllerSeries CPE: 8.0 • Timonium • Loyola Graduate Center • 8:00am Simulcast Available Groups of five or more qualify for group discounts, which are available in an on-site or webcast format. Please call to 888-481-3500 to learn more. STRATEGIC LEARNING POWERED BY

JANUARY 2018

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

TECHNOLOGY (IN-PERSON)

T E CHN O L O G Y (IN -PE R SON ) 2/08/18

Excel Boot Camp Refresher

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

2/27/18

QuickBooks For Accounting Professionals

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

3/27/18

Excel + Word + Outlook + OneNote + Adobe Acrobat Tips - Improve Personal Productivity

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

3/28/18

Introduction to Big Data

8 AM – 11:30 AM

$150

$200

Columbia

4/25/18

Excel Pivot Tables in-depth, PowerPivot Tips, and Data Analysis Functions

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

5/08/18

Excel Advanced Features, Functions, Pivot Tables and the Macro Recorder

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

6/19/18

PowerPoint & Excel Data Visualization Create Dynamic Financial Presentations, Charts, Graphs and Diagrams

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$330

$480

Columbia

6/26/18

From Compliance to Consulting Workshop

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$1,500

$1,800

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

Towson & Online

I am available to assist your clients with • Arbitration and Mediation

• Derivative Actions

• Bank Financing and Loan Documents

• Employment Agreements

• Business Formation

• Independent Contractor Agreements

• Business Succession Planning

• Non-Compete and Executive Compensation

• Commercial Lease Negotiation

• Purchases, Sales and Mergers

• Contracts and Commercial Agreements

• Shareholder and Operating Agreements

Choose Knowledge, Strategy and Results

Group discounts are available.

Ronald E. Lyons, Esquire 7811 Montrose Road, Suite 400 • Potomac, MD 20854 301-251-1180 p • 301-251-0447 f mcmillanmetro.com • rlyons@mcmillanmetro.com

STATEMENT

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CPE

TIME

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DATE

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Upcoming ONLINE Events & Courses

AC CO U N TIN G & AUDITIN G (ONLINE) 1/22/18

Preparation, Compilation, and Review Engagements: Update and Review

10:30 AM – 2:30 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/22/18

Financial Reporting for Not-for-Profit Entities

2:30 PM – 6:30 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/23/18

Analyzing a Company’s Financial Statement

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/24/18

Applying the Risk Assessment Standards to Enhance Audit Quality

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/25/18

The New Clarified Attestation Standards: What You Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/26/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/31/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/01/18

Financial Instruments: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/02/18

Construction Contractors: Accounting, Auditing, and Tax

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/07/18

Accounting and Auditing Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/08/18

Statement of Cash Flows: Preparation, Presentation, and Use

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/09/18

Grow Your Business from Within: How to Deliver Maximum Value to Client’s on Every Engagement

11 AM – 1 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

2/09/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/09/18

Financial Reporting for Not-for-Profit Entities

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/13/18

Analyzing a Company’s Financial Statement

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/20/18

Revenue Recognition: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/21/18

Preparation, Compilation, and Review Engagements: Update and Review

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/21/18

Fraud: Recent Findings, Red Flags and Corruption Scheme

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/21/18

Fraud and Cash Receipts: Common Frauds and Internal Controls

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/22/18

Purchasing, Inventory, and Cash Disbursements: Common Frauds and Internal Controls

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/28/18

Data Breaches & Other Cyber Frauds: A 21st Century Risk to Your Organization

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

JANUARY 2018

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

ACCOUNTING & AUDITING (ONLINE), CONTINUED 2/28/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/01/18

How to Identify, Explain, and Present Pertinent Financial Information to Non-Accountants

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

3/01/18

Financial Instruments: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/05/18

Financial Reporting for Not-for-Profit Entities

10:30 AM – 2:30 PM

$195

$199

Online Webcast

3/05/18

Construction Contractors: Accounting, Auditing, and Tax

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/06/18

Implementing FASB’s New Lease Standard: ASU 2016-02 Accounting for Leases - Examples and Practical Approaches

11 AM – 3 PM

$110

$140

Online Webcast

3/07/18

Grow Your Business from Within: How to Deliver Maximum Value to Client’s on Every Engagement

1 PM – 3 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

3/08/18

Statement of Cash Flows: Preparation, Presentation, and Use

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/13/18

Fraud: Recent Findings, Red Flags and Corruption Scheme

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/14/18

Purchasing, Inventory, and Cash Disbursements: Common Frauds and Internal Controls

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/14/18

Fraud and Cash Receipts: Common Frauds and Internal Controls

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/15/18

Analyzing a Company’s Financial Statement

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/19/18

Preparation, Compilation, and Review Engagements: Update and Review

10:30 AM – 2:30 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/21/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/22/18

Data Breaches & Other Cyber Frauds: A 21st Century Risk to Your Organization

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/23/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/26/18

Accounting and Auditing Update

10:30 AM – 2:30 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/27/18

Revenue Recognition: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/04/18

Purchasing, Inventory, and Cash Disbursements: Common Frauds and Internal Controls

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/04/18

Fraud and Cash Receipts: Common Frauds and Internal Controls

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/05/18

Fraud: Recent Findings, Red Flags and Corruption Scheme

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/09/18

Financial Reporting for Not-for-Profit Entities

10:30 AM – 2:30 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/09/18

Construction Contractors: Accounting, Auditing, and Tax

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/10/18

Financial Instruments: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/11/18

Documenting Your EBP Audit: What You Need to Know

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/12/18

Statement of Cash Flows: Preparation, Presentation, and Use

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/17/18

Advanced Defined Contribution Plans Audit Certificate Exam Review

9 AM – 5 PM

$399

$499

Online Webcast

4/18/18

Analyzing a Company‚Äôs Financial Statement

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

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NON-MEM. LOCATION

Master key MBA concepts in hours, not years. blionline.org/MBAexpress

The MBAexpress is a co-creation between Peter Margaritis & Jennifer Elder in partnership with BLI.

The MBAexpress provides business savvy in customizable increments. Choose an individual model, a pre-packed bundle, or select modules for a customized program. FO C US A R E A B U ND LES

$1 80

each includes 6 topic modules

ADDING VALUE Getting the most by giving the most.

BUSINESS STRATEGY Thinking, planning, acting, and leading.

INCL UDED M ODUL ES

$45

when taken individually

• Basics of Business Law • Best Practices for Better Budgeting and Planning • Business Benefits of Sustainability • Creativity & Innovation

A L L FI VE BU N D L ES

$595

discounted price

• Faster Disaster Recovery

• Insightful Financial Analysis

• Ferreting Out Fraud

• Nuances of Negotiating

• International Business

• Risk Management

• Masterful Marketing

• Strategy for Success

LEADERSHIP STRATEGY

• Emotional Intelligence

• Good Governance

Taking people to new places and higher ground.

• Essence of Entrepreneurship

• Latest in Leadership

• Smarter Decisionmaking

• Balanced Scorecard

• Excellent Customer Service

• Performance Management

• Effective Change Management

• Project Management

• Communication in the Workplace

• Powerful Presentation Skills

• Success with Social Media

• Networking—Building a Stronger Professional Network

• Presenting Numbers for Impact

• The Art of Effective Writing

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT Getting to better results, faster.

POWERFUL COMMUNICATION Conveying meaning and earning an audience.

• Business Process Improvement

• Teamwork & High Performance Teams

HOSTING YOUR TRAINING ON-SITE? CUSTOMIZE YOUR MBAexpress.

JANUARYSelect 2018

any 6 of our 30 available modules to create your own MBAexpress program.

Groups of five or more qualify for group discounts, which are available in an on-site or webcast format. Please call to 888-481-3500 to learn more.

DATE

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CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

ACCOUNTING & AUDITING (ONLINE), CONTINUED 4/19/18

New Required Going Concern Disclosure: Evaluating the Impact on Preparing Financial Statements, Compilations, Reviews and Audits

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

4/19/18

Revenue Recognition: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/20/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/24/18

Accounting and Auditing Update

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/25/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/25/18

Audits of 401(k) Plans

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/26/18

Preparation, Compilation, and Review Engagements: Update and Review

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/27/18

Data Breaches & Other Cyber Frauds: A 21st Century Risk to Your Organization

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

5/03/18

Implementing FASB‚‘s New Lease Standard: ASU 2016-02 Accounting for Leases - Examples and Practical Approaches

12 PM – 4 PM

$110

$140

Online Webcast

5/09/18

Documenting Your EBP Audit: What You Need to Know

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

& Online

B LI LE A D E R S H IP (ON LIN E ) 1/23/18

Productivity Enablement: Simplifying the Most Challenging Parts of Your Job and Becoming Future-Ready (Free for Members)

12 PM – 1 PM

$50

Online Webcast

1/25/18

Anticipate Change: Avoiding Ulcers in the “New Abnormal World”

12 PM – 1 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

1/29/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/15/18

Anticipate Inclusion: Building a Sustainable Culture of Diversity (Free for Members)

11 AM – 12 PM

$45

Online Webcast

2/28/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

10 AM – 11 AM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

3/15/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 1: External Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

3/22/18

Listening For Leaders: Ask the Question, Discover the Need, Win the Trust

12 PM – 4 PM

$110

$140

Online Webcast

4/26/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 2: Internal Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

5/31/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 3: Soft Skills for the CPA

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

8/15/18

Anticipate Inclusion: Building a Sustainable Culture of Diversity (Free for Members)

12 PM – 1 PM

$45

Online Webcast

9/13/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

10/11/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

B U S I N E S S & IN DUS TRY (ONLINE ) 1/23/18

Analyzing a Company’s Financial Statement

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/24/18

Anticipate Engagement: Motivating the Next Workforce

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

BUSINESS & INDUSTRY (ONLINE), CONTINUED 1/25/18

Anticipate Change: Avoiding Ulcers in the “New Abnormal World”

12 PM – 1 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

1/25/18

Risk, Cost, and Cash Management for Controllers and Financial Managers

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/26/18

Controller’s Update: Today’s Latest Trends

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/26/18

The Eight Hour MBA

9 AM – 5 PM

$245

$345

Online Webcast

1/26/18

Multistate Taxation

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

1/29/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

1/29/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/30/18

Anticipate Client Needs: Beyond Best Practices in Client and Customer Service

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

1/30/18

Employment Law Update: Reducing Employer Liability

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/31/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/01/18

Conflict and Communication - You vs. Me vs. Them

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

2/02/18

Working Together - Four Personality Styles in the Workplace

10 AM – 11 AM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/02/18

Construction Contractors: Accounting, Auditing, and Tax

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/05/18

Not-for-Profit Accounting and Auditing Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/06/18

Controller Series: Enterprise Risk Management

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/06/18

Financial Forecasting: Planning for Success

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/08/18

Working Together - Four Generations in the Workplace

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/13/18

Excel Power User - Automating with Macros (Part 1)

1 PM – 3 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

2/13/18

Analyzing a Company’s Financial Statement

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/13/18

Risk, Cost, and Cash Management for Controllers and Financial Managers

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/14/18

U.S. GAAP: Review for Business & Industry

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/15/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/15/18

Forensic Accounting: Uncovering Schemes and Scams

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/16/18

Controller Series: National Infrastructure

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/16/18

Employment Law Update: Reducing Employer Liability

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/19/18

Financial Storytelling: The Key in Growing Your Organization to The Next Level

10 AM – 12 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

2/20/18

The Changing Role of the Controller: Advancing from Tactical to Strategic

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/21/18

Fraud: Recent Findings, Red Flags and Corruption Scheme

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

JANUARY 2018

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

BUSINESS & INDUSTRY (ONLINE), CONTINUED 2/22/18

Controller Series: Human Resource Effectiveness

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/23/18

Controller’s Update: Today’s Latest Trends

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/23/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/26/18

Anticipate Development: Moving From Employee to Manager to Leader

4 PM – 5 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/27/18

Identity Theft: Preventing, Detecting, and Investigating

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/28/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

10 AM – 11 AM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

2/28/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/01/18

How to Identify, Explain, and Present Pertinent Financial Information to Non-Accountants

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

3/02/18

Working Together - Four Personality Styles in the Workplace

12 PM – 1 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

3/05/18

Anticipate Client Needs: Beyond Best Practices in Client and Customer Service

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

3/05/18

Construction Contractors: Accounting, Auditing, and Tax

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/06/18

Financial Forecasting: Planning for Success

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/07/18

Not-for-Profit Accounting and Auditing Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/08/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/09/18

Employment Law Update: Reducing Employer Liability

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/12/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/13/18

The Finance and Accounting Organization as Strategist and Partner to the Business

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

3/13/18

Fraud: Recent Findings, Red Flags and Corruption Scheme

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/15/18

Analyzing a Company’s Financial Statement

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/15/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 1: External Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

3/16/18

Identity Theft: Preventing, Detecting, and Investigating

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/19/18

Controller Series: Good Customer Criteria and the Credit Process

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

3/19/18

Forensic Accounting: Uncovering Schemes and Scams

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/20/18

Risk, Cost, and Cash Management for Controllers and Financial Managers

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/23/18

Controller’s Update: Today’s Latest Trends

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/23/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/26/18

Working Together - Four Generations in the Workplace

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

BUSINESS & INDUSTRY (ONLINE), CONTINU ED 3/27/18

The Changing Role of the Controller: Advancing from Tactical to Strategic

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/28/18

U.S. GAAP: Review for Business & Industry

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/03/18

Financial Forecasting: Planning for Success

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/04/18

Conflict and Communication - You vs. Me vs. Them

1 PM – 3 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

4/05/18

Fraud: Recent Findings, Red Flags and Corruption Scheme

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/05/18

Look, Lead, Love,Learn (FREE FOR MEMBERS)

11 AM – 1 PM

$90

Online Webcast

4/06/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/09/18

Controller Series: National Infrastructure

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

4/09/18

Construction Contractors: Accounting, Auditing, and Tax

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/10/18

Controller Series: Debt and Equity Mix

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

4/10/18

Forensic Accounting: Uncovering Schemes and Scams

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/11/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/12/18

Get Out of the Casket and Up to the Podium

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

4/12/18

Employment Law Update: Reducing Employer Liability

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/13/18

Controller Series: Retirement and Succession Planning

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

4/13/18

Not-for-Profit Accounting and Auditing Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/18/18

Analyzing a Company’s Financial Statement

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/19/18

Risk, Cost, and Cash Management for Controllers and Financial Managers

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/20/18

Controller Series: Going Lean

12 PM – 1 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

4/20/18

Identity Theft: Preventing, Detecting, and Investigating

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/20/18

Leases: Mastering the New FASB Requirements

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/23/18

The Changing Role of the Controller: Advancing from Tactical to Strategic

2:30 PM – 6:30 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/23/18

U.S. GAAP: Review for Business & Industry

10:30 AM – 2:30 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/24/18

Anticipate Development: Moving From Employee to Manager to Leader

10 AM – 11 AM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

4/26/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 2: Internal Factors Impacting Business

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

4/27/18

Controller’s Update: Today’s Latest Trends

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

5/01/18

Controller Series: Federal, State and Local Deficits

2 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

JANUARY 2018

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

What’s on Line 37? An opportunity to help save a life!

Cancer treatment is expensive. By making a taxdeductible donation to the Maryland Cancer Fund, Marylanders can help low-income residents in their community afford life-saving cancer diagnosis, treatment and prevention services. Just check the box on line 37 on Maryland Tax Form 502 - it’s that easy! www.mdcancerfund.org

201 West Preston Street, Baltimore, MD 21201

410-767-6213

Larry Hogan, Governor | Boyd Rutherford, Lieutenant Governor | Dennis Schrader, Secretary

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

BUSINESS & INDUSTRY (ONLINE), CONTINUED 5/07/18

Controller Series: Effective Communication and Negotiations

1 PM – 2 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

5/08/18

Financial Forecasting: Planning for Success

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

5/09/18

Anticipate Engagement: Motivating the Next Workforce

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

5/11/18

The Changing Role of the Controller: Advancing from Tactical to Strategic

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

5/18/18

Excel Power User -Automating with Macros (Part 1)

3 PM – 5 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

5/31/18

Controller & Financial Professional Series 2018 Part 3: Soft Skills for the CPA

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

6/04/18

Conflict and Communication - You vs. Me vs. Them

2 PM – 4 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

6/18/18

Anticipate Client Needs: Beyond Best Practices in Client and Customer Service

1 PM – 2 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

7/10/18

Anticipate Development: Moving From Employee to Manager to Leader

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

8/01/18

Anticipate Engagement: Motivating the Next Workforce

12 PM – 1 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

9/12/18

Controller Series: Effective Communication and Negotiations

4 PM – 5 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

9/13/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

9/14/18

Anticipate Development: Moving From Employee to Manager to Leader

1 PM – 2 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

9/18/18

Controller Series: Competing Globally

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

9/20/18

Controller Series: Good Customer Criteria and the Credit Process

10 AM – 11 AM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

9/24/18

Controller Series: Going Lean

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

10/04/18

Conflict and Communication - You vs. Me vs. Them

10 AM – 12 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

10/11/18

Anticipate Greatness: Building a Productive, Resilient Workforce

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

10/25/18

Controller Series: Enterprise Risk Management

1 PM – 2 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

10/29/18

Controller Series: Human Resource Effectiveness

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

11/05/18

Anticipate Client Needs: Beyond Best Practices in Client and Customer Service

4 PM – 5 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

11/08/18

Controller Series: Federal, State and Local Deficits

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

11/16/18

Controller Series: Debt and Equity Mix

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

11/27/18

Anticipate Engagement: Motivating the Next Workforce

1 PM – 2 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

& Online

12/10/18

Anticipate Development: Moving From Employee to Manager to Leader

3 PM – 4 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

12/11/18

Controller Series: Competing Globally

11 PM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

JANUARY 2018

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

EMPLOYEE BENEFITS (ONLINE)

EMP LO YE E B E NE F ITS (ON LIN E ) 1/29/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/15/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/22/18

Controller Series: Human Resource Effectiveness

11 AM – 12 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

3/08/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/11/18

Employment Law Update: Examining Critical Issues with FMLA, HIPPA, COBRA, ADA and More

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

10/29/18

Controller Series: Human Resource Effectiveness

2 PM – 3 PM

$35

$45

Online Webcast

ET H I C S ( O N L IN E) 1/31/18

CPA Continuing Education Requirements - What Every CPA Needs to Know (FREE FOR MEMBERS)

10 AM – 11 AM

$45

Online Webcast

2/14/18

The Ethics of Change - Keeping Your Balance in Risky Times

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

2/14/18

Why We Stray: A Different Look at Ethical Decision-Making

2:30 PM – 4:30 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

3/12/18

Ethics: Critical Thinking, Case Studies, and Fraud

12 PM – 4 PM

$110

$140

Online Webcast

4/16/18

The Ethics of Change - Keeping Your Balance in Risky Times

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

4/16/18

Why We Stray: A Different Look at Ethical Decision-Making

2:30 PM – 4:30 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

5/28/18

Ethics: Critical Thinking, Case Studies, and Fraud

11 AM – 3 PM

$110

$140

Online Webcast

G OV E R N M E N T (ON LIN E ) 1/25/18

Applying the Uniform Guidance in Your Single Audits

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/12/18

Applying the Uniform Guidance in Your Single Audits

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/23/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/09/18

Applying the Uniform Guidance in Your Single Audits

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/12/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/06/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/13/18

Applying the Uniform Guidance in Your Single Audits

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

DATE

COURSE TITLE

JANUARY 2018

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

NON-PROFIT/NOT-FOR-PROFIT (ONLINE)

NON P R O F IT / NOT-FOR -PR OF IT (ONLINE) 1/22/18

Form 990: Exploring the Form’s Complex Schedules

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/05/18

Not-for-Profit Accounting and Auditing Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/23/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/07/18

Not-for-Profit Accounting and Auditing Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/12/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/06/18

Internal Control and COSO Essentials for Financial Managers, Accountants and Auditors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

4/13/18

Not-for-Profit Accounting and Auditing Update

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/25/18

Audits of 401(k) Plans

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

PE R S O N A L F IN ANCIAL PLANNING (O NLINE) 1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

2/06/18

Social Security and Medicare: Maximizing Retirement Benefits

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/07/18

Social Security and Medicare: Maximizing Retirement Benefits

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/10/18

Social Security and Medicare: Maximizing Retirement Benefits

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

PR A CT ITIO N E R S (ON LIN E ) 1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

& Online

TA X ( O N L IN E ) 1/22/18

Form 990: Exploring the Form’s Complex Schedules

10:30 AM – 6:30 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

1/23/18

Working Paper Documentation

1 PM – 3 PM

$99

$129

Online Webcast

1/23/18

Getting to the Heart of Tax Reform: Individual Income Tax Changes and Planning Strategies

1 PM – 5 PM

$189

$239

Online Webcast

1/23/18

Annual Tax Update: Individuals and Sole Proprietors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

1/24/18

Tax Research I

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/25/18

Tax Research 2

2.5

1 PM – 3:30 PM

$119

$149

Online Webcast

1/25/18

Tax Reform’s Impact on International Business

1 PM – 5 PM

$189

$239

Online Webcast

Group discounts are available.

STATEMENT

DATE

COURSE TITLE

CPE

TIME

MEMBER

NON-MEM. LOCATION

TAX (ONLINE) 1/26/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

1/26/18

Multistate Taxation

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

1/26/18

Annual Tax Update: Corporations and Pass-Through Entities

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

1/26/18

Don Farmer’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 Update

8 AM – 3:30 PM

$295

$395

Timonium & Online

1/30/18

Tax Reform’s Impact on Corporations and Pass-Through Entities

1 PM – 5 PM

$189

$239

Online Webcast

1/31/18

Getting to the Heart of Tax Reform: Individual Income Tax Changes and Planning Strategies

1 PM – 5 PM

$189

$239

Online Webcast

2/06/18

Social Security and Medicare: Maximizing Retirement Benefits

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/07/18

Affordable Care Act: Critical Tax and Insurance Ramifications

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/09/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

2/09/18

Annual Tax Update: Individuals and Sole Proprietors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

2/16/18

Annual Tax Update: Corporations and Pass-Through Entities

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/06/18

Annual Tax Update: Individuals and Sole Proprietors

9 AM – 5 PM

$249

$319

Online Webcast

3/07/18

Social Security and Medicare: Maximizing Retirement Benefits

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

3/21/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/10/18

Social Security and Medicare: Maximizing Retirement Benefits

9 AM – 1 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

4/25/18

Interpreting the New Revenue Recognition Standard: What All CPAs Need to Know

1 PM – 5 PM

$159

$199

Online Webcast

TE CHN O L O G Y (ONLINE ) 3/20/18

Microsoft Outlook and Word 2010: Productivity Tips and Tricks

2 PM – 4 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

4/03/18

Adobe Acrobat Best Practices and Productivity Features

1 PM – 3 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

6/06/18

Adobe Acrobat Best Practices and Productivity Features

11 AM – 1 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

8/14/18

Adobe Acrobat Best Practices and Productivity Features

9 AM – 11 AM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

12/03/18

Adobe Acrobat Best Practices and Productivity Features

12 PM – 2 PM

$75

$90

Online Webcast

12/06/18

2018 CPA Summit

8 AM – 4 PM

$200

$300

& Online

JANUARY 2018

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