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Accounting
The Profession

Build your CPD hours with these 3 info-filled options

These conferences and courses will help you expand your professional horizons while staying on top of industry trends

Work colleagues meeting and talking in corporate buildingThis year’s annual national conference, The ONE, will be held September 12 and 13 in Halifax. Various attendance options are available (Getty Images/ SolStock)

In today’s complex business landscape, organizations must face a rapidly evolving set of risks and opportunities.

“Businesses now have to consider a much greater amount of information, both financial and non-financial, in decision-making processes,” says Jeanette Hill, CPA, director, sustainability and value creation, in the member development and support department at CPA Canada. “As trusted advisers to businesses, CPAs are constantly having to navigate changing stakeholder expectations—including legal and regulatory environments.”

To support CPAs in navigating this complexity, CPA Canada provides a wide range of educational opportunities to help them increase their decision-making skills and earn CPD hours in the process.

1. THE ONE NATIONAL CONFERENCE 2023

Celebrating its 10th anniversary, The ONE is Canada’s premiere conference for the profession and provides a chance for CPAs to explore emerging trends and new areas of expertise, while gaining a deeper understanding of the drivers of the rapid changes the industry is experiencing today.

This year’s event, “Evolution of the enterprise,” will be held September 12 and 13 at the Halifax Convention Centre. CPAs can choose from a range of attendance options at this hybrid event, from in-person (which will include expanded networking opportunities this year), and virtual livestream sessions featuring discussion forums, Q&As, polling and real-time access to resources. There is also a robust all-access pass option that includes access to an additional 16 learning hours of content, including hot topics such as ChatGPT and the potential effect on the accounting community.

“The evolution theme reflects the environment of constant change and uncertainty we have been living in,” says Hill. “With increasing demands on businesses from all stakeholders, the goals for utilizing technology, remaining economically competitive, and doing business sustainably have never been more aligned—leading to a fundamental shift in the way businesses operate. Business efficiency and sustainability are at the top of the organizational agenda in 2023. The ONE provides an ideal venue for CPAs to learn first-hand about sustainability opportunities and risk exposure and how they can leverage technology to help them operate more efficiently and effectively in an uncertain economic environment.”

Keynote speakers include enterprise senior executives and entrepreneurs, risk management and securities commission professionals, assurance specialists and accounting standards experts who will speak on topics ranging from risk management, sustainability and value creation to the latest updates on standards and regulatory compliance.

The conference earns up to 31 CPD hours. To learn about the various packages available and to register, click here.

2. SUSTAINABILITY/ESG CERTIFICATE

The Sustainability and ESG certificate underpins the ability of business professionals to support an organization in creating value for the long term while considering the impact on society. It is designed for CPAs with at least two years of designated experience and business professionals that work in the private sector, public accounting firms, and management consulting firms in roles that relate to sustainability and climate change, financial statement preparation, and leadership.

“Sustainability is poised to be the biggest change in the accounting profession in over 100 years,” says Hill. “It is an area where all businesses will have to be involved at some point, regardless of the size of their operations. It may come in the form of getting scoped into the value chain of larger organizations making disclosures, through providers of capital such as lenders or private equity, through insurance companies, or through government policy. It is vital that organizations and individuals prepare as early as possible.”

Overall learning objectives include explaining sustainability and ESG concepts and issues, analyzing the relevance of ESG risks and opportunities in financial, strategic, and operational decisions, the impact of stakeholders on ESG strategy and performance, assessing various sustainability reporting and disclosure standards and frameworks, including those established by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).

The certificate is composed of four courses:

  1. Introduction to Sustainability – A Multi-Year Retrospective
  2. Deep Dive into Sustainability – Understanding E, S, and G
  3. Sustainability Reporting and Disclosure
  4. Capstone

Courses 1 and 2 are available on demand and focus on developing literacy on core background concepts and language. Courses 3 and 4 focus on building capabilities and will be presented at a specific time in the late fall and involve hands-on case work in application of standards and creating effective internal processes and governance around sustainability information.

The certificate earns 60 CPD hours; however, most courses can be purchased individually. Visit the CPA Store to register.

3. Advanced Data Management Certificate Program

The Advanced Data Management Certificate Program (ADMCP) is a facilitated program presented by CPA Canada in collaboration with KPMG Canada and Simon Fraser University’s (SFU’s) School of Business (Executive Education).

“This course is specifically designed for CPAs who already have a base knowledge of how to manipulate and clean data and are interested in learning more about effective decision making, communicating results, and developing effective insights and critical thinking skills,” says Hill. “Although this is an entire program, there is flexibility to take individual courses depending on the training need. “In course three, for example, we focus on data governance, which is especially important as we enter this era of complex non-financial reporting. In course four, we build on technical skills by introducing the power of advanced tools such as Python, R, and SQL.”

The ADMCP is currently the only program of its kind specifically targeted to CPAs and other financial professionals. Each course runs six consecutive weeks, with one module per week. Students may be eligible to receive university credit on completion.

The individual courses and dates are:

Participants can register at different stages of the cycle. Registration for each course or program closes 10 days prior to the start date of the full program or each course. The entire program earns 125 CPD hours. Go here to register.

For those that require additional base training in cleaning data and tools such as Power BI, Tableau and Power Query, check out our data management foundations certificate program.

MORE LEARNING

View CPA Canada’s full repertoire of conferences, courses and webinars.