Award recognizes accounting and finance professionals who are driving innovation in the profession

NEW YORK (July 11, 2023) – CPA.com, the business and technology arm of the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), is seeking applicants for its annual Digital CPA Innovative Practitioner Award, which recognizes individuals who are driving the accounting profession forward through innovative thought leadership, processes, services and technology implementation.

“The Innovative Practitioner Award honors the change-makers in the accounting profession who are adopting new services, skills and business models to position their firms and staff for ongoing success,” said Kacee Johnson, vice president-Strategy & Innovation, CPA.com. “It’s the innovative approaches and contributions of these future-focused leaders that is helping forge the path forward for the profession.”

The award winner will be announced at the CPA.com Digital CPA conference to be held Dec. 3-6 at the ARIA in Las Vegas. The conference brings together more than 1,000 progressive practitioners to learn about the future of the accounting profession through three days of insightful and actionable CPE-eligible sessions. The Innovative Practitioner Award winner will receive two free registrations and hotel accommodations for DCPA as well as benefit from profession-wide recognition at the event and through CPA.com social media, newsletter and media channels. Additionally, the individual’s firm or organization will have the opportunity to highlight the achievement with their clients, customers, staff and key stakeholders.

Past winners have included leaders from across the profession who have embraced new service lines, implemented unique marketing techniques, fostered new approaches to talent management and culture, or adopted innovative new processes to enhance efficiency and value.

Self-nominations and nominations from peers or colleagues are welcome. Everyone who submits a nomination will receive a $50 discount for a 2023 Digital CPA conference registration.

Applications for the 2023 Innovative Practitioner Awards close Aug. 31.

For more information or to submit your nomination, please visit the CPA.com Digital CPA Innovative Practitioner Award page.

About CPA.com

CPA.com brings innovative solutions to the accounting profession, either in partnership with leading providers or directly through its own development. The company has established itself as a thought leader on emerging technologies and as the trusted business advisor to practitioners in the United States, with a growing global focus.

Our company’s core mission is to drive the transformation of practice areas, advance the technology ecosystem for the profession, and lead technology research and innovation efforts for practitioners.

A subsidiary of the American Institute of CPAs, the company is also part of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, the world’s most influential organization representing the profession. For more information, visit CPA.com.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, the world changed overnight, and the accounting professional required immediate guidance. Accountants needed help navigating the new world of shuttered businesses, remote work, Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, various emergency tax credits, and a host of other disruptions.

From that need, a powerful new forum emerged for the profession.

https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/news/2023/jun/the-impact-of-aicpa-town-hall-from-episode-no-to-no-100.html

As the AICPA & CIMA hosted its annual Engage Conference in Las Vegas this week, it also broadcast its 100th AICPA Town Hall live from the Dolby Stage before more than 1,000 live attendees, and thousands more watching live online.

https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2023/06/08/aicpa-100-town-hall-engage/80758/

CPA.com, the AICPA's business and technology subsidiary, plans to deliver a series of initiatives to build awareness and understanding of generative AI and its potential impact on the accounting profession.

https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/news/2023/jun/cpa-com-announces-launch-generative-ai-initiative.html

Tools and resources will be developed to support CPAs’ understanding and utility of the transformative technology

LAS VEGAS (June 7, 2023) – CPA.com, the business and technology subsidiary of the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), today announced its plans to deliver a series of initiatives designed to support accounting and finance professionals in building awareness and understanding of generative AI (GenAI) and its potential impact on the accounting profession. The announcement came during a keynote session at AICPA & CIMA ENGAGE 2023.

“Generative AI is going to have a profound impact on the accounting profession,” said Erik Asgeirsson, president and CEO, CPA.com. “While other technologies like cloud computing have transformed how firms deliver services, we believe generative AI’s impact could be much more dramatic and evolve much more rapidly.”

CPA.com has initiated a series of thought leadership activities aimed at accelerating the profession’s understanding of generative AI, including how it works with specific use cases within tax, audit, client advisory services (CAS), finance, practice management and marketing. With that insight, CPA.com is also developing practical tools and resources—as it’s done with other emerging technologies and categories including the cloud, blockchain and ESG—to empower firms to assess the potential of generative AI in their practices. Activities will include:

• Ecosystem Review: An ecosystem scan of solution providers who are experimenting with AI and Large Language Models (LLMs) with their software to deliver new features and functionality for accounting and finance professionals.
• An AI Symposium that will bring together subject matter experts, firm practice leaders, thought leaders, AI solution providers and technologists to exchange strategies and information on the real and potential impacts of the transformative technology on the profession.
• An AI-specific cohort within the 2024 AICPA and CPA.com Startup Accelerator to support the growth of early-stage companies harnessing this technology to benefit accounting and finance.
• AI-focused training:
  • A toolkit that firms can use to inform their AI strategy across multiple practice areas.
  • Thought leadership resources to support awareness and education including a security checklist, explainer videos and special reports.
  • Dedicated sessions at Digital CPA 2023, including one with innovation expert Pascal Finette during which attendees will map out their own GenAI use cases in roundtable groups.
  • Special webinars including “Generative AI, The Great Equalizer,” to be held Oct. 24, which will provide a demonstration of various GenAI use cases specific to accounting firms and ways to leverage the emerging technology within their firms.

Many firms are already leveraging AI through their existing solution providers who are moving fast to incorporate the technology into their platforms. Various solutions have enabled practitioners to generate client email responses, review documents and automate processes and workflows within practice management.

“Simply said, AI will increase our productivity and spark our innovation potential by allowing us to make new connections between disparate ideas, said Pascal Finette, co-founder and CEO, be radical. “It’s not a question of ‘if’ generative AI can fit into a practice, but ‘how’—and that will vary by firm and use case.”

“We want to create education and resources that support firms through this change,” continued Asgeirsson. “Generative AI has significant co-pilot like capabilities for practitioners and we think this is a great opportunity for the profession.

About CPA.com

CPA.com brings innovative solutions to the accounting profession, either in partnership with leading providers or directly through its own development. The company has established itself as a thought leader on emerging technologies and as the trusted business advisor to practitioners in the United States, with a growing global focus.

Our company’s core mission is to drive the transformation of practice areas, advance the technology ecosystem for the profession, and lead technology research and innovation efforts for practitioners.

A subsidiary of the American Institute of CPAs, the company is also part of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, the world’s most influential organization representing the profession. For more information, visit CPA.com.