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Cybersecurity training, Security Training, Soft Skills training, PCAOB Auditing Standards, Accounting Standards, CPE events, internal audit training, internal control training, fraud prevention and detection
The AccountWare Group
The Accountware Group works with Corporate Compliance Seminars (CCS) to created CPE training events and courses. These CPE events focus on internal audit training, internal control training, PCAOB Auditing Standards, Accounting Standards, cybersecurity program events and information technology training events.
CCS offers over 200 "Online Instructor-Led" webinar and in-person training courses. In 2026, CCS is offering in-person courses in selected cities. CCS can present any of the events and other training onsite at your office or via a private live webinar.
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What Should TUSD's Objectives Be?
COSO divides objectives into three broad categories: Operations — Reporting — Compliance For TUSD, I would establish 12 enterprise-level objectives beneath those categories. The key principle is: Objective → Risk → Control → Evidence → Monitoring If TUSD cannot clearly state the objective, it becomes very difficult for Internal Audit to determine whether management has identified the right risks or designed the right controls. I. OPERATIONS OBJECTIVES Objective 1 — Student Ac
John Blackshire
57 minutes ago7 min read
How Mature Is Your Control Environment? A Better Way to Measure the Foundation of Internal Control
Organizations frequently ask Internal Audit a deceptively simple question: “Are our internal controls effective?” There is another question that may tell management and the Audit Committee considerably more: “How mature is our control environment?” The distinction matters. A control may exist and operate today while the broader control environment remains dependent on particular individuals, informal practices, management intervention, or institutional memory. Another organiz
John Blackshire
11 hours ago10 min read
ICFR Problems: What SEC-Registered Companies Keep Getting Wrong
For more than two decades, public companies have been required to take Internal Control over Financial Reporting (ICFR) seriously. Yet material weaknesses continue to appear in SEC filings, financial statements continue to be restated, and the SEC continues to bring enforcement actions involving inadequate internal accounting and financial-reporting controls. This is not a theoretical problem. Recent SEC data provide a striking picture. For fiscal years 2021 through 2024, SEC
John Blackshire
12 hours ago10 min read
What the CIA Taught Me About Audit Tradecraft
I learned the real meaning of tradecraft while designing a training-tracking system for new intelligence officers at the Central Intelligence Agency. The system had to track more than completed courses and classroom hours. The CIA was developing professionals who needed to acquire, demonstrate and continuously improve the practical skills required to perform difficult work in uncertain and high-risk environments. Those skills represented their tradecraft. The auditing profess
John Blackshire
1 day ago7 min read
When Power Defeats Controls: What the Walmart–Tom Coughlin Case Teaches About Executive Fraud
Most auditors learn the Fraud Triangle early in their careers: Pressure Opportunity Rationalization That model remains useful, but does it adequately explain fraud by a highly compensated executive who already possesses money, status and organizational power? The case of former Walmart Vice Chairman Tom Coughlin suggests that executive fraud may require a broader way of thinking. Corporate Compliance Seminars’ two-CPE webinar, M.I.C.E. vs. Fraud Triangle: Executive Fraud, use
John Blackshire
1 day ago5 min read
TUSD’s CFO Owes Sadie Shaw—and the Public—an Apology
Tucson Unified School District Chief Financial Officer Ricardo “Ricky” Hernández appears to have responded to legitimate questions from Governing Board member Sadie Shaw with a profane and dismissive social-media post. According to the Three Sonorans Podcast, Hernández posted: “When life gives you lemons because one of your elected bosses puts you on blast...what do I do? I use lemons on tacos! It makes me feel better that I’ve been doing this for 23 years and my career will
John Blackshire
1 day ago4 min read
FinCEN Is Changing the AML Playbook: What Internal Auditors Should Be Watching in 2026
The U.S. anti-money laundering environment is changing rapidly. For Internal Auditors, compliance officers, fraud professionals, financial institutions, broker-dealers, insurance organizations and other regulated entities, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network—FinCEN—is becoming increasingly important. FinCEN's recent activity points to a clear direction: AML compliance is moving away from simply proving that procedures exist and toward demonstrating that the AML/CFT progr
John Blackshire
2 days ago8 min read
The American Anti-Corruption Institute: Building Management Accountability for Fraud and Corruption Risks
Fraud and corruption are frequently treated as problems for internal auditors, investigators, compliance officers, and law-enforcement agencies. That approach misses the central issue: management creates the organization’s control environment and determines whether unethical conduct is prevented, tolerated, concealed, or confronted. The American Anti-Corruption Institute (AACI) seeks to address this management and governance responsibility by providing anti-corruption educati
John Blackshire
2 days ago5 min read
TUSD’s Missing Budget Book Demands a Special Audit
Sadie Shaw raised a transparency problem that the TUSD Audit Committee cannot ignore Tucson Unified School District Governing Board member Sadie Shaw raised a serious governance concern in her August 20, 2026, Arizona Daily Star opinion, “TUSD Must Provide More Detail on Its $807M Budget.” Shaw explained that she voted against Revision No. 1 of TUSD’s fiscal year 2026–2027 expenditure budget because the Board and public were not provided the district’s traditional, detailed B
John Blackshire
2 days ago4 min read
NAIC Model Audit Rule Compliance Is More Than an Annual Filing: Build an ICFR Program That Can Stand Up to Examination
NAIC Model Audit Rule Programs — September 22–24 and November 17–19, 2026 For insurance organizations, compliance with the NAIC Model Audit Rule (MAR) should not be treated as an annual paperwork exercise. The real issue is whether the insurer has built a sustainable system of internal control over financial reporting (ICFR) that management understands, evaluates, monitors and improves. That requires considerably more than documenting a few controls before year-end. It requir
John Blackshire
3 days ago8 min read
Stop Staring at a Blank Page: How Auditors Can Use AI to Create Better Audit Content
AI Content Generation for Finance and Audit Professionals — September 15 and November 10, 2026 Internal Auditors create an enormous amount of content. Risk assessments. Audit objectives. Audit programs. Interview questions. Workpapers. Findings. Compliance analyses. Executive summaries. Audit reports. Audit Committee presentations. Traditionally, much of that work starts with a blank page. Artificial intelligence is changing that. The important question for auditors is no lon
John Blackshire
3 days ago8 min read
Developing Better Financial Auditors: Why Audit Staff Need More Than an Audit Program
Audit & Assurance: Staff Two — September 2–3 and November 4–5, 2026 The transition from a new audit staff member to a competent financial auditor does not happen simply because someone completes another year of work. Experience matters. But experience without structured development can reinforce bad habits just as easily as good ones. A developing auditor needs to understand why audit procedures are performed, what risks they address, what constitutes persuasive evidence, how
John Blackshire
3 days ago7 min read
Is Your Audit Committee Really Providing Effective Oversight?
Why Board Members, Audit Committee Members and Internal Audit Leaders Should Revisit Audit Committee Best Practices An organization can have an Audit Committee charter, regularly scheduled meetings, detailed agendas, financial reports, Internal Audit presentations and an external auditor—and still have weak governance. The existence of an Audit Committee does not establish that the Audit Committee is effective. The more important questions are: Does the Audit Committee unders
John Blackshire
3 days ago8 min read
Form W-9 Is More Than a Tax Form: It Is a Critical Vendor-Control Document
Why Accounts Payable, Procurement, Internal Audit and Finance Professionals Need to Get the W-9 Process Right Every organization that pays vendors depends on accurate vendor information. Yet one of the most important documents supporting that information is often treated as little more than administrative paperwork: IRS Form W-9. A vendor submits the form. Someone checks that a few boxes are completed. The information is entered into the vendor master. The vendor starts recei
John Blackshire
3 days ago7 min read
The Politics of Internal Auditing by Patricia K. Miller and Larry E. Rittenberg
Internal audit does not operate in a politically neutral environment. The Politics of Internal Auditing, by Patricia K. Miller and Larry E. Rittenberg, examines the organizational pressures that can affect chief audit executives and internal-audit departments. Based on research involving nearly 500 chief audit executives, the book explains how political pressure can arise when internal audit investigates sensitive issues, challenges influential executives, reports serious con
John Blackshire
Aug 181 min read
Trusted Advisors by Richard F. Chambers: What Makes an Outstanding Internal Auditor?
Technical competence is necessary for an internal auditor, but technical knowledge alone does not create influence. In Trusted Advisors: Key Attributes of Outstanding Internal Auditors, Richard F. Chambers examines the qualities that allow internal auditors to earn credibility with management, boards, and audit committees. Chambers identifies nine attributes associated with outstanding internal auditors, including ethical resilience, critical thinking, intellectual curiosity,
John Blackshire
Aug 181 min read
Clarity, Impact, Speed by Sally-Anne Pitt: Writing Internal-Audit Reports That Matter
A well-performed audit can lose much of its value through a poorly written report. In Clarity, Impact, Speed: Delivering Audit Reports That Matter, Sally-Anne Pitt explains how internal auditors can produce reports that are easier to write, easier to understand, and more likely to produce corrective action. The book addresses report structure, audit findings, writing quality, editing, formatting, and the overall reporting process. Its focus is practical: audit reports should
John Blackshire
Aug 181 min read
Auditing That Matters by Norman Marks: Are Internal Auditors Addressing the Risks That Matter?
In Auditing That Matters, Norman Marks challenges internal auditors to reconsider what makes an audit valuable. Completing the audit plan, producing lengthy reports, and documenting control deficiencies do not necessarily mean internal audit has helped the organization. Marks argues that internal auditors must concentrate on the risks that could prevent the organization from achieving its objectives. That distinction is important. An audit department can perform technically s
John Blackshire
Aug 181 min read
Internal Auditing: Assurance & Advisory Services, Sixth Edition: A Core Resource for Internal Auditors
Internal Auditing: Assurance & Advisory Services, Sixth Edition, by Michael Head, Paul Sobel, Cris Riddle, Mark Salamasick, and Urton Anderson, is one of the most comprehensive textbooks available for internal-audit professionals. Published by The Institute of Internal Auditors, the sixth edition covers the complete internal-audit process—from governance, risk management, and internal controls to engagement planning, fieldwork, reporting, and follow-up. A major advantage of t
John Blackshire
Aug 181 min read
The Four Ethical Principles Every Internal Auditor Must Protect: Integrity, Objectivity, Confidentiality and Competency
Internal Audit Cannot Provide Assurance Without Trust Internal Auditors spend a great deal of time discussing methodology. Risk assessments. Internal controls. Walkthroughs. Sampling. Data analytics. Workpapers. Findings. Recommendations. Audit reports. All of those matter. But underneath the entire Internal Audit profession is something more fundamental: Can stakeholders trust the auditor? An Internal Auditor can understand COSO, perform excellent data analytics, write techn
John Blackshire
Aug 188 min read
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