Congratulations to the Colorado State Board of Accountancy for changing the continuing education (CE) requirements! The State adopted the CE guidelines of the National Association of State Boards of Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Prior to the change, CE was segregated in two categories; A, or technical education, and B, non-technical. Everyone referred to A as good and B as bad. The fact that B was in a separate bucket had a negative connotation. The first sentence of guidance – Other programs or courses which contribute to the development and maintenance of other professional skills may be acceptable – didn’t really put a positive spin on it. A is where it was at.
But if you looked further, the guidance from the State regarding B CE read – Such programs may include, but are not limited to, the areas of communication, quantitative methods, behavioral sciences, statistics and practice management. Although it isn’t very clear, it doesn’t sound all bad. Coursework aimed at being effective at communicating with clients, mentoring co-workers and running our practices. Maybe it just got overlooked because of the presentation.
I love the new format. No more A and B CE. No more good and bad. Just twenty three equally weighted fields of study that do contribute to the development of the professional skills necessary to be good at what we do.
Good communication skills won’t get you very far in the tax biz if your technical skills aren’t there. But top-notch technical skills combined with communication, writing, counseling, leadership, time management, technology and other skills that the State is now promoting? That’s where it’s at!
