NEW YORK – Thomson Reuters today announced the launch of a new Checkpoint Learning Tax Research Certificate Program. The program helps professionals develop foundational tax research knowledge and skills. It is designed to fill in knowledge gaps for entry-level tax professionals and those re-entering the workforce after an extended leave. The program also applies to accounting and audit professionals from diverse organizations who wish to gain valuable tax research capabilities.

Delivered via the powerful CPEasy platform, this blended learning format includes live instructor-led webinars, a comprehensive online self-study course, and a written tax research case study that will equip professionals with the tools they need to effectively and efficiently perform federal and state tax research. The case study is manually graded with valuable feedback provided to each program participant.

"From dependence on unreliable internet sources, to lack of clarity on the import of law, case law, commentary and treatises, many tax leaders find their staff underprepared to perform real-world tax research, which has significant time and cost implications to organizations," said Eli Dicker, Executive Director of the Tax Executives Institute (TEI).

"Tax research proficiency is all too often underserved in formal education programs, leaving new accountants missing key skills required to perform effectively. This new Checkpoint Learning certificate program focuses on the development of those key tax research skills and provides assurance of consistent, high-quality training that benefits new graduates, employers, and individual tax professionals," said Ken Koskay, senior vice president of learning solutions with the Tax & Accounting business of Thomson Reuters.

Candidates who successfully complete the course work and final exam will earn a tax research competency certificate as well as up to 20 hours of continuing education credit. The certificate can be renewed annually by completing eight hours of specially identified CPE credit.

Thomson Reuters offers many resources to help tax professionals perform in depth tax research, including the following:

• Checkpoint — The leading global brand of knowledge solutions for tax and accounting professionals. Checkpoint is a robust, comprehensive, and interactive offering which provides integrated research, news, analysis, learning, and productivity tools to tax, audit, accounting, legal, trade, and finance professionals.
• Checkpoint Catalyst — Built on the award-winning Checkpoint platform, Checkpoint Catalyst is a new generation of tax research designed specifically for the web. Featuring multi-jurisdictional content, embedded tools, and an enhanced search engine, Checkpoint Catalyst provides tax professionals with an online research platform that enables them to navigate this changing and challenging environment with speed and certainty.
• Unlocking the Limits of the Keyword: 5 Ways to Be a Better Tax Researcher — This new white paper discusses key challenges to answering complex tax questions, as well as the ways in which new tax research technology both solves and exacerbates those challenges. The paper explains 5 ways to be a better tax researcher by taking full advantage of tax research technology, using it efficiently without getting bogged down by irrelevant information.

Thomson Reuters

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