Iowa Society

What Iowa Society does

The Iowa Society of CPAs (ISCPA), founded in 1915 and headquartered at 1415 28th St, Ste 450, West Des Moines, Iowa, is a non-profit professional membership organization that serves as the largest state-level body dedicated to CPAs, accounting professionals, and accounting students in Iowa. Its core products and services are organized around continuing professional education (a live, virtual, and on-demand CPE catalog plus a CPE Tracker tool), a member dashboard (MY ISCPA), a public Find a CPA directory, a monthly Iowa CPA publication, the CPAImpact Leadership Academy, an online Career Center, specialized committees and resource groups across practice areas (Taxation, Governmental Auditing, Nonprofit Organizations, etc.), a LEAP young professionals program, the annual Iowa CPAs Month of Service, advocacy and legislative resources, and the affiliated Iowa CPA Education Foundation for student scholarships. The technology footprint is a standard web/member-portal stack rather than a proprietary platform, with distribution via website, email, social media, and in-person/live virtual events.

The business model is membership-based with three revenue streams: recurring annual membership dues from CPAs, accounting professionals, and students; one-time fees for CPE courses and conferences (also available to non-members); and corporate sponsorship/advertising through the Sustaining Partners program, which is anchored by national accounting firms CLA, EY, Forvis Mazars, and UHY. Go-to-market is sales-led via professional networking, CPE programming, and advocacy initiatives, with self-serve online registration for members. The organization is led by CEO Carrie Steffen with a small staff (1–10 employees) and operates exclusively within the United States, restricted to the state of Iowa.

Name

Iowa Society

Legal name

Iowa Society of CPAs

Website

https://iacpa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1915

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Iowa Society of CPAs is a non-profit professional membership organization serving CPAs, accounting professionals, and accounting students in Iowa with continuing education, advocacy, networking, career resources, and community service programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392), Business Associations (813910), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Accounting, Audit & Tax (CPA/CA/ACCA CPE) (EDAAALAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Continuing Education (CE/CPD) & Provider Accreditation Bodies (EDADACAF)

Keywords

• Professional membership organization
• Continuing professional education
• CPE course catalog
• Legislative advocacy services
• Accounting professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

West Des Moines

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees for CPAs, accounting professionals, and students providing access to CPE, networking, advocacy, and member benefits.
2. CPE Course Fees: Continuing professional education courses and conferences offered to members and non-members, including webcasts, on-demand programs, and live virtual conferences.
3. Sponsorships and Advertising: Corporate sponsorships through the Sustaining Partners program and advertising opportunities in ISCPA publications and events.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Iowa Society of CPAs (ISCPA) is a non-profit professional membership organization that serves CPAs, accounting professionals, and accounting students in Iowa. It sells annual membership subscriptions and delivers continuing professional education (CPE) through live, virtual, and on-demand courses and conferences, supported by a member portal, a Find a CPA public directory, advocacy programs, networking committees, and a student scholarship foundation.

Product overview

The Iowa Society of CPAs (ISCPA) is a professional membership organization offering a unified portfolio of services to CPAs, accounting professionals, and accounting students in Iowa. The core offerings center on continuing professional education (CPE) through a catalog of live, virtual, and on-demand courses, complemented by a member dashboard (MY ISCPA) for profile and CPE tracking management. Additional services include a Find a CPA public directory, the Iowa CPA monthly publication, the CPAImpact Leadership Academy for professional development, a Career Center job board, and the LEAP young professionals program. Community engagement is supported through the annual Iowa CPAs Month of Service and the Iowa CPA Education Foundation for student scholarships. Members can also participate in specialized Committees and Resource Groups across practice areas, and access advocacy and legislative resources. The organization does not operate as a software platform but as a member services organization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CPE + Events Catalog Continuing professional education course catalog offering live, virtual, and on-demand CPE courses for Iowa CPAs, including conferences, webcasts, and team learning programs.
• CPE Tracker Member-facing tool for tracking and managing continuing professional education credits, with automatic recording of ISCPA courses and ability to add third-party CPE credits.
• Member Dashboard (MY ISCPA) Personalized member portal providing access to profile management, organization/firm tools, CPE tracking, transactions, dues, and member benefits.
• Find a CPA Directory Public directory enabling individuals and businesses to locate certified public accountants and accounting firms in Iowa.
• Iowa CPA Publication Monthly newsletter publication for ISCPA members covering industry news, updates, and professional development content.
• CPAImpact Leadership Academy Annual leadership development program designed for emerging CPA leaders to build professional skills and networks.
• Career Center Online job board and career resources connecting accounting professionals with employment opportunities in Iowa.
• LEAP (Leaders Emerging in the Accounting Profession) Young professionals program for ISCPA members 40 and under, founded in 2013, providing education, networking, mentoring, community involvement, and emerging leaders development.
• Iowa CPAs Month of Service Annual community service event launched in 2015 uniting CPAs and accounting professionals to volunteer for local charitable causes, with over 10,000 volunteer hours logged.
• Iowa CPA Education Foundation Foundation supporting the future of the accounting profession through endowed scholarships for accounting students, including the Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield - Daryl Henze Scholarship.
• Committees and Resource Groups Member volunteer groups covering specialized practice areas including Taxation, Governmental Auditing, Nonprofit Organizations, Insurance Industry, Financial Institutions, Business and Industry, and more.
• Advocacy and Legislative Resources Legislative engagement program providing Iowa CPAs with governmental resources, political action committee contributions, and advocacy involvement opportunities.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered sustaining partner.

• CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen)sustaining partnerGTM or Marketing PartnerCLA is a sustaining partner of ISCPA, investing in Iowa's CPA community. As a major accounting firm, CLA supports ISCPA programming and member engagement initiatives.
• EY (Ernst & Young)sustaining partnerGTM or Marketing PartnerEY is a sustaining partner supporting ISCPA's mission to advance Iowa CPAs. The global professional services firm contributes to the organization's events and programming.
• Forvis Mazarssustaining partnerGTM or Marketing PartnerForvis Mazars serves as a sustaining partner of ISCPA, providing financial support and engagement with the Iowa CPA community.
• UHYsustaining partnerGTM or Marketing PartnerUHY is a sustaining partner of ISCPA, investing in the Iowa accounting professional community through the organization's various programs.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Surgent CPE: Scalable national CPE provider offering self-study and live webcast courses. While not a membership society, it competes directly with ISCPA's CPE revenue stream by delivering acceptable Iowa CPE credits at lower price points.
• Becker Professional Education: National provider of CPA exam prep and CPE, overlapping with ISCPA's audience of Iowa accounting students and professionals. Represents the broader online education and credentialing competitor set that pressures traditional state-society revenue models.

Direct peers

• Missouri Society of CPAs (MOCPA): Direct neighboring-state peer society with very similar CPE catalog, member engagement programs, and advocacy function. Highly comparable on revenue model, audience size, and programmatic structure.
• Wisconsin Institute of CPAs (WICPA): Wisconsin state CPA society operating the same member/CPE/advocacy model for a comparable population of professionals. Functionally interchangeable peer at the state-society level.
• Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS): Direct state-society peer offering CPE, advocacy, member services, and community programs to CPAs in a neighboring Midwestern state. Operates the same dues-plus-CPE-plus-events model targeted at a similar audience profile.
• Minnesota Society of CPAs (MNCPA): Another Midwestern CPA state society with comparable size, scope (CPE, advocacy, member benefits, foundation), and target audience. Closest parallel to ISCPA in terms of regional scale and program depth.

Broad incumbents

• California Society of CPAs (CalCPA): Largest U.S. state CPA society, providing CPE, advocacy, and member benefits. Relevant as a scaled-up peer demonstrating the upper limit of what a state society can offer in programming and sponsorship monetization.
• New York State Society of CPAs (NYSSCPA): Larger state-society peer offering CPE, advocacy, and member services to New York CPAs. Operationally similar but scaled to a much larger state, useful as an upper-bound benchmark for programming breadth.
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA): National professional organization for CPAs, of which ISCPA is a state affiliate. Operates the broader CPE, advocacy, and standards-setting umbrella that member state societies like ISCPA feed into and complement.
• Texas Society of CPAs (TXCPA): Texas state CPA society with comprehensive CPE, advocacy, and member engagement programs. Comparable model at larger scale, serving as a relevant peer for benchmarking growth and sponsorship strategies.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/iowacpas
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/iowasocietyofcpas
• Facebookfacebook.com/IowaCPAs
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/groups/4544550
• Instagraminstagram.com/iowacpas

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Iowa Society