Certification

Certified on scope, not on years served.

AIPEA certifications are built on capability and role scope. Your credential reflects the nature of the corporate problems you are hired to solve, not how long you have held a title.

The AIPEA credential

Accountability-based, not attendance-based.

We are shifting the industry standard from passive conference attendance to accountability-based certification. When an HR Director sees an AIPEA credential, they know that individual has built, defended and deployed real-world corporate artifacts.

  • Three professional strands, six designations
  • Every track ends in a defended capstone
  • Deliverables built for your current employer
  • Duration from 6 to 12 months by strand
Find your track
Designations & tracks

Three strands. Two tracks in each.

Each strand is split into two accountability tracks, so your credential reflects the exact scope of value you carry into the executive office.

01

Personal Assistant Strand

6 months

Executive Synchronization & Operational Efficiency

For professionals whose primary accountability is the flawless execution and digital optimization of an individual executive's personal and professional ecosystem.

The question this role answers: “How do we execute this immediately and flawlessly?”

CERTPATrack A

Certified Personal Assistant

Individual & execution mastery

Accountabilities

Individual execution, gatekeeping, calendar engineering, inbox filtration and tech enablement using productivity tools and AI models.

Capstone

The 48-Hour Live Office Crucible

A high-speed, simulated crisis testing individual execution under operational pressure.

The senior track builds on the above
SCPATrack B

Senior Certified Personal Assistant

Ecosystem, resource & team leadership

Accountabilities

Shifting from task execution to administrative leadership: office resource allocation, petty cash systems, vendor contract negotiations and mentoring the junior support pool.

Capstone

The Corporate Administrative Playbook

Designing a scalable, operational handbook tailored directly to your current employer's workflows.

02

Executive Assistant Strand

9 months

C-Suite Synchronization & Tactical Partnership

For high-functioning partners to C-Suite executives, managing high-stakes stakeholder landscapes, cross-border logistics and strategic alignment.

The question this role answers: “How does this interaction or decision impact our quarterly objectives?”

CEATrack A

Certified Executive Assistant

Individual & execution mastery

Accountabilities

Boardroom diplomacy, managing high-net-worth individual interactions, predictive calendar architecture and using AI models to synthesize lengthy corporate data into briefing notes.

Capstone

The 48-Hour Live Boardroom Simulation

Managing an executive's complete communication and logistical response during a multi-country corporate incident.

The senior track builds on the above
SCEATrack B

Senior Certified Executive Assistant

Ecosystem, resource & team leadership

Accountabilities

Managing division budgets, leading corporate governance architectures for Board Meetings and AGMs, tracking post-meeting action items, and aligning cross-departmental KPIs.

Capstone

The Executive Office Operational Playbook

An end-to-end organizational framework optimizing company-wide support workflows and risk mitigation models.

03

Chief of Staff Strand

12 months (4 trimesters)

Enterprise Integration, Institutional Growth & Scale Governance

Our premier Masterclass Fellowship tier. Operating on the academic and corporate footing of an Executive MBA, this strand is designed for the architects of the Executive Office.

The question this role answers: “What institutional systems or resources must move to scale this vision?”

CCoSTrack A

Certified Chief of Staff

Individual & execution mastery

Accountabilities

Low-code enterprise automation pipelines (Zapier, Power Automate), agile project deployment (Scrum/Kanban) within support divisions, and executive proxy execution.

Capstone

The 48-Hour Live Enterprise Crucible

Defending tactical and systemic decisions made during a total enterprise operational collapse before a panel of directors.

The senior track builds on the above
SCCoSTrack B

Senior Certified Strategic Operations Partner

Ecosystem, resource & team leadership

Accountabilities

Sourcing international development grants and corporate sponsorships, managing post-merger integrations, organizational design, public sector lobbying, and scale governance.

Capstone

The Institutional Playbook & Oral Defense

A comprehensive, multi-year asset deployment and resource optimization roadmap defended before the AIPEA Governing Council.

How assessment works

Six stages from application to designation.

No stage is skippable. The capstone is defended, not submitted.

01

Application

Apply to the track that matches your operational scope.

02

Attendance

Attend the structured sessions across your track.

03

Coursework

Build the institutional artifacts your track requires.

04

Exam

Sit the written assessment for your designation.

05

Assessment

Defend your capstone before assessors.

06

Certified

Receive your designation and registry entry.

The trimester deliverable system

You build institutional artifacts, not lecture notes.

On the long-term tracks, every quarter produces something your employer can deploy — so the return on their investment starts before you qualify.

Trimester 1

Integration Blueprint & Tech Audit

Trimester 2

Corporate Governance & Board Framework

Trimester 3

Financial Strategy & Resource Model

Trimester 4

Final Specialized Track Capstone

Three strands
Personal Assistant, Executive Assistant and Chief of Staff.
Six designations
Two accountability tracks within every strand.
6, 9 or 12 months
Track length set by the scope of the strand.
Defended capstones
Every designation ends in a live crucible or an oral defense.
The AIPEA Continental Registry

A cross-border register of licensed partners.

The Registry is a directory of verified, licensed corporate partners, built so an AIPEA designation carries the same weight in Accra, Lagos, Abidjan or Nairobi. Digital verification for employers is in development.

  • Every certified member holds a unique AIPEA member ID
  • Built as a bilingual bridge for Anglophone and Francophone members
  • Employer-facing credential verification is being built
Contact the Secretariat

Online credential lookup is not live yet. To verify a member's standing today, email secretariat@aipea.co and the Secretariat will confirm it directly.

Continuing professional development

The CPD framework is being defined.

AIPEA is finalising CPD hours, renewal periods and categories. We would rather publish the framework once than publish numbers that change.

What is settledCertification is accountability-based, and designations are earned through assessed coursework and a defended capstone.
What is being definedThe number of CPD hours, the renewal period and the categories that count toward them.
What happens nextThe framework will be published here in full once the Governing Council signs it off.

Certify the value you already bring.

Complete the Professional Scope Audit to find your track, then talk to the Secretariat to secure your cohort seat.