The CIAO Standard services are delivered exclusively through our certified partner network. This page sets out the requirements, structure, and commercial framework for organisations seeking to become CIAO Partners. Partnership with C-AO.com unlocks white-labelling capabilities, commission income, and the ability to deliver structured compliance infrastructure to your own clients under your own branding. All partnership enquiries should be directed to sr@c-ao.com.
1. Purpose and Scope
This guideline document, provides the requirements of Partners to the C-AO.com ecosystem. It also provides the Partner scoping and agreement expectations, and a listing of Partners below.
2. Approach to Use to Align Partnership
Consider how many C-AO.com Partners are already in your continental or regional area. There could be many, or even none. The CIAO Partner Statuses are at a minimum a 1:1 mapping to CIAO Membership tiers. Alternatively, a Partnership Status could mean a grouping of more than one Membership Tier. A minimum ratio of trained pre-sales consultants to customer base of at least 1:20. The Partner qualifications are described below per Partner Status Tier.
This partnership unlocks white-labelling opportunities and the ability to create client-specific, in-house look-and-feel compliance portals through our corporate accounts.
2.1. The CIAO Commons Partnership Status
The CIAO Commons partnership status is for Partners that are Individuals or Companies that would primarily focus on the CIAO Commons membership market.
The Partner must at least be subscribed to the CIAO Commons membership tier and;
- have an existing regional base of potential customers, or
- an Affiliate marketing base with an on-selling track record.
- have research skills to learn about the CIAO value proposition.
0% commission unless higher membership tiers are purchased within the first year of membership. Commissions on first year membership upgrades will be as per the Partnership Tiers below, divided by 10.
2.2. The CIAO Core Partnership Status
The CIAO Core partnership status is for Partners that are Individuals or Companies that would primarily focus on the CIAO Core membership market.
The Partner must at least be subscribed to the CIAO Core membership tier and;
- have an existing regional base of potential customers, or
- an Affiliate marketing base with an on-selling track record.
- have research skills to learn about the CIAO value proposition.
0% commission unless higher membership tiers are purchased within the first year of membership. Commissions on first year membership upgrades will be as per the Partnership Tiers below, divided by 10.
2.3. The CIAO Essential Partnership Status
The CIAO Essential partnership status is for Partners that primarily focus on the CIAO Essential membership market. This tier is suited to consultancies and advisory firms serving small-to-medium organisations that require structured governance foundations.
The Partner must hold at least an Essential membership and meet the following criteria:
- have an existing regional customer base of organisations with 10–100 employees, or an affiliate marketing base of between 50 and 500 active subscribers, and
- demonstrate the capacity to onboard and support at least 10 Essential-tier member organisations within the first 12 months of partnership.
2.4. The CIAO Professional Partnership Status
The CIAO Professional partnership status is for Partners that primarily focus on the CIAO Professional membership market. This tier is suited to governance consultancies, managed service providers, and compliance firms serving mid-sized organisations managing multiple frameworks simultaneously.
The Partner must hold at least a Professional membership and meet the following criteria:
- have an existing regional customer base of organisations with 100–1,000 employees, or an affiliate marketing base of at least 500 active subscribers with a demonstrable compliance advisory track record, and
- have at least one certified compliance professional on staff capable of supporting multi-framework implementation engagements for Professional-tier member organisations.
2.5. The CIAO Enterprise Partnership Status
The CIAO Enterprise partnership status is for Partners that primarily focus on the CIAO Enterprise membership market. This tier is suited to established governance and assurance firms, large managed service providers, and audit support organisations serving enterprises with 1,000–10,000 employees.
The Partner must hold at least an Enterprise membership and meet the following criteria:
- have an existing regional base of enterprise-scale organisations with 1,000–10,000 employees, or
- an affiliate or managed services base of at least 50 active enterprise-tier clients with a demonstrable compliance governance track record, and
- have at least one senior compliance professional or pre-sales consultant on staff capable of engaging directly with enterprise clients on multi-framework governance engagements.
10% commission per full annual membership. Enterprise membership is priced at €9,999 per organisation per year, with a minimum three-year cycle commitment.
2.6. The CIAO Conglomerate Partnership Status
The CIAO Conglomerate partnership status is for Partners that primarily focus on the CIAO Conglomerate membership market. This tier is the mandatory entry point for all certified CIAO Partners delivering services to their own client base under the CIAO certified partner programme. It is suited to large consulting groups, holding group advisory firms, and organisations spanning multiple subsidiaries and regulatory jurisdictions.
The Partner must hold a Conglomerate membership and meet the following criteria:
- have an existing regional base of at least 10 Conglomerate customers, that have more than 10 000 employees each, and an on-selling track record of 30%, or
- an Affiliate marketing base of at least 100 Conglomerate subscribers, and an on-selling track record of 3%.
- at least one pre-sales expert that can engage and consult directly with Conglomerate customers on C-AO.com services.
10% commission per full annual membership. Conglomerate membership pricing is from €99,999 per organisation per year, with a minimum three-year cycle commitment. Contact C-AO.com to begin the conversation.
3. The C-AO.com Continental Partners
The C-AO.com Continental Partners are listed below (with their sole mandate scope only, sub-regional partners are not listed). The highest mandated Continental scope Partner (detected regional Partner i.e. EMEA) will delegate Regional scope Partners in agreement with C-AO.com.
Regional Partner Coverage
4. Partner Categories
The CIAO partner ecosystem is organised into three categories, distinguished by the nature of contribution rather than by tier:
Implementation Partners. Professional-services firms delivering CIAO implementation work to end-client organisations — including consulting, audit, and deployment engagements. Implementation Partners hold active Conglomerate membership and, upon programme maturity, deploy staff certified as CIAO Practitioners. They refer clients into the Conglomerate tier and carry the CIAO Implementation Partner mark.
Strategic Partners. Institutional partners — technology platforms, regulatory bodies, industry associations, and academic institutions — providing infrastructure, distribution, or cross-promotion to the CIAO Standard.
Academic Partners. Universities and research institutions integrating CIAO content into curricula, conducting research against the Standard, and contributing to the canonical knowledge base.
Enterprise and Conglomerate implementation content will be added here.