In collaboration with
The COO Academy Mission
To professionalise the COO function by creating an industry recognised standard of capability, regulator-aligned, globally consistent, and evidenced through formal accreditation, so that COO practitioners can demonstrate verified competencies in governance, risk, regulation, products, transformation, and leadership across business lines, regions, and legal entities.
Purpose
The COO Academy initiative was formulated because COOs are critical to operational resilience and strategic execution, yet the function remains hindered by inconsistent role definitions, an absence of a common competency framework, rising regulatory complexity in this era, and comparatively weak development pathways than other professions.
Accordingly, the Academy’s purpose is to standardise and strengthen the capability of COOs by;
- delivering a structured, tiered curriculum on Business Management and COO function starting from VP, Director to Managing Director, and,
- embedding continuous professional development so that the professional capability is maintained as regulations, technology and operating-model expectations evolve continuously.
In parallel, and as the core “professionalisation step” (implied in the paper through certificates, CPD, promotion linkage) the Academy’s purpose is to move the COO role towards a recognised profession by evolving training outputs into formal accreditation (analogous in concept to established professional bodies), enabling firms to evidence competencies with confidence and enabling individuals to evidence professional status and progression in a consistent, credible way in the industry.
David Long
CEO, COO Academy
“The COO has become one of the most important leadership roles in financial services, yet there has never been a recognised development pathway for the profession.
The COO Academy has been established to address that gap through a structured programme combining practical experience, industry expertise and leading practice.
Our ambition is to establish the industry benchmark for COO development, helping financial services organisations develop the next generation of leaders equipped to navigate an increasingly complex business, regulatory and technology landscape.”
David Williams
Banking & Capital Markets Consulting Leader, EY
“EY has worked with Armstrong Wolfe for a number of years, supporting its COO community through a mixture of thought leadership and cross industry roundtables.
We are extremely excited to take this relationship to the next level through our joint collaboration in shaping and delivering the COO Academy.
We are passionate about the role we can play in helping our clients to develop and nurture their talent, and the COO Academy is a fantastic opportunity to do exactly that.”
Annual Commitment & Certification
14 days in classroom training • 12 hours on-line • 12 hours 1-2-1 coaching
Training Modules
For further information on the The COO Academy offering, download the PDF brochure…