FROM FOOD BANK TO CEO: THE LEADER MAKING SURE NO FOUNDER HAS TO DO IT ALL ALONE

Just six short years ago Amanda Hyde-Pierce was emotionally broken, financially broke, relying on support from the local food bank and uncertain how she would rebuild her life, but rebuild she did. Today, she leads the very organisation that helped her do exactly that. On 1 May 2026, she became CEO of the International Association of Online Business Managers, the IAOBM. Her journey from survival to leadership is not just remarkable. It is proof of what the Online Business Manager profession can do.

For readers meeting the IAOBM for the first time, a little background is useful. Founded in 2009, the IAOBM is the world's longest-standing professional body for Online Business Managers, known as OBMs.

An OBM sits, as the International Association of Online Business Managers describes them, in a senior leadership seat of a business, entrusted to run the business behind the business. They oversee operations, lead teams and own the systems that keep a company functioning at a high level, freeing the founder to focus on vision, sales and growth.

A Certified OBM® stands apart from someone who simply uses the title OBM.

Certified OBMs® have made a significant commitment to their profession, investing months of their time learning to operate at the elite standard the IAOBM has become known for over the past 17 years. Earning the Certified OBM® designation requires far more than completing a training programme. Each candidate must successfully pass an intensive week of testing and project work based on real-life business scenarios before the designation is awarded.

Those who earn it are solutions-driven leaders, trusted to own decisions on behalf of their clients. They see what needs attention, often before anyone else does, and they take responsibility for getting it fixed.

That distinction matters more than ever right now, because the world an OBM operates in has changed at extraordinary speed since Amanda took the helm in May.

A GROWING GLOBAL BENCH OF TALENT

One of the clearest signs of that momentum is who has joined the IAOBM training team. Ismahen Oukhai came on board earlier this year as a new Certified OBM Licensed Trainer. Based in France and working across Europe and beyond, Ismahen is the founder of iOBM International and brings more than 25 years of operational depth, strategic thinking, and executive-level delivery to the role. She is as proud to champion the Certified OBM standard, and ready to challenge the profession to reach further still. In her own words "operational excellence is not a corporate privilege anymore."

Lauren Corey followed shortly after as the newest Certified OBM Licensed Trainer. Based in Australia. Lauren built and ran her own digital business before becoming a Certified OBM in 2019, and has spent the years since supporting high-performing entrepreneurs across operations, strategy, project and team management, launches, marketing, systems, and technology. With a background in finance and global business, and based in Sydney for more than 15 years, she brings a rare combination of analytical rigour and creative, solutions-focused thinking to her work with entrepreneurs across Australia, New Zealand, and beyond.

They both join IAOBM's existing approved and accredited training partners: OBM Leadership Academy, and Thrive OBM Academy.

OBM Leadership Academy is led by Keldie Jamieson, who is based in Canada. Keldie is the IAOBM's longest-running trainer. Keldie has been a Certified OBM since 2011, and Amanda calls her the heart of the Association, and means it. "Keldie has been a safe pair of hands for me from day one," says Amanda. "Her knowledge runs deep, her wisdom runs deeper, and her generosity toward this community is something I admire enormously. She has supported me, and she has supported this Association, in ways I will always be grateful for."

Thrive OBM Academy was founded by Amanda in 2022.  Based in the UK, the Thrive OBM Academy team focuses on supporting students in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Together, these trainers mean students across Australia, Asia, Europe, North America and the UK now have a Certified OBM Licensed Trainer working in a time zone close to their own, training the next generation of Certified OBMs to the same rigorous standard that has underpinned the IAOBM since 2009. For a community that already spans 28 countries, this is expansion with intention, not just growth for its own sake. Amanda says "Our trainers are a highly collaborative team, passionate about supporting their students, our community of Certified OBMs and each other."

THE CERTIFIED AI STRATEGIST DESIGNATION

Perhaps the biggest shift inside the IAOBM this year has been the launch of the Certified AI Strategist designation, a new layer of training available exclusively to Certified OBMs. It is not a short online add-on. Certified OBMs pursuing this designation conduct full AI and automation audits on real client businesses, identifying exactly where intelligent systems can remove friction and free up capacity. Early results have been striking: businesses working with a Certified AI Strategist have identified annual savings ranging from thousands to tens of thousands of pounds, often inside lean teams of fewer than five people.

Nearly 40 Certified OBMs now also hold the Certified AI Strategist designation, and that number is climbing every month.

"Our OBMs have always been the ones who make a business run better," says Amanda. "What has changed is the scale of impact they can now have. Certified AI Strategists are not handing clients a chatbot. They are advising, guiding, and making the decisions that actually move a business forward, and that is a different level of value entirely."

PHEEB: BUILDING THE INFRASTRUCTURE BEHIND THE ROLE

Amanda has also been busy behind the scenes. She has rolled out Pheeb, a bespoke CRM, across the entire IAOBM operation, and extended access to it for IAOBM members too. That means Certified OBMs can now offer their own clients the same customised, AI enabled system the Association itself runs on, rather than stitching together generic tools. It is a small detail with a large effect: it puts enterprise level infrastructure within reach of Certified OBMs and the client businesses they support.

WHY THE PACE MATTERS

None of this is happening in a vacuum. Demand for skilled, trustworthy operational support has never been higher, and AI has changed what business owners expect that support to include. The IAOBM's answer has been to move at the same speed the market is moving at, rather than waiting to react to it. Certified OBMs are increasingly the professionals founders turn to precisely because they combine human judgement with fluency in the tools reshaping how businesses run.

FINDING THE RIGHT OBM

For business owners reading this and wondering where to start, the IAOBM has built two clear paths.

Ready Match is a one-time, paid strategy session that helps a business owner get clear on what an OBM should actually own in their business before they hire one. The result is a short, practical set of deliverables: an OBM Scope of Work, a recommended role structure and set of priorities, and guidance on how to hire well. It is designed for the founder who knows they need support but is not yet sure what that support should look like.

Direct Match is for founders who already know what they need. It delivers a shortlist of Certified OBMs matched as closely as possible to the business owner's criteria, with the final choice left entirely in their hands.

Both Ready Match and Direct Match can be found at onlinebusinessmanager.com/hire-an-obm.

Both paths lead to the same place: a Certified OBM who has been trained, assessed, and held to the standard the IAOBM has protected for 17 years.

They both join IAOBM’s existing approved and accredited training partners:  OBM Leadership Academy, and Thrive OBM Academy.

OBM Leadership Academy is led by Keldie Jamieson who is based in Canada.  Keldie is the IAOBM's longest-running trainer. Keldie has been a Certified OBM since 2011, and Amanda calls her the heart of the Association, and means it. "Keldie has been a safe pair of hands for me from day one," says Amanda. "Her knowledge runs deep, her wisdom runs deeper, and her generosity toward this community is something I admire enormously. She has supported me, and she has supported this Association, in ways I will always be grateful for."

Thrive OBM Academy is based in the UK and mostly focuses on supporting students in the United Kingdom and Ireland.  They have a team of specialists that support their students throughout the programme including sales, marketing, AI, tech and systems. 

Together, these trainers mean students across Australia, Asia,  Europe, North America and the UK,  now have a Certified OBM Licensed Trainer working in a time zone close to their own, training the next generation of Certified OBMs to the same rigorous standard that has underpinned the IAOBM since 2009. For a community that already spans 28 countries, this is expansion with intention, not just growth for its own sake.  Amanda says  “trainers are a highly collaborative team, passionate about supporting their students, our community of Certified OBMs and each other.”

THE CERTIFIED AI STRATEGIST DESIGNATION

Perhaps the biggest shift inside the IAOBM this year has been the launch of the Certified AI Strategist designation, a new layer of training available exclusively to Certified OBMs. It is not a short online add-on. Certified OBMs pursuing this designation conduct full AI and automation audits on real client businesses, identifying exactly where intelligent systems can remove friction and free up capacity. Early results have been striking: businesses working with a Certified AI Strategist have identified annual savings ranging from thousands to tens of thousands of pounds, often inside lean teams of fewer than five people.

Nearly 40 Certified OBMs now also hold the Certified AI Strategist designation, and that number is climbing every month.

"Our OBMs have always been the ones who make a business run better," says Amanda. "What has changed is the scale of impact they can now have. Certified AI Strategists are not handing clients a chatbot. They are advising, guiding, and making the decisions that actually move a business forward, and that is a different level of value entirely."

PHEEB: BUILDING THE INFRASTRUCTURE BEHIND THE ROLE

Amanda has also been busy behind the scenes. She has rolled out Pheeb, a bespoke CRM, across the entire IAOBM operation, and extended access to it for IAOBM members too. That means Certified OBMs can now offer their own clients the same customised, AI enabled system the Association itself runs on, rather than stitching together generic tools. It is a small detail with a large effect: it puts enterprise level infrastructure within reach of Certified OBMs and the client businesses they support.

WHY THE PACE MATTERS

None of this is happening in a vacuum. Demand for skilled, trustworthy operational support has never been higher, and AI has changed what business owners expect that support to include. The IAOBM's answer has been to move at the same speed the market is moving at, rather than waiting to react to it. Certified OBMs are increasingly the professionals founders turn to precisely because they combine human judgement with fluency in the tools reshaping how businesses run.

FINDING THE RIGHT OBM

For business owners reading this and wondering where to start, the IAOBM has built two clear paths.

Ready Match is a one-time, paid strategy session that helps a business owner get clear on what an OBM should actually own in their business before they hire one. The result is a short, practical set of deliverables: an OBM Scope of Work, a recommended role structure and set of priorities, and guidance on how to hire well. It is designed for the founder who knows they need support but is not yet sure what that support should look like.

Direct Match is for founders who already know what they need. It delivers a shortlist of Certified OBMs matched as closely as possible to the business owner's criteria, with the final choice left entirely in their hands.

Both Ready Match and Direct Match can be found at onlinebusinessmanager.com/hire-an-obm.

Both paths lead to the same place: a Certified OBM who has been trained, assessed, and held to the standard the IAOBM has protected for 17 years.

To find out more about the International Association of Online Business Managers go to  onlinebusinessmanager.com

To follow Amanda's journey and the IAOBM's continued growth, connect with her on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/amandahydepierce. For enquiries about the Association or Certified OBM support, reach the IAOBM team at support@onlinebusinessmanager.com.