The AEDO accreditation process consists of two phases, documentation review and the site visit. 

Phase 1: Documentation Review 

The organization going through the accreditation process must submit documentation of financial documents, latest annual report, letters of support from your community and more to the review team. See the Guide to Becoming an AEDO for a complete list of documents. The review team is made up of three or four leaders in the economic development community who are members the AEDO advisory committee. Once all the relevant documents have been sent in, the review team will perform a critical evaluation of all application materials to determine whether the applicant organization qualifies for potential accreditation. The review team will then provide feedback in the form of questions, concerns or requests. Once these have been satisfied, and the entire application materials are completed, the review team will write up documentation report that summarizes the materials. The review team then will present this report to the AEDO Committee, and the committee will be provided an opportunity to provide feedback as well. The Review Team’s report will conclude with a recommendation on whether to approve a site visit for the applicant. The AEDO Committee will vote on whether to approve a site visit for the applicant. If the committee approves the organization, a site visit will be scheduled. If it is not approved, the applicant will receive information and guidance on the areas that need to be further developed prior to a site visit. This is not a “pass or fail” process.

Phase 2: Site Visit

The site visit is designed for the review team to understand and review the organization in action. An AEDO subcommittee is selected with preference towards team members who serve in organizations similar to yours. During the site visit, the review team will meet with the applicant’s staff members, partners, and stakeholders. The review team will be provided with a tour of the applicant’s office and community. The visit will last for 1.5 days.  At the end of the site visit, the review team should be provided time to begin drafting their Site Visit Report, which will summarize their findings and recommendations. After the site visit, the review team will submit its site visit report, present its findings to the AEDO Committee, and make a recommendation as to whether accreditation should be approved. The AEDO Committee will consider the findings, ask any questions they may have, and vote on whether to approve accreditation. The applicants will receive these findings and recommendations to better improve their organization.  

How to get started?

To initiate your organization’s accreditation application, begin by reviewing the Guide to Becoming an AEDO for a more comprehensive understanding of the AEDO application process.

Once the applicant has gathered all necessary documents, they should submit all materials electronically to the IEDC using the file hosting service Dropbox. After creating a Dropbox account, the applicant must set up a primary folder titled “ Organization Name AEDO Application,” which should contain 20 sub-folders labeled according to the requirements outlined in the Guide to Becoming an AEDO. The necessary documentation should then be uploaded to the appropriate folder.

Submission: Send the application form, the organization’s logo and the link to the Dropbox folder to [email protected].

Once your application has been received and acknowledged, the AEDO Application fee is due via check or credit card. The Accreditation fee is due in full prior to the site visit evaluation.

The applicant organization is also responsible for all costs associated with the site visit evaluation, including transportation, food, and lodging for the AEDO evaluation team (please see Guide to Becoming an AEDO for further details).

Please make all checks payable to the International Economic Development Council, and write "AEDO" on the memo line.