The roles use separate competency standards. The 60% training and assessment payment is due upfront to begin. It is non-refundable. Passing the applicable assessment earns certification and authorization for that pathway. The remaining 40% is due only after the candidate passes and earns authorization. It confirms the authorization already earned. It is not due simply because training is complete or an assessment has been attempted.
Training develops role-specific capability. Passing the applicable assessment earns certification and pathway authorization. Authorization sets the permitted scope and capacity. The remaining 40% confirms the authorization already earned.
Company-Sponsored
$10,000 USD total
The $10,000 package includes one Practitioner training and assessment process and one separate Researcher training and assessment process for two different people, plus one Practitioner certification and authorization for internal OEI capability.
$6,000 covers the two training and assessment processes $4,000 covers Practitioner certification and authorization, payable after the Practitioner passes
If the Practitioner passes but the Researcher candidate fails, the $4,000 is still due for Practitioner authorization. The company then has an authorized Practitioner without a qualified Researcher. The Researcher may perform research functions with a Practitioner but cannot independently complete an OEI engagement. The Practitioner may conduct full OEI engagements and Focused Investigations within the sponsoring organization. Each person retains any role-specific certification they earn. The Practitioner’s authorization is individual and scoped to the sponsoring organization. Researcher qualification permits research functions in support of that Practitioner. Neither person may use this pathway to serve external clients or represent the Institute.
If the Researcher candidate does not pass, the company may train a replacement Researcher candidate for a flat $3,000. Company-Sponsored Researcher candidates have one attempt and cannot retake or repeat training. The $3,000 covers one Researcher training process and assessment for a new candidate. It does not include additional Practitioner training. A successful replacement Researcher works with the company’s already certified and authorized Practitioner.
Annual renewal: $500 per internally employed company-sponsored Practitioner, per year. No renewal fee applies to Researchers.
Independent Consultant
$12,000 USD total
Train one individual for both the Researcher and Practitioner roles to serve multiple clients. The practitioner acquires their own clients.
$7,200 training and assessment for both roles $4,800 authorization confirmation, payable only after passing and gaining authorization
May identify OEI as the methodology used and the OEI Institute as its source. May conduct full OEI engagements and Focused Investigations for clients, but may not represent the Institute or imply it is responsible for independent engagements. The 50% fee cap applies to full OEI engagements only: $10,000–$22,500+ based on current Native pricing. It does not apply to Focused Investigations.
Annual renewal: $600 per year.
OEI Native
$15,000 USD total
Qualify a Practitioner to represent the Institute and deliver engagements to Institute clients under its standards and delivery arrangements. The Institute may train or assign Researchers separately.
$9,000 Practitioner training and assessment $6,000 authorization confirmation, payable only after passing and gaining authorization
Training and assessment qualify the candidate for the Practitioner role. Passing earns certification and OEI Native authorization. Payment alone does not guarantee a passing result or a client assignment.
Annual renewal: $750 per year.
Practitioner assessment retakes: A Practitioner candidate may make one retake after an initial failure, for the applicable training and assessment fee again. The fee is non-refundable and does not guarantee a pass. If both Practitioner attempts fail, training and assessment payments total $12,000 for Company-Sponsored Practitioner ($6,000 + $6,000), $14,400 for Independent Consultant ($7,200 + $7,200 for the complete package, including both role trainings and assessments), or $18,000 for OEI Native ($9,000 + $9,000). No 40% payment is due if the Practitioner candidate does not pass. Company-Sponsored Researcher assessment is separate: the candidate has one attempt only and cannot repeat the training. If they do not pass, the company may train a new Researcher candidate for $3,000. Read the full retake terms.
Researcher-to-Practitioner standalone upgrade: A company pays $2,500 for additional Practitioner training and assessment. After a first failure, one retake is available for another $2,500. If the candidate fails both attempts, Practitioner certification and authorization are not earned, and the $2,000 authorization confirmation is not due. If they pass, the company pays the $2,000 confirmation. The total is $4,500 when the candidate passes, or up to $5,000 in training and assessment payments if both attempts fail.
Annual authorization renewal
Renewal is 5% of the applicable pathway price. The first year of renewal is waived after certification. Renewal sustains active authorization and supports alignment with the current OEI methodology through Institute-provided Methodology Updates.
Company-sponsored renewal is $500 per internally employed Practitioner, not per company. Researchers have no renewal fee. If a practitioner upgrades pathways, the renewal rate changes immediately to 5% of the new pathway price. For example, company-sponsored Practitioner authorization changes from $500 to $600 per year after an independent upgrade, or to $750 per year after an OEI Native upgrade. The first renewal year is waived after certification. Read the renewal, lapse, and update rules.
Upgrading from company-sponsored authorization
If a Company-Sponsored Practitioner leaves, the company stops paying renewal and their company-specific authorization ends. The Practitioner retains certification. The now former employee may personally pay $2,000 for independent authorization, pursue the OEI Native pathway for $7,500 subject to applicable requirements, or allow authorization to lapse.
Full OEI Native engagements are paid through four milestone-based installments, not hourly billing. Each installment is due upon delivery of its corresponding deliverable. The milestones are concrete work products, not arbitrary calendar dates:
The 4-day OEI Diagnosis record
The audit findings
The implementation
The validated results
Client-caused delays
Before the 4-day OEI Diagnosis begins, delays caused by missing access, evidence, or other prerequisites are documented in the diagnostic report, along with resulting limits on confidence in affected findings. A pre-diagnosis delay does not automatically create a financial penalty or forfeiture.
After the OEI Diagnosis, client-caused delays, including delays affecting audit findings or implementation, extend the engagement term under the client’s responsibility. The engagement does not automatically terminate when information, access, decisions, or other inputs are delayed. A pause may last a maximum of three months, measured from the date the delay begins. After that, continuation under the original terms is not guaranteed. The client must coordinate with the Institute to resume work. Remaining milestones may be re-quoted or handled under other applicable terms. The engagement is scoped around effort and deliverables, not a guaranteed completion date.
A bounded entry point
Focused Investigations
Investigate a specific operational domain through evidence-first OEI inquiry. Each investigation is scoped to the question and the work required; these are not identical, fixed-scope packages.
Current public range
$1,000–$4,000 USD
Effort varies with the judgment, evidence gathering, and analysis involved.
Optional intervention layer
AI Enablement: scoped from OEI findings
AI Enablement can be added to either OEI pathway when the investigation identifies a worthwhile opportunity. It is scoped according to the intervention the OEI work actually supports; it is not an automatic part of every engagement.
OEI begins with evidence, determines whether AI is appropriate, and tests any intervention against operational outcomes. The right conclusion may be not to proceed with AI.
These planning ranges help frame possible intervention scope. OEI findings determine which stages, if any, are appropriate.
Investigate
Approximately $3,500 USD
Design
$2,000–$5,000 USD
Build & Validate
$3,000–$12,000 USD
Enable & Handoff
$1,500–$4,000 USD
Illustrative overall estimates: A small AI intervention may be approximately $5,000–$14,000 USD, while a more substantial intervention may reach $20,000–$35,000+ USD.
Stages are not necessarily charged independently or delivered in sequence. Final scope and pricing depend on what OEI work discovers, and an investigation may conclude that AI is not appropriate.
Determine the right scope
Share the capability or operational question you are considering, and the Institute can identify an appropriate pathway and scope.