IT Maintenance Engineer Association Launches "AI Business Support Specialist," a New Certification for Practical AI Application Skills
The non-profit IT Maintenance Engineer Association has launched a new certification, the "AI Business Support Specialist," to recognize professionals who can safely and effectively use generative AI in the workplace. The certification addresses corporate challenges like skill shortages and risk management in AI adoption, evaluating practical abilities through a two-step process combining a certified course and an exam. Course applications will open on April 27, 2026.
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- 📰 Published: May 19, 2026 at 18:00
- 🔍 Collected: May 19, 2026 at 09:31
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The NPO IT Maintenance Engineer Association (Location: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Nobuyuki Ieki), which promotes and disseminates technical qualification systems, has established a new certification, the "AI Business Support Specialist." The program aims to train and certify personnel capable of safely and effectively utilizing generative AI in a business environment.
The "AI Business Support Specialist" certification recognizes individuals who can not only use generative AI tools but also understand business workflows to integrate AI into processes, manage and improve its operation, and drive bottom-up AI adoption in the workplace.
While corporate adoption of generative AI is expanding, on-site challenges remain, such as uncertainty about its applications, invisible ROI, and concerns about risk management. Many companies report a "lack of literacy and skills" as a key issue, often failing to achieve sufficient results even after implementation.
The association, which has traditionally operated certification systems to foster IT talent and standardize IT skills, has designed the "AI Business Support Specialist" to emphasize a practical ability to use AI. This is achieved through a two-step method combining the completion of a certified training course with passing a certification exam, rather than focusing on knowledge alone. Course applications will begin on April 27, 2026, and exam applications will start on July 6, 2026.
1. Background of the Certification
Generative AI is being used in a wide range of tasks, including content creation, information gathering, document preparation, spreadsheet management, and automation. However, without skilled personnel, the impact of AI adoption is limited. This is a significant barrier to productivity, especially for small to medium-sized enterprises and organizations without dedicated IT staff. Furthermore, generative AI carries risks such as hallucinations, copyright infringement, data leakage, shadow AI, bias, and deepfakes. This necessitates personnel equipped with both the knowledge to handle AI safely and the practical skills to apply it to business tasks. The "AI Business Support Specialist" certification was designed to meet these societal needs.
2. Certification System Overview
To become a certified "AI Business Support Specialist," candidates must complete a certified training course of at least 9 hours and pass the association's official exam. This system ensures a comprehensive understanding of practical AI skills, process integration, and risk management. The first certified training institution, AISEE CONNECT Co., Ltd., has started offering an e-learning program, the "AI Business Support Specialist Training Course," based on the association's curriculum.
3. Learning Areas
The program covers four main areas:
- 1. Understanding AI Technology: Foundational knowledge, including AI applications in business, characteristics of major AI tools, LLM basics, and technology trends.
- 2. Practical AI Application: Skills to enhance output, such as prompt engineering, AI-driven research, content generation, RAG, and custom AI.
- 3. Building AI Workflows: Methods for organizational adoption, including automation with generative AI, no-code AI agents, process visualization, and understanding implementation costs.
- 4. Risk Management: Knowledge for safe use, covering information security, copyright, commercial use, shadow AI, privacy protection, and AI bias.
4. Benefits of Certification
The qualification provides objective proof of AI skills, moving beyond vague claims of being "able to use AI." It serves as a concrete skill indicator for AI reskilling, especially for non-engineering roles in general affairs, accounting, sales, and planning. For organizations, placing certified specialists in various departments can enhance AI governance and build an internal capacity to drive AI initiatives, reducing over-reliance on external consultants.
The "AI Business Support Specialist" certification recognizes individuals who can not only use generative AI tools but also understand business workflows to integrate AI into processes, manage and improve its operation, and drive bottom-up AI adoption in the workplace.
While corporate adoption of generative AI is expanding, on-site challenges remain, such as uncertainty about its applications, invisible ROI, and concerns about risk management. Many companies report a "lack of literacy and skills" as a key issue, often failing to achieve sufficient results even after implementation.
The association, which has traditionally operated certification systems to foster IT talent and standardize IT skills, has designed the "AI Business Support Specialist" to emphasize a practical ability to use AI. This is achieved through a two-step method combining the completion of a certified training course with passing a certification exam, rather than focusing on knowledge alone. Course applications will begin on April 27, 2026, and exam applications will start on July 6, 2026.
1. Background of the Certification
Generative AI is being used in a wide range of tasks, including content creation, information gathering, document preparation, spreadsheet management, and automation. However, without skilled personnel, the impact of AI adoption is limited. This is a significant barrier to productivity, especially for small to medium-sized enterprises and organizations without dedicated IT staff. Furthermore, generative AI carries risks such as hallucinations, copyright infringement, data leakage, shadow AI, bias, and deepfakes. This necessitates personnel equipped with both the knowledge to handle AI safely and the practical skills to apply it to business tasks. The "AI Business Support Specialist" certification was designed to meet these societal needs.
2. Certification System Overview
To become a certified "AI Business Support Specialist," candidates must complete a certified training course of at least 9 hours and pass the association's official exam. This system ensures a comprehensive understanding of practical AI skills, process integration, and risk management. The first certified training institution, AISEE CONNECT Co., Ltd., has started offering an e-learning program, the "AI Business Support Specialist Training Course," based on the association's curriculum.
3. Learning Areas
The program covers four main areas:
- 1. Understanding AI Technology: Foundational knowledge, including AI applications in business, characteristics of major AI tools, LLM basics, and technology trends.
- 2. Practical AI Application: Skills to enhance output, such as prompt engineering, AI-driven research, content generation, RAG, and custom AI.
- 3. Building AI Workflows: Methods for organizational adoption, including automation with generative AI, no-code AI agents, process visualization, and understanding implementation costs.
- 4. Risk Management: Knowledge for safe use, covering information security, copyright, commercial use, shadow AI, privacy protection, and AI bias.
4. Benefits of Certification
The qualification provides objective proof of AI skills, moving beyond vague claims of being "able to use AI." It serves as a concrete skill indicator for AI reskilling, especially for non-engineering roles in general affairs, accounting, sales, and planning. For organizations, placing certified specialists in various departments can enhance AI governance and build an internal capacity to drive AI initiatives, reducing over-reliance on external consultants.