![Advisiom Global M&A Registered Logotype [Header Sub]](https://advisiom.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Advisiom-Global-MA-Registered-Logotype-Header-Sub-1.svg)
The Associations World Congress returned this June to the sun-drenched Algarve coast of Portugal, gathering more than 400 association leaders, directors and chief executives from across the world at the newly opened Lagoa Congress Centre. Now in its 13th year, the Congress is widely regarded as Europe’s leading conference for association leaders and executives, drawing together organisations ranging from international federations to professional networks, all united by a commitment to grow, improve and connect.
This year’s congress carried particular significance for the global M&A community. Among the leaders recognised at the awards ceremony was Amanda Simmons, CEO and Founder of Advisiom Global M&A, who received the ‘New Association’ Leader of the Year Award for 2026.
Why Advisiom’s Presence Matters
The Congress brings together association leaders, directors, senior managers and professionals from across the world, all seeking to improve and grow their organisations and services, share best practices and build valuable connections. For a network whose entire purpose is brokering value-driven alliances between high-performing M&A professionals, a room of 400-plus international association leaders is not simply a networking opportunity. It is a demonstration of values in action. Advisiom exists because the best outcomes in global M&A are built on trusted, enduring relationships. The Associations World Congress is precisely the environment in which those relationships take root.
The Award
The ‘New Association’ Leader of the Year Award recognises a founder who has built a credible, functioning organisation from the ground up and done so with enough momentum to make it matter internationally. This year, the judges were unequivocal in their choice.
The citation read: "This award celebrates a leader who started the organisation from nothing and built a global community. In a short space of time, she has turned an idea into a working network of high-performing members. She brokers value-driven alliances and sets a clear standard, where proactive collaboration is the expectation, not the hope. Drawing on her deep roots in marketing, business development and executive leadership, she measures success in trusted relationships and real results for members. Launching a new association and giving it this much momentum takes rare conviction. For building something from nothing and making it matter, this award goes to Amanda Simmons, Chief Executive of Advisiom Global Network."
Why It Matters
Building a new association to international recognition in a short period of time is genuinely uncommon. Most networks take years to establish credibility, membership density and the kind of trust that makes collaboration between members a reliable outcome rather than an aspirational one. That Advisiom has achieved this, and had it acknowledged on an international stage by an independent body of judges, signals that the model is working.
For members of the Advisiom Global Network, this award is an external validation of what they already experience from within: a rigorous, results-focused community where membership carries meaning.
Reflecting on the recognition, Amanda said: "Building Advisiom from the ground up has required absolute clarity about what we stand for and who we are building it for. This award is a tribute to every member who believed in the vision early and held us to the standard we set. Proactive collaboration is not a nice-to-have in this network. It is the expectation."
About Amanda Simmons
Amanda Simmons is the Founder & CEO of Advisiom Global M&A, an AI-enabled cross-border M&A advisory network connecting elite boutique firms worldwide. Holding an MSc and bringing extensive experience in international collaboration and advisory networks, Amanda founded Advisiom after observing first-hand the structural gaps that prevent boutique M&A firms from scaling their cross-border capabilities and capturing the deal flow their expertise deserves.
Her vision was clear: build a network defined not by volume, but by values, where integrity, entrepreneurship, and excellence are the price of entry. Under her leadership, the Advisiom strategy is to grow to represent professionals spanning 14 core industries across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC.
Amanda’s approach blends cutting-edge AI-driven dealmaking tools with the trusted human relationships that have always sat at the heart of successful M&A. Based in Europe, she works directly with senior partners at boutique firms worldwide, focused on one outcome: helping members close more deals, faster.
To learn more about the network and membership opportunities, reach out at office@advisiom.com.
