What is the First 90 Days course about?
How to establish authority, align stakeholders, and deliver visible wins fast, with defensible reasoning at every step Each order is checked and updated against the latest insights before delivery. That is why access takes up to 24 hours rather than being instant.
What situation is the First 90 Days for?
New security leaders in high-growth fintechs often face skepticism when rolling out controls. Without clear, business-aligned reasoning, even necessary initiatives get delayed by repeated stakeholder challenges. The cost isn't just time, it's lost momentum and weakened influence at a critical stage.
Who is the First 90 Days course for?
Head of Information Security or Senior Security Leader joining or recently in post at a high-growth fintech, typically Series A to C, with accelerating product velocity and increasing compliance scrutiny.
Who is the First 90 Days course not for?
Security analysts, SOC team members, or consultants not directly responsible for shaping the first 90-day credibility strategy in a fast-scaling fintech.
What do you take away from the First 90 Days course?
Articulate a stage-appropriate security roadmap with clear rationale tied to business maturity Map and pre-empt stakeholder concerns using real fintech-specific examples Demonstrate how peer companies structured early controls (with sources) Build a win calendar that delivers visibility and trust fast Answer 'Why this first?' with sourced reasoning from GDPR, SOC 2, and PCI-DSS implementations in similar fintechs.
What's included with your purchase?
12 modules with 12 chapters each (144 chapters) Downloadable templates and worked examples for every module Hand-built implementation playbook delivered alongside course access 30-day money-back guarantee.
What does the First 90 Days cover on delivery and format?
Format: Text-based modules and chapters in the Art of Service learning environment, plus downloadable templates and worked examples for every chapter, plus the hand-built implementation playbook delivered alongside course access. Time investment: Approximately 8, 10 hours total, designed for completion in short sessions over 4, 6 weeks.
How does this compare to the alternatives?
Most security leadership advice is either too technical or too abstract. This course focuses on the narrow but critical window , the first 90 days , where credibility is won or lost, with fintech-specific examples, artefacts, and reasoning you can use immediately.
Closely related courses: First 90 Days as CISO, AI-Driven Leadership in the First 90 Days.
More answers: what you get with every course, refund policy, all help answers.
A tailored course, built for your situation
First 90 Days: Building Security Credibility in a High-Growth Fintech
How to establish authority, align stakeholders, and deliver visible wins fast, with defensible reasoning at every step
Each order is checked and updated against the latest insights before delivery. That is why access takes up to 24 hours rather than being instant.
The situation this course is for
New security leaders in high-growth fintechs often face skepticism when rolling out controls. Without clear, business-aligned reasoning, even necessary initiatives get delayed by repeated stakeholder challenges. The cost isn't just time, it's lost momentum and weakened influence at a critical stage.
Who this is for
Head of Information Security or Senior Security Leader joining or recently in post at a high-growth fintech, typically Series A to C, with accelerating product velocity and increasing compliance scrutiny
Who this is not for
Security analysts, SOC team members, or consultants not directly responsible for shaping the first 90-day credibility strategy in a fast-scaling fintech
What you walk away with
- Articulate a stage-appropriate security roadmap with clear rationale tied to business maturity
- Map and pre-empt stakeholder concerns using real fintech-specific examples
- Demonstrate how peer companies structured early controls (with sources)
- Build a win calendar that delivers visibility and trust fast
- Answer 'Why this first?' with sourced reasoning from GDPR, SOC 2, and PCI-DSS implementations in similar fintechs
The 12 modules (with all 144 chapters)
- How funding rounds reshape security expectations in fintech
- Mapping product roadmap to potential risk surface expansion
- Using customer acquisition rate as a proxy for trust pressure
- Benchmarking team size against incident response capacity
- Identifying third-party dependencies that create hidden risk
- Evaluating technical debt tolerance from engineering leadership tone
- Recognizing signs of investor-driven compliance urgency
- Assessing board communication frequency as a risk signal
- Differentiating B2B vs B2C risk posture expectations
- Using churn data to infer security hygiene perception
- Tracking support ticket trends for early breach indicators
- Synthesizing findings into a stage-specific risk profile
- Identifying the four types of stakeholder resistance patterns
- Classifying leaders by risk tolerance using past decisions
- Mapping engineering leads by delivery pressure and tech debt burden
- Understanding finance's view of security as cost vs enablement
- Anticipating product team concerns around release velocity
- Decoding legal's triggers for escalation on data handling
- Positioning compliance as a shared success metric, not oversight
- Engaging customer support as early signal detectors
- Using org structure to infer decision-making hierarchies
- Documenting stakeholder language preferences for framing
- Creating pre-emptive FAQs based on role-specific concerns
- Validating assumptions through low-stakes 1:1 touchpoints
- Why standard ISO 27001 rollout order fails in early fintech
- Sequencing controls based on customer trust impact
- Aligning first initiatives with upcoming audit or certification needs
- Using incident history to justify focus areas without alarmism
- Balancing regulatory must-dos with founder risk tolerance
- Prioritizing visibility-generating wins over silent protections
- Mapping controls to specific product features for relevance
- Timing announcements to align with company milestones
- Avoiding over-investment in enterprise-grade solutions too soon
- Building flexibility into roadmap for funding scenario shifts
- Documenting trade-offs made and rationale for future reference
- Presenting roadmap as evolving, not fixed, to reduce pushback
- Criteria for selecting a win that’s both safe and visible
- Why access review automation wins more trust than policy rewrite
- Choosing a project with clear before-and-after metrics
- Involving cross-functional partners to amplify reach
- Setting completion markers that stakeholders can observe
- Avoiding technical debt accumulation in quick wins
- Documenting the problem clearly before showing the fix
- Timing the reveal to maximize internal visibility
- Preparing responses to likely 'Why now?' and 'Why this?' questions
- Using design artifacts to show rigor without over-engineering
- Measuring win success beyond completion , did trust increase?
- Translating the win into narrative for future proposals
- Structuring reasoning using precedent from similar fintechs
- Citing GDPR Article 32 in context of early encryption choices
- Referencing SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria without jargon
- Using PCI-DSS requirement 6.2 to justify secure SDLC adoption
- Quoting NIST CSF functions to explain control priorities
- Invoking FCA guidelines on customer data handling in UK fintech
- Benchmarking against publicly known Series B security setups
- Explaining trade-offs using cost-of-delay versus implementation effort
- Showing how peer companies responded to similar threats
- Linking controls to specific business objectives, not standards
- Preparing backup examples when stakeholders challenge assumptions
- Maintaining a personal repository of cited sources and cases
- Replacing 'compliance' with 'customer trust infrastructure'
- Using product launch risks to frame security as accelerator
- Positioning controls as reducing future rework, not adding cost
- Aligning security milestones with product go-to-market plans
- Speaking in velocity terms to engineering leaders
- Using revenue at risk framing for executive buy-in
- Avoiding fear-based language in favor of resilience narratives
- Highlighting how security enables new markets or partnerships
- Celebrating secure releases as team achievements
- Integrating security updates into broader company comms
- Training advocates to repeat key messaging across teams
- Shifting from 'we found a vulnerability' to 'we prevented downtime'
- Designing an onboarding plan that reinforces credibility goals
- Assigning early visibility-generating tasks to new engineers
- Pairing hires with advocates in product and engineering
- Using documentation as proof of organizational maturity
- Setting expectations for communication style and tone
- Incorporating stakeholder exposure gradually but intentionally
- Creating quick-win projects built into first 30 days
- Aligning performance goals with team credibility metrics
- Encouraging contribution to cross-functional documentation
- Measuring new hire ramp time as a team health indicator
- Avoiding siloed security tooling that isolates the team
- Building rituals that reinforce shared ownership of security
- Choosing the right scope for first review , narrow and winnable
- Setting clear objectives to avoid open-ended debates
- Preparing evidence packages in stakeholder-friendly formats
- Using visual timelines to show control implementation progress
- Anticipating common objections and pre-loading responses
- Facilitating discussion without dominating the room
- Capturing action items with clear ownership and deadlines
- Following up with concise summaries and next steps
- Highlighting team contributions to encourage partnership
- Documenting decisions and rationale for future reference
- Evaluating success by stakeholder feedback, not just completion
- Iterating format based on what worked and what didn’t
- Designing a control justification template with source fields
- Creating stakeholder-specific one-pagers for recurring questions
- Building a living roadmap with versioned rationale
- Standardizing win announcement formats for internal comms
- Developing a Q&A repository for common security challenges
- Formatting risk assessments to show business impact first
- Using tables to compare options with clear trade-off columns
- Incorporating visuals that explain technical concepts simply
- Maintaining a changelog for policy and control updates
- Archiving past decisions to reduce repeated discussions
- Sharing artefacts proactively to reduce ad-hoc requests
- Iterating templates based on stakeholder comprehension feedback
- Mapping auditor question types to your existing artefacts
- Preparing responses that show depth without over-sharing
- Using past incidents (if any) as proof of learning and adaptation
- Coaching team members on consistent communication style
- Scheduling walkthroughs to minimize disruption
- Highlighting proactive controls, not just reactive compliance
- Showing roadmap alignment with future audit cycles
- Documenting evidence trails that others can follow
- Anticipating scope creep and having boundary responses ready
- Following up with summary of findings and next steps
- Using audit timing to reinforce internal deadlines
- Translating results into internal trust-building narratives
- Embedding security advocates in product squads
- Co-developing feature risk checklists with engineering leads
- Presenting at tech talks to build informal influence
- Contributing to architecture review boards with clarity
- Using data to show security’s impact on release stability
- Partnering on incident response drills to build trust
- Offering lightweight guidance instead of mandates
- Celebrating shared wins in company-wide forums
- Initiating brown bags to demystify security decisions
- Adapting communication style for different team cultures
- Tracking cross-team collaboration as a success metric
- Positioning security as a career accelerator for engineers
- Recognizing signs that credibility needs reinvestment
- Updating stakeholder maps after org restructures
- Revisiting roadmap priorities post-funding announcement
- Scaling artefacts to support new team members
- Maintaining personal visibility during team growth
- Using offsites to reset alignment and reset expectations
- Introducing tiered control models for team autonomy
- Transitioning from hands-on to strategic oversight gracefully
- Documenting institutional knowledge before key exits
- Reinforcing culture through onboarding and rituals
- Measuring long-term credibility through decision latency
- Planning for next inflection before it arrives
How this maps to your situation
- Onboarding phase
- Stakeholder alignment
- Roadmap planning
- Credibility sustainment
Before vs. after
What's included with your purchase
- 12 modules with 12 chapters each (144 chapters)
- Downloadable templates and worked examples for every module
- Hand-built implementation playbook delivered alongside course access
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Delivery and format
- Course and learning environment access provisioned within 24 hours of purchase
- Hand-built implementation playbook delivered alongside course access
Format: Text-based modules and chapters in the Art of Service learning environment, plus downloadable templates and worked examples for every chapter, plus the hand-built implementation playbook delivered alongside course access.
Time investment: Approximately 8, 10 hours total, designed for completion in short sessions over 4, 6 weeks.
How this compares to the alternatives
Most security leadership advice is either too technical or too abstract. This course focuses on the narrow but critical window , the first 90 days , where credibility is won or lost, with fintech-specific examples, artefacts, and reasoning you can use immediately.
Frequently asked
Within 24 hours your account in the learning environment is provisioned and the tailored implementation playbook is delivered alongside it.