A tailored course, built for your situation
Mastering DORA for Financial Services Compliance Practitioners
A step-by-step implementation roadmap for operational resilience under DORA
$199 one-time
24-hour access provisioning
30-day money-back guarantee
Hand-built implementation playbook
12 modules. 12 chapters per module. 144 chapters total.
12 modules, each with 12 chapters (144 chapters total), text-based, plus downloadable templates and a hand-built implementation playbook delivered alongside course access.
Avoid last-minute audit surprises with clear, defensible control ownership
The situation this course is for
Regulatory audits often force reactive decisions under pressure, leaving practitioners to justify positions they didn’t fully shape. Missed details in DORA’s incident reporting or vendor classification rules can trigger extended review cycles.
Who this is for
Mid-to-senior level compliance, risk, or governance practitioner in a financial institution, currently implementing or responding to DORA requirements. Works across teams but owns specific control decisions without needing approval.
Who this is not for
Entry-level analysts, consultants selling generic frameworks, or executives seeking board-level summaries. This is for doers with signed-off authority on compliance artefacts.
What you walk away with
- Define and defend DORA audit scope without escalation
- Produce incident reporting templates that pass regulator review on first submission
- Classify critical and material ICT third parties with documented rationale
- Own the incident escalation framework used across compliance and ops teams
- Build a living compliance playbook that survives leadership changes
The 12 modules (with all 144 chapters)
Module 1. Understanding DORA's Core Mandate and Scope
Clarify which parts of your institution fall under DORA's requirements, focusing on material and critical ICT functions. Learn how to draw boundaries around what must be reported and what can be excluded with justification.
12 chapters in this module
- Identifying material and critical ICT third-party providers
- Mapping DORA scope to existing internal risk registers
- Defining what constitutes a major ICT incident under DORA
- Establishing thresholds for reporting to regulators
- Differentiating between operational disruptions and reportable incidents
- Using internal incident history to calibrate DORA thresholds
- Documenting exclusion criteria for low-risk systems
- Aligning with MiFID II and PSD2 reporting obligations
- Creating a cross-functional inventory of regulated systems
- Setting ownership rules for incident classification
- Integrating DORA scope with existing BCM frameworks
- Avoiding scope creep in initial audit cycles
Module 2. Incident Reporting Framework Design
Build a repeatable process for identifying, classifying, and escalating ICT incidents in line with DORA timelines. Own the definition of what gets reported and when.
12 chapters in this module
- Classifying incidents by severity and business impact
- Setting internal escalation deadlines for Tier 1 events
- Designing notification workflows for regulator submission
- Creating time-stamped incident logs for audit evidence
- Documenting root cause analysis for major outages
- Integrating with existing SOC and incident response teams
- Defining 'resolved' status for regulatory purposes
- Managing multi-jurisdictional reporting conflicts
- Establishing thresholds for external communications
- Building templates for ESMA and national regulator forms
- Validating incident data against internal IT logs
- Reviewing past incidents for DORA classification accuracy
Module 3. Third-Party Risk Classification System
Develop a consistent, defensible method for categorizing vendors as critical, material, or non-reportable under DORA. You own the classification rules.
12 chapters in this module
- Mapping vendor dependencies across ICT infrastructure
- Assessing vendor impact on core financial operations
- Creating scoring models for third-party criticality
- Setting document retention rules for vendor assessments
- Requiring SOC 2 and ISO 27001 certifications from partners
- Auditing subcontractor risk within vendor supply chains
- Defining minimum due diligence for reclassification reviews
- Integrating vendor classifications into procurement workflows
- Using contract terms to enforce DORA compliance clauses
- Tracking changes in vendor risk profile over time
- Reporting aggregated vendor risk exposure to compliance leads
- Defending classification decisions during audit interviews
Module 4. Operational Resilience Testing Plan
Own the design and cadence of resilience testing, including scenario selection, participant roles, and outcome reporting, without requiring executive pre-approval.
12 chapters in this module
- Selecting high-impact test scenarios based on threat models
- Setting frequency for tabletop vs full-scale drills
- Defining success criteria for resilience exercises
- Involving legal and comms teams in test planning
- Documenting test outcomes for regulator submission
- Creating after-action reports with remediation timelines
- Integrating lessons into control update cycles
- Using past incidents to inform future test design
- Coordinating cross-border participation in drills
- Validating recovery time objectives against actual data
- Reviewing external auditor feedback on test quality
- Adjusting scenarios based on evolving regulatory focus
Module 5. Internal Governance Model for DORA
Set the structure of compliance oversight, including meeting frequency, attendance rules, and reporting cadence, tailored to your institution’s size and complexity.
12 chapters in this module
- Defining roles in the DORA governance committee
- Setting agenda rules for resilience review meetings
- Establishing quarterly reporting obligations to compliance leads
- Documenting decision trails for auditor access
- Integrating DORA updates into board-level risk summaries
- Creating escalation paths for unresolved control gaps
- Maintaining minutes with action item tracking
- Onboarding new team members to governance norms
- Linking governance outcomes to audit readiness
- Updating membership based on organizational changes
- Reviewing governance effectiveness every six months
- Aligning with existing ISO 22301 and BCM practices
Module 6. Audit Preparation and Evidence Packaging
Produce clean, consistent artefacts that withstand internal and external review, using templates you control and maintain.
12 chapters in this module
- Organizing evidence by DORA article and subclause
- Creating version-controlled control mapping documents
- Populating regulator questionnaires in advance
- Building a single source of truth for compliance data
- Using timestamps and digital signatures for integrity
- Packaging incident logs for external auditor access
- Defining what constitutes sufficient remediation proof
- Linking controls to existing ISO 27001 frameworks
- Preparing responses to common audit findings
- Validating artefacts against EBA finalised RTS
- Redacting sensitive information without losing context
- Maintaining offline backups for offline review cycles
Module 7. Change Management Under DORA
Own the process of updating controls, policies, and classifications when systems or vendors change, without waiting for central approval.
12 chapters in this module
- Tracking system decommissioning against DORA scope
- Updating third-party classifications after M&A activity
- Reassessing incident thresholds after infrastructure changes
- Notifying compliance leads of material changes
- Documenting rationale for control adjustments
- Using version control for policy updates
- Integrating change logs into audit narratives
- Setting review cycles for updated vendor contracts
- Revalidating resilience test scenarios after changes
- Communicating changes to distributed teams
- Flagging high-risk changes for pre-implementation review
- Archiving deprecated control definitions
Module 8. Cross-Functional Alignment Strategy
Lead alignment between IT, compliance, legal, and operations without formal authority, using structured coordination patterns you define.
12 chapters in this module
- Mapping stakeholder responsibilities by DORA article
- Creating shared terminology across departments
- Setting meeting rhythms for cross-team updates
- Building issue escalation matrices with owners
- Using RACI models for joint deliverables
- Facilitating workshops to resolve classification disputes
- Integrating feedback from non-compliance teams
- Synchronizing DORA timelines with other regulatory cycles
- Managing conflicting priorities across functions
- Documenting alignment decisions for audit trail
- Training peer teams on DORA-specific definitions
- Tracking action items across organizational boundaries
Module 9. Regulator Communication Playbook
Control the narrative during supervisory engagements by owning the templates, tone, and timing of responses.
12 chapters in this module
- Drafting initial responses to regulator inquiries
- Setting internal review rules before submission
- Creating escalation paths for sensitive questions
- Using past responses to ensure consistency
- Preparing subject matter experts for interviews
- Designing Q&A briefs for compliance leads
- Managing translation needs for cross-border queries
- Tracking regulator follow-ups in a central log
- Updating talking points after policy changes
- Protecting attorney-client privileged information
- Balancing transparency with legal risk
- Rehearsing responses to hypothetical breach scenarios
Module 10. Continuous Monitoring and Improvement
Implement ongoing tracking of DORA compliance health, including KPIs, dashboards, and review cycles you own.
12 chapters in this module
- Defining leading indicators for control effectiveness
- Creating monthly compliance health dashboards
- Setting thresholds for management escalation
- Integrating monitoring into existing GRC tools
- Reviewing incident reporting timeliness metrics
- Auditing third-party re-certification deadlines
- Tracking open findings to resolution
- Benchmarking against peer institution disclosures
- Updating monitoring scope after regulatory changes
- Automating data collection from IT systems
- Validating accuracy of self-reported metrics
- Reporting trends to senior compliance teams
Module 11. Integration with Existing Compliance Frameworks
Leverage existing ISO 27001, SOC 2, and MiFID II work to avoid duplication and strengthen DORA outcomes.
12 chapters in this module
- Aligning DORA incident reporting with SOC 2 requirements
- Mapping controls to ISO 27001 domains
- Using MiFID II operational risk assessments as input
- Consolidating audit evidence across frameworks
- Avoiding conflicting control statements
- Harmonizing classification criteria across standards
- Sharing templates between compliance programs
- Training teams on cross-standard consistency
- Creating unified control ownership records
- Reducing audit fatigue through integrated artefacts
- Reporting synergies to efficiency committees
- Maintaining framework-specific nuances where needed
Module 12. Sustainability and Knowledge Transfer
Ensure your DORA implementation endures leadership changes, audits, and evolving threats through structured documentation and onboarding.
12 chapters in this module
- Creating role-specific onboarding checklists
- Documenting unwritten assumptions in control logic
- Building a searchable knowledge base for future teams
- Archiving decisions with context and rationale
- Updating playbooks after each audit cycle
- Training junior staff on classification rules
- Creating video walkthroughs of key processes
- Scheduling annual refresh sessions
- Linking new hires to historical context
- Establishing ownership transfer protocols
- Measuring knowledge retention after turnover
- Reducing dependency on any single individual
How this maps to your situation
- Initial DORA scoping and classification
- Ongoing incident management and reporting
- Third-party oversight and vendor governance
- Preparation for audit and regulator engagement
Before vs. after
Before
Reactive compliance, fragmented artefacts, and last-minute escalations when audit cycles begin.
After
Controlled, consistent implementation with clear ownership and regulator-ready documentation from day one.
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 90 minutes per week over 12 weeks, with flexibility to move faster. Most practitioners complete it in 10 weeks.
If nothing changes
Without a structured approach, DORA compliance becomes reactive and fragmented, increasing the chance of misclassified incidents, delayed reporting, and findings that require remediation under time pressure.
How this compares to the alternatives
Unlike generic compliance courses, this is tailored to DORA’s specific articles, implementation challenges in financial services, and real audit expectations. No off-the-shelf framework fits the precision required.
Frequently asked
Is this course relevant if my firm is still finalizing DORA scope?
Yes. It’s designed for practitioners actively shaping implementation, especially those who already own decisions on incident reporting, vendor classification, or audit scope.
How is the course structured?
12 modules, each containing 12 chapters (144 chapters total).
Does this cover MiFID II and PSD2 overlaps with DORA?
Yes. Module 11 details how to align DORA with existing MiFID II and PSD2 compliance workflows to reduce duplication and strengthen outcomes.
$199 one-time. Approximately 90 minutes per week over 12 weeks, with flexibility to move faster. Most practitioners complete it in 10 weeks..
Within 24 hours your account in the learning environment is provisioned and the tailored implementation playbook is delivered alongside it.
30-day money-back guarantee·
144 chapters·
Hand-built playbook included·
Account access within 24 hours