A core provider is not the only third party in a modernization program. Hosting, digital banking, payments, identity, data conversion, integration, testing, implementation, and specialized subcontractors can all affect the bank's ability to serve customers and control risk. Oversight should follow those dependencies through selection, transition, operation, and exit.
Evaluate the service the bank will actually receive
Confirm the proposed products, versions, delivery model, implementation partners, hosting regions, material subcontractors, support tiers, data flows, dependencies, roadmap assumptions, and responsibilities retained by the bank. Due diligence based on a generic vendor profile can miss the risk introduced by the specific solution and transition plan.
Connect due diligence to enforceable terms
Service and performance
Define scope, availability, capacity, support, maintenance, incident response, recovery, reporting, acceptance, remedies, and change notification.
Data and security
Address ownership, permitted use, access, encryption, logging, segregation, retention, deletion, vulnerability management, breach response, and evidence.
Subcontractors and dependencies
Require visibility, notice, flow-down controls, concentration information, resilience expectations, and accountability for material fourth parties.
Transition and exit
Define data extraction, assistance, formats, timing, continued service, knowledge transfer, archival evidence, cost, and secure disposal.
Govern implementation risk, not just vendor risk
Track requirements, configuration, integrations, conversion rules, defects, test coverage, decisions, exceptions, dependencies, staffing, cutover criteria, and contingency plans. Assign bank owners for every accepted risk and confirm that vendor milestones reflect business and control readiness, not only technical completion.
Make acceptance evidence explicit
For each material capability, define who accepts it, the evidence required, environments and data used, unresolved defects permitted, compensating controls, and the decision path for exceptions. Reconcile delivered configuration and interfaces with contracts, architecture, security review, operating procedures, and training.
Prepare oversight for steady-state service
Determine the service, security, resilience, financial, concentration, subcontractor, incident, performance, complaint, audit, issue, and change information the bank will receive. Define thresholds, review frequency, escalation, validation, and how material findings affect operations or renewal decisions.
Maintain a refreshable evidence pack
Keep the service inventory, due diligence, risk assessment, approvals, contract mapping, implementation decisions, testing, conversion reconciliations, exceptions, incidents, performance, issues, subcontractors, resilience results, and exit plan connected to accountable owners and current status.
