DORA in control

The challenge of DORA: more than compliance

DORA is reshaping how organizations approach cyber resilience by imposing comprehensive requirements across cybersecurity, continuity planning, and risk management. It’s not just about meeting regulatory standards; it’s about preparing institutions to handle complex threats such as ransomware, espionage, and rapid geopolitical changes that could force a switch in IT service providers.

Key aspects of DORA include:

• New accountability: management teams now hold direct responsibility for resilience, operational continuity, and regulatory adherence.

• Mandated exit strategies: organizations must maintain robust cloud exit strategies, with clear contractual terms and exit testing. 

• Advanced resilience testing: DORA mandates testing across internal and third-party environments, ensuring readiness for any disruptive events.

• End-to-end asset management: comprehensive oversight of all critical assets, supply chains, and ICT providers is essential, including contractual assurances and incident response capabilities.

These requirements are complex, but they also provide a clear path toward greater resilience.

The DORA Control Framework: your guide to resilience

To help organizations navigate DORA’s extensive 400-page legislation, we’ve developed the DORA Control Framework—a strategic, practical approach distilled into 8 domains, 28 sub-domains and 95 actionable controls. This framework is far more than a checklist; it’s a strategic tool designed to align DORA’s detailed mandates with operational resilience objectives. Our five-level maturity model dashboard identifies risk areas and compliance gaps, empowering management teams to make informed, proactive decisions.

The DORA Control Framework is designed to help organizations:

• Understand DORA’s requirements: by breaking down complex regulatory language, the framework offers clarity on DORA’s objectives and requirements.

• Conduct mandatory gap assessments: the framework supports institutions in assessing current compliance levels and identifying areas for improvement.

• Track implementation progress: with detailed controls mapped to specific DORA requirements, organizations can monitor their readiness and make necessary adjustments.

• Enhance boardroom awareness: by providing a structured approach, the framework aids in board training, ensuring that executives understand their role in resilience and regulatory adherence.

Our three-step approach to implementing DORA

1. Identification and visualization: we start by mapping and visualizing critical business processes and IT infrastructures using Layer 3 and Layer 7 diagrams. This step provides clarity on the dependencies and potential risks within your IT landscape.
2. DORA gap assessment: our unique DORA gap analysis helps determine where the organization stands in meeting DORA requirements. We leverage the DORA Control Framework to translate regulatory complexities into actionable insights.
3. Roadmap development and implementation: based on the gap analysis, we develop a pragmatic roadmap to bridge identified gaps. As a technology partner, Schuberg Philis actively supports clients in implementing these strategies to build a resilient IT foundation.

Empowering resilience beyond compliance

DORA challenges organizations to evolve their resilience approach, moving from box-ticking to an integrated, proactive stance on cybersecurity. With the DORA Control Framework and our three-step approach, we ensure that our customers not only meet DORA’s requirements but also build a resilient, future-ready IT landscape.

This is more than regulatory compliance—it’s a long-term investment in safeguarding your mission, protecting stakeholder trust, and strengthening your organization’s competitive edge in an unpredictable world