Fintech pilot scorecard

Blank worksheet, compliance parallel-path checklist, filled fictional example, and AI prompt for scoring a fintech / financial-services pilot toward MSA or PO.

Blank worksheet

Update weekly. Bring this to midpoint and to the commercial ask. Bound scope to one product line / one region / one queue unless the agreement says otherwise.

Criterion	Baseline	Target	Current	Status	Owner
1. ___	___	___	___	[ ] G [ ] A [ ] R	___
2. ___	___	___	___	[ ] G [ ] A [ ] R	___
3. ___	___	___	___	[ ] G [ ] A [ ] R	___
4. ___ (optional)	___	___	___	[ ] G [ ] A [ ] R	___
5. ___ (optional)	___	___	___	[ ] G [ ] A [ ] R	___

Compliance / security parallel-path checklist

Start these in week one of serious interest instead of after the demo. Track them as first-class workstreams beside product proof.

Workstream	Status	Blocker	Owner	Due
SOC2 / ISO packet shared	[ ] Not started [ ] In flight [ ] Cleared	___	___	___
Vendor-risk questionnaire	[ ] Not started [ ] In flight [ ] Cleared	___	___	___
Data residency / sub-processors	[ ] Not started [ ] In flight [ ] Cleared	___	___	___
Pen-test / security review	[ ] Not started [ ] In flight [ ] Cleared	___	___	___
DPA / data terms	[ ] Not started [ ] In flight [ ] Cleared	___	___	___
Model risk / AI governance (if applicable)	[ ] N/A [ ] Not started [ ] In flight [ ] Cleared	___	___	___
MSA / insurance / order-form path	[ ] Not started [ ] In flight [ ] Cleared	___	___	___

Working steps

Paste written success criteria into the scorecard before kickoff: loss $, ops hours, approval SLA, reconciliation accuracy, false-positive rate. No soft "likes the demo" lines.

Score green / amber / red every week with evidence links audit or risk could re-read.

Run the parallel-path checklist every week with named owners. Teams that find residency or MSA gaps in the final week miss the exam / launch date.

At midpoint, narrow to one product / region if amber, and don't add corridors without saying so.

In the final week, ask for the PO or MSA schedule; if budget wobbles, cut scope, not list price.

Filled example (fictional: card issuer reconciliation)

Teaching example only. Pattern-check your deal; do not cite these numbers as a real case study.

Criterion	Baseline	Target	Current (wk 7)	Status	Owner
Daily recon break rate (pilot BIN)	1.8%	≤0.5%	0.4%	Green	Priya / you
Median exception resolve time	3.5 h	≤90 m	78 m	Green	Priya
Vendor-risk + SOC2 cleared	Not started	Cleared before ask	Cleared wk 6	Green	InfoSec + you
Pen-test scheduled	None	Complete or waived	Report in review	Amber	Vendor risk

AI prompt

Paste into ChatGPT or Claude. Replace bracketed placeholders with your deal facts.

You are helping a fintech / financial-services founder run a paid pilot that must convert to a PO or MSA schedule with a bank, fintech, or embedded-finance buyer.

Company / product: [YOUR COMPANY + PRODUCT]
Buyer account: [BANK / FINTECH / EMBEDDED BUYER + SEGMENT]
Scope in pilot: [ONE PRODUCT LINE / ONE REGION / ONE QUEUE]
Pilot window: [START] to [END]
Target phase-two ACV / MSA intent: [AMOUNT]
Champion: [NAME / TITLE]
Economic buyer: [NAME / TITLE]
InfoSec / vendor risk contact: [NAME / STATUS]
Compliance / legal / model-risk (if AI): [NAME / STATUS / N/A]
Compelling event: [EXAM PREP / CORE MIGRATION / CARD PROGRAM LAUNCH / FRAUD SPIKE / BOARD RISK MANDATE / OTHER]

Produce:
1) A markdown scorecard table with columns:
Criterion | Baseline | Target | Current | Status (green/amber/red) | Evidence | Owner
Include 3-5 underwritable criteria (loss reduction, ops hours, approval SLA, reconciliation accuracy, false-positive rate, time-to-resolve). No soft "likes the demo" or "sandbox went well" lines.
2) A second table: Stakeholder | Role | Attitude | Next action this week
(Roles: champion, EB, InfoSec/vendor risk, compliance/legal, procurement, users)
3) A third table for the compliance parallel path: Workstream | Status | Blocker | Owner | Due
(Include SOC2/ISO, vendor-risk questionnaire, data residency, pen-test, DPA, model risk if AI, MSA/order form)
4) End with 5 bullets: biggest risk, whether to ask for PO/MSA this week, scope-cut options (one product / one region; no discount), one quick-win memo angle for EB + risk, one thing to stop doing.

Rules:
- Invent no fake metrics; use ___ when unknown.
- Every status needs a next action.
- Prefer reduce product line / region / queue over discounting list price.
- Sandbox access without a commercial path is not a pilot.