IT management for Climate Fund Managers: four continents, one dedicated IT partner and ready for DORA
Climate Fund Managers works from The Hague, Cape Town, Singapore and Bogotá. Employees need to be able to work securely in the same way, wherever they are. And as a financial institution, CFM has to comply with DORA. Since 2021 we have handled the IT management and support. Local IT partners do the on-site work, we stay in charge.
In short
- Client since October 2021, offices in four countries
- Management and support by ICT Teamwork, on-site work by local partners under our coordination
- English-speaking service desk for all employees
- Support with DORA, both technically and in the documentation
The question
When Climate Fund Managers came to us in October 2021, it was already an international organisation. Since then CFM has grown considerably, in people and in offices.
That makes IT more complex than at an average SME. A colleague in Singapore needs a working laptop just as much as a colleague in The Hague. But you can't just send a technician over. And a separate IT team for each office is too much for an organisation of this size.
Since January 2025 there is something else. As a financial institution, CFM falls under DORA, the European regulation on digital operational resilience. It sets requirements for security and risk management, but also for the agreements with IT suppliers. We are one of those suppliers, so it affects us directly.
Who is Climate Fund Managers?
CFM invests in climate projects in emerging markets in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Think renewable energy, clean water, green hydrogen and sustainable cities. The company was founded in 2015 by the Dutch development bank FMO and Sanlam InfraWorks from South Africa. Its head office is in The Hague, not far from our office in Zoetermeer.
What we did
We manage CFM's central IT environment: Microsoft 365, Azure, security, workstations and firewalls. Around it we set up a support model that works across borders.
Local partners, one coordinator
Sometimes someone really has to be on site, for example for a laptop that no longer starts. At the offices abroad we bring in local IT partners for this. We assign the job, follow it up and make sure the work is done to the same standard as in The Hague. So CFM doesn't have to deal with different IT companies. CFM has one dedicated IT partner, and that's us.
Just get in touch, in English too
Every employee can easily contact our service desk themselves. In English, and from any office. Employees have direct phone contact with our colleagues.
DORA in practice
DORA says what needs to be in place, not how. We worked that out together with CFM. On the technical side, we set up the environment so that information is protected, threats become visible early and only approved applications are allowed. We also provide the information CFM needs for its own DORA register and its agreements with suppliers.
CFM remains ultimately responsible itself, which is how the regulation is meant. We make sure CFM can rely on us. Being ISO 27001 certified ourselves helps. Much of what DORA asks for, we already do.
What needed extra attention
DORA was new, for CFM and for us. Not everything was clear right away, for example which party plays which role in the supplier chain. We sat down together to work that out.
The result
CFM employees have one place to go, wherever they work. The IT has grown with the organisation and is set up for the security requirements of a financial institution. When new questions about DORA come up, CFM doesn't have to figure them out alone. And we keep improving the environment, so the IT fits what CFM needs.
Growing together
What we learned about DORA at CFM, we now also use for other clients in the financial sector. That way we grow together with CFM, in knowledge too.
In their words
"We work in several countries, but we have one IT partner that keeps the overview. When DORA came along, we worked it out together instead of each on our own."