This 35-person company builds AI model risk management tools for the largest banks in Europe. Chief Risk Officers at Tier 1 banks are among the most protected decision makers in the global economy. They sit behind layers of procurement, compliance, and executive assistants. Vendor engagement requires going through regulated channels. The company had zero warm paths to CRO-level buyers and no banking industry network. Getting one meeting at this level is hard. Getting 7 is a pipeline.
MEETINGS BOOKED
7
With Chief Risk Officers and Heads of Model Risk at Tier 1 banks
POTENTIAL ACV
$1.2M
Total estimated annual contract value across all 7 opportunities
PROCUREMENT REVIEW
2
Active vendor evaluation processes started with bank procurement teams
What this company was facing
Tier 1 bank CROs sit behind multiple layers of gatekeeping: procurement offices that require pre-approved vendor lists, compliance teams that vet all external engagement, and executive assistants who filter all communications. The company had attended 4 industry conferences in the prior year and made introductions at the panel level, but these connected them with mid-level analysts, not decision makers. Cold outreach to CRO offices at Tier 1 banks produces effectively zero response.
Zero pipeline at Tier 1 banks
Conference panels connecting to mid-level analysts, not CROs
Cold outreach producing zero response at CRO level
18-month estimated sales cycle with no way to start
7 CRO-level meetings worth $1.2M potential ACV
2 banks entered formal procurement review
Sales cycle started 12 months earlier than conference approach
Repeatable access to Tier 1 CRO-level buyers
WEEKS 1-3
Identified model risk teams at Tier 1 banks through regulatory disclosures (SR 11-7 compliance filings), ECB supervisory reports, and AI governance hiring signals. Mapped CRO-equivalent titles across banking structures in the UK (Chief Risk Officer), Europe (Directeur des Risques, Leiter Risikomanagement), and cross-referenced with published speeches and regulatory consultation responses from bank risk leadership.
WEEKS 4-7
Introductions facilitated through paths that aligned with bank procurement protocols. Each outreach referenced specific regulatory requirements driving AI governance adoption (SR 11-7, SS1/23, incoming EU AI Act model risk provisions). Messages positioned around regulatory compliance obligations, not product features. Every communication strategist-reviewed for regulatory accuracy.
WEEKS 8-10
Each meeting with a Tier 1 CRO represented $150K-$200K in annual contract value. 2 banks entered formal vendor evaluation with their procurement offices engaged. Signal agents identified incoming EU AI Act enforcement timelines creating urgency in banks that had not yet started AI governance programs. Meeting cadence of 1 CRO-level conversation per week established for ongoing campaign.
“Getting in front of a Tier 1 bank CRO typically takes 18 months of relationship building. Fluum put us in a room with 7 of them in 10 weeks. Two of those conversations have already entered procurement. That would not have happened through any other channel we tried.”
CEO, AI governance platform, 35 employees
Tier 1 bank CROs are the most protected buyers in financial services. Cold outreach produces zero response. Conference attendance connects you with mid-level analysts, not decision makers. Fluum’s approach mapped CRO-level buyers through regulatory disclosures, facilitated introductions through procurement-aligned paths, and delivered 7 meetings worth $1.2M in potential ACV. 2 entered formal procurement review within the campaign period.
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