RBI panel calls for more specialization, training in banking.

banks are totally dependent on human intervention and so these recommendations were welcome. RBI panel’s report said: “Corporate banking, retail banking, treasury, risk, finance, technology, and HR will increasingly require staff with relevant aptitude. 
 
Banks need to identify 5–6 such tracks within which the staff can be groomed.” Banks should in due course also design suitable policies to provide exposure to different domains to “generalize” the specialists at a senior level to help facilitate career progression, the report added. 
 

According to the report, it is no more sufficient to recruit fresh talent at the entry level as retirements over the medium term will lead to a disappearance of skill sets and know-how at senior levels of the organization. Banks will have to identify manpower to preserve these skill sets and such requirements have to be taken into account while projecting supply of staff, net of retirement, in the same job families. “Certain job families like credit, treasury and technology are typically in deficit and need to be planned for at various levels,” the panel said.

 RBI has sought public comments on the recommendations until 31 OctoberA Reserve Bank of India (RBI) panel has recommended a common banking aptitude test for bank personnel at entry levels, setting up a centre of excellence for leadership development and a skills registry in the banking sector. The report, authored by a 10-member committee headed by former RBI executive director G. Gopalakrishna that was tasked with reviewing training and development of personnel in the financial sector, was submitted in July and made public on Tuesday. 

“One of the major bottlenecks banks face is in terms of finding suitable replacement of talent that is necessitated on account of attrition, retirement, etc.,” said the report. “To tide over this issue, the committee recommends various solutions like developing an expert pool internally and allowing free movement of talent within the organization for creation of a larger workforce of trained personnel. 

Special recruitments based on job roles and competency could also be considered.” Among the recommendations is creation of a new position of “chief learning officer” in banks, and coaching and mentoring programmes for top management personnel to ensure continuous training to employees. The panel suggested that banks plan their talent and leadership requirements at least five years in advance; placement of employees must be well planned rather than discretionary.

Human resources experts say the recommendations are aimed particularly at public sector banks that make up 70% of assets in the banking system, but have been hit by a talent crunch. 
State-run lenders are struggling to attract young executives and have been losing mid-level executives to higher-paying private sector counterparts. The situation in public sector banks will be aggravated as and when new banks are given licences and they start tapping public sector lenders for talent. “Top management in public sector banks are close to retirement and risk-averse. These banks need younger people, lateral entry and diversification,” said Manish Sabharwal, chief executive officer of staffing firm TeamLease Services Pvt. Ltd. “However, these recommendations cannot be applied at the industry level because the way different banks and non-bank financial companies view their HR (human resources) practices would be different. But clearly public sector banks, which corner a majority of India’s banking assets, have to be especially kept in mind,” he added. 

The central bank panel’s report is essentially focused on human resources intervention that would be required for improving the efficiency of personnel employed at various levels by banks and non-banking financial companies regulated by RBI. In the report, the committee indicated that the time for “generalist officers” could be over and public sector banks now have to make their staff specialized. 
“The role of specialists is increasingly becoming crucial and hence there is a need for suitable HR intervention in this regard,” the panel said. P. Thiruvengadam, senior director (human capital advisory services) at audit and consulting firm Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India Pvt. Ltd, said large institutions like 

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SOURCE - MINT

 

RBI panel calls for more specialization, training in banking

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