OCBC talent pipeline boosted by long-term programmes

OCBC talent pipeline boosted by long-term programmes
PHOTO: OCBC talent pipeline boosted by long-term programmes

SINGAPORE - Even as it looks to foreign shores for growth, OCBC is conscious about developing and maintaining a Singapore core.

The bank - where Singaporeans form 80 per cent of its local workforce, higher than the national average of 77 per cent - is putting in more effort to develop a pipeline of talent. The proportion of its Singapore workforce grows to 94 per cent if Singapore PRs are included.

Said CEO Samuel Tsien: "Banking is more people-driven than any (other) industry. But as the banking industry develops, this supply of talent has not been able to keep up with the demand."

At the same time, Gen Y employees, or those below 35, have grown to make up 54 per cent of OCBC's Singapore workforce, from just over 30 per cent three years ago.

"We have more and more people on the younger side, and more and more people who'd need to be developed and need to be trained," said Mr Tsien.

To do so, OCBC started a programme last year aimed at nurturing the next generation of leaders in the bank.

Created for employees aged 35 and below with high potential and good performance, the OCBC Future Leaders Programme provides not only new skillsets but also general management knowledge.

It requires that selected employees go through at least one overseas assignment lasting between three and six years, and acquire broad-based knowledge of the bank through stints in various departments.

This includes a credit risk position; a customer-facing role, in order that the employee understands the market; and some time in the internal control and audit department which will instil an understanding of the importance of compliance.

The results of the programme are immediate, but will only be seen in 10-15 years, said Mr Tsien.

"But we're very willing to invest in these people, because 10-15 years from now, we'll need people who have the broader base of knowledge. We expect those people to become either the candidate for a direct report of the CEO or even the CEO position."

Besides that, the second largest bank in South-east Asia also has an executive development programme that it started with Insead five years ago, and is crafting another programme with external parties to build up its knowledge of Asia.

The latter dovetails with OCBC's plans to ramp up operations in Malaysia, Indonesia and Greater China.

"Asia is developing very fast . . . all over Asia, every country is changing," said Mr Tsien, noting that each area within Asia is very different.

The programme, to be launched internally next year, will therefore equip its employees to drive future expansion plans, he added.

While the OCBC programmes are open to employees of all nationalities, they benefit mainly Singaporeans and Singapore PRs by virtue of the bank's make-up of employees.

The finance and insurance sector accounted for 11.9 per cent of Singapore's nominal GDP last year - a number that Mr Tsien expects to grow further. "As a result of that, the talent requirement for the financial services industry will continue to rise," said Mr Tsien, highlighting that this refers to not just the number of people, but also the knowledge and the ability to understand what is happening in the context of world developments.

"If we (the banks) don't do anything, (Singapore) will definitely lag behind," he added.


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