Modern banks have highly trained staff to provide high quality customer service. Other financial institutions, such as insurance companies, now offer most of the services provided by banks. Given this strong competition, banks need high-quality employees who are talented, reliable, trustworthy and communicative. Many banking positions are in specialist areas such as IT and corporate banking.
Entry-level duties will likely include processing checks so the employee can meet tight deadlines for overnight delivery to the bank’s headquarters. These employees are also involved in answering customer inquiries and are the bank’s front line executives.
If the employee shows ability and initiative, he can become a supervisor who takes responsibility for his own team. Once this employee has passed the professional banking exams, he can be in charge of the entire branch. Graduates can expect to be placed on an accelerated training course, spending around two years moving through different jobs at the bank while learning how the bank works before being promoted to a management position. Managers need a broad knowledge of the financial services available and should know when to bring in expert advisors from other areas of the bank.
All banking employees are expected to regularly attend in-house training throughout their careers to keep abreast of new developments. Staff working hours are generally 9:00am to 5:00pm, but working hours may vary. Some branches will be open on Saturdays and some even on Sundays.
Salaries depend on the roles and responsibilities of the employee and the location of the bank. Most banks operate on an annual appraisal system and salary increments are allocated based on the employee’s performance during the year. Their remuneration includes profit shares, subsidized mortgages and non-contributory pension insurance.
There is a huge range of opportunities in commercial banking, starting at the branch level. Various job opportunities are Credit Analyst, Loan Officer, Branch Manager, Trust Officer, Mortgage Banker and other jobs in Accounting, Marketing and Advertising, Commercial Card Operations, Securities Transfer, Banking Operations, Private Banking, Cash Management Services and Operations and communication. In the case of investment banking, job opportunities are diverse in areas such as corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, project finance, derivative finance, international sales and retail brokerage.
