Leadership and talent

• The good news for banks today is that contrary to the early 20s, we are now in an employers’ market.
• However, as Stephanie Coleman, Partner at Ernst & Young (EY) LLP, US, puts it so well in their report on Gen Z and the future of banking, “You can’t put tomorrow’s talent in yesterday’s jobs. The next generation of workers expect to be digitally enabled in their roles and to do work that they find rewarding – creative, strategic and interesting. They want to experiment and try out a range of different roles, which will help them build as many skills as possible.”
• According to EY, Gen Z is expected to account for 27% of the workforce by 2025. This demographic is racially and ethnically diverse, digitally native and more globally conscious than any previous generation. They search and consume vast amounts of information in real time and use social media to establish their preferred identities in the digital world. Their young lives were framed by recession, climate change and a polarized political landscape. 
• For the banking sector to become their industry of choice, banks need to leverage the right innovations in attracting, retaining, developing and rewarding this talent. This will involve careful and bespoke balancing of three major trends in hiring: work from home (WFH), climate concerns (ESG), and diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI).
• While it is an employers’ market, these trends will have to be carefully considered given the fierce competition among banks for talent, particularly data engineers, data architects and AI development experts, with the largest banks using size as a major advantage.
• Apart from more generous compensation, large organisations can offer more stimulating work on digital initiatives, meeting the need for career development. Mid-sized and smaller banks are reviewing their value propositions and redefining their positioning in the market to attract top talent.
• Time is a key consideration; falling behind in the tech race becomes exponentially more serious as the weeks go by. It can take years to recruit the right experts, while training and upskilling existing workers to build new digital capabilities, all the while striving to keep up with ever faster tech developments and economic headwinds.
• There is clearly a need to revise talent models for an AI-driven future; also, to review leadership and governance capabilities in the digital era, when quantum capabilities will address challenges that would previously have taken a lifetime to solve.
• For now, leaders are focusing on adaptability and innovation, collaboration and connectivity across teams, ethical leadership and the internal and external elements that can be controlled, in the face of so much that can’t be.

Read more on the topic: 

• EY: Gen Z and future of banking

• Zurich Re: How is Gen Z changing the workplace?