The human capital of SDB Bank is an intangible asset/quality, not listed in the Bank’s balance sheet. It is the accumulated wealth of knowledge, talents, training, skills, judgement, and the accrued experiences of the pool of employees at the Bank.
The Bank recognises that improvements to its human capital through training, education, and experience makes the individual more productive, the Bank more profitable, and increases the collective wealth of society.
The Bank’s human capital is managed by its human resources (HR) Department. This Department oversees recruitment, assists with workforce planning and strategy, employee training and development, and reporting and analytics.
The composition of staff at SDB Bank comprises the following:
Male
%
Female
%
Senior Management and above
35
4.48%
13
1.80%
Executive Staff
411
52.56%
494
68.42%
Non-Executive Staff
153
19.57%
107
14.82%
Managers and Assistant Managers Staff
155
19.82%
107
14.82%
Minor Staff
23
2.94%
1
0.14%
other
5
0.64%
-
0.00%
Total
782
100.00%
722
100.00%
Categories of employment
Female
Male
Total
Female
%
Male
%
Permanent staff
630
644
1274
49.45%
50.55%
Contract staff
92
138
230
40.00%
60.00%
Sub-total
722
782
1504
Interns
28
6
34
82.35%
17.65%
Total
750
788
1538
Age
Total
%
Male
%
Female
%
18-20
28
1.86%
16
2.05%
12
1.66%
21-30
773
51.40%
366
46.80%
407
56.37%
31-40
499
33.18%
260
33.25%
239
33.10%
41-50
146
9.71%
98
12.53%
48
6.65%
51-55
32
2.13%
19
2.43%
13
1.80%
56 & above
26
1.73%
23
2.94%
3
0.42%
Total
1504
100.00%
782
100.00%
722
100.00%
The growth of employment at SDB Bank is shown in the following table.
Year
Number of Permanent Staff
2014
709
2015
966
2016
1152
2017
1183
2018
1274
SDB Bank has structured its training programme to encompass internal, external, and foreign interactions and transactions. This is further divided into training on technical aspects and development of soft skills.
The training is focused on the needs of the market segments which the Bank caters to i.e. SME, Retail, and Co-operative.
The training consists of programmes that empower the relevant employees to identify the credit worthiness of businesses, potential areas of improvement, and prospects for income generation. The soft skills involve training on how to handle SME customers and make them want to deal with the Bank on an ongoing basis.
The Bank’s total investment in training and development amounted to LKR 9.8 Mn. which translates into 3,817 hours and 204 sessions of training in various fields.
Key areas of focus
No of sessions
Audit
6
Compliance
13
Co-operative
5
Finance & Treasury
19
General Credit
10
HR
5
Admin & Operations
29
IT
44
Leasing
2
Legal
10
Pawning
2
Recovery
10
Retail
1
Risk
5
SME
6
Soft Skills
37
TOTAL
204
Employment grade
Training Hours
F
M
Senior Management and above
57
130
Executive Staff
1428
1173
Non-Executive Staff
640
343
Minor Staff
0
14
Other
11
21
Total
2136
1681
The Bank’s engagement with its employees is continuous and takes place on formal and informal platforms.
Management visit branches, where there is a free exchange of ideas and also provides an opportunity for employees to raise issues that may be causing concern to them. It has been found that discussions unhindered by formalities often solve problems that would otherwise fester if left unaddressed.
Social functions are organised regionally which help to build relationships amongst employees in a less formal environment. CSR events, such as blood donation campaigns, operating Wesak dansalas, bakthi geetha, award ceremonies, cricket festivals and tree planting projects give the opportunity for employees to participate in activities which are external to their work programmes and enhance their feelings of self-worth and contributions to society.
The level of employee retention at the Bank is relatively strong with 43% of the workforce having continuous employment with the Bank in excess of at least six years.
Service period
Total
%
Male
%
Female
%
0-5
853
56.72%
417
53.32%
436
60.39%
6-10
330
21.94%
181
23.15%
149
20.64%
11-15
228
15.16%
126
16.11%
102
14.13%
16-20
84
5.59%
53
6.78%
31
4.29%
21 & above
9
0.60%
5
0.64%
4
0.55%
Total
1504
100.00%
782
100.00%
722
100.00%
The employee turnover rates by grade and gender are shown in the table below.
Employee turnover by age
Total
Turnover ratio
Male
%
Female
%
18-20 years
7
0.47%
7
0.47%
0
0
21-30 years
92
6.12%
54
3.59%
38
2.53%
31-40 years
5
0.33%
1
0.07%
4
0.27%
41-50 years
1
0.07%
1
0.07%
0
0
51-55 years
1
0.07%
1
0.07%
0
0
56 years and above
5
0.33%
4
0.27%
1
0.07%
Total turnover
111
7.38%
68
4.52%
43
2.86%
Employee turnover by grade & gender
Male
%
Female
%
Senior Management and above
0.06
0.06
Executive staff
0.80
1.24
Non-Executive staff
3.40
1.50
Managers and Assistant Managers staff
0.20
0.06
Others
0.06
–
Total turnover
4.52
2.86
Performance evaluations of employees have hitherto taken place annually and are measured against three dimensions of employment:
Business targets/KPIs
Behavioural attributes
Value propositions
In 2018, the Bank introduced bi-annual reviews of performance with the system being linked to incentives, training and career advancement.
Equal opportunities are given for employees to apply for vacancies that arise throughout the Bank. In certain instances, depending on the requirements, certain vacancies are filled by external candidates.
Employee recruitment by age
Total
%
Male
%
Female
%
18-20 years
34
13.39
23
14.29
11
11.83
21-30 years
198
77.95
119
73.91
79
84.95
31-40 years
6
2.36
5
3.11
1
1.08
41-50 years
9
3.54
7
4.35
2
2.15
51-55 years
2
0.79
2
1.24
0
0.00
56 years and above
5
1.97
5
3.11
0
0.00
Total new hires
254
100.00
161
100.00
93
100.00
The Bank actively encourages the recruitment of employees best suited to relate to its culture and values and offer competitive terms of employment which lead to better retention rates as well.
The benefits that employees currently enjoy are:
21 days of annual leave
Comprehensive medical insurance
Employer’s contribution to EPF 14% (minimum requirement is 12%)
Medical leave of 14 days
May carry forward to the following year, unutilised annual leave up to 7 days
Membership of the Welfare Society
Special leave for critical illnesses
Female officers with infants are allowed feeding hours until their infants reach the age of 1 year
Education support: Honorarium payments for completion of banking exams and reimbursement of professional membership subscriptions
Two years no pay leave for those who are pursuing their higher education abroad, subject to a signed bond between the employee and the employer
SDB Bank recognises the employees’ right to freedom of association and consequently 75% of their workforce is unionised. The Bank maintains harmonious relationships with its unions and there were no major disruptions to work during the year. This is a significant achievement as it represents a complete turnaround to the fractious industrial relations environment it experienced a few years previously.
The Bank has adopted a transformation agenda for 2017-2020 which necessitates changes across many areas of its operations, including its human capital.
One of the key focus areas of this programme relates to revenue generation through Customer Value Propositions (CVP) development and branch optimisation programmes. The focus on improving performance assessments of employees and implementing a robust performance tracking system is expected to bring about a change in the attitudes, culture, and employee practices.
