CASE STUDY

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TALENT MANAGEMENT IN THE CHANGING RETAIL BUSINESS BANKING WORK ENVIRONMENT

As a result of globalisation, changing demographics, the global COVID$-19$ pandemic and the demand

of workers with the necessary skills and motivation, organisations worldwide are currently operating

in a highly volatile business environment. Such adversities, emphasize the need for the banking sector

to identify and address the significant practices that cause such effects.

Recruitment processes for organisations in the banking sector are, therefore, facing a new set of

challenges, such as a lack of talent and suitable qualifications, as well as fiercer competition, both from

within the banking sector and other sectors$.$ In the context of the changing world of work, banks need

to develop dependable practices to recruit a competent workforce and ensure high retention of

talented employees. Thus, talent management $($TM$)$ has been identified as an appropriate technique

for achieving such.

The digital age is reshaping how organisations recruit, select and develop skills. Currently, to improve

organisational performance, Human Resources $($HR$)$ is offering digitised solutions for business and

employees, solutions that generate engagement and new experiences for employees. There is a

paradigm shift in the workforce demographics with a continued influx of the new generation

employees referred to as Generation Y employees$.$ In today$$s world of working, employees are more

demanding, and lifestyle expectation has increased steadily, and it continues to rise.

The new generation of employees has experienced events such as the emergence of technology, the

internet, and economic liberalisation, the popularity of social media, the growth of environmental

awareness and the rise of terrorism. Despite the shift in workforce dynamics, there is no significant

change in HRM practices which are less appealing to the millennial employees, causing higher attrition

rates. The massive competition across the sectors and lucrative offers from competitors have instigated

the urgent need for retention.

Talent management practices need to be aligned with the business strategy to enhance organisational

performance and motivate employees. The demographic changes refer to the younger generation

$($generation Z$)$ of quantitative analysts who are joining the banking sector, thereby suggesting that the

bank should change the way they have done things and how they have managed their talent

previously. The changes should be from how the bank attracts the talent, onboarding, development

plans, succession planning, performance management, retention, and off$-$boarding.

Due to changes in the working environment and the banking industry, some processes and jobs have

become redundant and have led to some positions being optimised or being performed by the robotics

systems. For example, in retail banking the role of a branch administrator $($BA$)$ has been automated in

most banking institutions and other institutions are still in the process of automating the BA role by

the end of $2020.$ According to research conducted by Deloitte Consulting in $2019,$ banks should use

modern technology to replace the routine work that is normally left to human beings.

HR actively works with all facets of the organisation, incorporating the company's culture, tools, and

environment to create a great place to work. One of the targets for this retail business banking

$4$

environments$2020$ goals is to ensure they are the most admired bank and a great place to work and

bank. The fast$-$evolving technologies, fierce global competition, climate change, political uncertainties,

economic instability and natural disasters are becoming the defining features of the present business

environment. Hence, finding talented people is one the most important managerial preoccupations

for this decade.

The retail business banking sector organisations are confronted with the intensifying competition for

talent. Some organisations are using several strategic initiatives like expansion, integration and

consolidation. However, one factor that emerges as a constant and inevitable one is the need for an

appropriate, trained and skilled, motivated and above all pro$-$actively talented workforce. It is evident

from the World Bank Report, $2016$ that all banks struggle to hire and retain quantitative analysts;

therefore, across the major five banks in South Africa, there are approximately over $50$ quantitative

analyst vacancies every month.

According to one of the biggest banking institutions RBB Business Review Report $(2018),$ there is higher

turnover in the analytics team such that every month, there will be a resignation. It is for this reason

that talent management has received a lot of preferential and greater attention in the retail business

banking environment. However, ther