How to Overcome Talent Management Challenges in Financial Services

Many factors continue to transform the workforce, especially with unemployment in the United States at all-time lows. HR leaders are juggling numerous staffing challenges, from a multi-generational workplace to a shifting focus on performance reviews. Among these priorities and focuses also includes talent management, which focuses on elements such as promotions, learning management, and culture. 

Individual industries are also undergoing change. In financial services, the arrival of automation and emerging technologies have resulted in layoffs at major institutions, especially as customer preferences shift toward self-directed asset management programs and countries face increasing political volatility. For the workers and institutions who survive staffing changes, questions remain around retention and worker satisfaction. 

To understand the path forward, I sat down with David Villaseca, Global Head of Financial Services HCM & CX Solutions here at Oracle, where we discuss what the future looks like. 

Here’s what he had to say: 

With so much volatility in the financial services sector, what are firms doing to keep current workers? What types of learning and development are we seeing?

DV: Many banks are facing the challenges of the current 4th Industrial Revolution. On the one hand, they need cloud computing, AI, and digital marketing to remain competitive. On the other hand, they also have large workforces which need to be retrained. Learning programs can help develop these new capabilities. 

At the same time, reinforcing employee engagement is also key to staying competitive with other banks, insurance companies, and financial technology firms. Cloud solutions can help, providing easier access to HR information, a marketplace for internal opportunities, and learning for career development. These tools provide employees the power to take control of their own career development while providing managers an easily accessible talent pool.

How does talent management for financial services differ among generations? What types of programs are you seeing? 

DV: Technology is revolutionizing how bank employees and personal financial advisors interact with customers. New self-service and robo-advisors now own the lion’s share of the work, with face-to-face interactions reserved for specific value-added interactions. 

This revolution impacts the capabilities and tools required by financial services teams. Different generations share differing viewpoints on the arrival of AI and other emerging technologies as reflected in an Oracle and Future Workplace survey of 8,370 employees. Of those polled, 31% of millennials are most excited about AI, followed by Generation Z (24%) and Generation X (22%). Baby boomers were least excited, with only 14% sharing any level of excitement.’

Training programs on the other hand, generate more interest. Millennials (33%) and Generation Z (31%) shared the most interest along with Generation X (29%), with baby boomers at 20%. Much of the interest is rooted in an interest to stay competitive regardless of industry as well as the need to pass compliance and certification.

What about culture? As younger generations pursue finance careers, what is different today from a generation ago? 

DV: Younger generations are used to higher levels of collaboration across the organization and want workplaces with immediate access to colleagues, managers, mentors, and subject matter experts where they can build meaningful relationships. 

One of the ways that younger generations can navigate through their complex financial institutions is with digital assistants, where they can get intelligent recommendations within the context of natural conversations. Digital assistants make onboarding tasks, performance assessment, and, general self-service easier to handle.

With more volatility likely due to technology, what recommendations do you have for companies who want to navigate this time successfully? 

DV: Successful banks and insurance companies are focused on cultivating and retaining top talent through training programs and learning tools while also investing in technology as a way to accelerate employee performance. 

Integrated solutions such as Oracle HCM Cloud help financial institutions with their talent management programs through an AI-first approach. Our suite of HR tools can help organizations focus on value-added functions and while enabling the ability to continue evolving at a fast pace. 
 

About David Villaseca 
Based in Silicon Valley, David is responsible for the development and adoption of HR and customer experience, marketing, sales & service industry solutions for banks, insurance companies and financial technology firms. His work includes helping global financial services leaders accelerate their digital transformation with Oracle applications, cloud technologies and AI solutions, from strategy and design to development and go-to-market.

Do you have thoughts about where the financial services industry is headed? Send David a message to continue the conversation.