Career Advice HR Focus

Investing in work-life balance pays off

What is your recruitment target for this year?  

We intend to hire 1,000 staff this year to provide better service to our customers and support the development of personal banking. 

What positions are currently available?  

Mainly frontline staff, Premier relationship manager, wealth management manager, financial services officer, counter service officer. For Phone Banking, we're looking for business development officers and customer care officers. 

What policies has HSBC put in place to train and engage new staff?  

We have a comprehensive on-boarding programme called Discovery Journey. It is tailored to new joiners' needs. It covers various topics, including skills enhancement, compliance, products, sales tools and customer propositions.

There are also other on-the-ground support programmes for new staff. Line managers and assigned buddies will continue on-the-job coaching in the first six months. Ongoing development programmes of portfolio management are built in to upskill the sales staff from two to six months.

HSBC continues to offer many training opportunities to current employees such as:

  • Wealth product training
  • Insurance learning
  • Quarterly briefing on wealth management strategies
  • Briefings on sales tips
  • Daily or weekly market updates

We recently launched a new bank-wide mentoring scheme, which is available to personnel at all levels. The programme helps enhance personal performance by facilitating adjustment to new roles, challenges or environments. There is an internal electronic platform to help pair up mentors and mentees.

Each new hire will have an opportunity to receive at least 20 days of face-to-face training within the first 12 months. This continuous learning culture is also applicable to all our existing staff.

What has been the feedback to and results of these policies?  

So far, we have received positive feedback on the Discovery Journey as this allows new staff to find their bearings quickly within a large and complex organisation. This makes them settle down fast and integrate well with the business operations. It enables them to contribute at an early stage and attain job satisfaction. 

What are the challenges in keeping and motivating staff?  

Given the tough market competition, it is always a challenge to keep and motivate staff. We always make our people our top priority. As a bank, we strive hard to "Get People Smiling". We invest a lot in work-life balance to increase efficiency, maintain a strong culture of reward and recognition, and provide a clear and transparent two-way communication.

In view of our business size, strong product platform and diversified customer portfolio, we can provide ample career development opportunities and diversified career paths for our staff.