Changing lens– soft skills

I have discussed RBI delegation of financial powers, long term corporate policies,  internal risk rating and the DFS in my previous posts. Soft skills is another area  where banks can invest their time and money to reduce operational risk. 

Soft skills are different from technical skills. It is something related to behaviour and  character demonstrated routinely or rather unconsciously by people. 85 per cent  success in work places is contributed by soft skills whereas technical skill contributes  15 per cent.  

For Banks, business is its people. All the money they spent as operational expenses  can be directly or indirectly attributed to the comfort of the people working there.  Therefore, on the basis of efficiency of per capita operating expenditure,  performances of CEOs of banks can be evaluated. 

Here is an illustration based on IBA /RBI database (March 2020) 

• Per capita operating expenditure:  

              ○ public sector banks (PSB)- Rs.24.27 lakhs 

              ○ private sector banks (PVB)- Rs. 22.77 lakhs 

• Per capita operating profit:  

              ○ PSB – 22.07 lakhs 

              ○ PVB – 29.40 lakhs 

• Employee strength 

              ○ PSB – 7.90 lakh 

              ○ PVB – 5.50 lakh 

You may have to work on individual banks to compare the organising skill of CEOs  of each bank. You can read more on the subject in my book Banking India (2017),  where I have analysed and ranked CEOs of top ten banks.

As mentioned earlier, banking is a business of or for or with people. How do we  utilise the employees when Banks in India absorb thirty thousand freshers annually  from universities. They have been able to lure such large numbers by offering higher  pay/perquisites and a career that is secure,safe and stable. It is in proper skilling and  deployment that CEOs can make efficient use of their human resources. 

Here is an illustration to make another aspect of human resources management: 

Most banks in India have a dedicated customer services department for handling  grievances and grievances are outcomes of unsatisfactory interactions with  employees. Assuming 2000 employees of various grades are deployed by all banks,  roughly a sum of Rs. 400 crores is being annually risked on these outfits. This sort of  expenditure can be reduced by proactively spending on training in soft skills. 

Soft skill training  

In general, soft skill training programmes cover sessions on the following : 

• Knowledge of employees about themselves 
• Way of thinking 
• Way of analysing 
• Command 
• Communication 
• Team building 
• Stress management 

A popular method adopted by trainers to teach self-awareness is the Johari window.  Trainers carry out this exercise, by instructing trainees to note down individually about  themselves in a two row-two column table, ‘what I know’, ‘what others know’, ‘what I  do not know’ and ‘what others do not know’. Awareness is one part and attitude is  another part that results in performance. Organisation level awareness campaigns  often change employees’ attitudes.  

Innovation comes from lateral thinking. Trainees are assisted by group tasks to  become more innovative and that helps them avoid collision with customers and  colleagues probably by learning to work around solutions. It is a good exercise for the 

brain too. The habit helps them to identify problems and find their cause. That forms  part of their problem-solving exercise. Further, talented trainers improve the trainees’  discipline, routine, habit etc., and that makes them far more predictable. 

Leadership sessions help in achieving results. Practically, every goal needs a lead  (source, trigger), leader and a leading process. The soft skill training includes setting  goals, planning and staying committed to those plans. The habit of ‘Stick to the plan’  helps in saving time, reduces stress and ensures ‘no surprise’. 

Sessions on communication includes listening skills, modes of communication and  the importance of language command. 

Individuals forming a team vary in their inherent ability. Therefore, sessions on team  management skills include time management, delegation and control exercise, sharing  tasks, interpersonal relationships and quick ways of conflict resolution. 

Personal health is very important. Reactions and responses depend a lot on physical  health. People like to work in a congenial environment. Any change in the environment  results in mental and physical strain. Keeping this aspect in mind, the soft skill training  highlights the importance of regular appropriate physical exercise and food habits. The  ability of individuals to adapt to their surroundings and situations reduces grievances  and helps in building a happy society and a pleasant work environment. 

In conclusion, the CEO’s job is to educate every employee that working as a team has  the synergy and it must be preferred to individual achievements. Banks have to  prudently discourage individual excellences and only encourage teams for functioning.  Unfortunately, the responsibility of improving productivity of bank employees happens  to be shared with Indian Banks Association, the DFS and a million member strong  labour unions. CEOs need a higher level leadership skill to manage all three. They  can function like the frame, lense and the regular cleaning habit or structure medium  and style that helps in improving eye vision or achieving objectives.