Banks must adopt strategic talent development approaches to equip practitioners with the skills, expertise, and mindset needed to contribute to organisational transformation and deliver long-term value to stakeholders.Ling highlights the institute's dedication to ensuring the relevance, agility, and readiness of Malaysia's banking industry practitioners for the future of banking.
Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers chief executive Edward Ling highlights the institute's dedication to ensuring the relevance, agility, and readiness of Malaysia's banking industry practitioners for the future of banking. Additionally, he shares AICB's role in shaping the trajectory of the banking industry by investing in the development of skilled and knowledgeable professionals.
“AICB also actively encourages the adoption of professional banking qualifications through participation in numerous career talks with university students, providing a platform to showcase the benefits of AICB’s programmes and guide students toward becoming qualified banking professionals.”Ling emphasises the critical importance of understanding the necessary skills to drive the banks of today and tomorrow forward.
Ling elaborates that a series of workshops held from June 2023 to March 2024 resulted in key findings encompassing six key trends, 10 job clusters, 129 job roles and 135 skills. “I believe that the scarcest skills of which we are in urgent need are digital and sustainability skills, which are most current, and which the banking sector faces a set of unique opportunities and challenges when it comes to adoption.”
“In line to further strengthen the capacity in sustainability, the introduction of the Certificate in Climate Risk in 2023 aimed to further equip bankers towards making sustainable practices mainstream, accelerating the transition to net zero, and meeting Malaysia’s sustainability commitments in 2050.”
Additionally, Ling shares AICB's collaborations with global organisations like the United Nations Environment Finance Initiative , International Finance Corporation , and Global Ethical Finance Initiative , delivering thought leadership sessions and technical programmes on sustainability, especially on climate and biodiversity.
“Malaysian financial institutions are working hard to mitigate current risks and emerging threats arising from the usage of new technology, not only in the country but also within the region, by having highly skilled compliance officers.”