Salary Expectations

Banking employment is not only a lucrative career option, but is also associated with high social status. As per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the hourly earning of an entry-level manager is $34.89. Thus, banking employment offers one of the best salary structures in the economy.

With experience, salaries rise steeply. A high-level manager can earn anywhere between $60,000 and $75,000 per month. Top-level executives and managers at a regional branch will earn even higher salaries.

The salary structure in private banks is higher than that in state-owned banks. Top executives of private banks may earn in hundreds of thousands of dollars. Vikram Pandit, CEO of Citigroup, earned more than $10 million in 2008, with a base salary of $958,333. (Source: Forbes.com).

The salary structure for entry-level jobs varies depending on the experience level, qualification and prominence of the job profile. The average salary may begin at $15,000 and may rise on a biannual or annual basis.

Banking employment also offers several bonuses and performance-related perks. Most of these bonuses depend on the sales figures of an individual. Some banks also share profits with employees. However, this criterion varies among banks. Usually, the profit share is a percentage of an individual’s salary. The profit sharing percentage will rise with years of service and salary increments.

Additional Benefits

Banking employment comes with a range of additional benefits, apart from monthly salaries and perks. Bank employees can buy mortgages or loans at lower interest rates. They can purchase medical or life insurance products at lower premiums. Banks do not charge processing fees and commissions, such as draft commission and checkbook fees, from their employees.

Benefits increase as one climbs the corporate ladder. Top-level executives have access to company cars, cell phones, laptops and apartments. They also receive travel reimbursements for a specified number of holiday trips in a year.

Positions within the Banking Industry

Banking positions include work profiles to manage both external services to the clients and internal branch operations. Although banking positions at various branches differ, jobs such as bank manager, teller, auditor and account officer are common across the world.

Banking positions can be classified based on different departments that combine to run a bank, such as:

• Accountancy: The accountancy department keeps track of the internal finances of a banking institution. This department maintains daily records of money transactions and manages cash flow systems. It also prepares quarterly and annual reports for the branch and forwards this to the head office.
• Administrative: The administration department supervises the functioning of all the units of the branch. Banking positions comprise branch manager and assistant branch manager. They are the signing authority for the branch and take crucial decisions related to business development.
• Cashier: A cashier takes note of the currency available with the bank. S/he prepares daily reports in collaboration with the teller and accounts department on cash money transactions.
• ATM operations: Since the arrival of automatic teller machines (ATMs), banks hire individuals to ensure the smooth functioning of these machines. The ATM operations team comprises of ATM manger and ATM specialist. They are responsible for loading cash, troubleshoot errors and ensuring safety standards at the ATM premises.
• Auditing: An auditing team conducts audits at associate branches to check accuracy in finances. The audit team includes audit specialists and audit officers. They prepare audit reports and forward them to the headquarters.
• Credit cards: Credit cards are one of the largest segments of the banking industry. Especially in countries (like the US and Canada) that have several cashless transactions, banks hire a specialist workforce to deal with credit card operations. The credit card team works for sales, product development, special offers, and payments.
• Loans: The lending or mortgage department develops loan products as per the financial requirements of their customer base. Banking positions in this department include loan administrator, loan supervisor, loan specialist, loan officer, risk analyst and sales staff.
• Investments: Established banks also offer investment services to the clients. They provide investment advice and also act as an intermediary to manage portfolios for their clients.

There are other banking positions such as training, human resources, customer care and operations that contribute in the proper functioning of a bank.

Careers in Banking

Banking careers have come of age from the traditional sitting-behind-the-counter dealings to more sophisticated communication, technical and sales skills. Banks now offer a comprehensive range of products and services and have immense scope for a successful career. A banking career offers bright prospects for individuals with an aptitude for finance and economics. Banking jobs are exciting, challenging, lucrative and associated with high social status.

The commercial banking sector provides employment to a larger number of people than any other segment of the financial services industry. The areas of work could include:

• Corporate banking
• Financial software development
• Investment banking
• Investment management
• Business development
• Operations
• Private wealth management
• Professional services IT
• Risk management and control

An individual can begin his or her banking career with minimum educational requirements. Good grades at school or at the certificate level are sufficient for an entry-level job with any bank.

Banks prefer graduates for accounting and support functions. Individuals with an educational background in accountancy, finance, economics and investment have a better change of entering the banking industry. Graduates in technology are also employed for technical jobs such as IT officer, ebanking manager and ATM operations officer.

For senior-level jobs, banks hire management graduates or post graduates. For a promising banking career, one can opt for a business management degree in banking and finance. Individuals with experience as hired for top management posts.

Job Training

Individuals without relevant experience are put through extensive training programs. Their performance and learning abilities are monitored for a specific period of time, known as the training period. The successful completion of the training program determines whether the individual secures a permanent job with the bank. Banks provide in-house training to all new employees to make them accustomed with the company policies, procedures and products. Computer training is also provided to employees who are to use banking software.

Banking careers are not impacted by bureaucracy. Most private banks are completely results driven. They offer high scope for promotions for deserving candidates.

Considering the banking career prospects, several educational institutions offer part-time or correspondence courses in finance and economics. One can pursue courses such as Certificate in Financial Services or Diploma in Banking and Finance.