Lloyds Hires Expert To Lead Responsible AI Efforts
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Lloyds Banking Group has responded to the mounting pressure on banks to create rules around their use of artificial intelligence tools by picking Magdalena Lis as its head of ‘responsible’ AI.
This comes after the bank hired Dr. Rohit Dhawan, a former AWS executive, as director of AI and advanced analytics in August last year, to lead a team of 200 experts at the bank’s AI Centre.
Lis Will Aim To Enhance Services And Add Safety Rules At Lloyds Banking Group
In her new job, Lis will work on improving Lloyds Banking Group’s services and offerings while adding the needed protections and controls. She has over 15 years of experience in AI, having once been an advisor on responsible AI to the UK Government. Lis also served as Head of Analytics and Data Science at Toyota Connected Europe.
Lis has a PhD in Computational Linguistics (AI) from the University of Copenhagen and has written 12 research papers, including one about making AI systems more clear.
Dhawan noted that artificial intelligence can change banking, and the firm is investing and hiring quickly to stay in front. While the company keeps pushing the limits of GenAI to improve its services and offerings for customers, it’s important that there are right protections in place. The goal is to make sure the technology is used fairly and safely. He added that Magdalena will be key to these changes, bringing a lot of experience in AI, and he is excited to work with her.
Lloyds Banking Group recently shared that it is closing its contact centre in Liverpool, which will require around 500 workers to travel to Chester. The bank is also planning to cut a few hundred jobs.
The Bank Seeks To Have Fewer Better-Prepared Offices
According to the bank, closing the Liverpool contact centre, which handles fraud and customer services, is part of a strategy to have fewer, better offices.
The Bank stated that no jobs will be lost, but around 420 workers will be asked to move to Chester, 25 miles away. The other 80 workers will work from home.
Dominic Hook, national officer at union Unite, stated that closing the big Lloyds centre in Liverpool Speke is a big mistake. It will have a big effect on the workers and the area, and it’s not needed.
Soon after the news about Liverpool, it was also revealed that Lloyds would close another office in Dunfermline, Scotland, affecting 1500 jobs. Workers will be able to choose to work from home or move to a new office in Edinburgh.
The bank is also expected to cut hundreds of jobs soon, with 1300 roles under review. This includes 163 job cuts in England and Wales because of a plan to share branches between Halifax, Lloyds, and Bank of Scotland.
The group has already said it will close 55 more branches this year, leaving 932 locations across the country.