PSB focus on lateral hiring to fill e-banking roles

With digital banking becoming more integral to business, public sector banks are increasingly relying on lateral hiring for specialized roles, such as digital banking and wealth management, with SBI and Bank of Baroda leading the way. PSU banks are hiring specialists even for mid and junior level roles from information technology companies and private lenders.

According to a former chief of a large PSB, direct hires and those who are recruited through the probationary officer route have different salary structures. Internal candidates are permanent employees and lateral recruits have a contractual arrangement with employers.

BoB is increasing lateral hiring for certain verticals such as digital lending and mobile banking. SBI said in its FY20 report that it has been recruiting specialized talent on lateral and contractual basis in areas of IT, wealth management, information security, and risk and credit, to meet the demand of a fast-changing business landscape and regulatory norms.