Oct - Dec 2008 - United Bank Limited

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Cover Story Proud to be UBL! A survey for the Golden Jubilee As we were finalizing the contents of this issue of Dialogue, which was planned to go into print in January 2009, we thought it would be quite opportune when the first issue of Dialogue hits the road, in our Golden Jubilee Year, to include a story based on how UBL employees feel about their association with UBL spanning over months, years and in some cases decades. We sent out an email containing three simple questions to all employees, on the heels of the President & CEO, Mr. Atif Bokhari’s memo of December 26, 2008, announcing 2009 as our Golden Jubilee Year. The response we received within the allotted two week was marvelous. The questions were: 1. What has been your most interesting experience while in the service of UBL? 2. What is the one single achievement in your career that you are proud of? 3. How, in your opinion, do UBL customers look at UBL compared to other banks? “During my three and half years of service” says Israr Hussain based in Shinkiari in the Northern Areas, “[In addition to] learning Retail banking... I also learned a new language that is ‘Sheena’ which is local language spoken in Gilgit... it is because of UBL.” Working with a large institution like UBL has changed the lives of many individuals irrespective of their backgrounds, education and cultural leanings. Some have narrated their experience in terms of their professional growth whilst others in terms of their personal embellishment. A unique sense of pride prevails among the employees of this bank and at the same time there is an expressed desire to make UBL a still better bank. Among the employees who have been with the bank during its grim days of nationalization the experience of returning to private ownership has been most gratifying. Khwaja Rehanuddin of HR who has been in the bank for 29 years sums his most interesting experience in one word: “Privatization”. Another experienced campaigner Junaid ur Rahman working at the Corporate Centre, Abdali Road, Multan calls it: “Revival of UBL after privatization”. Sardar Hussain Khattak, DM at the Area Office in Timergara near Peshawar expresses similar sentiments when he says: “...privatization has taken the bank to [it’s] climax.” But a most interesting personal anecdote came in the form of a “true story” from Muhammad Ashraf Shahid, DM Bank Square, Faisalabad who has been with the bank for a quarter of a century. His story: “When I joined UBL there used to be metal token system. The number of ‘staff’ also used to be surplus and rotation policy was hardly implemented. There was a person [handling tokens] for 15 consecutive years in the...branch. One day an executive visited the branch and was stunned to [learn] that the man was working on the same [job] for 15 consecutive years. The executive asked him how is the experience of [sitting] on the same seat for such a long time. The ‘staff’ replied: ‘It is very good sir. If a token falls on the table or floor I can tell its number from the sound it generates’.” A young lad Faizan Khalid, Assistant Manager – CQA with 7 months service described how he was unnerved by a sudden burst of gunfire outside a branch he was visiting for a regular quality-check. The firing erupted on account of a “...police encounter just outside the branch. One of the dacoits was killed just outside our UBL branch.” Experience of a dramatic kind! Talking about their most treasured achievements at UBL, people have focused mainly on their professional success. Muhammad Nawaz Awan, BM Imamia Colony Branch at Sheikhupura, who has been with the bank for 20 years, says: “My father was Security Guard in UBL and... retired from Imamia Colony branch in 1999. Now I have taken charge as Branch Manager... I am very proud of my success.” A proud Zaffar Ali Khan, BM Tehkal Payan Branch, Peshawar, who has spent 5 years with UBL claims: “I gave LSF the highest growth rate in the country as TL-LSF Peshawar Region in my 2 months tenure. Highest sales of Wiz Card from a Hajj Booth [is] yet another medal on my chest. So I believe I am a proud member of [the] UBL Family.” As regards how our customers feel about the bank, most responses suggest that they are generally quite happy with UBL, because of its personalized service, variety of products and extensive branch network. However, some people have candidly shared the need to improve our service levels in their branches. Muhammad Aakash Bin Nasir in HR at the RHQ in Faisalabad, who has been with the bank for nearly 3 years attributes the bank’s positive image to “...new and unique Consumer & Commercial Products UBL is introducing...[at] regular intervals and providing Financial Services according to its vision ‘where you come first’.” Muhammad Saleem, Regional CIU, Lahore who has been at the bank for only 3 years says: “...I think, UBL has a very good image in customers’ eyes. 200,000 plus Credit Cards customers and 90,000 plus Cashline Customers means [that] UBL has good market share as compared to other banks. It shows UBL’s goodwill and value in the eyes of customers.” Fazal-e-Hassan of the Civic Center branch, Islamabad who has been in the bank’s service for about 4 years unabashedly credits his colleagues by stating: “UBL is providing the best customer service, [and] products are also up to the mark. Employees are very vigilant and co-operative.” Syed Muhammad Wahaj, Customer Services Manager at Clifton, Karachi who is relatively new and has been with the bank for only 5 months is moved by the ‘Proxima’ aka ‘business process re-engineering experience’ and states: “At present, UBL customers are also excited by the transformation phase through which the organization is [passing] and they believe that these changes show the commitment of the top management... to make this institution, one of the best financial institutions in the... global market.” Zaheer Ahmed, ACO, based in Okara in the Sahiwal Region who has still not completed a year with the bank speaks like a sage in describing UBL as: “...a wise and strong old tree which can withstand all adverse conditions and anything put under its shade will be 100% safe.” Being proud of an organization that one serves with dedication is but a natural thing, but the real sense of pride comes from the realization that success in any organization comes as much as a consequence of high-quality, farsighted leadership as it does through the commitment of its employees and the time, energy and devotion they bring to it. The recurrent theme of wanting to see UBL become an even better bank, expressed by many respondents, was reflective of a widely prevalent belief that if there was a bank in the country capable of achieving its vision of becoming a world class bank, it had to be UBL. 04 October - December 2008
Human Resource Training & OD - A Key HR Priority During the last quarter of 2008, the Training & OD Division offered a broad range of learning solutions to various business units with a predominant focus on the Retail Banking Group. Some of the major programs offered were: Credit Risk Management Training (October 2008) A four-day high intensity training on Credit Risk Management was conducted by Dr. Salman Shah in Karachi in October 2008. Thirty-seven senior managers from Credit Policy & Risk, Corporate Banking, Investment Banking, Commercial Assets and Audit underwent this comprehensive day-long training. At the closing session, the President & CEO Mr. Atif Bokhari distributed certificates amongst the participants. A similar training session was held at Lahore in the third quarter of 2008. Banking Operations Training (November 2008) This two-week training was designed and implemented especially for the new inductees across Pakistan within the GCCA Group. Areas pertinent to Branch Banking Operations, Trade, Advances and Loans were incorporated in the training along with functional aspects of compliance that were delivered by both an in-house trainer and experts from the outside. This training provided a platform for 20 Compliance Officers to gain insight into branch banking as well as affording them the opportunity to interact with senior team members of their Group. This was especially useful in that it helped them gain insights into how to perform the compliance function with respect to various banking operations. Credit Risk Management Training Regulatory Trainings: Anti-Money Laundering & KYC Series This important regulatory training series continued well into the last quarter of the year 2008. Reaching out to regions where such training sessions had never been organized before, more than 200 employees from various parts of Pakistan benefited from these training sessions. Basic Banking Skills Training Customer Services Group Trainings During the last quarter, Training & OD’s focus remained on extending strategic support to the Customer Services Group at the Retail Bank in a dynamic business environment, following the extensive organizational restructuring under the ‘Proxima’ program. Multi-modular training sessions targeted towards the front line staff offered them the support that was needed during the ‘process change implementation’ in branches in every regional network. This program resulted in the training of over 1300 employees from all regions, including participants from major cities, during Qtr 4, 2008. The types of training included: Regional Universal Teller Training Program: A 4-day program focused on preparing the existing tellers for ‘one window operation and customer service’ in addition to polishing their work knowledge under the modified system. CBO Refresher Training October - December 2008 05
Page 1 and 2: NEWS VIEWS COMMENTS ANALYSIS OFFICI
Page 3: Cover Story On December 26, 2008 a
Page 7 and 8: Human Resource 2nd Batch of RBOs Re
Page 9 and 10: Retail Bank RB Sales Conference Set
Page 11 and 12: Retail Bank Outbound Campaign Plann
Page 13 and 14: The nation-wide incentive scheme fo
Page 15 and 16: BCP Embracing Resiliency Contributi
Page 17 and 18: International CASA Success in UAE,
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Oct - Dec 2008 - United Bank Limited

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