Hi Wayne, just bumped into this thread and must say, really good suggestions 😃 Well, I need some myself.
I'm just about to finish my MBA and got placed in Central Bank of India at Scale II. I'll have to undergo a 45-day training after which I have to choose a division to work with, which could be either of Risk Management, Forex, Treasury among others. Even my seniors who joined CBI wanted to work with Treasury and they got it. Now I have a few questions:
1. Which are the other fields of banking I could work in apart from the ones I mentioned (or rather were mentioned to us in their ppt)? Could you explain in brief the kind of work I would be required to do in each of them?
2. They mentioned that we would be given locational preference as well, and our seniors got that too. However, I'm not very keen on working in a metro; I'm more of a tier-II city kind of a guy. Do I only get to work with the "big profiles" in the big cities (which seems logical to me) and just be another manager in the tier-II cities?
3. The FLIP certifications that you mentioned, would it help if I took those before joining or should I just wait for the training they provide?
4. What are the perks PSB employees get over and above their in hand component?
It would probably be some hard work for you to reply to this, but I hope you would :)
Hi Avinav,
Congratulations on the new job! 😃 . Will try and address your queries one by one
1. Which are the other fields of banking I could work in apart from the ones I mentioned (or rather were mentioned to us in their ppt)? Could you explain in brief the kind of work I would be required to do in each of them?
Based on my experience the following would be the broad division of departments.
Retail Banking- Savings Accounts/Current Accounts/Credit Cards/ Bancassurance/ Private Banking etc. This is one aspect of Banking where the focus will be more on marketing rather than finance.
Transaction Banking/BUsiness Banking- Current Accounts/ Cash Management Services etc
Corporate Banking- This would involve giving loans to small and medium companies. Involves a mix of finance (role of Credit Analyst) and marketing (role of a Relationship Manager)
Risk Management- More or less completely finance and involves substantial number crunching. Great opportunity if you love numbers and don't really want a client facing role.
Capital Markets/Project Financing- Involves financing of very large projects both on debt side (long term loans/ syndication etc) and equity (M&A;/ Private Equity etc). Again involves a mix of Finance and Marketing
Treasury- Foreign exchange trading/ bond trading/ Correspondent Banking etc.....gr8 job if you really like stock trading looking at international transactions or trying to anticipate the markets.
2. They mentioned that we would be given locational preference as well, and our seniors got that too. However, I'm not very keen on working in a metro; I'm more of a tier-II city kind of a guy. Do I only get to work with the "big profiles" in the big cities (which seems logical to me) and just be another manager in the tier-II cities?Yes, I would say that the "big profiles" would probably only be offered in the cities. Especially because the senior management generally sit at the head offices in the major cities. Profiles like treasury/risk management/ corporate banking would be generally limited to the big cities.
However, it will vary from bank to bank. Typically if you are really keen on a smaller city..look at a place where there is a big industrial cluster like Pune/ Gurgaon etc. Banks do tend to have large corporate branches in such cities and these branches do have powers to take major decisions. So you could also look at this option.
3. The FLIP certifications that you mentioned, would it help if I took those before joining or should I just wait for the training they provide?Since you've already got a job....i think it is completly your choice. Would suggest you take the CBI training seriously as most times Management Trainees tend to take it as a paid holiday
. Will probably be your only chance to experience the funcitoning of different departments first hand.
However, if there are likely to be a clamour for a few profiles which will then lead to further interviews...then you might consider doing a certification before joining...will help to be prepared :)
4. What are the perks PSB employees get over and above their in hand component?Sorry am not in a position to answer this question since policies would vary from company to company. IF you would like to I can put you in touch with some of my colleagues who have earlier worked with PSBs and now working with Private Banks. However, since policies vary from Bank to Bank i think your seniors would be in the best position to help you. BUt apart from salary...i do know that starting your career with a PSB will make sure that your banking fundamentals are firmly in place.
Hope this helps and Wishing you All the Best
Cheers,
Wayne
. Will probably be your only chance to experience the funcitoning of different departments first hand.
Sure would help if you can get me through to some of your colleagues. Meanwhile, I would try to get in touch with my seniors too. The last statement of yours is indeed heartening to note :)