Cultivating IT Talent

The talent crunch within financial institutions occurs most distinctly in IT. As banks evolve digitally, the need for quality technical resources has become even more critical.

In fact, in a recent InsiderIntelligence poll, the ability to attract qualified talent ranks as the top concern of bank executives.

Within IT roles at banks, the positions of Solution Architect and Data Analyst are becoming more critical to secure, regardless of the size of the financial organization.  These roles are essential to ensure your transformational goals are supported with a strong understanding of your infrastructure and supported by strength in data for decision making.  It is critical to fill and retain these positions with qualified resources.

Solution Architects are experienced technology professionals with a deep understanding of software development, systems integration, and application design. They understand business, integration, and “how stuff works.”

Data Analysts on the other hand, can be more junior IT staff. Once on-board, they can learn how to mine and leverage banking data for the unique advantage of an institution.

Hiring and retaining these individuals presents many challenges for community and regional bankers. These include current trends such as the “Great Stay” (professionals unwilling to leave current positions due to job insecurity issues) and new college graduates seeking employment in big cities with high-profile tech companies (e.g., Google, Meta, Uber, etc.)

Financial institution leadership can take the following actions to counter current employment trends and prospective employee perceptions both to find – and cultivate – the IT talent they need.

Look to develop college talent

Professional football teams’ success hinges on their ability to identify talent in the draft and then train and mesh that talent to fit the culture of their organization. Bankers must also look to the college ranks to seek data analytics talent that can adapt into the culture of their organization.

To compete with other firms for analytics talent, community and regional bankers should strive where possible to develop relationships with the information management departments of local colleges and junior colleges. To excite perspective employees, Bankers can sponsor analytics contests, give college classes specific banking related problems to solve, and find ways to form relationships with IT students before they become technology graduates.

It goes without saying internship programs are vital, with the caveat that interns need mentorship and guidance to make them feel a part of your organization. It’s crucial to invest in activities to share your bank’s culture with this staff.

Promote your strengths

This action holds true with both college job seekers and professionals. Hiring officers can take for granted job attributes that may resonate with employees. The stability and community involvement of banks serves as a contrast to the recent round of layoffs in large tech companies. This creates a stability advantage.

If your bank offers work-from-home or hybrid-work options, let job seekers know this up front.  Working from home options greatly increase the talent pool available.

Potential employees may also appreciate the way your bank supports local charities and allows associates to give of their time and talent. Highlight specific examples in this area in job descriptions and on social media.

Establish mentorship programs

As mentioned earlier, mentorship programs are vital to educate college students on banking, professionalism and operational processes. Mentors can also play an important role with any new IT employee at a bank. Solution Architects with limited banking experience can become effective more quickly with helpful guidance from veteran employees.

Mentor programs for recent college grads can help bridge the gap between intern and first real job. Mentorship programs also create a two-way street for feedback and new hires can offer enthusiasm and experiences helping make a positive impact on the hiring organization.

Sponsor local technology organizations

Banks should support and make it seamless for current employees to participate in IT or incubator tech groups and will discover significant value in that investment.

Plus, local IT talent can gain exposure to your organization while current employees can hone their skills collaborating with their peers. Incubator groups can uncover potential IT relationships which can lead to potential longer term small business development opportunities.

Partner and train 

Effective on-boarding with appropriate training may be limited in smaller banking organizations. To help in this area, look to your technology partners who can offer courses in specific areas (e.g., API development) or provide documentation unique to your bank (such as Solution Architecture diagrams).

Partner training can range from online Banking 101 courses to one-on-one knowledge transfer at your facility.

Provide a career path 

The role of a Data Analyst could become a stepping stone for that of a Solution Architect. It is important to show this and other career paths to the IT resources brought into your organization. Together, Solution Architects and Data Analysts can drive unique digital user experiences, mine insightful data, and design needed API integration within your organization.