The bank continues to invest in skills development through its graduate programme for the youth
Youth employment and skills development continue to be big challenges in South Africa. In line with the country’s efforts to improve the employment prospects of young people, FNB continues to look at sustainable ways to assist youth and young talent in developing the necessary skills that will help them in the future. This year, as part of its annual Graduate Programme, the bank will provide 250 youth with work experience in fields such as information technology (IT), commerce, data and analytics, engineering, etc.
Donald Khumalo, FNB Human Capital Executive, says, “We’ve been running the Graduate Programme for several years, and it continues to play a critical role in nurturing business leaders of the future and producing the skills that South Africa desperately needs. Our investment in young talent is consistent with our business ethos “How can we help you”, as we recognise that a lack of work experience is often a barrier for young people seeking employment opportunities. Our focus on critical skills further affirms FNB’s strategic ambition to build a platform business of the future.”
The FNB Graduate Programme supports, mentors, and affords young people opportunities to contribute through participation in real business projects, innovations, and engagements with experts around key initiatives. FNB has trained and supported over 1,000 graduates who are now senior leaders in some of its business units as CEO’s, Heads of Departments etc. The minimum requirement to get into FNB’s Graduate Programme is an undergraduate degree or an equivalent in any field.
Joanna Preston, Head of Young Talent at FNB Human Capital, highlights that “Since the pandemic, the way we communicate, engage, attract, and select talent for our graduate recruitment has shifted. The move to a virtual way of working has given rise to a multitude of innovative ways of communicating and engaging students through interactive online events, digital interviews, assessments, as well as digital onboarding.
“Since 2020, graduates have had the opportunity to work on over 20 different solutions, such as customer education in branches, spend classification on the FNB App, structured trade and commodity financing, chatbots, and analytics; this also includes other App-related improvements. The extraordinary support from the teams in which graduates are placed leads to opportunities to unlock innovation, global competitiveness, and social upliftment while creating connections and relationships that contribute to young people’s prospects,” concludes Preston.
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