United Overseas Bank (UOB) has launched a three-month programme for its finance employees to equip them with soft and technical skills to advance in their careers.
Dubbed the UOB Finance Academy, the programme was designed in-house and builds on Better U, the bank's flagship learning and development programme accredited by the Institute of Banking and Finance Singapore (IBF).
It will be progressively rolled out from this month to all finance professionals across UOB's global network. The first cohort will include all 230 employees in the bank's finance function in Singapore.
The new programme will enable participants to deepen their knowledge of banking - especially in areas such as risk management, regulation and liquidity management, said UOB.
It will sharpen their financial acumen through modules that encourage an analytical approach to evaluating strategies and risks, as well as accounting and bank financial analysis, the bank added.
Participants can also choose to develop specialised skills in areas such as asset and liability management and project management.
UOB group chief financial officer Lee Wai Fai said: "As with so many jobs, the role of a finance professional is changing as digital innovation impacts more areas of work.
"At UOB, we want to ensure that our people are equipped and ready to take on the opportunities that will come with ongoing transformation and change.
"The UOB Finance Academy charts clear and achievable milestones for our people in UOB's finance function to develop the necessary knowledge, mindset and skill sets to progress towards leadership roles in the finance industry."
One of the participants in the programme, Ms Liew Mei Moi, who has seven years of experience at UOB, said: "While I have specialised skills in my current role in financial information management, the value of developing a broad base of foundational skills in finance and expanding my technical and digital expertise and leadership qualities will enable me to be ready and confident to move into other roles and future opportunities at UOB."
UOB said the combined skill sets will also strengthen its finance function's decision-support capabilities and establish its role as a strategic partner to stakeholders and businesses within the bank.
The training is approved under Workforce Singapore's Professional Conversion Programme.
Participants will receive a certificate jointly issued by UOB and IBF.
