Skills for the future of banking

But what if you’ve been trained by Deloitte with the specific skills and knowledge you need to secure your first role?

Deloitte’s Banking Operations Academy works closely with tier 1 investment banks to understand what skills they need to meet immediate business requirements.

We find diverse and talented people who’d love a banking career. After we’ve trained them in the specific skills required, they have the opportunity to be considered for a role within a bank.

Now on its 11th cycle, our Banking Operations Academy has trained people across the world, including the UK, Poland, India and the US, and is going from strength to strength.

Since we trained our first cohort in the UK, many candidates have secured contracts and gained experience of day-to-day banking.

Recent Academy cohorts have welcomed candidates from Ukraine and from Deloitte’s Social Impact charity partners, the Young Women’s Trust and Blueprint for All. 

Tailored to meet our clients’ specific requirements, the course is designed to prepare candidates with the skills and know-how to be successful in their first banking role. To be considered for roles, each candidate must complete the course, demonstrate their understanding of the content covered and be successful in an interview.

Challenges banks face recruiting talent include finding recruits with the right professional skills to quickly hit the ground running, as tech continues to develop rapidly.

In the UK, since 2021, we’ve trained over 450 people on an accelerated training course, covering a combination of in-depth market content, technical skills and people skills.

Esther Mndeme is one such person. She was introduced to us through our charity partner Young Women’s Trust. Her University of Edinburgh degree and internships hinted at potential, but the Academy unlocked it. Intensive sessions on investment banking and financial crime, coupled with invaluable networking, empowered her with the skill sets she needed to secure her dream job.

Now a change analyst at a top bank, Esther credits the Academy’s mentorship and practical skills training – from stakeholder management to Excel proficiency – for her success. Her advice to aspiring professionals is to embrace networking and mentorship.

Looking forward, the Banking Operations Academy team is driven by one thing: doing more to widen access.

Plans are underway to use the model as a springboard to train other groups, including disabled people, school leavers, career changers, people returning to work and veterans.

To enable this, the Academy worked with disability charity Scope to make the initiative more accessible. Scope attended sessions, reviewed the programme’s assets and documentation, audited how inclusive the programme was and suggested improvements.

The success of the Academy also provides a strong foundation for expansion into related industries. The programme model is a highly transferable, scalable solution across different clients, and its adaptable design allows for tailored recruitment and training content. To date, we’ve successfully delivered Academies focused on technology, document operations, financial crime and digital platform company compliance.

This strategic diversification not only helps us find solutions for our client needs but also allows us to train diverse professionals, fostering a more inclusive workforce.

“We are incredibly proud of the Banking Operations Academy,” says Tom Gregory, partner, Strategy, Risk & Transformation Advisory. “When we train people, we are co-investing in their future.”