TRAINING
Spelling
out the
skills
scenario
BANKSETA Sector Skills Plans (SSP)
Manager Shaheen Buckus’s audits –
the banking industry’s skills needs.
A
ccountants, economists, business analysts and investment
bankers remain among the scarcest skills in the banking
sector, while loan officers, National Credit Act counsellors
and information technology officers are in short supply in the
microfinance industry.
These preliminary findings are contained in the draft 2013-2014
update of BANKSETA’s Sector Skills Plans (SSPs), pivotal documents
in the life of any sector education and training authority (SETA).
The BANKSETA has compiled two draft SSPs – one for the banking
and the other for the microfinance sector. The SSPs map out the
skills requirements for the sector and sets the tone for skills planning
at sector level. Driving this crucial component of BANKSETA’s
work is the research and Skills Planning Manager Shaheen Buckus.
‘The preparation of the five-year SSP is a core SETA function and the
document must be updated annually to be relevant to stakeholders
in our sector and to inform the targets in the SETA’s strategic plan
through evidence based research.
The Sector Skills Plan should be seen as a valuable resource,
Shaheen adds, as it analyses the demand and supply of skills and
identifies areas where there is a shortage of skills. In this respect, it
guides investment in training and development in the sector.
‘The SSP dissuades companies from overinvesting in areas where
there is no shortage of skills and underinvesting in the development
of scarce and critical skills. There is a tendency for these terms to
be used interchangeably, says Shaheen, but they differ. ‘Scarce skill
refers to an absolute or relative demand for skilled people to fill
particular occupations in the labour market,’ he explains. ‘Critical
skills refer to skills gaps or shortages within occupations.
In compiling the draft SSPs, the latest version of which forecasts
skills needs from 2013 to 2014, in depth interviews, a survey was
conducted and focus groups held around the country. Significant
input came from the Workplace Skills Plans (WSPs), which show the
planned and actual training interventions coupled with the scarce
skills needs across the sector. The willingness of banking institutions
to complete their WSPs with thought and accuracy means that the
data supplied may be relied on, says Shaheen.
The draft 2013/2014 Banking SSP reveals a meagre improvement
in the levels of African representation and employees with
disabilities in the banking sector relative to previous years, and a
sturdy concentration of banks in Gauteng. Opportunities for greater
expansion into rural areas and extended reach across other provinces
could be considered and should be linked to economic realties.
The audit of skills levels in the banking sector reported in the
draft 2013-2014 Banking SSP shows that 51% of employees in the
sector have a matric, 20% hold a certificate and 12% hold a BA or a
similar degree. Further, in relation to the supply of skills the draft
hints at certain disturbing trends as depicted in the table above, only
48% of students at further education and training institutions passed
finance, economics and accounting in 2010 and that only 46% of
matriculants passed maths and 53% physical science in 2011.
Both draft SSPs have been submitted to the Department of Higher
Education and Training and will be finalised upon receipt and
integration of comments.
Edition 4
BANKER SA
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