Is technology taking over bank managers’ jobs?

By Morris Aron

Are you a bank manager? If yes, then upgrade your information technology skills, because you may soon find yourself jobless.

According to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) report, some of the most lucrative positions admired by young people is seemingly on its deathbed due to increasing use of technology.

According to the  Banking Supervision Survey Report 201, banks are slowly phasing out the position of bank managers in favour of technology to cut growing wage bill.

decline

Central Bank of Kenya data indicates that management staff dropped by 5.5 per cent to 7,021 last year.

“The growth in staff levels affected all the cadres except the management cadre,” said the CBK in its banking supervisory report last year.

“The decline in managerial staff may be attributed to cost-cutting initiatives as banks try to manage their expanding wage bill,” added CBK.

While banks continued to increase staff numbers currently standing at  30,056 compared to 28, 846 a year earlier, the bank managers’ position is being increasingly discarded, a trend blamed on increasing use of technology.

Human resource specialists who spoke to The Standard say while the report has depicted a trend, it is still too early to predict whether this is a one off event.

“This is probably one of those decisions by the management in the financial industry,” said a source at the Institute of Human Resource Institute who requested not to be mentioned sighting protocol.

“Some of this positions like a bank manager cannot be totally replaced even with technology. In addition, there is need for more data before any concrete conclusions are made to that effect.”