Training policy principles
Alpha Bank firmly believes that “its strongest asset is the high quality of its human resources”. Therefore, the Bank invests in the lifelong development of its Personnel, ensuring that they are provided with continuous training, education and information.
Alpha Bank’s Training for the Employees, from its very beginning in the mid-1980s, functioned within this framework of principles. In May 1985, Alpha Bank’s internal communication publication “Mazi” (“Together”) informed the Bank’s Personnel about the principles of the New Training Policy, according to which professional training should be:
- ongoing – continuous with a long-term horizon and a character that should be related to the requirements of the individual jobs.
- universal for all Personnel, discouraging any discrimination in connection with the attendance of the training programmes.
- banking in nature, focusing on the knowledge of the Bank’s operations and on Regulations and Circulars.
With professional training as is main priority, the Training that was developed in the Bank in the course of more than 30 years, focuses on:
- the efficient and successful performance of tasks
- the continuous improvement and broadening of professional skills
- the in-depth knowledge of the processes involved.
The following graph shows the evolution in the number of the Bank’s Employees who participated in the training programmes. The Bank's business life during a period of more than 30 years is clearly reflected in this graph. (παράθεση του διαγράμματος που υπάρχει στο sheet 2 του συνημμένου excel).
Training policy and training programmes
The training plan is issued annually and the relevant information is accessible by all Personnel.
Alpha Bank offers to its Employees an integrated series of training programmes that:
- cover all positions, in terms of training in both banking techniques and business management and sales (soft skills)
- support, in training terms, an Employee’s transfer to another position (rotation)
- are prioritised based on the level of knowledge corresponding to their content
- support the professional development of Employees (career path).
For each field, provision is made for induction courses, as well as for programmes addressed to experienced Employees, in order for them to update their knowledge.
E-learning courses are also of particular significance. They function as a prerequisite, , preparing Employees to attend the relevant trainings, so that they make the best of their attendance in the Training Centre.
In addition, Alpha Bank’s training programmes prepare its Personnel for the following exams:
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The internal certification exams, first established in 2012 for Branches’ operations. In 2013, the initiative of Alpha Bank’s Training Division to introduce the internal certifications was presented with an award by KPMG during its annual conference, as a human resources management best practice.
- The external certification exams foreseen by the Bank of Greece for investment and bancassurance operations, in which Alpha Bank is distinguishing itself both for the considerable number of Alpha Bank Executives and Employees it prepares for these particularly demanding exams, as well as for its high success rates.
In order to ensure the best possible preparation of Employees and the full coverage of the specialised learning subjects, the Training Division, in addition to its trainers and Executives, is also employing training services provided by specialised organisations and is collaborating primarily with Professors from the following Greek Universities:
- the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
- the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
- the Athens University of Economics and Business
- the University of Macedonia
- the University of Piraeus.