The demand for specialists in e-banking and private banking is set to experience extensive growth as the financial sector in the city develops, according to the results of a survey conducted by the Talent Development Committee (CDT).
The CDT report details future demand for specialists in the financial and insurance sectors for the coming three to six years.
Taking into account recent advances in technology, the Committee has advocated developing e-banking, promoting its useage amongst all local operators to match demand.
The report details estimates that 749 bankers will be needed in the sector within three years. In the next six years the number of banking specialists needed will reach 1,488, while currently 231 specialists are needed in the sector. Specifically, the positions that would experience highest demand in the coming years are for tellers, staff in the credit business, customers services, programmers and accountants.
The report also disclosed a 13.52 per cent labour turnover rate in 2016. Major reasons for leaving the jobs indicated by 22 bank survey respondents were leaving for another bank – 77.27 per cent indicated employees had done so, leaving for a public service job; 72.72 per cent of respondents indicated employees had done so, due to unsatisfactory remuneration; 50 per cent responded that employees had given this indication.
Although vacancies can be filled by hiring blue-card holders, banks often choose not to opt for this route due to slow approval procedures.
The CDT suggested training workers in order to achieve higher work productivity, laying out plans to attract younger employees to the industry and loosening requirements for banks to hire foreign workers.
Also, training can be performed for certain specific positions, such as local legal personnel and more talks and training courses can be held by the Monetary Authority of Macau (AMCM) or other related institutions. The government should also put more effort into promoting the positive future of the industry, both locally and internationally, the group opines.
The city has great potential in the banking industry, notes the CDT, but development is still in its preliminary stage, adding that the majority of practitioners in the industry do not obtain internationally recognised qualifications. As such, the Committee advised the city to make use of its role in the Belt and Road Initiative as well as serving as a platform between the Mainland and Portuguese-speaking countries.
INSURANCE SECTOR
According to the report, the city will need 32 practitioners in the coming three years for selling life insurance, and 35 for the non-life insurance business. In the coming six years, the industry will require 41 life insurance practitioners and 54 other insurance service personnel. Currently, there are 502 local and 53 non-local practitioners, among whom 198 of the practitioners are involved in life insurance and 357 in non-life insurance businesses.
For the life insurance segment clerks, business representatives and salespersons and human resources and training directors will be most highly in demand.
Managers in marketing, customer service, insurance services and compensation, underwriters, business representatives and salespersons will be the most needed positions in the non-life insurance segment.
The report revealed that the turnover rate was 10.15 per cent in 2016, with 68.75 per cent of the 16 insurance companies which responded to the survey indicating their employees left the company for jobs in other industries.
Similarly, insurance companies suffer from challenges in getting approval for hiring blue-card holders, although the report notes that often applications are not approved due to a lack of convincing reasons regarding the necessity of employing foreign workers.
The CDT advised that the responsible department relax requirements for approving blue-card holders, as well as strengthening the training of local insurance practitioners.
The government should offer funding for related courses and create co-operational plans with insurers to attract practitioners in order to further upgrade their specialties, it notes. Promotion about future development is also necessary for the insurance industry.
According to the report, currently 75 per cent of insurers consist of fewer than 30 full-time practitioners, since the majority of practitioners work part-time. Like the banking industry, most practitioners do not have internationally recognised qualifications.
The CDT concluded that it is necessary to introduce specialists from overseas to stimulate the development of the financial leasing industry due to a shortage in the city. The Committee advised laying out plans for introducing overseas related specialists as well as training courses for local practitioners.
