Employee Capital
It is people who drive business. Our success is thus largely attributable to the knowledge, skills and commitment of a closely knit and motivated team that creates sustainable value, year after year. Hence, we attract the best of talent, develop a professional and collaborative work environment, promote a culture of diversity and inclusion and provide opportunities for all employees to utilise their full potential. In turn, we reward performance.
Our reporting boundary in this section on employee capital is the DFCC Banking Business (DBB), unless otherwise stated.
Staff Strength
DBB employed a total of 1,427 persons by year end, with the composition reflecting the desired levels of diversity in terms of gender, age, service period and geographic location. Outsourced service providers such as janitorial and security personnel are not included in the computation. Our employees may be either ‘permanent’ staff or those who work on ‘contract’. The latter includes those on fixed-term contracts and casual employees who may also work part-time based on the terms of engagement.
Permanent staff accounted for 89% of the total (FY 2013/14: 90%), with a similar composition among males and females. Non-permanent staff in the management grade include retired permanent employees who were retained on fixed term contracts due to business priorities. The retirement age at DBB is 55 years.
The overall gender balance continues to remain equal, although it is skewed in favour of males in the Management (78%) and Executive (54%) grades with females scoring higher in the other grades.
Number of Employees by Employment Type, Grade and Gender
| |
FY 2014/15 |
FY 2013/14 |
FY 2012/13 |
| Employment type and grade |
Male |
Female |
Total |
Male |
Female |
Total |
Male |
Female |
Total |
| Permanent |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Management |
53 |
17 |
70 |
48 |
17 |
65 |
48 |
16 |
64 |
| Executive |
203 |
165 |
368 |
193 |
157 |
350 |
175 |
136 |
311 |
| Non-Executive |
377 |
461 |
838 |
368 |
452 |
820 |
310 |
384 |
694 |
| Other/Sri Lanka Post* |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Sub total |
633 |
643 |
1276 |
609 |
626 |
1235 |
533 |
536 |
1069 |
| Contract, casual, part-time |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Management |
11 |
1 |
12 |
10 |
1 |
11 |
10 |
3 |
13 |
| Executive |
21 |
24 |
45 |
20 |
14 |
34 |
18 |
12 |
30 |
| Non-Executive |
28 |
36 |
64 |
18 |
13 |
31 |
21 |
13 |
34 |
| Other/Sri Lanka Post* |
14 |
16 |
30 |
33 |
27 |
60 |
63 |
53 |
116 |
| Sub total |
74 |
77 |
151 |
81 |
55 |
136 |
112 |
81 |
193 |
| Total |
707 |
720 |
1427 |
690 |
681 |
1371 |
645 |
617 |
1262 |
| Share of total |
50% |
50% |
100% |
50% |
50% |
100% |
51% |
49% |
100% |
* Sri Lanka Post (SLP) refers to staff employed to maintain a window in selected post offices
Branches (excluding centralised operations and other business units) absorbed 66% of DBB’s total workforce.
Within branches, the Western Province tops the list with 33% of employees, followed by Southern Province (14%) and Central Province (12%). The gender balance at branches was skewed in favour of females in three out of the nine provinces, namely, Western (54%), North Western (54%) and Sabaragamuwa (53%) against an overall branch average of 47%.
Total Workforce by Location of Operations and Gender
| |
FY 2014/15 |
FY 2013/14 |
FY 2012/13 |
| |
|
|
No. of employees |
|
|
No. of employees |
|
|
No. of employees |
| Province |
No. of
branches* |
No of
SLP
units |
Male |
Female |
Total |
No. of
branches* |
No of
SLP
units |
Male |
Female |
Total |
No. of
branches* |
No of
SLP
units |
Male |
Female |
Total |
| Central |
10 |
4 |
62 |
47 |
109 |
9 |
5 |
57 |
47 |
104 |
7 |
6 |
54 |
47 |
101 |
| Eastern |
7 |
4 |
48 |
22 |
70 |
7 |
4 |
50 |
20 |
70 |
5 |
5 |
41 |
22 |
63 |
| Northern |
6 |
0 |
36 |
22 |
58 |
6 |
0 |
34 |
22 |
56 |
4 |
0 |
25 |
19 |
44 |
| North-Central |
3 |
6 |
39 |
23 |
62 |
3 |
6 |
39 |
20 |
59 |
2 |
7 |
37 |
16 |
53 |
| North-Western |
6 |
4 |
34 |
40 |
74 |
5 |
5 |
31 |
34 |
65 |
3 |
7 |
31 |
32 |
63 |
| Sabaragamuwa |
5 |
10 |
32 |
36 |
68 |
5 |
10 |
37 |
38 |
75 |
4 |
11 |
37 |
32 |
69 |
| Southern |
8 |
15 |
69 |
65 |
134 |
8 |
15 |
67 |
60 |
127 |
7 |
16 |
61 |
56 |
117 |
| Uva |
4 |
5 |
41 |
20 |
61 |
3 |
6 |
39 |
18 |
57 |
3 |
6 |
37 |
17 |
54 |
| Western |
29 |
11 |
144 |
175 |
319 |
28 |
11 |
140 |
169 |
309 |
25 |
12 |
129 |
151 |
280 |
| Sub total |
78 |
59 |
505 |
450 |
955 |
74 |
62 |
494 |
428 |
922 |
60 |
70 |
452 |
392 |
844 |
| Centralised departments and other business units |
|
|
202 |
270 |
472 |
|
|
196 |
253 |
449 |
|
|
193 |
225 |
418 |
| Total |
|
|
707 |
720 |
1,427 |
|
|
690 |
681 |
1,371 |
|
|
645 |
617 |
1,262 |
* ‘Branch’ includes combined DFCC Bank and DVB office/branch as well as standalone DVB premises.
An age analysis indicates that 61% of our employees are in the 18 - 30 years bracket. They also represent the most ‘volatile’ group in terms of staff retention. The gender balance is roughly equal across age groups with a shift towards males in later years.
About 41% of employees have worked with us for over five years, of whom 52% were females. Despite an era of job mobility and the need to inject new blood from time to time, we still do value and reward long service and loyalty by employees. They serve to propagate our corporate culture and values that transcend mere technical capabilities that are on tap.
Manpower Planning and Talent Acquisition
To ensure competitiveness, business resilience and long-term success we review staffing structures of business units and DBB as a whole periodically. During the year under review, the Operations division was restructured and renamed ‘Services’ to improve the linkage between branches and service centres and also to achieve standardisation across our entire network (see under Customer Capital).
DBB staff strength increased by 4.1% from 1,371 to 1,427 persons during the year. The modest net increase is overshadowed by much larger growth rates across several KPIs, reflecting in some measure the productivity and dynamism of our employees.
Recruitment
During the year 196 employees were recruited to DBB, of whom 67% were in the entry level/non-executive grades. Following consistent and transparent policies, priority is given to internal candidates to fill vacancies. This also supports opportunities for job rotation and enrichment while providing avenues for career advancement. For external recruitments, we largely rely on referrals and online advertising. We have also obtained the services of head hunting firms for the sourcing of senior candidates and recruitment of technical staff. Further, the Human Resources team actively takes part in career fairs to source new talent in the market, as well as to provide career guidance to the new graduates as a part of our social responsibility focus.
Recruitment by Grade, Age Group and Gender
| Grade |
Age group |
Gender |
| |
Less than
30 years |
Between
30-50 years |
Above
50 years |
Total |
Male |
Female |
Total |
| Management |
0 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
| Executive |
42 |
10 |
0 |
52 |
27 |
25 |
52 |
| Non-Executive |
124 |
5 |
3 |
132 |
61 |
71 |
132 |
| Other/SLP |
10 |
0 |
0 |
10 |
3 |
7 |
10 |
| Total |
176 |
15 |
5 |
196 |
93 |
103 |
196 |
Undergraduate Internship Programme
DFCC Bank launched its first undergraduate internship programme during the year, taking on board a batch of seven interns. These interns, who are following degree programmes in both local and foreign universities, underwent an intensive two-month training during which they received rotations to core functions at the Bank. In addition they were provided class room based training focusing on enhancing key soft skills such as business etiquette, networking and interviewing skills aimed at increasing their employability. At the conclusion, the interns presented their learnings and their suggestions for further improvement to the CEO and senior management.
Employee Turnover
A total of 138 employees left DBB during the year, comprising resignations, contract expirations, terminations and retirements. The largest number of resignations, was in the below 30 years age group. Analysed by gender, males accounted for 53% of resignations.
Turnover by Grade, Age Group and Gender
| Grade |
Age group |
Gender |
| |
Less than
30 years |
Between
30-50 years |
Above
50 years |
Total |
Male |
Female |
Total |
| Management |
0 |
1 |
4 |
5 |
4 |
1 |
5 |
| Executive |
16 |
16 |
3 |
35 |
17 |
18 |
35 |
| Non Executive |
62 |
14 |
6 |
82 |
44 |
38 |
82 |
| Other/SLP |
16 |
0 |
0 |
16 |
9 |
7 |
16 |
| Total |
94 |
31 |
13 |
138 |
74 |
64 |
138 |
Staff retention is an important area of focus for optimising our investment in talent and maintaining operational efficiencies. We conduct exit interviews for all voluntary resignations and the feedback is studied by senior management for any remedial action.
Voluntary employee turnover for the period under review was 7.1%. Analysed by gender, turnover among males was 7.0% and turnover among females was 7.3%.
Parental Leave
As per the Shop & Office Act, only female employees are entitled to parental (maternity) leave. We give them unhindered opportunity to avail of this benefit, while also encouraging and facilitating their return to work. We offer the same or comparable position without any prejudice to their job security, remuneration or career path upon return. We take pride in our high return to work rate, that also serves to boost employee morale and productivity.
Return to Work
Employees who returned to work out of those due to return during FY 2014/15: 95.8%
Retention Rate
Employees who stayed on at least 12 months out of those returning in FY 2013/14: 94.3%
Capacity Building
Our talent management process entails four key areas, namely:
- A transparent mechanism for talent identification and differentiation.
- A standardised methodology to identify strengths and gaps to target training and development.
- A formal process for succession planning and building the required competencies.
- Encouragement and facilitation for employees to pursue personal and professional growth.
Our employees are provided with access to training opportunities based primarily on providing them the tools and knowledge required to perform their job roles effectively and to equip them to take on broader or varied job roles. Our staff development initiatives further strive for balance by addressing individual personal development objectives as well.
At the beginning of each year all employees, in discussion with their supervisors, prepare individual development plans. These plans would detail individual strengths, gaps, training and other development initiatives required for the current year and beyond to address such gaps. The training calendar of DBB and selection of employees for training programmes are based on the needs identified in the individual development plans as well as any specific requirements arising from their respective job functions.
2014/15
| |
No. of person hours of training |
Average training hours per employee |
| |
Male |
Female |
Total |
Males |
Female |
Total |
| Management |
1,528 |
532 |
2,060 |
23.88 |
29.55 |
25.12 |
| Executives |
9,746 |
7,682 |
17,428 |
43.51 |
40.65 |
42.20 |
| Non-Executives |
8,654 |
12,066 |
20,720 |
20.65 |
23.52 |
22.23 |
| Total |
19,928 |
20,280 |
40,208 |
28.19 |
28.17 |
28.18 |
2013/14
| |
No. of person hours of training |
Average training hours per employee |
| |
Male |
Female |
Total |
Males |
Female |
Total |
| Management |
2,199 |
498 |
2,697 |
37.91 |
27.67 |
35.49 |
| Executives |
10,232 |
8,189 |
18,421 |
48.04 |
47.89 |
47.97 |
| Non-Executives |
12,164 |
14,373 |
26,537 |
29.03 |
29.21 |
29.13 |
| Total |
24,595 |
23,060 |
47,656 |
35.65 |
33.86 |
34.76 |
2014/15
| |
Total Person Hours |
| Types of training |
DFCC Bank |
DVB |
Total |
| In house |
13,398 |
20,668 |
34,066 |
| External |
3,279 |
1,395 |
4,674 |
| Foreign |
856 |
612 |
1,468 |
| Total |
17,533 |
22,675 |
40,208 |
During the year under review we focused on mechanisms to measure the effectiveness, value and impact of training. As such, many of the technical programmes rolled out during the year, included a formal assessment. In addition, post-training impact assessments, special assignments, knowledge sharing initiatives and assignments of measurable business targets were introduced to the bulk of the in-house training programmes.
Training and development opportunities are offered using a variety of mediums such as in-class training, local external training, overseas training, e-learning, quizzes and assessments. The state-of-the-art auditorium possessing the capability to facilitate three concurrent events was the primary venue for most of the 96 in-house programmes conducted during the year. In addition, development opportunities were provided through participation at external programmes, conducted both locally and overseas.
The e-learning platform was used extensively during the year with the number of hours of usage recording a growth of 38% over the previous year. The facilities provided by the library are accessible to all staff and continues to be heavily utilised. The availability of an on-line cataloguing system, enabled ease of access to information. In addition, employees continued to take advantage of the attractive education schemes available at DBB with usage increasing over the previous year.
Performance Management
We follow a performance based approach in determining annual staff emoluments as well as staff promotions. DBB’s performance management framework is based on the balanced score card methodology, which is standardised and accessible to all staff. Our strategic goals are cascaded down to the plans of business unit, which in turn, lead to the formulation of personal accountabilities as defined in respective scorecards of staff members. Performance against agreed targets is evaluated formally at mid-year and year-end by supervisors with one-on-one meetings with subordinates, accompanied by constructive feedback on goal achievement and qualitative behavioural aspects, which could impact current job roles and future career advancement plans.
The Nine Box Framework for talent identification and differentiation among executives, that was introduced in 2013, was continued in 2014. Through this mechanism we encourage high potential individuals and ensure they know their contribution is valued and noted. Constructive discussions are also held with those whose performance needs improvement.
Career Advancement
Several assessment schemes are in place for selection of eligible employees to higher grades and job roles. Staff promotions to non-management grades are based on predefined criteria, encompassing performance in current job roles, experience, educational qualifications, demonstrated skills and attributes to take on higher level responsibilities. During the year, approximately 20% of eligible employees were promoted to higher levels, of which 80% were at the junior level. Females accounted for 55% of staff so promoted.
During the year, 81 employees were transferred to alternative locations to meet business requirements in accordance with DBB’s transfer policies, whilst 23 employees underwent role changes. Job rotation and transfers provide opportunities for enrichment and acquisition of new skills, thereby broadening the skill base of employees.
Employee Relations and Engagement
We actively involve employees in regular dialogue through a range of offerings, with particular attention paid to explaining strategic issues, business performance and upcoming changes. Lines of communication between management and employees, Group Human Resources and employees as well as cross functional departments are continuously reviewed and improved. Regional and branch visits were conducted by Group Human Resources staff and one-on-one meetings held with staff.
Recognition
The appreciation schemes which were launched in 2013, were actively continued in 2014, with seven employees receiving the Award for Excellence during calendar year 2014. In addition employees, branches and business units continue to be recognised through several awards at the annual DBB dinner dance.
Grievance Handling
Surfacing and escalation of grievances continued to be strongly encouraged with the setting up of a Grievance Committee as well as regular communications apprising employees of the mechanisms available to raise grievances. DBB practices an ‘open door’ policy whereby all levels of management, including the CEO, are accessible to all employees.
Managing Remuneration
Periodic surveys are conducted to benchmark DBB remuneration levels against the industry, to ensure an equitable reward system that is also competitive in the market. Based on results of such a survey, upward revisions to base pay were effected during the year. As other benefits offered by DBB were found to be comparable with industry norms no significant modifications were considered in this area.
Benefits Offered to Permanent Employees
The following are benefits offered to permanent employees that are not available to contract staff (barring some exceptions that are noted):
- Housing loan, vehicle loan, miscellaneous staff loan, MBA loan
- Also available for contract staff, Executive Trainees and Management Trainees: Reimbursement of exam fee, professional membership subscriptions, welfare club gymnasium
- Also available for some contract staff based on contract: Holiday grant
- Only for Non-Executive permanent staff: Festival advance
Diversity, Inclusion and Equal Opportunity
We actively encourage and support diversity in our employees as we believe that the multiplicity of exposures, beliefs and ideas help create a more resilient, dynamic and forward thinking workforce. Over the years our human capital has been enhanced and enriched through diversity in terms of social strata, ethnicity, religious belief, exposure and knowledge.
The expected standards of professionalism in conduct is clearly communicated to employees during on boardingsessions, meetings, specific class room based training sessions and through mandated training modules. Harassment and victimisation is not tolerated and mechanisms for escalation of such occurrences are communicated to employees and they are actively encouraged to raise issues.
Minority ethnic community representation in the 196 new recruits during the year amounted to 26 persons or 13%. Our workforce is equally divided between males and females. The return to work and retention rates of employees who availed of maternity leave are a high 95.8% and 94.3% respectively. DBB ensures equitable remuneration based on merit and transparent procedures that take no account of caste, creed or gender. Each employment level has a specified salary range based on benchmarked industry data and employees placed at each grade receive a base pay within the established range. The benefits available are usually standardised by grade. In addition, certain job-specific benefits are offered.
Gender Equity in Remuneration
| Grade |
Weighted average basic
salary ratio, Male:Female |
| Management |
49:51 |
| Executive |
52:48 |
| Non-Executive |
51:49 |
| Other/SLP |
50:50 |
| Overall |
51:49 |
Work-Life Balance
We endorse the importance of maintaining a happy equilibrium between home and workplace. Opportunities are provided for staff to join social clubs and gyms with full or part reimbursement of expenses. Likewise, they are encouraged to participate in sports activities for recreation or at competitive levels. The DFCC Group basket ball team emerged champions at the Mercantile Services Basketball Association league tournament in November 2014.
DFCC Welfare and Recreation Club
The DFCC Sports Club handles all sports activities, while separate committees manage the rest of the leisure activities of employees. The DFCC Welfare Club organises the annual trip, sports day, Christmas party and the Avurudu Pola each year. Many of these events are attended by families of employees as well. The annual dinner dance is another important milestone in this context.
DFCC REDS
The REDS Committee for 2014/15 took office in July 2014. DFCC REDS was introduced a few years back with the intention of providing recently recruited young executives with avenues to network with their peers within DBB and integrate more effectively with the Bank and its culture. The year was one packed with a multitude of events such as the Big Quiz Night, a Street Party and Fun Rally to sustain the momentum of the newly joined Management Trainees, Executive Trainees and Assistant Relationship Managers. The calendar also included a CSR project at Sanhinda orphanage, Padukka where the REDs organised a day of activities for the children centered on team building and expression through art and music.
Phase two of the CSR initiative was completed at ‘Sambodhi Niwasaya’ Galle, an orphanage which is a home away from home to 60 differently abled children and adults. The REDS renovated the home’s computer lab and donated equipment as well.
The DFCC REDS during the year also launched their inaugural blood donation drive which witnessed a large participation of donors from among our staff.
Staff Wellness Initiatives
The nature of our business does not pose significant health and safety issues to employees. Nevertheless, we conducted several wellness initiatives through regular e-flyers on relevant topics and by arranging a series of class room and activity based workshop on subjects such as nutrition, exercise and mental wellbeing. A programme on self defence was also organised for our female employees as well as their female children.
