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When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in early 2020, the global banking industry was already undergoing a metamorphosis. The branch footprint had shrunk by about 20 percent in the United States and 60 percent in Nordic countries over the previous decade. This was primarily due to the fact that consumer needs were rapidly changing as a result of their increased dependence on online banking services. To circumvent this, banks digitized their front ends while also establishing next-generation technologies in the middle and back offices to help save money and provide better customer services. Additionally, banks have had to use more innovative methods to deploy talent dynamically and build future work forces, such as reskilling (training an employee for a new job), upskilling (training an employee on additional skills in an existing job), and redeployment (assigning an employee to a new task). According to McKinsey research, redeployment with effective reskilling is 20 percent more cost-effective than "hiring and firing" because it reduces the number of new hires and layoffs required, underscoring the importance of Training and Development (T&D), which encompass reskilling, upskilling, and redeployment, to effectively manage human resource especially at the time of adversity. V.S. Rao defines training as 'a short-term activity in which managerial and non-managerial personnel learn the technical knowledge and skills for a definite purpose. Development is a long-term activity where managerial personnel learn the theoretical and conceptual knowledge for general purpose. IBM (International Business Machines) defines T&D as educational activities within an organization that aim to improve an individual's or groups job performance. These programs typically involve increasing a worker's knowledge and skill sets, as well as instilling greater motivation to improve job performance. A more exhaustive definition of development that further distinguishes from its counterpart 'training' is that while the former refers to employee training in operational, technical, and allied areas, the latter refers to developing an employee in management principles and techniques, administration, organization, and allied areas.

A History of Training and Development in Indian Banks

T&D in Indian banks can be traced back to the mid-1970s, when banks essentially began implementing T&D programs for their employees. Prior to this, the establishment of the Banker's Training College (BTC) in 1954 marked the beginning of an institutionalized system of banking training in India. The Imperial Bank of India (State Bank of India) also established three schools to train probationary officers in Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras around the same time. However, until early 1960 (Phase I of Indian banking sector development), the focus of the training curriculum was on hardcore banking principles and techniques, with the target group being entry-level officers and branch managers. Nationalization of banks in 1969 (Phase II of Indian banking sector development) ushered in the concept of mass banking, which was followed by a phenomenal expansion of branches, number of employees, and portfolio diversification, among other things. The National Institute of Bank Management (NIBM) was founded in 1969 as the country's premier training, research, and consulting organization. As a result, NIBM initiated a series of activities to develop new training programs and train bank trainers on various aspects of bank management. The NIBM was directed to prioritize research on various aspects of banking and bank management. In addition to NIBM, there are two other apex level training institutions: the Bankers Training College (BTC) and the College of Agricultural Banking (CAB). These two institutions are expected to provide functional training programs as opposed to NIBM, which primarily focuses on banking management. In addition to these industry-level institutions, there are over 300 individual bank-level training colleges and training centers. Overall, in the initial stage, the emphasis was on training to assist employees in developing the technical skills required to perform their jobs more effectively. T&D began to focus on more general topics, such as customer service and team building, in the 1980s.

On the other hand, the Phase III of Indian banking sector development is essentially the banking sector reforms phase, which began in 1991 and continues to thrive today. In the 1990s and 2000s, the emphasis of T&D shifted to professional development, with employees encouraged to obtain additional qualifications and certifications to help them stay ahead in the banking industry. The implementation of banking regulations in the mid-2000s also resulted in a greater emphasis on risk management and compliance.

Scope of the Study

Since the banking industry is constantly changing, T&D are critical to ensuring that employees are up to date on the latest trends and technologies. A well-designed T&D program ensures that employees can improve their skills and knowledge to remain competitive in the banking industry. T&D in banking can take many forms, including online courses, workshops, and seminars. Training can also include problem solving, communication skills, customer service, and leadership. Professional development activities, such as learning new software and utilizing available resources, should also be emphasized in development activities. Furthermore, banks should be proactive in updating their T&D strategies to make sure that employees can meet the changing demands of the banking sector. Overall, banking T&D are critical for helping employees stay competitive and for banks to ensure that their employees can keep up with the changing needs of the banking industry. Banks must ensure that their employees have the necessary skills and knowledge to remain competitive and to meet the needs of their customers by diligently investing in T&D.

To Evaluate the Importance of Training and Development in Commercial Banks

Banks in India are intensely focusing on T&D, and have established training centers, that use a variety of methods such as online courses, workshops, and seminars to train personnel. Banks are also investing in technology to help employees stay current on trends and technologies. Furthermore, to remain competitive in the banking industry, banks encourage their employees, to develop professional skills such as problem solving and leadership. Future study will include the establishment of a more refined T&D module by the cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence solutions and other data-driven technologies like chat bot etc.

An Overview on Banking Training Institutions in India

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has six training facilities. The Reserve Bank directly controls three of them: the College of Agricultural Banking (CAB), the Bankers Training College (BTC), and the Reserve Bank of India Staff College (RBSC). Others, such as the National Institute for Bank Management (NIBM), the Indira Gandhi Institute for Development Research (IGIDR), and the Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (JDRBT), are autonomous. However, they are not the only major banks training institutions in the country. Other institutions include the North Eastern Institute of Bank Management (NIEBIM), the Indian Institute of Bankers (JIB), and SBI training centers. CAB was founded to cater agricultural and rural banking training. The college has further expanded to include new fields like non-banking finance, human resource management, and information technology. Currently, the college provides faculty support for workshops held by the RBI, as well as offsite programs for state-level financial institutions. Since the establishment of BTC by RBI in 1954, the college has been working diligently to provide high-quality professional training to employees of Indian commercial and development banks, foreign banks in India, the RBI, and certain government cadres. Interestingly, participants from Asia and Africa are also welcomed at the college. Furthermore, by serving as a forum for interaction between top officials of the RBI and commercial banks/financial institutions, the college facilitates the formulation/implementation of banking policies. In contrast, the RBSC is primarily concerned with the T&D of RBI officers. The college intends to play a major role in preparing officers to face the challenges of new tasks and the introduction of new technologies. This has gained significance in the context of the large number of early retirements under the Optional Early Retirement Scheme (OERS). Importantly, the NIBM was established as part of the banking policy to serve as an apex institute of the banking system, to further initiate and coordinate all matters related to bank personnel training, including relevant research and consultancy in bank management problems. With the nationalization of 14 commercial banks in 1969, the institute devoted itself to push banking industry towards more professionalism, and essentially became the "think tank" for the banking industry. The IGIDR is a cutting-edge research institute established by the Reserve Bank of India to conduct multi-disciplinary research on development issues. The institute's goals and objectives are to promote and conduct research on development in key areas like economic, technological, social, political, and ecological aspects, using a multidisciplinary perspective; to develop insights into the development process and alternative policy options; and to disseminate the knowledge gained. On the other hand, established in 1983, NIEBM is supported by the RBI, NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development), and public sector banks such as SBI, UCO (United Commercial Bank) Bank, United Bank of India, Allahabad Bank, and Central Bank of India, Indian Bank, and IDBI (Industrial Development Bank of India). Interestingly, the institute was established to mainly help the development of banking and financial institutions in the Northeastern region. It oversees the T&D activities of the region's banking institutions. It also conducts banking-related research studies and surveys, together with consulting services. Similarly, IIB (Indian Institute of Bankers) was founded on April 30, 1928. It is India's premier banking educational institute, with 750,000 individual and corporate members on its rolls. It conducts various professional examinations for its members and encourages the study of various aspects of banking. Additionally, SBI, the country's largest public sector bank, has several personnel training establishments. One of them is the State Bank Staff College in Hyderabad, which specializes in functional training. State Bank Academy, founded in 1982 and located in Goregaun, specializes in the training of middle and senior management personnel. SB Institute for Information and Communication Management, Hyderabad, founded in 1987, specializes in technology planning and execution, and SB Institute for Rural Development, Hyderabad, founded in 1981, specializes in agriculture and allied activities. 

Taken together, employee T&D have received a lot of importance from experts and researchers all over the world due to their importance in directly increasing the profitability of organizations and the development of countries. T&D can help to create a positive work culture within the bank. Banks need to have motivated and engaged employees to be successful, and T&D can help to create this kind of work environment. By providing employees with the necessary skills and knowledge, employers can create a workplace where employees feel valued, respected, and supported. Most importantly, in India, the liberalization of the economy and the subsequent upheavals have created an unprecedented situation, necessitating creative responses, particularly in the T&D of employees in the banking sector. Thus, bank-training staff has become one of the most important issues for every small and large bank to focus on, despite the fact that it requires a significant amount of capital investment. However, the caveat is, prior to implementing T&D practices, every bank must identify its specific training requirements as it primarily deals with human assets. Once T&D needs are identified in key areas, experts/consultants should deliver them so that it can serve as an intrinsic value enhancement tool for employees, increasing bank productivity and profitability, together with retention of the employees, as T&D are directly related to their professional growth. Thus, the real challenge is determining what T&D will be considered strategically fit for the Indian banking system. Because T&D evolves based on context and relevance, a fixed set of T&D may not be ideal for long-term improvement of bank performance. This reemphasizes the significance of upskilling, reskilling, and redeployment in employees' T&D programs, given the dynamic nature of the company's needs, which primarily focus on temporal and spatial extrinsic factors (customer and market-driven), in addition to intrinsic fundamental performance essentials of the employees (basic T&D), which do not change significantly over time. For example, the Indian banking sector is undergoing a paradigm shift in both cultural and operational practices due to the world's dramatic shift in client behavior. Following the right strategic move that is compatible with the post-pandemic stakeholders' objectives, it is critical to prepare employees for the successful implementation of the new rule. Only T&D programs can bridge this gap in any organization. This is the most appropriate time for Indian banks to redesign their operational and structural procedures—a new strategic frontier to meet the new economic challenges. Only new perspectives in existing T&D can navigate the situation.

To Examine Possible Steps Relating to Training and Development Taken by the Commercial Banks to Achieve Competitive Advantage

Customer requirements are constantly changing. To meet these demands, banks must make the customer experience the starting point for any process design. Thus, effective T&D should be based on the customers' dynamic needs. As per McKinsey, 75 to 80 percent of transaction operations (such as general accounting operations and payment processing), and up to 40 percent of more strategic activities (such as financial controlling and reporting, financial planning and analysis, and treasury) can be automated. This essentially means that operations personnel will be assigned a wide range of tasks and will thus require a diverse range of skill sets. Instead of processing transactions or compiling data, they will use technology to advise clients on the best financial options and products, to solve creative problems, and to develop new products and services to improve the customer experience. For example, apart from one-size-fits-all standardized products and services, the updated T&D module must include details of unique, personalized products and services for customers. Therefore, existing employees must participate in new T&D sessions to prepare for the new challenges. It is possible that a bank launching a new credit card in which the card member gets to define the rewards points they can earn—for example, 20 percent of rewards go to an airline, 20 percent as cash back, and 30 percent at a specific retailer, depending on customers’ priorities. In a different context, perhaps a bank will decide to offer loans in which customers can specify their repayment schedule and due dates. To achieve this, operations will use their knowledge of bank processes and systems to create customized products, which will then be managed and delivered using technology, thereby necessitating the demand for internally trained personnel, to harness the power of automation, and new technologies that empower the customer. By automating these and other processes, human bias in decision-making will be significantly reduced. This will allow operations employees to devote more time to assisting customers with complex, large, or sensitive issues that cannot be resolved through automation, together with the authority to make decisions (leadership) to quickly resolve customer problems. The banking industry is also rapidly incorporating new technologies, from artificial intelligence and machine learning to cloud computing and block chain. As a result, banks must ensure that their employees are properly trained in these technologies, so they can use and implement them effectively. Banks should also spend in training that teaches staff members how to recognize and manage cyber dangers and keep up with the most recent security protocols. AI and advanced analytics could also help with dispute resolution. Customers can contact their bank at any time via the Internet, mobile, or email and receive quick, real-time decisions. On the back end, systems would perform near-instant data evaluation about the dispute, surveying the customer's history with the bank and leveraging historical dispute patterns to resolve the issue.  Another important area of training is the use of data. Banks should invest in training programs that focus on teaching employees how to collect, analyze, and use data to inform their decision-making. This way, banks can better identify areas of opportunity and assess customer needs. Also, development programs must include key aspects of the bank management such as analytic-driven proactive management. The use of predictive analytics can dramatically improve the management of operations in several ways. It enables operations leaders to make more precise and accurate predictions. Instead of using simple arithmetic with a limited number of variables to predict demand, demand predictions for specific products and services can be made using granular profiles of customer segments and customer behavior with dozens or hundreds of variables. Banks can create detailed profiles from a variety of data sets, including online interactions, geographic information from cell phone usage, and aggregated payment behavior, and then use analytics to predict the needs and desires of their customers—down to the level of a single individual in some cases.

Additionally, banks must implement soft skills training programs to ensure that their employees have the skills and knowledge required to provide excellent customer service. With a large number of customers and complex transactions, it is critical that bank employees are properly trained to handle any situation that may arise. Soft skills training programs equip employees with the communication, problem-solving, and time-management skills needed to effectively address customer inquiries and resolve conflicts. Furthermore, such programs allow banks to foster a positive working environment while also providing employees with the tools and knowledge they need to navigate difficult conversations. Soft skills training programs enable banks to provide a better customer experience while also improving overall performance. Soft skills, such as communication and problem solving, are essential for the success of any financial institution. Banks should focus on teaching employees how to collaborate effectively, how to negotiate, and how to manage difficult situations. Overall, banks must ensure that their employees are equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to help the bank succeed. By investing in proper T&D programs, banks can better equip their employees to help improve their performance and increase customer satisfaction. For example, the Internet of Things (IoT) can greatly improve the performance of banks. IoT is a network of connected devices, sensors, and computing systems that allow data to be shared and acted upon in real-time. Banks have begun to take advantage of this technology in a variety of ways, from improving customer service to improving operational efficiency. One way that banks can use IoT to improve performance is by leveraging the data generated by connected devices. Another way that banks can use IoT to improve performance is by using connected devices to deliver better customer service. For example, banks can use sensors to track customer activity and provide personalized services, such as tailored offers or recommendations. Banks can also use connected devices to monitor customers’ accounts in real-time and quickly address any fraudulent activity. Additionally, banks can use IoT to improve operational efficiency. Connected devices can be used to automate mundane tasks and reduce manual labor. This can free up employees’ time and help them focus on tasks that require more expertise and strategic thinking, necessitating its [IoT] inclusion in the employee-T&D programs. Also, the use of AI can help bank employees to improve their performance. By leveraging AI-enabled analytics and automating mundane tasks, bank can better prepare the employees with the tools and knowledge to better serve their customers and maximize efficiency.

Taken together, innovative technology-driven training programs, aligned strategically to company's overall missions, will continue to help employees to improve their performance to better serve the financial institutions in the future. Furthermore, increasing automation in banks will eliminate siloes for a simpler organization, which means that traditional organizational trinity: front offices (branches), middle offices (call centers), and back offices (operations) will be evolved in terms of completely eliminating the need of call centers as a result of large-scale automation due to AI bots, together with branches will be scaled down in number and transformed in function. Moreover, employees in operations in a decade from now, will need to be able to code, develop products, and understand data, but they will also need to be able to manage exceptions and deal with complex customer problems. Therefore, T&D programs in banks must design and incorporate a new talent model, which will aid in the development of T&D modules while considering newer aspects to bring high levels of satisfaction in the overall performance of the banks. Overall, the bank T&D programs should include topics such as customer service, risk management, compliance and ethics, financial planning, accounting, information technology, and legal and regulatory issues apart from developing soft skills like communication, problem solving, and decision making.

To summarize, the future of employee training in the banking industry is of utmost importance that deserves careful consideration. As banks become increasingly sophisticated and complex, employees must be trained in ways that go beyond merely preparing them for the job. Training must focus on providing employees with the necessary skills to help the bank succeed and increase its performance. Providing personnel with the necessary training to interact with consumers is one of the main areas where banks can improve. It is important to train bank staff on how to comprehend customer needs and deliver excellent customer care. The goal of training should be to equip employees with the knowledge and skills needed to identify client issues and provide workable solutions. T&D further helps employees stay up-to-date on industry trends, understand their roles, and develop the skills and knowledge needed to provide the best customer service.

The present review paper is based on a thorough and careful review of relevant published literature on the activities of commercial banks with special emphasis to training and development programs in Indian banks. The research journals, trade magazines, annual reports of banks, and the Internet are used to gather information on this narrative review. Also, priliminary data from questionarrie on T&D are incorporated when needed.

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