The Branch Manager for the Coast Region coordinates with the Head of Branches to implement and execute bank policy and procedures regarding overall branch operations. This role is crucial for driving business development within the branch market to meet or exceed growth goals, managing, coaching, and disciplining staff to ensure proper branch sales and customer service, and ensuring strict adherence to all internal and external policies and procedures.
Key Responsibilities
1. Branch Strategic Input and Planning:
- Contributes to the Sidian Bank Retail Operational plan by preparing and implementing a branch business plan focused on performance and growth objectives.
- Provides clear direction to the branch based on market analysis of local consumer trends and competitor offerings.
- Prepares the branch budget, monitors costs, and reports on performance against budget variations.
- Formulates and implements strategic initiatives to increase new business and existing client share of wallet.
- Ensures growth in Net Interest Income (NII) by increasing fees, commissions, optimizing OPEX, and managing cash holding costs.
2. Business Growth & Development:
- Holds full responsibility for all product lines, sales, and business development for the entire branch.
- Responsible for growing the Branch’s Business portfolio (Assets and Liabilities), ensuring income, quality, and portfolio growth targets are achieved.
- Drives client recruitment, increased transactional income, cross-selling of products, and Customer Relationship Management.
- Develops and implements a branch turnaround strategy to ensure profitability.
- Develops a focused relationship management system to increase the flow of business and generate deposits, lending, and revenues.
- Ensures full compliance with the Bank’s Credit Policy, CBK guidelines, and appropriate provisions of the Banking Act regarding lending.
- Ensures compliance with the Environmental Social Management (ESM) policy.
3. Marketing & Brand Management:
- Embeds strategic marketing to develop competitive advantage and leverages the bank's capabilities to drive value.
- In conjunction with business heads, conducts product review and development based on market feedback.
- Builds the Sidian Bank Brand to ensure the bank is top of mind as an enterprise bank.
- Establishes relationships with key clients or business influencers in the local area.
4. Relationship Management & Customer Experience:
- Key driver for customer satisfaction and building a base of promoters through positive customer experience and advocacy.
- Creates a differentiated customer experience design and optimizes customer interactions.
- Links sales and service and embeds a customer service culture.
- Achieves set customer satisfaction scores (CSAT, CES) and Net Promoter Score (NPS).
- Ensures complaint handling and coordinates initiatives to gather customer feedback.
5. Branch Operations:
- Ensures the branch is opened and closed on time as per CBK requirements.
- Ensures operations meet legislative and Sidian Bank policy requirements, monitoring systems and workflows.
- Responsible for all security procedures (opening procedures, camera surveillance, robbery, and fire drills).
- Ensures adequate cash levels and proper training of staff in KYC and AML/CFT guidelines.
- Monitors branch business performance and ensures accurate records are maintained.
6. Leadership & People Management:
- Has ultimate responsibility for the Human Resource Management of branch staff, consulting with HR on policy interpretation.
- Sets performance objectives and measures of success for direct reports, providing regular feedback and conducting appraisals.
- Responsible for identifying and developing career path opportunities for staff.
- Conducts regular staff meetings and ensures adherence to the dress code, code of conduct, and HR policies.
- Responsible for mentoring and coaching the retail team to enhance motivation and improve performance.
- Ensures proper succession planning, including maintaining an effective leave program and in-house training schedule.
7. Risk & Compliance:
- Ensures implementation and compliance with operational policies and procedures, maintaining a culture that emphasizes internal control.
- Ensures compliance with agreed limits of authority and levels of access to systems and information.
- Ensures all customers meet minimum criteria and are screened adequately against the Banks AML/CFT/CPF guidelines, escalating suspicious accounts immediately to the MLRO.
- Identifies major risks affecting the branch and implements necessary steps to measure, monitor, and control risks.
- Identifies and manages high-risk accounts such as Politically Exposed Persons (PEP).
- Examines bank documents and records to ensure compliance with established policies and authority limits.
Decision Making Authority
The role is empowered to make managerial decisions, including approval on lending discretion (as per policy), approval of new accounts, costs within set budgets, resource allocation, and staff leave approval.
Qualifications and Experience
Academic Background:
- University degree or above in a relevant business discipline (e.g., business administration or finance).
- A Master’s degree will be an added advantage.
Work Experience:
- Minimum 8 years’ working experience in a Banking environment, with sound exposure to Branch Operations, Credit Management, and Business development.
- 4 years of this experience should be at a management role.
Professional Certification:
- Diploma in Banking – AKIB (added advantage).
Skills & Competencies:
- Sound knowledge of Retail Banking/SME products, services, and processes.
- Profound understanding of the retail market, key competitors, and competitive edges.
- Thorough understanding of the CBK regulatory framework.
- Strong leadership, marketing, sales, and management skills.
- Highly effective communicator with excellent interpersonal and motivational skills.
- Solid performance management and motivational skills.
- Excellent relationship building and stakeholder management skills.
- Strong managerial, planning, analytical, decision-making, lateral thinking, and project management skills.
