share on
A new Better U Campus that will house all training & development under one roof; a programme preparing employees for retirement or re-employment with the Bank, and more.
UOB has shared that it will be progressively rolling out more comprehensive support for its employees across all career stages — from start-of-career opportunities, to benefits extending beyond retirements.
As announced at the Bank's annual employee festival, Better U, on Thursday (5 October 2023), this includes:
- an industry-first one-year work programme partnering Singapore’s five polytechnics and three Institute of Technical Education (ITE) colleges to hone the talents of their students;
- a physical UOB Better U Campus housed in the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) for employees to upskill and reskill, and
- a transition programme to prepare employees near retirement age for life after work.
More details on the programmes
Partnerships with polytechnics and ITEs
To give prospective graduates deeper insights into life at UOB, the Bank is partnering all five local polytechnics and three ITE colleges to launch the U Unleash Programme (UUP). Under this partnership, final-year polytechnic and ITE students from hospitality, business, and information communications technology schools will be given the opportunity to participate in a year-long internship with UOB.
These students can be attached to the Bank's business units including UOB Private Bank, Group Commercial Banking, Group Technology and Operations, and Group Channels and Digitalisation, in roles such as assistant relationship managers and credit analysts.
The Bank shared that as part of the programme, students may also get a chance to work in two different business functions during their internship, to gain a multi-faceted perspective of the Bank's operations. Additionally, the students will undergo training courses to equip them with knowledge and skills relevant to the banking industry.
Upon graduation from the UUP, participants who have performed well will be offered a full-time position with UOB. Should they wish to further their education, the Bank will also provide sponsorships for eligible participants to further their education.
The UUP targets to reach 500 students over three years.
The new UOB Better U Campus
Keeping in mind that reskilling and upskilling remain top-of-mind concerns for employees in Singapore, and a "burgeoning demand" for formal training spaces, UOB has partnered with SIM to launch the UOB Better U Campus which will see the consolidation of all UOB’s training and development programmes under one roof.
Situated at SIM’s Management House, the Campus spans 10,500 sqft and comprises six training rooms along with one system training space designed to cater to the needs of the Bank.
The UOB Better U Campus will host its first training session by Q1 2024. UOB dded that it will also deepen and enrich its training programmes which focus on long-term human capital development, via a series of strategic partnerships with SIM.
Launch of Supporting Ur Retirement and Future
Acknowledging that 'young seniors' — a term in Singapore used to describe those in their 50s and early 60s — now face the pressures of caregiving duties while they approach retirement age, UOB will be introducing SURF (Supporting Ur Retirement and Future), a programme that aims to "adequately prepare employees for retirement or re-employment with the Bank, assuring them that the Bank will ride the wave of changes with them."
The programme will include workshops spanning two and a half days, focusing on strengthening employees' mental, physical, and financial preparedness. Modules available include developing health plans based on employees’ unique physical profile, cognitive enhancement strategies to help sharpen minds, and the importance of estate planning as well as how to go about it.
In addition, UOB will extend medical insurance coverage to eligible retiring staff for six months after their retirement date, to facilitate a seamless transition into the next stage of their lives. Retired employees will also continue to receive prevailing staff privileges such as preferential deposit interest rates and credit card annual fee waivers.
All permanent employees aged 61 and above with at least five years of continuous service will be automatically enrolled into SURF, and can tap into its privileges from next year.
Commenting on the above programmes, Dean Tong, Head, Group Human Resources, UOB, said: "These initiatives set a new benchmark for the industry in terms of employee training and welfare. They ensure that UOB employees are supported and enabled at every stage of their careers in a constantly evolving environment, whether they are a prospective hire, a mid-career professional looking to upskill or a veteran preparing for retirement."
Photo: Shutterstock (Saranya Phu Akat)
share on
