A workforce with the right skills and agility are key to a successful digital transformation.
This was the view of Michelle Rubio, the Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resource Officer of Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) during the 10th E-TalkTales organized by UnionBank for members of the medica.
During the webinar, Rubio said she attributed the bank’s success to its people-centric digital journey, which helped not only its employees but also external stakeholders in line with their goal of enabling inclusive prosperity in the country.
“For digital transformation to succeed, organizations must focus more on equipping their workforce with the right skills and helping them become more agile, as this can give them more mileage than just investing in the latest software and equipment,” Rubio said.
“Contrary to popular belief, digital transformation is less about technology and more about people. You can pretty much buy any technology but our ability to adapt to an even more digital future depends on developing the next generation of skills, closing the gap between talent supply and demand, and future-proofing your own and others’ potential,” she added.
Rubio also emphasized the importance of upskilling employees because of the possibility of skill sets becoming obsolete in a few years with the rapid advance of technology. She cited a recent study conducted by top advisory firm Deloitte, where it said many skills are expected to become obsolete in five years and may even continue to shrink as the world becomes increasingly more digital.
“UnionBank continuously upskills employees true to its commitment of growing and developing its talents and the talent community,” Rubio said. “Holding on to its purpose of co-creating innovations for a better world, UnionBank was able to forge a strategy that could accelerate talent at any point of interaction with the Bank. This is called People Tech: people at the core, technology at the fore. Aligned to the Bank’s purpose of co-creating innovations for a better world, UnionBank focused on people to make the transformation happen.”
“People Tech advocates digital delivery to build capabilities and bring it to hyperspeed, allowing accelerated talent development and capability building inside and outside the organization,” Rubio further averred.
In line with its People Tech advocacy, UnionBank has been implementing various programs aimed at equipping people with the necessary skills for them to thrive in the digital workplace. One of these programs is the Xcellerator series that offers accessible education not only to UnionBank employees, but also to anyone outside the Bank who wishes to learn more about topics that are relevant in the digital world. Since introducing the Xcellerator series, UnionBank has helped thousands of learners become more knowledgeable in different topics related to digitization, including blockchain, application programming interface, project management, digital marketing, data privacy, coding, and fintech, among others.
For her part, Special Projects Head for UnionBank’s Fintech Group and Xcellerator Program Lead, Nix Syjuco, said that through Xcellerator, they advocated digital delivery through capability building, so that innovations may happen, ensuring no one gets left behind. “We ‘tech-up’ the Philippines by educating and mentoring our community members in emerging technologies, contributing to the higher purpose of co-creating innovations for a better world, possibly opening up opportunities for Filipino tech talents.”
Also highlighted during the event were the bank’s other initiatives that are aligned with the People Tech advocacy that have benefitted various external stakeholders especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include the GoBeyond Communities initiative, which encourages UnionBank employees to join community-centric activities that are in line with their personal advocacies; the HEROES 2021 initiative in partnership with Thames International School that aims to train educators on how to conduct classes online; and Climathon Online Ideation, which encourages people to help in the creation of solutions that address the most pressing issues today.
Speaking about the Bank’s efforts to help enable inclusive prosperity in the country, UnionBank Vice President for Sustainability Dave Devilles said that the goal is to continuously change the way people see technology, and help them realize its potential to create lasting positive impact and how it can be used for the greater good.
“It’s really about changing the mindset and moving the behavior, and we have witnessed how UnionBank has evolved from our desire to build capabilities internally, to share these, and to help communities and ultimately our country,” Devilles said.