‘NFresher’ internship program for school leavers from Nations Trust Bank

Wednesday, 29 January 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Nations Trust Bank launched the first ever ‘NFresher’ program with the objective of attracting school leavers to join the banking industry in order to prepare a young and knowledgeable workforce for tomorrow. Eighteen students who completed their Advance Levels were offered the opportunity to spend their time fruitfully while awaiting their exam results, working as team members at Nations Trust Bank branches, thus gaining valuable work experience. This initiative has resulted in integrating their secondary education with professional knowledge and skills gained through practical on the job work experience in the banking industry.

The NFreshers were trained by the Nations Trust Bank Learning & Development team in basic banking products with special emphasis on digital channels such as Mobile, Internet Banking and ATMs, which they in turn promoted to customers in the branches. The interns were also given outbound training and guidance on topics such as ‘Personal Branding and Personal Goals, Outbound’ – where areas such as team work, out of comfort zone, innovation and service mindset creation together with social service projects with hands on involvement were covered. This batch was also trained on ‘Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Effective People’. Mentors The 18 school leavers will also be given an opportunity to apply for vacancies in the bank in the future based on their qualifications and performance during the training period. Mentors were appointed for each of them, and this mentorship throughout their training further helped these NFreshers to explore career opportunities, set life’s goals, develop contacts and identify resources. NFreshers who successfully completed the program were awarded a certificate endorsing their training period at Nations Trust Bank. The NFresher program initiated by Nations Trust Bank has improved their knowledge required to get into employment and to perform in a job and enhance the employability skills of the school leavers. Through this initiative Nations Trust Bank also supports the local community by giving school leavers a stepping stone towards a promising career in the banking industry. This will be an on-going program at Nations Trust Bank, which will be rolled out across the country with the successful completion of this first internship program. Retail and SME Banking DGM Keshini Jayawardena, who stressed the importance of youth receiving work-related experience stated, “With this program we seek to achieve many goals. Most importantly we provide an opportunity for young people from all over the country to experience working life, new technologies, and to get a taste for Banking as a career. We continue the education process for these children while they are waiting for their exams results. Whether they choose a career with us or in banking or not, they take with them a certificate which will build their CV and add to their employability. To educate and train young people well is a fundamental necessity for the individual, the community they live in and for the country’s long term future. We are proud to announce the NFresher program: this is not just a CSR project but a value addition to the participants, the bank and the communities we serve.” Commenting on the internship, NFreshers expressed the following views; “It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to be trained in a fast growing bank and gain on the job training for the first time in my life.” (Yoshitha Gunatilake – NFresher at Pettah Branch) “It helped us align our learning with hands on practice, in a friendly environment.” (Maneesha Jayathilaka – NFresher at Kaduruwela Branch) Nations Trust Bank PLC is one of the fastest growing banks in Sri Lanka today. Its market positioning of being the benchmark of customer convenience is ably supported by a host of financial products and services that is offered to a wide customer segment. The bank now operates 72 branches, an ATM network of 101 locations and is the sole issuer and acquirer for American Express Cards in Sri Lanka.