Continuous learning ‘calls upon us to be curious and ambitious’ – BOV Chairperson Gordon Cordina

The act of learning, and the possibility to pass on knowledge to others, enriching life and career experiences, was emphasised by Bank of Valletta (BOV) Chairperson Gordon Cordina during a speech he delivered at the bank’s graduation ceremony dedicated to its employees who completed one or more of the various qualifications it offers through its Learning & Development Centre.

The event, which was the first to be held since the COVID-19 pandemic, saw the successes of around 300 BOV employees who completed their studies between 2020 and 2022 celebrated. All awards offered are recognised by the Malta Further & Higher Education Authority and are qualified under the Maltese Qualified Framework in MQF levels five and six.

During his speech, Dr Cordina highlighted how learning “calls upon us to be curious and ambitious, striving to learn something new every day”.

“Secondly, we need to be competent, using the best possible learning and coaching resources and approaches,” he explained, before adding that “we need to approach learning with humility, be grateful for opportunities to improve ourselves and be generous in sharing our knowledge with colleagues”.

Tania Camilleri, who heads the BOV Learning & Development Centre, explained that the qualifications range from technical to leadership and personal development. She added that the Award in Investments, Award in Credit for Business Finance, and Award in Credit for Retail Banking are programmes that “meet the technical exigencies of the business”, while the Award in Management & Leadership, Award in Personal Development, and Award in Train the Trainer “cater for the professional and personal development”.

BOV revealed that among the graduates who chose to further their studies over the past three years, there is a strong female presence. “In fact, 71 per cent of BOV employees who graduated were females. This is even higher than the 59.5 per cent of female population among the BOV workforce,” it stated.

BOV CEO Kenneth Farrugia said he was “delighted” to see over 300 employees “pursuing their career ambitions by strengthening their knowledge, skills, and capabilities” through the bank’s Training Academy.

“The bank is firmly committed to develop and nurture the talent of its employees by providing them with a suite of training programmes to service the requirements of the business and its customers in the most professional manner,” Mr Farrugia added.

While praising the commitment and drive of the employees present for the event, he also announced that BOV will continue to incentivise further education and development amongst its people by offering “grants related to further studies with external educational institutions”. Such incentives will also cover employees that have applied for external training programmes during this financial year that also complement various existing benefits, including study loans and study leave. The bank will announce further details about this shortly.

Dr Camilleri said that due to the ever-evolving financial services industry, training methodologies need to be constantly updated. She mentioned that BOV adopted a 70-20-10 model in a number of courses this year, recognising that 70 per cent of knowledge is gained through work experience, 20 per cent through mentoring and coaching, and “only 10 per cent” through formal learning. Such an approach “ensures that the participants retain a higher percentage of knowledge following the classroom training”.

“Ultimately, the goal of the bank’s Learning & Development function is simple,” she said, before adding that it aims to “develop the talents and grow the competencies” of its people. “This is a direct investment in them and in the quality of service offered to our customers,” Dr Camilleri concluded.