Firmly rooted in Hong Kong for over a century, Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited (¡§BOCHK¡¨) is a leading commercial bank and one of the three note-issuing banks in the city. Widely recognised for its customer-centric approach and corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts, BOCHK is committed to creating impressive customer experience through innovative technology while fulfilling its CSR promises by nurturing talent and promoting economic, social and environmental sustainability.

BOCHK has garnered the ¡§Employer of Choice Award¡¨, together with ¡§Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Award¡¨ and ¡§Corporate Sustainability Award¡¨ this year. Carman Cheung, Deputy General Manager of Human Resources Department at BOCHK, expressed her pride in these achievements. ¡§This recognition not only highlights our outstanding performance in human resources management but also reflects our dedicated efforts to cultivate a remarkable workplace filled with abundant opportunities for employee development.¡¨

Be Socially Responsible: Cultivating the Younger Generation

BOCHK regards talent as its valuable asset and adopts a people-centric approach. It has continuously optimised its human resources development strategy over the years, providing employees with extensive training resources, a fair promotion mechanism and diverse career pathways. This enables every employee to maximise their potential for career growth. ¡§We strongly believe that the younger generation is the impetus to future development. Therefore, we are dedicated to nurturing young talent who are interested in joining the banking sector, and reserving future talent for Hong Kong¡¦s financial industry,¡¨ says Carman.

The bank launches its ¡§Management Trainee Programme¡¨ aimed at nurturing high-caliber individuals to become future leaders. The programme provides classroom training, on-the-job training, departmental rotations as well as cross institutional rotation opportunities in the Chinese mainland and Southeast Asia. Additionally, the bank has participated in the ¡§Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Scheme¡¨ launched by the Labour Department and has enrolled nearly 100 trainees over the past three years to help them gain an in-depth understanding of the sector¡¦s operations in Greater Bay Area, broaden their horizons and build professional networks. The bank also supports several youth internship programmes, offering over 100 positions to university students annually.

¡§To promote sustainability, we introduced the ¡¥Green X Gen Z¡¦ Internship Programme last year, which explores topics including Green Finance, Green Operations, Green Governance, Technology Innovation, Social Development and Risk Management. The programme aims to raise ESG awareness among the younger generation and foster their passion for sustainable development in the related areas,¡¨ she continues.

Build a Talent Pool: Prioritising High-Caliber Talent Development

BOCHK is dedicated to recruiting diverse talent from various fields and backgrounds both locally and globally, and in the meanwhile, identifying high potential talent internally to include in its ¡§Talent Pool¡¨ for targeted development. ¡§Every year, we set clear goals for talent reserves and development, strengthening our development efforts to continuously enhance the professional skills and qualities of our talent. When job vacancies arise, priority will be given to those in the ¡¥Talent Pool¡¦, creating a win-win situation for employee and the group¡¦s development,¡¨ Carman explains.

At BOCHK, employees are given access to flexible learning opportunities, including various targeted physical courses, seminars, and workshops designed to support career growth, complemented by the one-stop online training platform ¡§MyLearning¡¨. Subsidies are provided to enhance employees¡¦ professional performance and encourage their independent and lifelong learning. The bank also promotes exchange and rotation across different departments, entities and regions, to help employees improve their competencies, accumulate experience, and better prepare for career development.

In addition, the bank demonstrates care for employee well-being through a robust communication mechanism. ¡§We conduct ¡¥Employee Opinion Survey¡¦ annually and provide open platforms such as employee hotline for staff to voice their opinions, which we address with appropriate actions. We offer benefits and paid leave that exceed statutory requirements, including birthday leave and marriage leave etc. Last year, maternity and paternity leave had been extended to 20 weeks and 50 days respectively, and a monthly care leave had been newly added. Moreover, we hold large-scale carnivals and family activities regularly to promote work-life balance, ensuring our employees feel valued and cared,¡¨ she adds.

¡§Looking ahead, we¡¦ll continue to uphold the ¡¥people-oriented¡¦ concept and optimise our talent strategy to build a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace. As an employer of choice, we¡¦re committed to create greater value for society,¡¨ Carman concludes.