Saudi Hollandi Bank inaugurates the SHB Academy

This new training facility, which aims to enhance the banking skills of SHB employees, offers a wide range of training and development programmes. It will be used by SHB staff from all over the Kingdom and will complement the bank's existing training facility in Jeddah.

"The launch of a fully-integrated training academy is part of the bank's ongoing efforts to enhance the performance and skills of our employees by providing them with a world-class environment for learning"

General Manager, Human Resources at SHB Saad Al Arfaj said at the opening ceremony on.... The ceremony was attended by Dr. Bernd van Linder, SHB's MD, senior executives from the bank and a number of Saudi university graduates currently undergoing training.

The academy, Mr. Al Arfaj said, will provide long-term training programmes as well as workshops and specialised courses on different aspects of banking. In addition, the academy will continue to implement various programmes to train recent graduates from Saudi universities who have joined SHB.

Among these programmes is the "Management Trainee Programme" (MTP) in which the bank provides a select group of high caliber young graduates with training in order to eventually equip them to become executive level SHB employees. In addition to providing the bank with qualified staff, these training initiatives aim to meet the growing demand for qualified young Saudis who are well-versed in different aspects of banking.

According to Mr. Al Arfaj the academy's training programme timetable for 2010 is already complete and teams have been formed to continue to develop its academic and training curricula. These teams include senior SHB staff in addition to full and part-time trainers, Al Arfaj said, noting that trainers will on occasion also be invited from abroad to ensure that all trainees at the academy receive the best possible training.

The launch of the SHB Academy will help the bank to attract Saudi graduates and enhance their ability in the future to undertake key management roles within the bank.