Over the past few years in particular the Islamic Banking industry has witnessed a phenomenal growth with numerous new players entering the market for the first time. S.E. Asia and The Gulf continue to flourish and the upsurge of interest in Europe, North America and Australasia, has contributed to the current shortage of experienced and trained professionals available today.
What action can be taken by the market to ensure a rapid increase in the supply of good quality resource?
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The Islamic banking and finance industry has grown significantly and one of the major challenges it faces today is in developing, attracting and retaining seasoned, talented and experienced professionals. Although Malaysia and Bahrain are well positioned to evolve as Islamic banking and finance centres of excellence, certain market and industry led initiatives are critical to standardize the core knowledge base, expand the existing finite pool of human capital and to nurture and develop practitioners and skilled professionals. The industry needs to establish a formal framework for education and relevant qualifications. It should license accredited institutions worldwide who can test professional competency levels which young talent can aspire towards. Concurrently, the resources dedicated to the training and development of such industry professionals needs to be upgraded and properly equipped to deal with their fast growing educational needs and emerging specialist skills set of such practitioners. In addition, the deployment of the resources of the Knowledge City in Dubai, creation of an Internet academy of Islamic banking and finance, other e-commerce initiatives, relevant University degree and customized Masters courses/modules at major international establishments and ongoing formal certification programs are required to establish and enhance more effective knowledge benchmarks. Industry job descriptions and remuneration levels of course need to stipulate and recognize such professional qualifications. Funding sources for such important initiatives may include state aid, educational grants, donations, industry member levies and endowments from other private sector members, educational contributions and soft loans from various agencies including regional Development Finance Institutions, industry associations and regulatory bodies.
SOHAIL JAFFER
II don’t think that there are any (other) steps that can be taken sufficiently quickly to meet the skill shortage head on. Different institutions have training programmes that train up a few (usually) graduate entry level applicants to meet their own needs and there are of course some external training courses from such as the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) in Bahrain and IIBI in London which develop skills but it seems to me that the rise in skilled personnel in Islamic Financial Services has started to come and will come increasingly by way of the migration from the conventional banks to Islamic Banks. This will also be assisted by the significant number of banks in the GCC and in Asia that are changing from conventional to Islamic status. So, there will be a gradual ‘market solution’ to the problem; in the meantime the industry will have to cope and we will all have to work that little bit harder! DUNCAN SMITH Chief Executive Officer, Arab Banking Corporation
There are very positive signs that the availability of high quality, comprehensive training courses is increasing. Financial institutions, both Islamic and conventional, are realizing that, to take advantage of fast-growing Islamic financial product opportunities, an investment of both time and money needs to be made to ensure that key members of staff are properly developed. While attendance at one of the many Islamic conferences may appear to be part of the solution, the quality and subject matter of presentations is mixed at best, so these events are more useful for business development purposes than to serve as an efficient means of training. To a certain extent, the market itself will take care of the resource shortage problem. As the salaries required to retain well qualified Islamic Bankers increase, financial institutions will ensure that steps are taken to develop the required courses – or to avail themselves of those available in the marketplace – thus adding to the supply of expert individuals. Remaining current is a problem. As new tools are evolved to develop Shariah-compliant product structures and services that are competitive with their conventional alternatives, sector participants must become familiar with them. Thus ongoing training is a ‘must’.
JAMES HUME
Chief Executive Officer, Omega Group Services
The quality of training and certification is essential. An important step forward would be the introduction of standardized training courses, similar to those of the Institute of Bankers examinations. This would provide a valuable benchmark for all financial institutions globally. But this is just the beginning; continuous training is required to ensure a high quality of expertise is sustained. The need for innovation and product development is ongoing and will only be achievable via high caliber financiers who understand the industry and the parameters they work. Finally, raising the profile of Islamic Banking will entice those with conventional banking experience and expertise to build on their career and perhaps focus on Islamic Banking. For this to happen, those banks offering both conventional and Islamic products and services must ensure suitable incentives and easy transition practices are in place. DAVID VICARY Director, Deloitte Consulting Malaysia
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