Careers with purpose in a world of change

There is an old saying that, if you can find a job you enjoy doing, you will never have to work a day in your life. Work that people enjoy doing tends to be work that gives them purpose: a career that contributes to the greater good.

For many outside the sector, banking and finance are not always seen as fundamental to the greater good in the way that say, medicine or law are. However, banks have an essential role in the economic health of a country. Without the maturity transformation that only soundly regulated banks can provide, no economy can turn short-term deposits into long-term investments. Maturity transformation is not the only vital service banks offer.  Many provide mortgages, run payment systems and boost financial inclusion. In the shift to net zero, it will be bank management of their so-called ‘Scope 3’ emissions that help drive greater sustainability.

Given the central importance of banks, what does it take to forge a career in a financial institution – particularly in a world of increasing technological automation and accelerating climate change?

Employers often prefer hires who have strong academic qualifications. Performing well in exams generally demonstrates intellectual ability, commitment and a strong work ethic – and technical knowledge is needed. However, an outstanding bank employee also brings a mix of soft skills and know-how to their work that goes beyond the academic. In particular, they have excellent ‘real-world’ skills of listening, learning and effective collaboration that help the organisation as a whole to thrive. And, shortly, such skills will only become more important – particularly in the GCC as it drives for sustainability and the fulfilment of its 2030 Vision.

The real demands of a changing workplace

Why? First, because technological advances promise to swiftly change many aspects of the workplace. Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) can already produce useful research summaries, draft correspondence, write computer code and create compelling graphics. Yes, GenAI still suffers from ‘hallucinations’ – its responses rely on calculating what is statistically likely, whether that is necessarily correct or not. However, researchers are working on better systems. For example, the US tech company OpenAI, recently announced OpenAI o1, a version of ChatGPT that can “reason through” problems in maths coding and science. In demonstrations, it diagnosed an illness and correctly answered a chemistry question at PhD level.

Technology will soon be able to automate many tasks currently carried out by human beings, including high-level tasks that require an advanced education and years of training. But, even if technology can, for example, help assess the riskiness of a loan, or spot a tumour in an X-ray, it can’t ask the questions that prompt a particular analysis. It is human beings that have goals and challenges such as increasing economic productivity, reducing global warming, and maintaining biodiversity – not machines.

Just as importantly, though technology will help provide the data and much of the analysis that helps underpin complex decisions, it won’t be able to make those decisions. That’s because technology cannot truly ‘think’ – not about the world around it, nor about what is important in human society. It can’t replace human interactions where emotions, cultural norms, and empathetic communication are all-important. It won’t replace ‘human’ work.

Because banking is on the front-line of both technological change and climate change it will make particularly heavy demands on the skills and understanding that only human beings can bring.

Excellent vocational training will be critical in an automated world

Take working in trade finance. Checking trade documentation is a highly specialised job that takes years to master. However, the very large number of rules in trade finance is also why GenAI can be deployed at scale to check trade finance documents for anomalies.

Machines can carry out much of the routine checks leaving human experts to decide any ‘edge’ cases. That boosts both productivity and job satisfaction because trade bankers can focus on the most interesting problems and on dealing with clients. However, to get to the stage where they can confidently deal only with non-routine questions, trade bankers need to be more highly qualified and experienced than ever. They also need to have excellent ‘soft skills’ – the sort of problem-solving interpersonal skills that professionals develop in the workplace. Collaborating with others – knowing how to work within a complex matrix – will be central to that.

Ongoing training for a better life

As the GCC continues to prepare its workforce for the future and to build a sustainable economy that provides meaningful employment for all, training tomorrow’s bankers will be vitally important. They will help decide the shape of the economy to come.

Just as importantly, people working in careers with purpose, that make the most of all their skills and abilities, are not just happier and more productive as individuals, they also make for a better society.