An estimated 160,000 workers in the financial services sector require upskilling, around 16% of the entire UK finance workforce, an industry-led commission has found.
The Financial Services Skills Commission, a body set up to ensure that the sector has the talent and skills it needs, found that there is an estimated proficiency shortfall across all skills, including those the sector needs to thrive in the future.
Its People + technology: how skills can unlock value for financial services report recommends that financial services organisations need to become “skills-based organisations” where work is defined by the tasks and activities that need to be performed to achieve business outcomes, and the skills required for these.
It says that each firm in the sector should ensure skills are integral to their business strategy, transformation plans and risk registers by the end of 2024.
The 16% of employees who need upskilling should be offered “deep upskilling” by the end of 2025, while every employee should be given a tailored skills development plan by 2026.
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Other recommended actions include increasing non-mandatory learning hours by end of 2025 from a 2022 industry
average of 14.9 hours per employee per year, and increasing the number of vacancies that are filled by internal candidates.
Claire Tunley, CEO of the Financial Services Skills Commission, said: “Skills are integral to business success and a driver of competitive advantage and growth. Our report outlines how reskilling, upskilling, and a sustained pipeline of talent can unlock productivity, drive innovation, and meet customer demands, boosting our economy, workforce, and wider society. The sector must act now to close skills gaps by reskilling 160,000 people and build sustainable talent pipelines for the long-term.”
PwC UK’s global workforce leader Chris Box said: “Closing the skills gap in the financial services industry isn’t just about meeting immediate needs; it’s about future-proofing our sector. By investing in upskilling and reskilling, we’re not only boosting economic output but also fostering a resilient, adaptable workforce ready to tackle the challenges of tomorrow.”
Nearly three-quarters (73%) of financial services roles are highly-skilled, such as managerial and professional roles, compared with only 52% in 2004, the report finds. However 260,000 highly skilled people are expected to leave the sector through retirement and attrition in the next 12 years.
There has also been a decline in the number of women employed in the industry. In 2022 women made up only 43% of the financial services workforce, down from 51% in 2004.
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