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Background
Gatehouse Bank, a Shariah-compliant, ethical UK challenger bank, recognised that having top-tier, first line management was critical to attract the best talent, accelerate growth and positively impact the bottom line, while also creating a culture of feedback and growth. At the time, Gatehouse Bank had a 50-strong line management population largely made up of colleagues with less than 3 years’ service. Of this group, between 30%-50% were where the Bank aspired for them to be from a skills/knowledge perspective, meaning there was a great opportunity for both personal and business growth.
Approach
Gatehouse Bank’s CEO, Charles Haresnape, recognised that top quality first line management is critical to the culture of an organisation and believed that this would support increased engagement and deliver efficiencies. Taking a collaborative approach, the Bank’s former Head of HR and consultancy ETS worked together to start by redesigning its behavioural management framework. The new approach centred on clarity and ensured the articulation of expectations before designing training content.
A crucial part of the approach was an ‘MBA style’ programme for all line managers over a six to nine month period to craft and progressively scale their skills. The programme was implemented over several stages, with content designed one module at a time so that subsequent modules could be shaped by learnings and feedback from the previous module. This process allowed the programme to evolve and form in line with business and colleague needs.
Interview briefings for participants explained the rationale of the programme, while a personalised 360 feedback exercise gave line managers a baseline measure and offered an overview of collective strengths. Training was then led by an ETS senior consultant based on various inputs and covered coaching, communication, team development, resilience, adaptability, and feedback habits. After each module, delegates reflected on what they had learned, while action learning groups were established so that delegates could discuss and practise learnings in everyday scenarios between modules.
Outcome
The programme sparked a perceptible increase in skill and knowledge levels within the line management population, pushing the manager readiness marker from 30 – 50% to 70% – 80%. Since the programme’s launch, 30 colleagues have secured a promotion, 14 of whom were existing line managers. Additionally, this initiative had a significant impact on employee satisfaction, with the majority of colleagues agreeing that the new approach led to more transparent goals and open communication. To maintain this momentum, a condensed version of the programme is now run regularly for new hires and newly promoted managers. Gatehouse Bank’s CEO, Charles Haresnape, says the programme has been an integral aspect in developing the bank’s culture and has “undoubtedly enhanced our line managers’ competence, making us well-poised to move into the future and exceed our strategic business objectives.”