Employee recruitment and retention
At UBP we are determined to provide a work environment that inspires and motivates our highly skilled staff and attracts new, driven talent. We closely observe the evolution of working practices and career expectations and adapt our recruitment and remuneration policies accordingly. We have now extended the digitalisation of our hiring procedure into a paperless end-to-end process to all locations and divisions in Switzerland, and maintained videoconferencing for interviews, with most first rounds taking place virtually.
In a constantly evolving business, we view mobility between divisions and countries as a meaningful opportunity to support personal development and to increase teamwork. Internal mobility can also help us to remain dynamic and keep staff motivated, whilst bolstering our expertise through the sharing of experience, skills and best practice.
Learning & Development
Globalisation, digitalisation and changing compliance rules mean that the skill sets required in our industry are evolving rapidly. To foster expertise, motivation and responsibility, UBP believes it is vital for its employees to be able to access opportunities that help them maintain the highest level of know-how and competence. We offer a wide variety of learning and development programmes that help us strengthen our continuous and company-wide learning culture.
“We want to offer our staff continuous opportunities for training and development to ensure they are equipped to face future challenges.”
Christian Scherrer, Group Head of Human Resources
The Leadership Development Programme (LDP) enhances the management skills of individuals across all professions and includes in-depth training in leading change as well as a group project in close collaboration with UBP’s senior management. The new concept of the LDP, which brings together managers from multiple UBP locations, is delivered in collaboration with the renowned IMD Business School in Lausanne.
The Talent process is another key element as it forms the backbone of UBP’s succession plan. The Executive Committee, management teams and the Human Resources department together identify staff members with particular development potential and put together customised training plans for them.
The Swiss LSFin-Ready course, devised in partnership with the Institute for Studies in Finance & Banking (ISFB), is an initiative that is aimed at all employees in Switzerland who want to improve their knowledge of banking-related matters.
Our collaboration with training institutions and business schools is an important element of our learning and development framework. In particular, our partnership with the INSEAD Business School in Paris and Singapore attests to our commitment to high-level education and the transmission of excellence from one generation to the next. This alliance enabled INSEAD to endow the de Picciotto Chair in Alternative Investments in 2003.
Fostering sustainability expertise
We recognise that to embed sustainability throughout UBP, we must first and foremost invest in our employees. To this end, we have created an 8-module e-learning programme – “Sustainability@UBP” – that covers a range of sustainability topics through interactive and engaging content. In addition, UBP supports employees who wish to pursue external ESG certifications.
The next generation
Training the younger generation remains a key priority for the Group and in 2021 we demonstrated this commitment by launching our Graduate Programme. UBP is also a leading bank for training apprentices and welcomes three of them in Geneva and one in Zurich for their three-year courses.
Diversity & inclusion
With a presence in twenty locations around the world, we consider diversity a key asset that helps us drive progress and innovation. Our efforts to build a heterogeneous workforce are well reflected in the 59 nationalities present among the Bank’s employees. We promote diversity and inclusion in all our HR processes, from the early recruitment stages to promotions and pay reviews.
As a family-owned bank that puts people at the heart of its business, we are committed to ensuring fairness, equal opportunities and equal rights for all our employees, and condemn every form of discrimination. We treat all employees alike, regardless of their ethnicity, nationality, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, age, marital or family status, or any other status protected by applicable local laws, including pregnancy and disability. UBP has implemented the latest Swiss gender equality norms in terms of remuneration practices, as well as diversity and anti-discrimination policies.
Our apprenticeship programme