Career as Bank Probationary Officer (Bank PO)

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Banking profession is one of the most attractive careers for young graduates. A Probationary Officer (PO), the most coveted managerial positions in the banking industry, is the starting level appointment for bank officers.

Probationary officers (PO) are people who are in direct contact of their subordinates as well as prospective customers. After selection as a Probationary officer in a particular bank, the candidate has to go through induction training programmes in Management Training Academies of the particular banks. The duration of training period varies from bank to bank.

Probationary Officers have to perform various responsibilities which involves:

Probationary Officers are generally assigned to responsibilities such as General Banking, administration work and any other work assigned by the bank from time to time.
A Probationary Officer must understand and deal with various new offerings such as online banking, insurance, securities and investments, asset management and corporate banking.
The work of a bank PO involves managerial tasks, such as supervision of clerical work; managing cash balance, taking decisions for the benefit of the bank and work towards increasing banks business by implementing better services.
Before the completion of the probation period, the PO have to be familiar with any kind of bank related activity; either clerical or assistant type of job.
Bank PO is responsible to handle other aspects of the bank's business such as the loan department, the mortgage and finance divisions of the bank.
PO is also responsible for the maintenance of customers' current and savings accounts, including collecting and clearing cheques, issuing drafts, accepting term deposits, processing loans and issuing debt securities.
They should work as public relations officer and handle customer complaints and related issues such as charges, discrepancies in accounts, or even in complaints with service at the bank.
PO should be aware of all the latest developments of the bank. They are required to read all the circulars and should know about all the decisions taken by the bank management.
Probationary officer should be updated about the policies of the regulatory bodies, monitoring the current prices, making predictions based on analysis of trends etc.
Probationary Officers should keep records of personal accounts, business, investments, mortgages, installment loan etc.

The officers or probationers may undergo frequent transfers or deputations during the probation period. The performance of candidates during the probation period determines their position. After the completion of the probationary period, the candidate is confirmed as an Assistant Manager either in a branch or administrative office. Depending upon experience on bank's working procedures, personal skills and aptitude, they may be shifted to other areas like planning, marketing, budgeting, processing of loan, investment management etc. If the work proves unsatisfactory during probation period their services may be terminated at any time.

Some banks are now-a-days placing officers as Deputy Managers also, just after confirmation, provided they pass the test conducted by the bank.
For example, State Bank of India conducts a confirmation exam. If a probationary officer passes the exam, he is confirmed as an Assistant Manager. In fact, State Bank of India even gives a chance for promotion to Scale II for candidates who perform exceptionally well in the exam.

How to become a Bank Probationary Officer

One can enter into the profession of PO only through the Probationary Officers (PO) Exams conducted by individual banks and an interview conducted by Banking Service Recruitment Board. If selected, they can join the bank at a junior level and have to undergo a probation period of 2 years during which they are trained on various banking functions such as accounting, marketing, finance, investment, billing etc. On probation, they hold the designation of an Assistant Manager (AM). They start their PO career as Junior Management Grade-I Service (JMG-Scale 1) Officer and can rise to the highest grades by becoming a General Manager, a Director or even the Chairman of the Bank.

Graduates from any stream can apply for the post of Probationary Officer.

Details of Reserve Bank of India Probationary Officer (PO) Exam

Details of State Bank of India Probationary Officer (PO) Examination

Personal Skills/ Traits needed for PO

Bank Probationary Officer should have a well-organized mind with an eye for detail and excellent communication skills, both written and verbal. A mathematical aptitude, intelligence, self-confidence, ability to cope with stress and handle pressure, skill to maintain the records accurately and neatly, good marketing mind with good accounting and writing skills are the other essential qualities required for a good Bank PO. Integrity and honesty plays a major role in all dealings related to money and clients. They should have the ability to lead, motivate and manage the bank staff and be friendly and cooperative with colleagues and customers. A person responsible for foreign exchange transactions especially needs to have a sharp, quick and analytical mind. They should develop humane and team spirit qualities, an attractive, sincere and industrious personality.

Job Prospects

Bank probationary officers job is an entry-level position, usually for public sector or large private-sector banks. The opportunities for PO also include working as officer in Personal Banking, Rural Banking, Credit, Forex, and Treasury etc at various places in India. Multinational banks provide foreign postings after a few years of excellent work with the bank.

There are lots of promotional avenues for people choosing Probationary Officer as a career option. Depending on skills and performances during the probation period, one can quickly climb the ladder and attain high-level positions such as Manager, Deputy Managers, General Managers and Chief General Manager in the bank. Promotions in the public sector banks are time - bound and fixed. But in the private sector, promotions are fast and quick for hardworking people and sky is the limit. Those with an additional management or finance degree can ensure quick progress up the hierarchy.

The job of a probationary officer basically involves supervision of the clerical work, but their work description varies with bank. In private banks such as ICICI or HDFC etc, they are responsible for marketing or sales, A/c opening, Credit/Debit card etc. as well. The working hours in public sector banks are generally fixed but in private sector banks, one may have to put in extra hours of work at the office in addition to the regular hours. Although freshers may find it tough in the beginning, especially in a private bank, with time things will fall in place. The respectability and the lucrative aspects of the job makes it worthwhile.

Roles and duties performed by the Probationary Officer :

Customer Service: The most important job of an officer is to provide required services to the customer. The Probationary Officers are responsible for providing information to the customers coming for opening new accounts, ATM cards, deposits, receipts, loans, cheque books etc.
Bring New Business: Since dealing with customers directly, the probationary officer has the responsibility to introduce various services and products directly to the customer, which include fixed deposits, insurance policies, mutual funds, credit cards etc. They may also be required to visit customers at their desired places as public sector banks don't employ marketing or sales executives for any such purpose.
Cash handling: Though clerks are responsible for all the collection or submission of cash at the counters or at the bank ATMs, in case of heavy crowd if the clerk is not available, then the Probationary Officer is required to handle clerical activities as well. For this purpose, probationary officers are also trained on transaction software.
Payment Clearances: Most cash transactions by way of cheque, DD, NEFT/ RTGS are performed by clerks, but sometimes payments beyond a certain amount need to be authorized and cleared only by an officer rank such as bank Probationary Officer. If the person at clerical level encounters issues in account it would also be referred to a PO for further scrutiny.
Report Verification: With the introduction of core banking solutions, probationary officer is responsible to check all the work done in the bank. They need to check all the details at the end of the day and would be assigned to generate reports which may include the deposits, withdrawals, ledger balances etc and has to make sure about any change in the record and verifying them by taking the printouts of statements manually. If any entry is left unnoticed, then the Probationary Officer may face problem from the regional or zonal officers.
Official Communication: Just like in any MNC or IT company, all employees receive numerous emails related to certain new updates, new rules or schemes or products. A probationary officer should keep track of all the bank updates and new product launch information, as they will be interacting with customers more. They may also be asked to send official replies or letters to other departments who require information.

All the above roles clearly state that Probationary officers are required to be well versed in all the branch activities because in the end, it is the Probationary Officer who is promoted to the cadre of Branch Manager.

Bank Probationary Officer Salary

Bank probationary officer job is an entry-level position, which brings in a handsome remuneration. The probation is for a period of two years and salary may vary from bank to bank and increases with experience. In public sector banks, a probationary officer will draw the starting basic pay between Rs.15,000 to Rs.25, 000 per month.

In addition to Basic Pay, bank officers (i.e. Probationary officers / PO / Management Trainees) are eligible for the following allowances :-

Dearness Allowance (DA) : DA in banks is revised on quarterly basis (i.e. in the months of February, May, August and November) based on the CPI as declared by Government of India. DA can go up with higher inflation and also come down if the inflation rate is in negative.
Special Allowance : This has been added in 10th BPS (wef 01/11/2012) and for scale I is 7.75% on which DA is also payable
HRA : This depends on the place of posting and it can be either 9.0% or 8.0% or 7.0% depending on the place of posting.
CCA : This also depends on the place of posting and can be either 4% (maximum Rs.870/-) or 3%(Maximum Rs.600/-) or 0%

The amount of emoluments will vary depending on the place of posting. The officers are also entitled to other benefits like Medical Aid, low-interest-rate loans, as well as other perks.

There are number of other perks available to Bank officers and these vary from bank to bank, and even the amount of such perks vary from bank to bank. SBI gives more perks than all other nationalised banks. Some of the perks available to Bank officers are :-

Leased Accommodation : This facility is available to Bank officers in lieu of HRA. At some stations, some banks may offer official bank accommodation / bank quarters in lieu of leased accommodation. The lease amount vary from bank to bank and place of postings. However, you should remember that this amount is not available as cash component and will directly go to the house owner - with whom you have a lease agreement.
Traveling Allowance : Some banks allow fixed Traveling Allowance whereas others allow reimbursement of petrol bills i.e. officer must own scooter / car at the place of posting
Newspaper Reimbursement : A fixed monthly amount is paid towards the cost of one newspaper
Medical Aid : A fixed annual amount is paid by most of the banks (Revised amount is Rs8000/- p.a.)
Coverage under New Pension Scheme

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bank officer , banking career , banking , accounting career , finance career

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