Tapping private sector, younger talent for top job at govt banks

Like the recent appointments, this time as well, PSBs would have a non-executive chairman, giving operational responsibility to the MD and CEO

With three key public sector banks (PSBs) still headless, the government is hastening the process of appointments of their managing directors (MDs), sources have said.

As part of the process, new advertisements will be issued with varied appointment criteria. The candidate will be expected to have at least two to three years of remaining service. Applications from the private sector will be invited as well. The government will not compromise on the experience and insist the applicants have at least 10-15 years of banking experience, with four years at upper management.

Currently, the government-appointed panel needs to fill posts of MDs in three category-A banks -Punjab National Bank (PNB), Bank of Baroda and Canara Bank.

The government had last month appointed R Kotees-waran and Animesh Chauhan of Bank of India and Kishore Kumar Sansi of Punjab & Sind Bank as managing directors and chief executive officers of Indian Overseas Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and Vijaya Bank, respectively.

As already reported, it has been decided that PSBs are to have a non-executive chairman, giving operational responsibility to the managing director and chief executive officer.

The post of chairman and managing director (CMD) of Bank of Baroda has been vacant since July 31, 2014 while Punjab National Bank and Canara Bank have been headless since October, 2014.

The appointments for these posts will be finalised after the candidates are interviewed by a panel headed by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor, Raghuram Rajan.

The shortlisted names will be sent to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and subsequently to the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC). Meantime, the process for vigilance and other necessary clearances would be undertaken.

In October last year, the government had cancelled the selection of heads of six state-run banks, beside 14 executive directors (EDs), as a government-appointed panel had found irregularities in the process. These appointments had been made during the tenure of the earlier government.

Splitting of the CMD's post was suggested by RBI to the finance ministry. RBI had contended the CMDs of PSBs dominated their board of directors and separating the post of CMD would aid in empowering the board.

On December 25, a government-selected panel for appointments at PSBs conducted interviews and shortlisted 15 general managers for appointments as EDs in state-run banks.