Case Study - Japan Post Bank Co., Ltd.
Japan Post Bank Co., Ltd. is a member of the Japan Post Group that was established in October 2007. Through its nationwide network of post offices, the bank aims to be "the most familiar and trusted bank" that provides comprehensive financial services to a wide range of individual customers.
In human resource development, we encourage employees to think about their future aspirations and plan for achieving them by providing them with opportunities to become aware of and learn, thereby encouraging them to develop their careers. We also position the strengthening of basic financial skills as a pillar of human resource development, and provide a self-development environment, including assistance for obtaining qualifications, correspondence courses, and e-learning that can be accessed from home.
We spoke with Mr. Noboru and Mr. Sato from the Human Resources Department/Human Resources Development Office about what goes on behind the scenes of the system that supports human resource development at Japan Post Bank.
*Department names are as of the time of the interview in March 2023.
Our purpose and mission is centered on "striving for the happiness of our customers and employees and contributing to the development of society and the local community."
Social conditions and the environment surrounding our bank are changing rapidly, and customer needs, the roles expected of financial institutions, and the knowledge and skills required of employees are becoming more diverse and multilayered.
Furthermore, as the lives and values of each employee become more diverse, we believe it is important to provide an environment in which employees can think about their careers by aligning our bank's goals with their own vision for the future, and work with a sense of fulfillment.
Previously, in-house e-learning and self-development e-learning were operated on separate systems, which was time-consuming for both users and operators. In addition, the number of self-development e-learning courses was limited, so the bank was considering ways to improve convenience and expand the number of courses.
In order to resolve these issues, we have decided to introduce a new e-learning system (LMS).
Not only does it play a part in making training more efficient, it is also indispensable as content that supports employees in acquiring a wide range of skills.
In training for specific levels or functions, knowledge is input through e-learning as preparatory study, and group training focuses on group work, which reduces the amount of time spent on training and reduces the burden on trainees.
Human resource development that encourages employees to think about what they want to be in the future
What points do you consider important when developing human resources?
Background to the introduction of "Japan Post e-Learning"
What challenges did you encounter when introducing "Japan Post e-Learning" (SmartSkill Campus)?
What points did you focus on when selecting a vendor?
The key points were that it met security standards, including measures against unauthorized access, allowing us to use it with peace of mind, and that it had a support system in place to smoothly manage the daily e-learning content and participant management.
How to use "Japan Post e-learning"
What role does "Japan Post e-Learning" play?
Please tell me about the purpose and content of the required courses offered through "Japan Post e-Learning."
Many of the required courses are linked to job-specific and hierarchical training, such as compliance-related courses and statutory courses required for carrying out banking operations.
When we started offering courses, your company (REVIC Global) supported us with everything from photography to publishing, and they proposed optimal solutions based on their operational know-how and past cases, such as proposing course categories that would make it easier for participants to access the courses they wanted. Above all, we found it extremely helpful that they responded quickly when we had any inquiries.
Please tell us some of the things you do to raise awareness among your employees.
Japan Post e-learning is used for in-house training and is therefore very well known, however, the self-development content within the e-learning is still not very well known.
Our bank is also concerned about how to make learning a habit, but as mentioned in the first question, we are disseminating various information within the bank to encourage independent and self-reliant career development. We disseminate information on career design, support for obtaining qualifications, distance learning support, etc. throughout the company, as well as information on available e-learning programs.
In addition to expanding our video courses, which are in high demand as they are expected to have a high training effect, we are also making efforts to limit the length of each video to around 5 to 10 minutes, so that employees working on the front line can take training courses in their spare time.
We are currently exploring various ways to disseminate information and create mechanisms, but we are still only halfway there, so we would like to continue working on improvements in the future.
About REVIC Global's solutions
What do you think about REVIC Global's services after actually using them?
In addition to high levels of security, we receive prompt and appropriate responses to our requests and questions, and staff are always willing to offer suggestions on how to operate the system and introduce new functions, so we feel very reassured by the system in place and can provide personal support.
Please tell us about your future plans.
I would like to continue to strengthen the system that allows employees to plan their own careers independently and autonomously. I would like to visualize what skills and knowledge are lacking when comparing the current situation with the future aspirations, and provide tools to fill those gaps through Japan Post e-learning.
Japan Post Bank Co., Ltd.
Supporting the growth of each employee so that they can maximize their capabilities and take on the challenge of financial innovation
Specifically, we support employees' independent and self-directed growth and career development by providing them with opportunities to become aware of and learn about the future they want to be through training, career-related information, e-learning, etc.
The biggest reason for the introduction of the LMS was that group training was no longer possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was essential to convert much of our in-house training to e-learning, so our challenge was to switch to an LMS that would make it easy to register for courses and set up attendance , and reduce the amount of work required for operation. In addition, as employees were using the LMS more actively, taking self-development courses during reduced attendance times, we needed an LMS with a large capacity and no limit on the number of courses we could accommodate in order to increase the number of contents.
As for self-development content, we have created an environment where employees can take a variety of courses, including courses on individual tasks created in-house, courses to learn common skills such as logical thinking, and courses to support the acquisition of various qualifications. Some courses are also available to those on parental leave and those who have received job offers, so a wide range of employees can take advantage of them.
Company Name
Japan Post Bank Co., Ltd.
Industry
Banking
Number of people
Approximately 16,000 people
assignment
Supporting employees' independent and self-directed career development
Creating a self-development environment centered on strengthening financial fundamentals