SBI boss will have minimal say in increments now. Here’s why

Next time when you visit any branch of State Bank of India (SBI) and notice a difference, don’t be surprised.

The state-run bank is now doing away with year-to-year appraisal review by their boss and instead bringing technology in the system.

The SBI has automated the appraisals of the employees that will record the pace and frequency with which the employees handle the customers.

"Every time an employee transacts, his fingerprint is there in the system. Today, we are not using the information. Going forward, the idea is to use this to reward those who need to be rewarded and improve those not trying hard enough," SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya told ET, adding “70% of the marks during an appraisal will come automatically from the system. The remaining 30% will come from the branch head or controller.”

Also, the bank will send a feedback call to customers through SMS and interactive voice response calls after a transaction.

"Besides promotions, we are linking their performance to posting and placements. We are telling the employee, if you perform well you can choose your posting. You can also choose the department that you want - credit, treasury or subsidiaries," Bhattacharya told ET.
Not only increments, benefits and incentives will also be automated.

"If you look at employee benefits on a cost-to-company basis, we are better than the private sector. We provide housing, newspaper and petrol reimbursements which do not show up in salary. Now, the thinking is to allow all of these to be put together and taken as cash," she said.