Absa adds 250 new jobs after rebrand

The bank’s expanded capacity into new business lines has obliged it to go for new external hires against the wave of automation and digitization affecting functions such as the front office.

“In December 2021 and January 2022, we have hired about 250 people outside the bank to come and drive sales and services at the front line. As such, we are creating many more jobs after the transition than has been the case for years,” Absa Bank Kenya Country Strategy Director Moses Muthui told Citizen Digital.

“When you create capacity as an organization and you deal with efficiency targets, you have to reinvest that capacity by hiring more people and creating new jobs which we are doing at this point in time.”

At the same time, Absa says some of the staff hired during the transition process have now been absorbed by the Group into full-time jobs.

According to Muthui, Absa’s total workforce now stands at more than 2100 after sliding to as low as 1890 during the rebranding exercise which had necessitated the bank to do away with some of its roles.

Data from Absa’s annual reports show the staff base had contracted by 161 in 2020 to 1991 slots at the end of December 2020.

The workforce fell further by 12 for non-rebrand reasons before the addition of the 250 roles at the end of 2021 and in January 2022.

Absa Bank Kenya Plc had spent Ksh.3.2 billion on its rebranding exercise including send-off packages for retrenched staff.

With its new job creation momentum, Moses Muthui says days of significant restructuring are now behind the bank.