In a rapidly changing financial landscape, organisations must adapt swiftly to technological advancements, evolving customer expectations, and economic fluctuations. However, transformation is not just about systems and processes; it is fundamentally about people. UOB, under the leadership of Dean Tong, Managing Director and Head of HR, has embraced a long-term approach to workforce adaptation that prioritises reskilling and upskilling over short-term cost-cutting measures. This case study delves into UOB’s transformative journey and how its ‘Better You’ programme has played a pivotal role in bringing employees along on this evolution.

The Beginning: A Personal and Organisational Shift

Dean Tong’s journey to UOB is itself a testament to the power of meaningful work. After a 22-year career in consulting, Tong had decided to retire and pursue a PhD while taking on freelance projects. One such project led him to UOB, where his alignment with the CEO’s vision became a turning point.

“In one of the conversations I had with my CEO, he said something that still resonates with me today: ‘Your job is not just to maximise the profitability of the organisation, but to leave money on the table for our customers, our employees, and our partners.’ That philosophy set the tone for the kind of transformation we wanted to drive at UOB,” shares Tong.

Building a Sustainable Workforce Strategy

When Tong formally joined UOB in 2018, he recognised the need for a proactive reskilling strategy. Together with his colleague, Cindy, he launched the ‘Better You’ programme—UOB’s flagship initiative aimed at preparing employees for future job transitions.

“The ‘Better You’ programme is not just another corporate initiative that gets launched and forgotten. We have been running it consistently for seven years, and it remains core to how we support our workforce through change,” Tong explains.

The key challenge, however, was executing reskilling at scale without a clear picture of what future roles would look like. The traditional ‘train-and-place’ approach often fell short as employees struggled to apply newly acquired skills without real-world experience.

“You can’t teach someone to ride a bicycle just by showing them a PowerPoint presentation,” Tong remarks. “You need to give them opportunities to practice, fail, and learn on the job.”

Navigating Economic Pressures While Prioritising People

The financial services industry has faced mounting cost pressures in recent years, leading many banks to resort to layoffs and cost-cutting initiatives. UOB, however, took a different approach.

“When faced with industry-wide downsizing, we had two choices: follow the ‘hire and fire’ model, or take the more difficult but meaningful path—bringing our employees along on the journey,” says Tong.

Rather than executing mass layoffs, UOB saw the economic downturn as an opportunity to invest in reskilling. The goal was not just incremental skill upgrades but enabling employees to transition from ‘sunset’ jobs to ‘growth’ jobs.

Implementation: A Structured Approach to Workforce Adaptation

UOB adopted a three-pronged strategy to implement its reskilling initiative effectively:

• HR-Led Redeployment and Job Matching: UOB centralised headcount approval within HR, ensuring that every hiring request was evaluated for internal redeployment opportunities first. “Whenever a hiring request comes in, our first question is: Can we fill this role internally? If an employee has at least 50% of the required skills, we commit to supporting their transition through structured learning,” explains Tong.
• Bespoke Training Programmes with University Partnerships: UOB partnered with universities to provide tailored training that addressed two crucial aspects:
  • Technical Training: Equipping employees with domain-specific skills required for their new roles.
  • Psychological Preparedness: Supporting employees emotionally as they navigated job transitions, ensuring they felt confident and capable in their new roles.

“Changing careers mid-way, especially for senior employees, is daunting. We provide continuous support throughout the transition, ensuring they feel psychologically ready to embrace their new path,” says Tong.

• Performance Protection for Transitioning Employees: To facilitate a smooth transition, employees moving into new roles were given a 12-month grace period where they were shielded from standard performance evaluations. “We acknowledge that employees will take time to ramp up. By giving them a safe space to learn and grow, we ensure they don’t feel pressured to prove themselves too quickly,” Tong states.

Measuring Success: A Long-Term Perspective on ROI

Many organisations hesitate to invest heavily in reskilling due to concerns about return on investment (ROI). However, UOB adopts a long-term perspective, focusing not just on financial returns but also on employee loyalty, engagement, and culture-building.

“If you look purely at short-term ROI, it may not make sense to invest so much in reskilling. But if you take a broader lens—considering loyalty, commitment, and long-term productivity—the returns are undeniable,” explains Tong.

The results speak for themselves. Employees who have gone through UOB’s reskilling initiatives have successfully transitioned into new roles, reducing the need for external hiring and fostering a culture of continuous learning.

Embedding the UOB Way Across the Organisation

Beyond just HR initiatives, UOB has institutionalised its philosophy through the ‘UOB Way’ programme, ensuring that all people managers understand and uphold the bank’s values.

“We have trained all our managers to internalise what the UOB Way stands for—our ‘why’ and our ‘how’. This alignment ensures that whether it’s employees, customers, or the community, we all prosper together,” says Tong.

By integrating its people philosophy into everyday decision-making, UOB has built a workplace that prioritises long-term workforce sustainability over short-term cost-cutting measures.

 A Model for Sustainable Workforce Transformation

UOB’s approach to workforce transformation offers valuable lessons for organisations navigating change. Rather than resorting to layoffs, the bank has demonstrated that with the right strategy, reskilling can be a powerful tool for maintaining organisational agility while fostering employee commitment.

“Transformation is not just about technology or processes—it’s about people. If you truly believe in investing in your employees, they will stay and grow with you,” concludes Tong.

The UOB Way is not the easiest path, but as Tong firmly believes, it is the one that will pay off in the long run.