KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) Academy celebrated the graduation of its Wave28 of newly hired employees who successfully met admission criteria for this intensive course specially designed for Kuwaiti fresh university graduates. The graduation ceremony was attended by Sulaiman Al-Marzouq, Deputy CEO of NBK- Kuwait, Faisal A Al-Hamad, Chief Executive Officer - Global Wealth Management at NBK, Mohamed Al-Othman, Chief Executive Officer of the Consumer and Digital Banking Group.

The program ran for 7 months, from January to August 2023, during which the trainees received intensive training on banking, technological and behavioral as well as other skills that allow them to build a long career at NBK. The course covered various areas of banking principles, such as design thinking and increasing productivity, training on creativity, innovation, and digital trends in the banking sector beside, in addition to banking business, and comprehensive understanding of all NBK groups and departments.

The participants presented new ideas to the executive management through a project covering all learnt topics, aiming to give them the opportunity to practice entrepreneurship as well as to stimulate their creative faculties and ability to generate innovative solutions. The program also included various blended learning interventions occurred through in person and virtual courses. Furthermore, their development continues through e-Learning after the academy ends.

It is worth mentioning that NBK Academy program content is regularly enhanced to keep pace with the latest trends in banking, management and digital areas. The Academy reflects NBK’s vision to support sustainable human capital development as one of its top strategic priorities and a shared responsibility between the various governmental institutions and the private sector.

Launched in 2008, NBK Academy aims to pave the way for fresh Kuwaiti graduates to join the banking services sector by providing them with the best training programs developed in cooperation with leading international institutions and universities to meet the demands of the labor market.

NBK maintains its leadership in the private sector in terms of attracting, training, up skilling national talent and qualifying them to join the banking sector. The bank also stands out as the employer of choice for national professionals, with the highest Kuwaitization and employee retention ratios across the private sector.