CONSOLIDATED ANNUAL REPORT FOR 2022
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o The Special Assets Department, with its functions, was placed under the authority of the Risk Management Division.
Employee training
The year 2022 remained a very active year in terms of training at the Bank, with many new and continuing training and development
programmes. We used a hybrid approach, i.e., organised live, distance training and e-training.
In 2022, we continued to pay a lot of attention to the development of managers at all levels. Taking into account the data from the
engagement survey and the overall trends, we have focused our management training on strengthening leadership, inter-managerial
cooperation, effective communication and other competences by continuing the Leadership Academy programme launched in 2021 with
lecturers from external partners. All managers included in the academy are responsible for the implementation of the Bank’s strategy
through the employees of their divisions. The programme consisted of 5 topics, such as Collaboration That Generates Maximum Value,
Situational Leadership, Public Speaking and Facilitation, System Thinking and Leadership. The duration of the academy is 1.5 years,
with over 100 executives of various levels participating. Over the course of the Leadership Academy project, we had 38 training days
(304 hours in total). Between 4 and 8 days (or between 36 and 64 hours) of training were allocated per manager.
The Leadership Academy also gave rise to several initiatives that have been translated into concrete actions, the results of which will
undoubtedly benefit the entire Bank. The first initiative is the Šiaulių Bankas Ambassadors’ Group. The initiative was born immediately
after the first management collaboration session, and has attracted as many as 20 volunteer Heads of Departments as members. During
the working sessions, the members of the Ambassadors’ Group identified priority areas for strengthening cooperation within the
organisation, identified measures for their implementation and shared responsibilities. The outcome of the work of the Ambassadors’
Group will be presented to the organisation in the first quarter of 2023. The second initiative born out of the Leadership Academy
programme is the annual collaboration sessions. These are annual working sessions for managers to share feedback. The sessions
were attended by the Department Directors, Regional Managers, CSC Managers, Regional Directors of Business and Private Clients,
Heads of Business Client Group, Head of Audit Division, Head of Process Management and Head of Project Portfolio Management.
Already after the first collaboration session in 2021, it became clear that the opportunity to give constructive feedback (both praise and
expectations) to others in the organisation builds consensus and cooperation, and so the session was held again in 2022.
In 2022, taking into account the data from the engagement survey, the changes in the Board of the Bank, and the needs expressed, we
strengthened the cooperation and communication competences of the Bank’s top management accordingly. To this end, a collaborative
session was held to explore team psychodynamics at the TOP management level, to review and update the team’s collaborative working
arrangements, and to agree on the cascading of information to the whole organisation and to target groups.
At the same time, to further strengthen leadership competences and respond to the needs expressed by managers, we invited all levels
of the Bank’s management to two Executive Breakfasts in 2022. The topic of the first breakfast was “Regular staff interviews – good
practices”. This breakfast provided managers with an overview of the benefits of regular meetings with staff; how often, for what purpose
and in what form they should take place; and what should be discussed during individual interviews with staff members. The topic of the
second breakfast was dedicated to managerial flexibility. The meeting focused on a common managerial challenge – how to balance the
needs of the organisation, the needs of the manager and the needs of the team in order to achieve the organisation’s goals, keep the
team engaged and the manager motivated. The personal and team growth coach presented flexibility as a managerial competency and
the importance of this competency to be able to function effectively in different situations and when dealing with different people.
Taking into account the expressed training needs of the target group, in 2022, it was decided to allow the members of the Board and
Supervisory Council of the Bank to independently plan their own individual training plan according to their needs.
As part of the Bank’s continued development of process management, in 2022, the training measures set out in the Process and
Operational Efficiency Training Strategy were implemented, with mandatory introductory e-training on process and operational efficiency
for all employees. Training materials on process architecture and modelling/plotting were also developed. The Head of Process
Management delivered five 1.5-day training sessions on advanced process management and improvement to targeted groups of the
Bank’s staff; ~10% of the Bank’s employees completed the training. To ensure the improvement of employees’ competences in the field
of efficiency, as well as to promote the search for efficiency in the Bank, an internal hackathon was organised, during which ideas for
operational and process improvement in 9 areas were developed, with the participation of ~10% of the Bank’s employees succes
sfully
gaining new experiences.
Project management capacity building also continued in 2022, with practical project management training based on the project
development and management procedures for the Bank’s staff working on small and very small projects.
In 2022, we continued to prioritise regulatory requirements for employee qualifications and experience. Therefore, in 2022, a new learning
management system (LMS) – Šiaulių Bankas Academy – was introduced in the Bank. Šiaulių Bankas Academy is a digital learning
platform designed to plan and manage the employee training process, to present educational materials, to assess training results and
other functions of the training management process. The system allows us to adapt more efficiently to constant change, to be faster and
to better manage the training process – from the provision of mandatory training, to the development of general and professional
competences, to the training of individual participants and their groups, and to the measurement of their progress afterwards. The digital
training platform, Šiaulių Bankas Academy, has replaced the Bank’s existing virtual learning environment and has a much broader
functionality.
In line with the 2022 training plan, to strengthen knowledge in the area of anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism
(AML/CFT), more than one training session on the topics set out in the plan has been delivered to the target groups with the help of