How to become a Bank Probationary Officer PO

A Probationary Officer is the one who is responsible for handling the overall banking management or company associated with the banking sector. The probation officer are the entry-level employees who are promoted to the posts of Assistant Managers of Scale 1 of the bank after the completion of the probation or training period which is of minimum 2 years duration. Probationary officer is also referred to as Junior Management Grade-1 (JMG-Scale 1), in banking field. They are responsible for various activities like finance, billing, accounting, investment, marketing. The major functions of these officers are to handle transactions of the customers, have the authority to pass cheques, issue checkbooks, manage cash. They also focus on financial and accounting matters.

The entrance exam is required for the selection of probationary officer. The employment opportunities are also good along with the professional growth of an individual. The job of probationary officer (PO) is said to be lucrative career option and a white-collar job. Every year lacs of aspirants apply for ibps exam. The job offers a high career growth and bright future in banking. Therefore, the probational officers provide a lot of services to the banks pertaining to the finance department, the accounts department, the tax department, etc. They also assist the clients (especially the high- end clients), and provide various services to assist the public in general. Whenever required, they make a lot of recommendations for various discrepancies or the changes to be made in the relative banking fields.

The roles and  responsibilities includes:

• The PO has to deal with finance, accounting, billing, investment etc.
•  A PO looks after the business of the bank keeps on increasing and to look after customers properly by addressing issues related to customer like discrepancies in accounts, rectification of undue charges and handling customer complaints.
• PO also does loan processing, investment management, planning, budgeting.
• They work on routine duties like scrolling, posting, account preparation.
• After becoming an Assistant Bank Manager, they handle daily customer transactions like cash management, passing a cheque, draft issuance.
• They work to increase the bank business like managing loans, cash flow, mortgages and finances.
• PO also work as a public relations officer, handle customer complaints and address various customer related issues.
• The PO also assigned with managerial tasks like managing cash balance, supervision of clerical work, taking decisions for the benefit of the bank.
•  To check and verify all the work done by bank clerk.
• To look after loan related documents and performs on site visit of the loan taking parties whenever required.
•  They are responsible for issuing ATM cards, cheque books, Demand Drafts etc.
• PO must remain updated for all the new circulars passed and remain aware of all the latest developments of the bank and takes for the benefit of bank in bank management.

A career as a Bank PO entails doing a variety of activities. In every financial system and domain, a bank PO is necessary to help their branch manager. Administrative positions, managing duties such as acting as branch manager in the absence of the branch manager, regular functions, and other activities such as increasing the bank's credit and advancement portfolio, recovery management, and claim settlement are examples. Banking professionals must interact directly with end consumers, thus they must improve their written and verbal communication skills to earn their clients' confidence. Communication skills are also required for banking officers to explain critical policy topics to subordinates without causing misunderstanding. They can preserve and manage Bank records and documents with good organization abilities, which is highly important for the company.

The essence of an excellent probationary officer must be self-explanatory. He should be adept at dealing with money; whether it's for personal use or a bank, a certain level of precision and efficiency is required. To earn the trust and confidence of clients, account holders, and investors, staff will need to develop a cooperative and helpful attitude in their everyday lives. Along with their basic banking tasks, the Probationary Officers are responsible for handling day-to-day financial paperwork, reporting, operations, and checking for abnormalities. To effectively manage all of these activities at the same time, a bank officer must be a superb manager. They must use managerial concepts and inventive approaches to keep the bank afloat with the minimal resources available within the time constraint. Therefore, there are a lot of aspects, abilities and capabilities that are involved, either primarily or secondarily in this field.

It involves active listening and critical thinking, wherein these individuals can evaluate and critically think on the lines to monitor the overall performance of all the employees and the overall branch of a particular bank. They are also supposed to have strong speaking skills that help them to better at their communication. It act would naturally make them strong in increasing their deals or even the clientele in a particular branch. Finally, their oral expression and deductive reasoning skills are supposed to be excellent to be able to tally the sheets, work on the financial aspects, work on the accounts section and deal with the clients thoroughly.

1. Industries like Commercial banks, public sector banks, private banks, cooperative banks, and regional rural banks.
2. Finance-related: Investment, insurance, wealth management.
3. Fintech and digital banking.
4. Corporate, retail, and consumer banking.
5. Real estate and mortgage.
6. Credit cards, payment processing, and merchant services.
7. Insurance companies.
8. Treasury operations and foreign exchange management.
9. Education and training.
10. Consulting firms and technology companies providing banking solutions.