The mandatory curriculum
Lenders usually run a set of courses that every employee completes on joining and repeats every year. Some are required by regulation, others by internal policy or by the lender's own audit findings. Check the current regulator directions for your type of institution when you set the list, and mark each course as mandatory so that gaps show up branch by branch instead of surfacing during an audit.
- KYC and anti-money laundering
- Fraud awareness and reporting
- Information security and data privacy
- Fair practices code and customer grievance handling
- Code of conduct and conflict of interest
- POSH awareness, with separate training for Internal Committee members
Role training that protects the portfolio
Credit staff need training on reading bank statements, bureau reports and the cash flow of small businesses. Collection staff need training on conduct: calling hours, respectful language, no threats and proper receipts, because one bad recovery call can turn into a regulatory complaint. Loan officers need group training skills for new borrowers. Branch staff need cash handling and counterfeit note detection. Record each as a program with hours, so a branch manager can see who is untrained before assigning a new product.
Validity and refresher dates
A certificate that expires silently is worse than none, because everyone assumes it is still valid. Give each program a validity in months, such as 12 for anti-money laundering and 24 for cash handling, so that completion issues a certificate number with an expiry date. Staff whose certificate lapses show as expired, and HR can enrol them again before the audit rather than after it. Mark a course as waived only for roles where it genuinely does not apply.
Proof for audit and inspection
Internal auditors, concurrent auditors and inspectors ask the same question in different words: show that everyone in a sensitive role completed the required training within the period. Answer it from one compliance view per program, filtered by branch, rather than from emails and signed attendance sheets from classroom sessions. For policy updates that do not need a full course, an announcement that requires acknowledgement gives a dated record of who read it.
How to set it up in ZeniaHR
- Create training programs in Learning for each mandatory course, choosing online, classroom, blended or external, with hours and the mandatory flag.
- Set a validity in months for each program so that every completion issues a certificate number with an expiry date.
- Enrol new joiners in the mandatory programs in their first week, and enrol whole branches when a refresher falls due.
- Mark completions as sessions finish, and use the compliance view per program to follow up anyone assigned, in progress or expired.
- Post policy circulars on the Company Wall as announcements that require acknowledgement, and keep the who-acknowledged report for audit.
Read more about learning and training in ZeniaHR.
Roles this applies to
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What training is mandatory for bank and NBFC employees?
Lenders usually require KYC and anti-money laundering, fraud awareness, information security, fair practices and grievance handling, code of conduct and POSH awareness for all staff, repeated every year. Some of these come from regulator directions and others from internal policy, so check the current directions for your type of institution when you finalise the list.
How often should AML training be refreshed?
Lenders commonly refresh anti-money laundering training every year, and sooner when rules or internal procedures change. Set a 12-month validity on the program so each certificate carries an expiry date, and enrol staff again before it lapses. Staff in higher-risk roles such as cash, account opening and credit may need a longer module.
How do banks prove training completion to auditors?
Keep one record per program showing who was assigned, who completed, the certificate number and the expiry date, filterable by branch. In ZeniaHR, the Learning compliance view per program gives this, and Company Wall announcements that require acknowledgement add a record for policy circulars. Paper attendance sheets rarely hold up when an auditor samples a branch.