Workplace management

In New York City and elsewhere, financial institutions are taking stock of their office-building security protocols following the killing of four people, including an investment bank executive, in Midtown Manhattan. Security experts say that layers of protection are essential in all office buildings.

The CEO of JPMorganChase affirmed the case for bringing employees back to the office.

A string of senior resignations and scrutiny over share sales rocked Bank of America's local operations last year.

Banks such as Texas Capital and Synovus say they're learning from anti-money-laundering failures elsewhere. They emphasize the importance of having enough compliance staffers — and ensuring they have the necessary skills.

Gone are the days when Wall Street executives dressed in conspicuously expensive clothing. Now the industry has adopted a more relaxed and casual dress code.

Many banks could benefit greatly from overhauling their internal culture when it comes to meetings. Both performance and morale stand to benefit.

The megabank rolled out new and expanded employee diversity targets that it aims to meet by 2025. The goals include placing more Hispanics in leadership roles and boosting the number of LGBTQ+ members the company hires from colleges and universities.

A JPMorgan Chase financial advisor filed a federal workplace complaint accusing the bank of harboring a culture of “unchecked greed, avarice and misogyny” and undermining her by excluding her from client meetings and taking away her resources.

In conversation with Patti Cook, CEO of Finance of America Companies

Bessant & Erdoes: In conversation

What else do banks need to do to achieve gender parity more quickly? What are the tech innovations that will be most impactful for the banking industry? What will the surviving banks look like a decade from now?

Financial services companies tend to push out older employees. That’s a mistake, both because of the loss of institutional knowledge and because it’s older bankers who can build the best rapport with boomer customers.

Citigroup will require all U.S. employees be vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of their employment, citing new orders from President Biden.

Hopes that the pandemic has been curbed have dimmed as infections and hospitalizations are on the rise again due to the introduction of the extremely dangerous Delta strain. For some companies, this has disrupted their plans to bring remote employees back to their offices or institute a "hybrid" arrangement.

American Express again delayed its plans for returning U.S. workers to the office, citing the spread of the highly contagious delta variant in setting a new target of Jan. 24 at the earliest.

From vaccine mandates to mask requirements, banks are being forced to make difficult decisions in response to fast-changing conditions. Here's a look at where 14 large and midsize companies have landed — at least for now.

Compensation needs to be competitive, of course, but employees also need to feel appreciated. In a challenging labor market, here’s how banks can retain their best workers and keep them motivated.

The announcement came a day after Citigroup said it would mandate vaccines for many of its workers. Capital One also said it is delaying its office reopening.

CEO Richard Fairbank told employees they can continue to work remotely on Monday and Friday, though the company is still encouraging them to “spend meaningful time” in the office collaborating.

2020 was a challenging year for banks. The impact of COVID on the economy as well as changes to accounting for loan loss provisions were evident in weaker financial and stock price performance in 2020 for many banks and yet CEO compensation increased. Learn from experienced executive compensation consultants about the challenges Compensation Committees faced in 2020, why pay levels increased relative to 2019, what were common COVID-related compensation changes, and what changes were made for 2021 incentive plan design.