Manipal Academy of BFSI (MABFSI) has partnered with Axis Bank to launch the Axis Bank Young Bankers Program Women’s-Only Cohort. Rajkamal Vempati, President and Head of Human Resources at Axis Bank, inaugurated this diversity-focused initiative at the MABFSI campus in Bengaluru. The Young Bankers Program, a joint effort by Axis Bank and MABFSI, has trained more than 16,000 graduates in the last 12 years. Now, with the introduction of the women-only cohort, women’s participation has grown to 700, raising the program’s gender ratio from 31% to 38% for FY 2024-25.
The launch of this women-exclusive cohort is an important step toward addressing the gender gap in the banking sector. According to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), women make up only 24% of the workforce in all scheduled commercial banks. A report by Great Place To Work India, based on feedback from over 12 lakh employees across 167 organisations, also states that one in four women faces gender disparity in India’s BFSI sector.
Axis Bank Young Bankers Program: Empowering women in the banking sector
The Axis Bank Young Bankers Program is a one-year, comprehensive course that includes a combination of classroom training, an internship, and on-the-job experience. The program begins with four months of classroom training at the MABFSI campus in Bengaluru, where participants learn the fundamentals of banking. A three-month internship at Axis Bank branches across India follows this. The final five months involve on-the-job training.
Upon successful completion, graduates receive a Post Graduate Diploma in Banking Services from the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), which provides them with the knowledge and skills needed for the industry. This program helps young women graduates smoothly transition from campus life to a professional banking career.
The Axis Bank Young Bankers Program includes a talented group of women, with 24% married and 44% over the age of 25. Additionally, in collaboration with MABFSI, Axis Bank aims to achieve 50% diversity in future cohorts, working toward a more inclusive banking sector. One key benefit of completing the Young Bankers Program is the opportunity to get a job placement with Axis Bank.
Axis Bank’s path to 30% women workforce
Axis Bank has launched several initiatives to improve gender inclusion in the banking sector beyond just the Young Bankers Program. The bank aims to have 30% women in its workforce by 2027. One key initiative is WE Lead, a campus program focused on developing women leaders at the middle-management level. Axis Bank has partnered with eight top business schools to recruit women with skills in technology, digital, analytics, payments, and product management.
Another notable initiative, ‘HouseWorkIsWork,’ focuses on bringing women who have taken career breaks back into the workforce. This program offers opportunities to women who have stepped away from their jobs for reasons like family care or motherhood. The idea for this initiative came when Axis Bank received an innovative resume from a housewife, who listed her household work as valuable experience.
The goal of ‘HouseWorkIsWork‘ is to help these women regain confidence in their skills and show them that they are employable. Rajkamal Vempati, President and Head of HR at Axis Bank, emphasised that this initiative aims to demonstrate that these women can fit into various job roles in the bank, helping them return to work and contributing to a more inclusive workforce.
What more needs to be done: Rethinking age limits
For older women, getting entry-level banking jobs isn’t always easy, especially since most banks have strict age limits for recruitment. For instance, even Axis Bank’s Young Bankers Program has an age limit of 30 years, meaning anyone older than that is not eligible. Most people who land entry-level banking jobs are between 20 and 25 years old. Once you turn into your 30s, it becomes much more challenging to secure a front office job in areas like trading, sales, or M&A. While there may be exceptions, it’s generally very challenging.
The Axis Bank Young Bankers Program is an excellent opportunity for younger candidates to start their careers in banking. However, we also need more programs aimed at older individuals who wish to begin careers in banking, ones that aren’t limited to those under 30 or recent graduates. Such programs would be particularly beneficial for women looking to change careers or those who have never had the chance to work before.
Even return-to-work programs for women often focus on past work experience, which can be challenging for women who have never had the chance to work. If they now want to gain experience, their opportunities will be limited due to the age bias in training programs.
We need to change this. Training programs should be more accessible to people of all ages, especially those who want to start fresh or gain experience later in life. By removing age biases, we can open up more opportunities for everyone, regardless of their past work experience.
Axis Bank Young Bankers Program: The final thoughts
The launch of the Women-Exclusive Young Bankers Cohort by Manipal Academy and Axis Bank is a commendable step toward inclusion. However, it should be recognised as just the beginning of a larger movement. While this initiative is a positive move, the real measure of its success will not be the number of women who join the cohort but how it inspires other organisations in the sector to adopt more gender-inclusive practices.
Initiatives like the Axis Bank Young Bankers Program provide valuable opportunities for younger candidates to enter the field. However, we must recognise that these programs often come with age limits that prevent older individuals from accessing similar opportunities. The age bias present in many training programs fails to accommodate people who may be older but still highly motivated to enter the workforce. Moreover, some women may never have had the chance to work at all, either due to personal circumstances or cultural expectations. For these women, training programs that require prior work experience or set age limits block their path to financial independence.
At ChangeinContent, we advocate for a corporate India that addresses ageism in the workforce and creates more initiatives that are accessible to everyone, regardless of age or experience.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are based on the writer’s insights, supported by data and resources available both online and offline, as applicable. Changeincontent.com is committed to promoting inclusivity across all forms of content. We broadly define inclusivity as media, policies, law, and history—encompassing all elements that influence the lives of women and gender-queer individuals. Our goal is to promote understanding and advocate for comprehensive inclusivity.
