Three Ways Small Banks Can Build the Right AI Talent Pipeline

If today’s companies want to survive, they need to implement AI; it’s no longer optional.

In fact, 79% of leaders agree that AI adoption is critical to remain competitive.

This has only intensified the war for AI talent, like data scientists, engineers and developers. But some sectors, like banking, are finding it hard to keep up and build their talent pipeline.

More money, more problems for small banks

When thinking about the most innovative industries, financial services isn’t the first one to come to mind — a narrative banks have been trying to shift in recent years.

With the regulations they’re subject to, banks are finding that their traditional risk management frameworks, which they use to identify, minimize and mitigate risks, have impeded their ability to quickly adopt cutting-edge technologies like AI. These barriers have put banks behind big tech companies that have been at the forefront of AI research and development and, as a result, offer robust AI programs and interesting use cases — all of which have been key in attracting talent. 

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To make matters worse, money has ironically been a handicap to banks.

According to Fortune, tech giants such as Google, Apple and Meta are reportedly offering millions of dollars and juicy benefits packages to stay ahead of their competitors and entice top AI talent to join their ranks. 

Those millions of dollars are putting banks, which may not have the same financial resources, at a disadvantage. Especially the ones not named JPMorgan Chase or Bank of America. 

So how can smaller financial institutions compete and build the right AI talent pipeline? 

Here are three ways they can:

Demonstrate the value of AI to senior leaders

Before small banks can build an AI talent pipeline, they need to get buy-in from senior leadership with AI. Senior leaders, ultimately, care about the bottom line, so they need to see the value of AI in their solutions and how it can financially benefit the organization. For example, by showing leadership how AI can be used to generate code, which would speed up the development process by automating time-consuming tasks, small banks can demonstrate how AI developers would have more time for higher-level thinking, problem-solving and strategic planning — all of which would benefit the organization. 

When senior leadership is on board with AI, small banks can better project that messaging to the public. Once it’s projected and the public associates the bank with AI innovation, they’ll earn a reputation in the AI space. This will naturally attract talent to the organization. 

Focus on what they can do better than bigger companies

Small banks trying to compete with big tech and big banks is like David going against Goliath. But instead of trying to beat them at their own game with attractive compensation packages, small banks should focus on what they can offer AI talent that larger companies can’t. 

For instance, small banks can offer ownership and responsibility. At large institutions, there can be thousands of AI talent, making it easy to get lost in the system. This can also make it difficult to deviate from the processes these sizable companies have in place. Small banks, however, can give AI talent ownership, whether that’s owning projects, solutions, processes or products. This allows talent to be responsible for designing and building products and solutions, potentially leading to more technological advancements.

Small banks could also offer ownership in the form of shares within the company. Because of their size, smaller institutions may have more flexibility to offer shares for the right talent — something larger companies may be unable to do. That sense of ownership could be helpful in both retaining talent and, ultimately, attracting talent if the company is doing well.

Additionally, because teams are smaller at small banks, AI experts’ contributions will be much bigger in terms of how they affect the bottom line or influence the institution’s products.

Be more visible to prospective talent

Part of building an AI talent pipeline is becoming more visible to AI talent. Most times, engineers and data scientists flock to marquee companies because they’re the most well-known and they want to be connected to that name. Small financial institutions have to do their part and make themselves and their AI programs visible.

A way they can do this is by recruiting talent right out of college. This means attending college events like career fairs where students can discover what’s out there as a potential career. Conferences are another way small banks can get the word out about their company and establish themselves in the AI space as a company that takes it seriously.

The race for AI talent shows no signs of slowing down, but small banks don’t have to get left behind bigger competitors. By getting buy-in from senior leadership, focusing on what they bring to the table and being more visible, they can build a talent pipeline and attract top AI experts that can help them successfully implement AI.

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