India’s largest bank is taking its commitment to gender diversity a step further. The State Bank of India (SBI) has outlined a plan to raise the share of women in its workforce to 30% over the next five years. At present, women make up 27% of SBI’s total workforce of over 2.4 lakh employees, with their representation rising to 33% at the frontline level.
“If we talk about frontline staff, women are almost 33 per cent, but as a total if you see, they account for 27 per cent of the total workforce. So, we will be working towards improving this percentage so that the diversity gets further improved,” SBI Deputy Managing Director (HR) & Chief Development Officer (CDO) Kishore Kumar Poludasu told PTI in an interview. He said the bank is implementing initiatives to close the gender gap and reach its medium-term target of having 30% women in its workforce.
Some of the bank’s women-focused initiatives include offering a crèche allowance for working mothers, running a Family Connect programme, and conducting training programmes to support women returning from maternity leave, sabbatical, or extended sick leave. Additionally, the bank’s flagship initiative, Empower Her, aims to identify, mentor, and groom women for leadership roles through structured leadership labs and coaching sessions, strengthening the pipeline of future top female executives and boosting female representation in senior positions.
The bank has also rolled out targeted initiatives, including breast and cervical cancer screenings, nutrition allowances for pregnant employees, and the Cervical Cancer Vaccination Drive. Many of these efforts are designed with the well-being of the bank’s women and girls in mind. SBI is also committed to fostering an inclusive, secure, and safe workplace where women can realize their full potential. This commitment is reflected in the fact that the bank currently operates over 340 branches staffed entirely by women, a number set to grow in the future.
