Marianne Mwaniki
Six year career path
Manager, Strategic HR Programmes, Group HR, London
General Manager, Personal Loans, Kenya
Head, Service Quality (double hating), Kenya
Manager, Service Quality, Kenya
Graduate Associate, Kenya
Before Standard Chartered
I studied in Kenya for my pre-university and undergraduate years and then went to London where I attained an MSc in Organisation and Social Psychology at the London School of Economics.
Why Standard Chartered?
The Bank presented an opportunity to interact with other Graduate Associates from beyond my country's boundaries and the opportunity to have an international career. Also, I knew Graduate Associates received support and mentoring from senior management and were given opportunities to make a difference through challenging projects. I have now been in the Bank for six years during which many of my initial hopes have been fulfilled.
Migrating best practice across departments
One of my biggest challenges of the past six years has been my role as Value Center General Manager for Unsecured Loans in Kenya. I launched the first Balance Transfer Campaign for Personal Loans the Bank had seen. The campaign was successful in jump-starting quality personal asset book growth in the Bank in Kenya and provided a new source of income for the Bank’s Kenyan operation. At Standard Chartered there is a chance to work across departments, giving an opportunity to migrate best practice from one part of the Bank to impact other departments. A great by product of this process is the making of life-long friends from different countries.
Championing and selling ideas
I make a difference by offering new ideas and being ready to see them through, often working with cross-functional teams. It is critical to keep looking for new ways of improving processes and product offerings, creating opportunities to be faster to market with better ideas. Learning how to sell ideas and gaining commitment from several stakeholders is critical. I think this has been a key learning point for me - involving key stakeholders at the right time in any new initiative.