Work as a loan specialist: skills, knowledge, personal qualities and responsibilities

The growth of the financial market and the popularity of credit products among the population causes new requests for specialists in the banking sector. The largest demand in banking institutions for loan experts or specialists in lending to individuals.

The position of a loan specialist is the most numerous of the banking professions, because employees work not only in branches and branches of banks, but also in retail outlets, in retail banking sales offices, in mortgage and specialized credit centers. The success and the profitability of the loan portfolio depends on the qualifications and competence of specialists.

Despite the importance of the work, even students without work experience can apply for a vacancy. Such indiscrimination of banks is associated with a staff shortage and regular expansion of the network of points of sale. For novice employees, this position is a great start to a career in the bank.

Priority for a vacancy is given to candidates with a higher economic education. After approval of the application, you will have to undergo a two-week internship at the bank to study the specifics of the work of a loan expert. A more experienced employee will introduce the newcomer to special programs, scoring assessment systems, teach the basics of paperwork and reporting.

Skills, knowledge, personal qualities and responsibilities

The knowledge of basic computer office programs, Internet skills, the ability to handle e-mail and other means of instant communication will be useful. During the internship, you will need to carefully study the current offers of the bank and loan products. According to their conditions and features, a test or exam is arranged to pass the probationary period.

There is a list of individual character traits and personal traits that are necessary in the effective and successful work of a loan specialist. These include:

Good memory;
The ability to correctly express thoughts;
Logical and rational thinking;
Common sense;
Sociability and ability to maintain feedback;
Lack of fear of people.

The lowest position in the loan department of the bank will help to acquire skills in working with potential borrowers, to understand the specifics of the bank’s internal policy, business standards and used customer service technologies.

The main duties of a loan officer are risk assessment and analysis of potential customers. A loan specialist does not just have to sell products, he is obliged to offer the best option for the client, based on his solvency and security. The profession needs the ability to quickly make decisions, analyze the situation and calculate options for the development of events when building long-term relationships with clients.

Career opportunities

You can stay in this position for several years, however, successful employees are quickly moving up the career ladder. Six months later, prospects may open to become a manager or senior loan officer and take on leadership of ordinary specialists or interns. To do this, we need a tendency to managerial work and leadership, we will have to perfectly study the nuances of lending to individuals, be able to organize the work of subordinates, find a common language with customers and team members, and be proactive.

The next career stage for an intelligent employee in retail lending will be the appointment of legal entities and corporate clients to the lending department. The career opportunities of an expert in working with private individuals are limited by horizontal advancement, for example, from directing consumer loans to the mortgage sector. In the department of lending to legal entities, you can grow to an expert in the assessment and analysis of financing business projects.

The peak of growth for the loan officer is the position of the head of the lending department of certain categories of clients, or the head of the lending sector in a separate division or regional representative office of the bank. There is another development option - to go to a company acting as a credit broker, or create your own company.

If the goal is initially to work in the field of credit brokerage, it is better to work in several banks beforehand, make acquaintances and contacts in a professional environment in order to simplify further market monitoring and building partnership agreements.