Shanti Ekambaram is using technology, talent and customer experience to make Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMB) future-ready. Pointing to fast changes in financial services space, Ekambaram—a chartered accountant and a cost and works accountant with a career spanning 32 years—says regulations are changing, technology is disrupting the business and talent needs transformation. “The banking sector will move from physical to phygital to probably digical. Phygital is physical and digital and digical is digital enabled by physical,” she says.
Ekambaram’s core focus areas include expanding digital customer base through 811 digital banking app; recasting the talent mix in line with the bank’s motto ‘Digital First’ by adding engineers, data scientists, etc.; enhancing customer experience, and finally, embellishing the ‘Kotak’ brand and making it more vibrant. “The ultimate goal is to make KMB future ready, which also means taking advantage of opportunities, besides focusing on general performance parameters,” adds Ekambaram. The bank closed FY23 with a net profit of `14,925 crore, up 23% against a year-ago. Ekambaram is also a member of the FICCI National Committee on Banking. — B.S. Srinivasalu Reddy