Central Bank Of India

Central Bank Of India

When MV Tanksale took charge at Central Bank of India, he made it clear to the top management that he wants to restore the premium position that the bank held in the past. Central Bank, which was the secondleading public sector bank for almost 25 years post nationalisation, lost its ground to its peers due to poor people management, says industry expert. The veteran banker now faces the challenging task of steering a bank where employee morale is low.

In the past few years, the bank has fallen behind its peers such as Punjab National Bank , Union Bank of India and Bank of Baroda. It has also lost its status of a category A bank, which is granted by the government on the basis of total business. Central Bank has not been able to keep up with the pace of growth of some of its peers. For instance, between 2007 and 2011, Bank of Baroda reported a 313% growth in net profit, Union Bank of India's net profit rose 215% and UCO Bank's net was up 186%. But during the same period, Central Bank posted a 151% rise in net profit. Mr Tanksale has sent across the message that he would strive to move the bank up the ladder and get it back into the pack of five top banks in the country.

Described as a prudent leader and motivator, Mr Tanksale will have to play a key role in lifting the drooping employee morale at Central Bank, say officials from the bank. "This bank needs someone with exceptionally good leadership quality because people management is the biggest issue here," said a retired banker from Central Bank. Prior to this appointment, Mr Tanksale was executive director at Punjab National Bank, where he worked briefly under KC Chakrabarty, who is described as a tough task master.

After Mr Chakrabarty moved to the Reserve Bank of India as one of the deputy governors, Mr Tanksale held charge of PNB for about four months before appointment of the new chairman. Affable and soft-spoken , Mr Tanksale started his career with Union Bank of India where he eventually rose to the top post. He also led the marketing team at Union Bank. He spearheaded the launch of the transaction banking division that offered a wide range of products and services to customers on a technologybased platform. Mr Tanksale is described by former colleagues as a knowledgeable person and an expert in resolving problems. He is said to be experienced in the ground realities of lending and mobilising deposits having spent a major part of his career in branch offices rather than in corporate head office. His educational background is no less impressive.

He holds a bachelors degree in sciences, masters in humanities, is a qualified cost accountant and has done company secretariatship. Mr Tanksale now has the onus of taking some bold strategic decisions to drive the bank that has a strong presence in the most lucrative western region of the country where it has more than 3,000 branches. His leadership qualities will play a crucial role in the days ahead, said Central Bank officials. But with slightly over two years in hand, Mr Tanksale will have to move fast to help the lender get back it glory days.