The hiring will also include software developers and data specialists who will work with BBVA’s Client Solutions, Architecture and Data teams on the design, development and deployment of global and reusable components that support the creation of functionalities for retail and corporate clients.
BBVA will add 1,000 software engineers to the 1,000 already recruited earlier this year to accelerate the bank’s digital transformation.
Spain is to benefit from 400 hires, with 100 positions announced for the two new technology centers that the bank created in Bilbao to house its BBVA IT and BBVA Next Technologies divisions.
The hiring will also include software developers and data specialists who will work with BBVA’s Client Solutions, Architecture and Data teams on the design, development and deployment of global and reusable components that support the creation of functionalities for retail and corporate clients.
“Technology is the lever of BBVA’s transformation, and for this reason, a year ago, a global software-development unit was created, which now integrates more than 16,000 professionals throughout the group, to boost the productivity of our developers and the economies of scale derived from globality and reusability,” says a BBVA spokesperson.
BBVA has already created global functions for other engineering units, such as infrastructure, communications and architecture, to lead and coordinate strategy execution with local units. “The growing importance of software development calls for that same level of globalization to leverage the benefits of a global reach,” Francisco Xavier, global head of Software Development at BBVA, said at the unit’s launch.
In addition to following a common data model, the global software development unit allows BBVA to build services that can be shared across apps in all countries in which it operates.
“BBVA is a benchmark in digital banking and data analytics, and in this sense, the new hires will address a very diversified portfolio of projects, with many global initiatives related to the transformation of our digital channels and the transformation of our core technology in the countries where we are present,” adds the spokesperson.
The bank is not alone in hiring more software engineers, as developers look set to replace bankers. In the future, banks will increasingly find themselves in stiff competition with other sectors for top engineering talent. A recent report by Business Insider notes that banking HR departments have reduced the hiring process from months to a few weeks to help mitigate the dearth of talent.
