Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters apologized for his "choice of words" after facing backlash for describing some jobs as "lower value, human capital" during a discussion about AI-driven changes at the bank.
In a LinkedIn post on Thursday, Winters said his remarks had "caused upset to some colleagues" and shared a full transcript of what he said to provide a "better understanding" of his comments.
Winters added that the transcript showed he valued "all" employees and said the bank was committed to helping workers adapt to rapid technological change.
Here are his comments in full:
"For example, this new core banking system in Hong Kong, which is a major, major accomplishment.This is not an everyday thing. It happens once in 40 years. And when it goes wrong, it's a disaster. It did not, it was practically perfect.That was a two and a half year programme, to get that right.The people that were gonna be affected, who were very important for helping us get to the right answer, knew that they were gonna be affected, and we began reskilling them at the earliest possibility.We're not long on talent in the markets where we operate, because these markets are growing fast.So the people that want to reskill, that want to carry on, we're giving every opportunity to reposition.And the people that say, yeah, you know, I've done my bit, I'm ready to do something else. I take a package at the end of, at the end of the migration of the application.So this isn't, it's not cost cutting. It's replacing, in some cases, lower value, human capital, with the financial capital and the investment capital that we're putting in.But almost always, with good clear notice going forward."
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Thibault is a business reporter at Business Insider's London office.He covers the intersection of wealth, work, and technology — focusing on the global economy, AI’s impact on the workplace, job and cognitive skills, and how economic changes are affecting careers. Before moving to the trending team, Thibault covered international affairs, including the Russia-Ukraine war, tensions in the South China Sea, and Russia’s economy on the news desk.He has previously worked at the Daily Express and held internships at Agence France-Presse, Politico Europe, and Factal.Il parle français. Se habla español.Email Thibault at [email protected], connect with him on LinkedIn @ThibaultSpirlet, or follow him on X @ThibaultSpirlet and BlueSky @thibaultspirlet.bsky.social.Expertise
- AI and the future of work
- Job and cognitive skills in the AI economy
- Workforce trends
- First-person, "as-told-to" business stories
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