Banking has become relationship manager (RM)-driven in Bangladesh over the last three decades whether it is corporate, commercial, or retail banking. Large clients in corporate or wealth management segments demand very personalised or structured product support backed by world-class service.

The role of an RM is very crucial in providing personalised financial services to both individual and institutional clients. In today's world, comprising a wide range of complex financial products, an RM should assume more responsibilities than just being a salesperson.

To start with, developing a deep understanding of each client's financial situation, risk appetite, investment objectives and financing needs is of utmost importance.

In the case of institutional clients, it is also imperative that the RM understands the industry in which the client is operating, stays updated with market trends, and has ideas about the challenges that they may be faced. It is through the acquisition of such knowledge that an RM will be able to provide valuable insights and tailored guidance to their clients.

The responsibilities of an RM don't end with providing a financial solution to a client. Rather, regularly reviewing and adjusting investment strategies to keep up with the evolving market conditions and client goals is another key duty.

Given the nature of their job, RMs play a vital role in helping clients achieve their financial aspirations. And as such, they need to possess the ability to build trust and create an environment of empathy.

With more than 25 years of banking credentials, I still identify myself as a humble RM. My esteemed clients whom I served in those days still are reciprocating by diverting a portion of their business to our consulting business. This is the beauty and incentive for an RM.

Today, I would like to remember a few exceptionally bright and committed RMs. They are not mere sales managers but ring-fencing managers for their banks through specially structured products and solutions. In fact, they all are a defining character for an RM in Bangladesh.

The name that came to my mind instantly was that of late Shams Zohan from Standard Chartered Bank. Zohan, who had a premature death in the early thirties due to leukaemia, even phoned central bank officials in Bangladesh from the hospital bed in Singapore, advocating for a client's case to remit money outside the country and repeatedly reassuring us.

I met Otish Asif Rahman, an RM at The City Bank Limited, at 1 am at a hospital in the capital, trying to convince the authority to keep the body of an esteemed client in its morgue as all of his children were abroad. Later I found out that Otish was rated by everyone in the deceased's family as a trusted adviser almost on all accounts.

While I have only cited two examples, I would appreciatively remember the brilliant RMs in the banking industry: Zaid Amin, Reza Ahmed, Mahbub-ur-Rahman, Naser Ezaz Bijoy and Abrar Anwar. They all will be remembered not because they served their clients well, but also, at times, cautioning the clients not to venture into unchartered territories or not to go for unrelated expansions.

They all went the extra mile and spent extra hours for their cross-border as well as local clients. It was not all about opening letters of credit and disbursement of emergency loans for them, but also how they should run businesses prudently with eyes on the future.

The author is an economic analyst