Marketing is the latest mantra for the public sector banking industry.

Corporation Bank has already got a general manager, marketing. Now, Bank of Baroda, too, is appointing a marketing head.

The executive, being recruited from the fast moving consumer goods sector, will oversee the bank's product marketing.

BoB is, in fact, recruiting half-a-dozen senior executives at key positions and a few hundreds at different levels.

The objective is to tone up the organisation in the run-up to putting in place core banking solutions and creating the technology platform for the bank.

The senior officials will head marketing, human resource development, infotech, project management and a few other areas.

They will be given market-related salary. This is possibly the first instance of a public sector bank hiring executives on contract.

State Bank of India has recently recruited from management schools for its merchant banking subsidiary SBI Caps.

However, they are on the payroll of the organisation. These employees are now posted at SBI on deputation.

"We are recruiting professionals from the market. The plan is to reposition the bank. All efforts are on towards this end," BoB chairman-cum-managing director P S Shenoy said.

The bank is planning to change its logo and redesign its 2,700-odd branches across the country.

"We plan to give the branches a look that reflects the new culture of the bank. We are a global bank. The new logo, being conceived, will also convey this message," Shenoy said. The BoB branches across the country will display the same look after the facelift.

Shenoy plans to reposition the bank as a global bank. "Once the technology platform is ready, the bank will take a big leap," he said.

Consultancy firm Gartner is working on the technology transformation of the bank. BoB has already created six independent business units as part of an organisational recast. It also plans to introduce gold banking in a big way.

The BoB stock has been enjoying a dream run on the bourses. It closed at Rs 137 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on Wednesday, a gain of Rs 7.50.

The bank plans to return part of the government's capital and bring down the government's stake to 51 per cent.

By returning the capital, the bank wants to raise the book value as well as earnings per share. The government has not yet responded to the bank's proposal to return capital at par.