3.2 Strategy
Inhoudsopgave Bestuursverslag Corporate governance
networks in the field of commercial real estate within both
the FGH Bank and Rabobank will be brought together under
a single real estate company. In anticipation, the FGH Bank
shares were legally transferred to Rabobank on 31 March 2015
and FGH Bank is no longer part of the Rabo Real Estate Group.
The number of internal and external staff employed in the real
estate segment is approximately 1,600 FTEs.
One Rabobank: stronger and closer
Rabobank is a customer-focused cooperative bank. Our mission
is to contribute to welfare and prosperity in the Netherlands
and to feeding the world sustainably.These aims will allow us
to remain a meaningful cooperative and be successful over the
long term for our customers, members, employees and society.
Rabobank has been a cooperative bank for over 115 years.
We are present in society and are strongly involved with our
customers and members. We want to continue our responsive
role, particularly in a world where customer needs, economic
development, technological advances and increasingly
stringent bank regulations are changing faster than ever.
The Strategic Framework 2016-2020 describes what we want
to achieve over the next five years. It also outlines how we will
implement the new strategy and what specific financial goals
we will pursue.
The Strategic Framework 2016-2020 provides a sharpened
focus on improving customer service and increasing our
performance.
Ambitions: what do we want to achieve?
Our ambition is to be the most customer-focused bank in
the Netherlands and a leading food and agri bank worldwide.
The visions outlined in Banking for the Netherlands and Banking
for Food give substance to our customer-focused cooperative.
The sustainability strategy Sustainably Successful Together is
an important building block within these visions.
Banking for the Netherlands
Rabobank is linked to the future of the Netherlands through
its members and customers. If our customers do well, the
bank does well. As a cooperative bank, we can differentiate
ourselves by providing a targeted contribution to the
challenges the Netherlands faces in the years ahead. In this
way, we contribute to sustainable welfare and prosperity
in the Netherlands. With Banking for the Netherlands we
want to strengthen the Netherlands of the future from three
perspectives:
Jaarrekening Rabobank Groep Jaarrekening Rabobank
1. improving earnings capacity of the Netherlands by focusing
on the growth themes of mobility, vitality, food and agri, raw
materials, water and housing;
2. supporting optimum life courses for Dutch households by
helping customers make confident financial choices, and
3. strengthening the living environment of local communities
through the use of cooperative dividends and our local
participation agenda. Our local presence allows us to respond
to important regional issues.
Banking for Food
The Netherlands is a global leader in the food and agri
sector. Rabobank's agricultural roots have helped it achieve
this position and we will continue to make a significant and
lasting contribution to the global food and agri sector. We are
increasing our commercial effectiveness by fine-tuning our
customer focus, integrating the chain approach, unlocking our
knowledge, improving internal cooperationand creating even
more innovative opportunities. With Banking for Food we want
to play a prominent role in the public debate on the broad issue
of food. We also hope to connect producers with consumers,
and farmers with citizens.
Core objectives: how do we achieve these ambitions?
To fulfil our ambitions in the next five years, we have identified
three core objectives in the Strategic Framework 2016-2020.
7. Excellent customer focus
In the Netherlands, we strive to be the most customer-
focused bank in the country. Our aspirations to generating
strong growth in customer satisfaction also extend beyond
the Netherlands. We believe that this is where our strength
and distinctiveness lie. Rabobank will undergo a fundamental
transformation in the coming years in terms of working
methods, culture, attitudes and conduct. By doing so, we
are responding to changes in customer needs, the uncertain
economic climate and the stricter requirements of regulators.
We want to become the most customer-focused bank in the
country by providing excellent basic service and, if required, by
always being the closest to our customers and fulfilling our role
as a financial linking pin.
2. Increased flexibility and reduction of the balance sheet
In the years to come, we anticipate a further tightening of the
regulatory environment. To maintain our position as a rock-solid
bank, it will therefore be necessary to make our balance sheet
more flexible and reduce it by up to EUR 150 billion between
2014 and 2020. We wantto achieve balance sheet optimisation
by, among other things, placing parts of our loan portfolio with
317 3. Rabobank Group
