'I LIKE TO LOOK
AHEAD...'
16
talking heads
WHAT'S NewS Issue 2 February 1997
He is a cooperative banker through and through. By
upbringing and by inclination, Cor Broekhuyse is a Rabo-
man. Yet, when he was offered the opportunity to cross the
world to head up the newly merged Rabo Sydney and the
Primary Industry Bank of Australia, he was off like a shot:
'However exciting and chailenging it is to work in head
office, it was such a relief to get away from the bureaucracy.
In Sydney, I actually arrange my own diary. I'm visible in the
bank there. My door is always open.'
Cor Broekhuyse was
something of an institution in
the old-style international
division. Not only a financial
man to the core (forgive the
pun), he was and is, of course,
a real F&A expert. It was
Broekhuyse who fielded
complex food and agri-
questions from the press. And
he was perceived as that rare
commodity - a banker who
truly understood the F&A
business. And vice versa.
Talking to him about his farm
childhood, about his father
who sat on the board of their
local Rabobank and many
other agri-cooperatives and
about his family, his move to
Australia seems almost out of
character.
Broekhuyse is an avid speed
skater, especially on natural
ice, with a deep-seated love of
the Dutch countryside. The
chartered account turned
expert F&A banker turned
number two in the
international division turned
CEO of Rabo Australia grins.
'It's true I love Flolland, but
you know I always travelled a
lot, certainly with the
international division. And it's
also true that I love coming
back. To teil you the truth,
part of what I love about it is
being able to see it with
different eyes. I haven't feit a
moment of homesickness. The
world has become a small
place and through phone and
fax it is easy to stay in contact
with family and friends.' As
the seventh son of a real
'cooperative' family,
Broekhuyse says he likes to
maintain close contact with his
family - one of his brothers
has been in New Zealand for
almost 20 years. All the
Broekhuyse brothers build
their own businesses, be it in
retailing, farming or as general
manager of a local Rabobank.
But at 16, none of these
options appealed to Cor - 'I
wanted to be a professional
soccer player,' he says. But
slipping school grades put an
end to sneaking off to play
football instead of doing
homework. 'My father gave
me an ultimatum - piek up the
grades, or else. I chose the first
option. But I've retained a love
of sport all my life.' And that
doesn't mean as a passive
spectator. Broekhuyse ran his
last full New York marathon
in 1993. 'I don't have the time
to train now,' he says. Yet, he
agrees that the marathon
mentality is a key to the kind
of person he is. 'If I set myself
a goal, 1*11 achieve it somehow.
I started my career in the state
tax office. The idea was to
work there while following an
evening study in chartered
accountancy. I don't think
anyone would claim that's an
easy combination. But I
wanted to do it and I did.
When I qualified, I moved to
the bank. Quite frankly I
didn't like being a fiscal
policeman. In that job, you're
always looking backwards. 1
prefered to look ahead so
when I started doing credit in
the bank, that allowed me to
do that. You're looking at how
a company wil I develop and
that not only demands
analytical skills, but also
imagination.'
One of his personal goals was
to run his own business. 'There
were times during my time in
Utrecht that I considered
leaving and starting a business
of my own. But there was
always so much happening I
didn't get round to it. I was
moving in the bank about
every three years and the new
jobs were always really
chailenging. I did a stint in
corporate but when the Sydney
opportunity came up, I
grabbed it. I wanted some
independence, I wanted
ultimate responsibility and the
operation in Australia was an
opportunity to get that. The
team here is really great and
the business combines both
primary and merchant. What
more could 1 want?'
Ffe also enjoys living in Sydney.
'My wife has introduced me to
classical ballet, so that has got
me into the Sydney opera
house. I'm not particularly in
to opera, although having been
raised a Catholic, I still enjoy
sung masses, such as Verdi's
Requiem. And I love cooking
Italian food; the wines here in
Australia are excellent. We've
haven't really taken to
barbacueing, because Grete is
American and I'm Dutch so w
probably have our own blend
of entertaining that is a bit of
both, rather than traditionally
Australian.'
For Broekhuyse, Australia's
countryside has a very special
beauty. It's much more
dramatic than the classic
Dutch picture postcard image
of flat fields bordered by neat
waterways that turn into
natural ice in winter time.
'That kind of skating is
definitely a non-starter here,'
he grins. 'And I haven't the
time for long-runs, so I was
missing sport. Grete came up
with an answer and gave me
golf lessons for my last
birthday. I'd never played
before, but I'm hooked
already. It's a bit like Australia
itself. It's a new challenge and
I'm loving every minute of it.
Cor Broekhuyse: 'I wanted to be a professional soccer player'.
