'Developing a sense OF RESPONSIBILITY EARLY IN LIFE IS CRUCIAL' 12 talking heads WHAT'S NewS Issue 3 March 1997 After 20 years in all disciplines of domestic retail and corporate banking, one of Oet Bakker's unfullfilled ambitions was to go 'international'. Seven years ago Rabobank made the self-confessed Francophile an offer he couldn't refuse: starting up the Paris operation. Now at Rabo-BRP, he's rapidly turning into a serious fan of post-transformation Poland. Although Oet Bakker's father was clergyman, by inclination he bears a striking resemblance to his bank-founding grand- father and entrepreneurial forebears. 'My father was the exception in our family, rather than the rule,' he says. 'And when I went to study law at Groningen University, 1 quickly discovered that I had a fascination for money, its movements, its management. So when I'd finished by studies, I went to ABN and asked for a job.' That first job was actually a stop-gap as Bakker still had two years of military service ahead of him. 'I was in the artillery; we made lots of noise and it was great fun. But besides the fun aspect, this is where you get your first taste of real responsibility. A lot of people are opposed to national service, arguing that it is a waste of time. Yet I feel I learnt a lot about managing people and taking responsibility for your decisions. I think developing a sense of responsibility early in life is crucial.' It was perhaps this sense that sent him looking for a summer job in France as a student. 'At that time,' he recalls, 'it was usual for kids here to learn what we called the three modern languages - English, German and French - along side Dutch. I wasn't too bad in the first two, but my French needed a lot of work so I managed to find a farmer who'd give me a job.' This was the start of his life-long fascination with France, and all things French, although he also admits to a penchant for one specific piece of Fnglish culture - the Queen of Crime, Agatha Christie: 'I've at least one copy of every book she ever wrote,' he laughs. If the idea of the normally impecably dressed Oet Bakker in French beret and Bleus with his nose buried in a detective is hard to imagine, then the claret connoiseur may be a little easier to handle. Again he laughs: 'yes, I have to admit I'm a great fan of claret, the wines from France's Bordeaux region.' He is also a serious fan of good cuisine to go with them, but admits he's a rare visitor to the kitchen. 'My wife taught home economics and so it's hardly surprising that she's the chef in our family. She's a truly excellent cook. My one dish, pheasant with saurkraut and calvados, only appears about once in seven years.' Did Bakker make pheasant when he joined Rabobank after a long and varied career with ABN? 'Well, it is seven years ago,' he smiles, 'but I really can't remember.' The decision to move to Rabobank was in many ways a difficult one. 'When I went to ABN after finishing my military service 1 joined a management trainee program and was through- streamed into the domestic organization. ABN had a rule whereby once you're in the domestic stream, you can't switch to international, and vice versa. We had always wanted to go abroad, but I was being offered some really interesting jobs at home. Amsterdam was my first posting, then I went north Oet Bakker: 'I quickly discovered that l had a fascination for money.' where I headed up a private bank for SMEs and private clients. Subsequently, I was manager of ABN's branch in The Hague. That was exciting. There's a lot of money and a lot of commerce in The Hague, so we had a lot of varied business, ranging from corporate to private banking. ABN had been very good to me and I feit very loyal. Yes, it was not an easy decision.' But Rabobank was offering the Bakkers not only the fulfillment of an old desire - to work internationally. The bank was also offering Paris. 'It was rather like jumping into a black hole,' Bakker says smiling, but seriously. 'It was aA very tough assignment, but there is a bank there now and there was not a bank when I arrived.' Now in Poland, Bakker is experiencing a new challenge. In Warsaw for almost a year, he finds many similarities to the French way of doing business. 'I think you can divide Europe into two basic approaches,' he reckons. 'There is the Anglo-Saxon or northern approach, which I would define as a transaction approach. You do a deal, then another deal, then another, and maybe then you start creating a relationship. In the southern approach, you have to build the relationship first before you can even think of talking transactions.' In Poland, he believes there is an intriguing blend of both. 'My experience is that Poles are also relationship oriented. Yet, at the same time, they are also very commercially focused in that if they see a good deal, they'11 go for it. Clearly, I've only been in the country for a brief period, but I think perhaps one reason they have developed this versatile mix is their history. Few countries have seen political and foreign domination the way the Poles have. They've had to adapt continuously. They're resilient® and appear to have the capacity to make the best of all situations. That comes in very handy in their banking.'

Rabobank Bronnenarchief

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