RS GED - promoting
corporate pride
I
investment banking
In a short period of time, Rabo Securities and Global Equity Derivatives have
managed to forge a close working relationship that has generated some very
interesting products and profits. As the tandem launched another new product,
we asked Andries Mak van Waay (RS) and Teym Eliazov (GED) how their teams
have handled integration, why they believe it has been so successful, and why
we need more corporate pride.
What'sNewS Issue 9- September 1
Your cooperation is often held up to the rest of the
organization as a blueprint for further integration. How
does that feel?
Mak van Waay Th ere seems to be a lack of
optimism that things are going right.
Well, cooperation between RS and GED
is going very well indeed, and I'm
quite comfortable with people talking
about that.
Eliazov And don't forget: we're making
money. But most important is the fact
we've showed that this kind of
cooperation can work very effectively.
So effectively that senior management is singing your
praises
Mak van Waay I think the reason is probably
Rabo Securities' history. In its early
existence, RS went through some
profound structural changes. Clearly, they
were not on the same scale as Rl, but
there are some similarities. And I also
think in that sense we are a good example
of how it can work. It can be painful, but
it can still work and still make money. In
the early stages, we had some difficulty
defining our strategy. Ultimately, we found
a good strategy and we stuck with it.
Besides being profitable, that strategy also
created a stable environment. In the
meantime, GED is becoming a natural
partner for us because the same process is
ongoing there. They have a strategy, it is
very focused, and as a result, it is very
profitable.
Eliazov Maintaining focus on the strategy
and the ensuing discipline is what it's all
Andries Mak van Waay building confidence
about. You have to be very focused. What
we're seeing here is that GED is becoming
an integral part of Rabo Securities. All
our sales people share working space with
RS co-workers and there's no distinction.
They may have different reporting lines,
different directions, but they are part of
one organization. What we need to inject
is professional direction into the expertise
we bring into the organization.
So it has always been sweetness and light?
Eliazov (laughing) Well, not always. But we
ironed out any differences because we
both have the same goal in mind: we want
to do good business, we want to do that
business according to best practice, and
that is what we're doing.
Mak van Waay I think it's important to realize
that people don't necessarily have to agree
all the time. I mentioned a lack of
optimism just now. When you are going
through a period of change, people tend
to emphasize and subsequently cultivate
differences. What happened between GED
and Rabo Securities was that Teym and I
sometimes disagreed on how things
should be approached, but we talked it
through and because we are professionals,
used the best solution. If you value the
other person's knowledge, then you'11 find
a way out of any disagreement.
A re tve talking the much-touted and allegedly very Dutch
consensus model here?
Mak van Waay I don't know if we're really
consensus oriented. What I do know is
that different ideas have often proved to
be very constructive. So although
consensus can be a very good thing, it
can't be your only driver. Sometimes,
someone has to take a decision. Teym
always says our business is about taking
risks and sometimes that means not going
with the consensus.
Eliazov In the beginning, we didn't know
each other. We'd been introduced, but
basically we were all looking at an
unknown factor. You have to establish
trust, professionalism, discover what each
has to contribute. That took some time.
But in the end, we're all driven by one
objective: making the business work and
in the process we have built mutual
respect.
Perhaps it is easy for you because you're seeing very
concrete results.
Eliazov No, it is not just the results. What
we're saying here is that the results in
themselves are the end result of our
cooperation, not the starting point. We
are achieving these results because we
have invested in and committed to the j
working relationship.
Mak van Waay Last year, 1997, was a very
good year for Rabo Securities in financial
