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Rl organization
Reading matters
Two issues
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1
Complex situation
Getting clear
What'sNewS Issue7-July 1999 7
press is any benehmark). But the SRT has
come to some conclusions about how we
are perceived, espeeially by customers.
'The customers we've spoken to, both ex-
isting relationships and prospects from a
variety of geographic locations, all say we
appear to have a lot of knowledge about
F&A. They also feel we are terribly bu
reaucratie. For that reason, they don't see
us as being a very customer oriented bank.
While sector knowledge can be useful to
customers, in itself it doesn't make any
money. Our long-term task is to find a di-
rection which would make us money.'
The SRT has been tasked by the managing
board vvith finding - profitable - ways to
fcceep F&A as our primary focus.
'Currently, the F&A focus is not as
successful as it could be. So the first issue
is: how can we intprove the strategy to
make it more successful. From our
discussions with people, we have found
that the customer focus strategy we have
is not as detailed as it could be. It is open
to a very broad interpretation.' The team
has also come to the conclusion that we
have a very complex organization. 'We
deal with an enormous variety of
customers and companies, so we feel
Since his arrival at RI less than three
months ago, Maarten Ffulshoff has
been inundated with requests for clar-
ity. He has also been inundated with
paper. 'Just one example,' he says. 'Last
Friday evening I was given a 20-cen-
timetre stack of paper for my weekend
reading. We seem to be running this
business as a combination of a paper
mill and debating club. I get papers
that are 50 or 60 pages long without
headlines, without a summary. No one
can digest that. If you want us to be de-
cisive, to take action, then give us effi
ciënt information. I'll teil you honestly,
if I get a 50-page document, single-
spaced typed, no summary, then it gets
pushed to the bottom of my pile. Any
paper coming to me should be signed
by the author, should be sponsored by
a board member and should have a
perhaps seen as a cure-all for what ails us.
Asked for his take on the subject, Mesritz
first talks transparency rather than report-
ing lines. 'Our mandate is to come up with
a proposal for a strategie direction,' he
Writing on the walI - all points are taken
during this phase of the process
complexity and lack of focus are the two
major issues. It is not a lack discipline as
some people seem to think. It's more a
^ack of accountability.'
The accountability issue is very much in
vogue in the organization at present. It is
says. 'By implication that means we also
come up with how the organization
should be structured.' One of the things
almost everyone can agree on is the lack
of clarity in our organizational structure.
'It's not surprising,' he continues. 'We
have a very complex organization. That is
the main complaint we've picked up on
from our discussions with people around
the network. Everything goes through
committees, has to go through hierarchical
chains, there has to be consensus. The
front template comprising a concise
summary of what the paper is about
and what action is needed. If you can't
explain the most complicated issues in
two pages, then there is something
wrong with your communication skills.
Maybe it takes more effort to be con
cise, to be brief, and clear, but people
ask me to be clear. Can I ask the same?'
causes are partly because it is a Dutch
organization, and the Dutch way is con
sensus. Add to that the fact that we're a
cooperative. Then you add the fact that
we're a financial institution, and a very
conservative one at that. Plus, we've
added a matrix structure and globaliza-
tion with regional responsibilities. If you
mix all that up, it is easy to get into a
complex situation.'
For this reason, in these final stages of the
review process the SRT will be focusing on
generating proposals and an ensuing oper-
ating model in cooperation with TIP
which will bring clarity to our organiza
tional structures and show clearly who is
responsible and accountable for what.
They are getting there by a process of dis
cussion and debate which hammers out
the finer points of basic proposals sug-
gested by the team's researches into best
practice, both within and outside
Rabobank. The offsite pictured here is a
typical example of how the team is com-
municating so that, in turn, the proposals
we're expecting from them in late August
will be the best of best practice. 'If you
talk in terms of accountability,' says Mes
ritz, 'this is ours. We are accountable for
an adjusted strategy and for the ultimate
development of an organizational struc
ture that is clear to everyone and which
allows everyone to know who is responsi
ble for what.'
