ORGANIGRAM The new Chairman of Rabobank has come a long way from the small, bulb-growing village of Noordwijker- hout on the Dutch coast. His career in the financial world is also a far crv from his initial plans. Heemskerk first studied theology and philosophy in both Germany and France, before rounding out his education with a Masters in Fxo- nomics in Rotterdam. Although he opted for a career in finance, his favourite authors - Plato, Descartes, Sartre and Tagore - still betray his early interest in philosophy and theology. But that interest shifted and he was in the process of com- pleting a PhD on integration in the Kuropean banking industry when Amro Bank made hint the proverbial offer he couldn't refuse. instead of finishing rny PhD,' he recalls, '1 decided to take up the job at Amro. My first posting was Tokyo. LJlti - mately, I became the bank's Interna tional Director, with responsibility for 50 international offices.' The offer from Van Lanschot came just after the merger of Amro with ABN. 'By this time, I was General Director, responsible for retail. My sense was that there were too many chiefs at ABN Amro. There were no less than 19 General Directors and 12 Executive Board Members. Too many people, too many talents.' Van Lanschot would prove a major chal- lenge for Heemskerk. 'What we did there was a real achievement,' he says, 'although 1 should add that economie conditions and mergers among other major banks helped us a lot.' When Heemskerk was approached to join Rabobank, he had broad experience, both domestic and inter national, in both listed and private institutions. How does he see the co- operative organizational structure? 'The success of any organization depends on knowledge,' he says, 'and specifically on local knowledge. At Amro, I headed up international branches and there was a kind of natural tension between head office at a distance, and locally operating branches with a lot of freedom to rnanouvre in the market. I had no problem with that. It is a fallacy to believe that a centrally managed organization is better run. Rabobank is a financial institution with a very solid position - at home and abroad. Domestically, who has such a finely interwoven network rooted both locally and regionally? Internationally, we are a bank that counts. Who knows the customer as well as Rabobank?' Given these basic, strong components, Heemskerk sees the challenge ahead for the Rabobank Group as, 'retain- ing and expanding our current market leadership position. That is a sound and attainable ambition. We all need to put a lot of energy into achieving it, especially in those areas where our market share is under pressure, or in urban areas where we still have a lot of room to grow. In addition, the Group has a cluster of strong financial services units focused on insurance, private banking, leasing, real-estate and private equity. Internationally, we are top financial services providers to Food and Agribusiness (F&A) and are moving into country banking in a major way. All of these activities have great growth potential. We intend to pursue them all vigorously, building the al- ready strong Rabobank Group into an even stronger organization.' I The Word I 5

Rabobank Bronnenarchief

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