COVER STORY
Rabobank
Nederland
Customers
International cooperatives
Rabobank
International
14
Recent events have caused some
companies to study Rabobank's values
more closely. According to Beerman,
however, many customers in the
Netherlands are very familiar with
Rabobank's cooperative model. "The
most important aspect for me is that
we are very close to our members,
whether they are individual consumers
or large corporates, because we are
locally organised. Another important
element is continuity; we don't have to
run after short-term profits or control our
performance on the stock market, but
instead we can concentrate on longer
term strategie goals."
Internationally, customers are less
aware of the cooperative values,
Beerman believes. "For international
customers the cooperative model is not
a means in itself. Where they do have
an interest in the cooperative model
is when it increases the stability of our
organisation, the continuity of our
people and, of course, the quality of our
financial arrangements. As a cooperative
bank we're committed to our member
clients, and our large customers, like
traders and stevedores in the Rotterdam
port, know that and appreciate it."
Each cooperative model is different, with
a separate set of goals and principles,
and a unique legal structure. That, says
Bert Mertens, is the main reason why
Rabobank's Dutch model couldn't be
transposed directly onto Rabobank's
international operations. Despite this,
Mertens is a keen advocate of change.
"Not every country has the same legal
structure as the Netherlands, which
means we couldn't just use the Dutch
model abroad - but then that's not
the main point. The main point is that
we begin to establish systems where
customers have an impact on the
decision-making within the bank. And to
get to that stage, we need to convince
local members in the Netherlands
that an international cooperative
organisation, in whatever form, would
be good for Rabobank. If it's possible
to coordinate Rabobank's core values
in local structures established in other
countries, then we need to do it."
Bouke de Vries agrees that a simple
transposition of the Dutch structure
outside the Netherlands would fait. He
believes there has to be an appetite
from Rabobank operations in other
Rabobank's cooperative structure
The local Rabobanks and their members make up the core of
the banking business. They are the cooperative's key stakeholders.
Being the central (legal) entity, Rabobank Nederland is in the centre
of the organisational chart. In the Netherlands, Rabobank Nederland
facilitates the local Rabobanks, including the development of new
products and marketing support. It performs staff functions for
the local Rabobanks and for Rabobank Group as a whole, including
Shared Services Facilities, Group ICT and Cooperative Management,
Corporate Social Responsibility, Investor Relations, Long Term Funding,
Human Resources, Legal and Tax Affairs, Knowledge Economie
Research and Communications. Rabobank International, with its
global expertise in complex financial products, serves all wholesale
clients worldwide and retail clients outside of the Netherlands.
ISSUE 20
I HE WORD
