4
Our domestic and international
strategies are more aligned than
ever before 9
D What are your immediate
priorities for the business for
which you are responsible?
El What is your vision of
Rabobank's position in the Dutch
wholesale market?
H What is the role of professional
products in relation to this market?
B Who is Jan van Nieuwenhuizen?
E3 Why did you join Rabobank?
domestic and international strategies are
more aligned than ever before.
A "Our main priority is to make sure we work
more effectively across the product and cliënt
teams. After all, the best way to serve and
generate value for clients is by working across
the silos. When a cliënt comes to us for help,
we have to take a step back and look at how
we can help that cliënt beyond our own area
of expertise, and then put together the best
combination of cliënt and product teams to
address that client's overall needs. And we can
think about where the revenue and profit is
booked later. Our main priority has to be to
serve clients as effectively as possible with the
best risk/return ratio for the bank. So our job
is to encourage the cliënt, while the product
teams and the cross-product teams need
to work together to help our clients. And of
course we have to set an example ourselves,
and recognise the contributions across the
teams. If we can do this, the cake will be bigger
for everyone.
A "This is a tremendous opportunity for
Rabobank to show just what we are capable
of. But as l've said, we also have a responsibility
to support the corporate sector in the
Netherlands. Rabobank is a very knowledge-
driven organisation, in terms of products,
sectors and our clients' business. One of our
ambitions is to make sure we can translate
that knowledge into fïnancial solutions for our
clients. And this goes beyond winning market
share. It's about our long-term commitment
to our clients."
A "What we have to do is convince our
clients that we can deliver the products they
need both now and in the future. We need to
get the best teams in front of our clients and
deliver the solutions they need. And then
make sure we deliver first-class execution.
We need to make it very clear to our clients
what we want to do, and what we can do,
and then deliver as promised. To make this
work, our client-facing people need to be
confïdent that we really can deliver, as they'll
be challenged to reach out across the bank
A "I began my banking career at JP Morgan,
and after following their training programme
in New York, I was responsible for Dutch
corporate clients and capital markets products.
In the early 1990s I moved to Morgan Stanley,
where I worked in capital markets and
investment banking, this time for clients in
the Netherlands and the German-speaking
countries. During my last three years there,
I ran the German investment banking
business out of Frankfurt.
I returned to the Netherlands in 2002, when
I joined the Managing Board of NIB Capital
(now NIBC - ed) in The Hague, where I was
responsible for Corporate Finance. I worked
there until I joined Rabobank last October.
I'm happily married and I have three
daughters,two in high school and one in
primary school. I must say, one of the great
things about joining Rabobank is that I'm
finally working for a bank that my daughters
can recognise, both from TV commercials and
high street branches.That's a first for me!"
A "You mean besides the great TV commer
cials? Seriously, this is a remarkably exciting
time to join Rabobank. The current situation
on the fïnancial markets has created a perfect
opportunity for us to demonstratejust how
good we are, both here in the Netherlands
and abroad. And Rabobank's clear ambition
to be the leading Dutch wholesale bank
and a truly global player in the Food and
Agribusiness market makes myjob very
exciting. I also feel very strongly that the
way we do business, and our core values,
are very much in line with what customers
are looking for right now. We don't see the
current situation in the Netherlands - with
our Dutch peers affected by the fïnancial
crisis - as simply an opportunity, but also as
a responsibility. The fïnancing and advice
we offer can make a real difference to our
corporate clients, thereby helping to get
the Dutch economy moving again. Our
international ambitions on the F&A front
- with a focus on the broader themes of
food, water and energy - also mean that our
We also need to make clear decisions about
the clients we want to serve, and where the
allocation of capital adds value for our clients
and the bank. And now that the banking
crisis is over, we need to get back to business
and take a more proactive approach to the
opportunities out there and support our clients
during the economie recovery. So we have to
encourage a slightly different mindset across
the bank."
and call upon our know-how and expertise.
The great thing about Rabobank is that we're
doing this from a position of strength. Of
course we have our own challenges, but our
clients are very positive about us, we are in
a strong fïnancial position and we have a
unique combination of specialist sector and
product knowledge. In fact, we have all the
ingredients to be remarkably successful.
In other words, it is an excellent time to be
at Rabobank, both as an employee and as
a cliënt."»
ISSUE 23 MAY 2010 RI WORLD
