We are now
the clients**
Nordmilch:
Client Relationship
Case Study
Jacqueline Pieters
Confïdence
4 Jacqueline Pieters,
Global Sector Head oj Diary:
Concentrating on cliënt intimacy brings its own rewards, Howell
believes, saying that the concept is the same whether it's on a
European level or a global level.
"There are two important issues here," he says. "Firstly, in the
system in which we're now operating we require our bankers to
always have an active, up-to-date cliënt plan. This enables us to
understand our clients and identify opportunities. Once the SRBs
have outlined the plan, we then need to have the discipline to
follow through on it. This needs to come from a well managed
process where the key stakeholders are tracking what's going on
with each and every cliënt. For example, if we thinka particular
cliënt will launch a bond issue within the next 12-18 months, we
need to be in front of the cliënt well in advance of the event and
ready to offer the right products when they approach the market.
As stated, this involves all key stakeholders. The second issue is
confïdence. We are a very solid bank. The crisis has shown us and
our clients, and the rest of thefinancial world, that we're a bank
that delivers on its commitments and stands fïrmly behind its
clients not only in good, but also in bad times. This is a confïdence
we need to internalise and which is based on our importance
to our clients and to the markets. It is an attitude we can use to
translate our efforts into serious business.
Nordmilch is Germany's largest dairy company, with an
annual turnover of more than €2.0 billion. The company
has had a close relationship with Rabobank for a number of
years, which took a quantum leap in terms of status when
Rabobank was mandated to restructure and reorganise the
company's debt in 2007 under great time and performance
pressure. According to Dagmar Bottenbruch, Rabobank
now has a very special relationship with the company. "Our
relationship with Nordmilch today is as close as you can
get to perfect. We are close to the Head of the Supervisory
Board, the CEO, the CFO and the treasurer. We have each
other's mobile phone numbers and there is a frequent
exchange not only on financial, but also strategie or gover-
nance matters. We do business with them on all levels -
plain vanilla finance, hedging, an OBF structure and we have
an active M&A mandate with them. We see all their business
and discuss all strategie moves. "At this level, Bottenbruch
explains, it's not only about trust, it's also about the cliënt
understanding that their bank is acting in their best interest
while earning a fair return. "Obviously if you stand by your
clients when things get tough," Bottenbruch says, "then
cliënt intimacy develops naturally. Afterwards you need
to develop it further and that's how we operate: through
knowledge of the Balance Sheet and the client's business
model and by offering products that make sense".
issue 24 ju RI WORLD
