adminpublication that analyses and reports on the retail banking sector, said Rautenbach outclassed competitors from more than 300 banks around the world.
He cited new product features and close attention to leadership development, where the percentage of senior management in his team was recruited from internal talent pools, as the main reason behind his accolade.
“Successful leadership development from a build-from-within company is a strategic imperative and a responsibility that I take very seriously for Absa Retail’s current and future success. This will take us from strength to strength,” Rautenbach said.
Rautenbach has strengthened Absa’s operating model and market positioning actively raising his public profile and availability to media. This has led to increased public awareness on the bank’s focus of ease of banking and innovation, while Rautenbach has established a leadership team with a combined experience of more than 100 years to drive this vision.
Absa now offers a useful budget planning tool on its revamped internet banking site, Absa online and certainly strives to make life easier for clients through innovations such as its App designed for tablets and smartphones and its Payment Pebble, a mobile card-reader device that makes accepting payments easier for entrepreneurs. The device has recently entered pilot phase.
The bank will up its retail client base to 13 million following the acquisition of the Edcon store-card loan book, while the prospects of the deal led by Mr Rautenbach will be to convert Edcon clients into primary Absa clients.
Citing these as some of Rautenbach’s achievements Craig Bond, newly appointed chief executive of Absa and Barclays Africa Retail and Business Banking said: “We are proud that Arrie Rautenbach’s stewardship to drive this vision, taken together with his increased rapport and public profile is beginning to come into focus having earned him the honour of being Retail Banker of the Year.” – CAJ News.
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