79 GRI Index and Assurance statement Engaged citizen Fair partner Responsible banker Human Capacity Report Sustainability management Overview Foreword Future outlook and Sustainability Program Issues of sustainability have been receiving increasing attention in all areas of the economy. This can be seen, among other things, in the new statutory obligation to report on sustainability as well as the rising interest in sustainability ratings and sustainable investments. Even among the public and consumers, the awareness of environmental issues and social interests has increased, which is reflected not least in a growing demand for fair and organic products and sustainable funds. We see these developments as well as the state commitments made within the framework of the Paris Climate Agreement as opportunities for new business areas and as both a confirmation of the path we have taken and an incentive to continue in this direction. We are currently working with the support of the Environment Agency Austria on a climate policy and climate strategy for RBI AG, which should be published in the fourth quarter of 2017 and implemented as of 2018. In accordance with its key function within the economy, the RZB Group has long been aware of its responsibility and works continuously to make all of its business areas more sustainable. We take advantage of as many levers as possible to align our operational activities more strongly with social and environmental interests and to further promote sustainability within the core business. It is important in this regard to regularly launch new products. For example, RBI AG carried out a portfolio analysis for the issue of a first Green Bond and is currently evaluating options for implementing this. In the investment business, Raiffeisen KAG is planning to launch at least one new sustainable fund in 2017. The roll-out of the new version of our Code of Conduct is planned for the second half of 2017, and the communication of the new code will help raise awareness among all employees of the group. The topic of digitization will be one of the central strategic challenges of the RBI Group over the coming years. Digitization is frequently associated with rapid progress and, as a side effect, increasing uncertainty. The already heavy competition in the banking sector will be further intensified by technological developments, rapidly changing customer needs and the entry of new market players, such as financial technology start-ups. With regard to digitization, the network banks of the RBI Group are currently well positioned, especially in the retail sector. The online banking solutions provided to our customers offer a comprehensive range of functions as well as generally intuitive and simple user interfaces. Against this backdrop, we have initiated a project in conjunction with the network banks in order to respond to the exponentially increasing challenges and to define our vision for the digital age. On the one hand, we wish to significantly expand the online offering for our customers. A straightforward and smooth process for opening an account, ideally with the aid of modern technologies, plays just as central a role here as the rapid and yet risk-optimized taking out of online loans. In order to establish a comprehensive digital user experience, it will be necessary to revise our multi-channel strategy as well as the structure of our branch network. We see this not only as a way to proactively address new customer needs but also as an improvement in our environmental footprint through the reduction of paper-based communication as well as less travel between home and work. On the other hand, we must intensify our efforts to adapt our internal processes to the new digital reality. A seamless customer experience with the online banking solutions will require the automation of associated back office processes in order to reduce process interruptions and long response times to a minimum. The intense competition, which will only become stronger due to new trends such as “open banking”, makes it vital to co-operate more closely within the group, especially on the implementation of joint IT solutions. Security, transparency and data protection are essential requirements and basic pillars of digitization in order to ensure the continued trust of customers in our bank.
ebook_RBI_NHBericht2016_EN
To see the actual publication please follow the link above