As a subsidiary of the RZB Group, Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI) has integrated comprehensive corporate responsibility measures into its business activity.
The RZB Group is embedded in the Austrian Raiffeisen Banking Group. Its underlying principles are derived from the ideas of Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen. For him, social solidarity, self-help and sustainability were guidelines for economic activity.
As the RZB Group, we are a major economic force within Austria and many countries in which we have a presence. We value sustainable corporate governance and the attendant social responsibility that goes with it. Our role in the economy is characterised by practical responsibility towards our customers, employees, shareholders and society.
For us as a company, corporate responsibility means acting responsibly when pursuing all our agendas, even though the social problems have changed since the time of our organisation's founding in the second half of the 19th century. We are proud of our history and tradition and place corporate responsibility on the same footing as achieving economic success the Raiffeisen way.
We embody a sustainable economic and social model, and strive to achieve a rational balance between business and social and ecological responsibility. We expressly endorse the following values:
- Environmental protection, especially climate protection
- Human rights
- Fighting corruption
- Assisting stable economic development in all the regions in which we are active
Corporate Responsibility Organisation
The importance of corporate responsibility for the RZB Group has been enhanced in recent years with the development of the Strategic Corporate Responsibility Organisation. The Chairman of the Board is responsible for overseeing the sustainability agenda.
On the highest level, the RZB Group has an “expanded CR Committee”. Its responsibility is to assist the development of corporate responsibility in the RZB Group. The members of this expanded committee are General Director Walter Rothensteiner (RZB) and General Director Herbert Stepic (RBI), experts from various fields and representatives of our stakeholders. The members offer a high level of expertise in the areas of the economy, the environment and social issues, and they meet to determine areas of focus for the future.
- Rudolf Bretschneider, partner of GfK Austria GmbH (founded in 1950 as the Dr.-Fessel-Institut for Market Research).
- Martin Essl, entrepreneur and CEO of bauMax AG
- Franz Fischler, CEO of the Raiffeisen Climate Protection Initiative
- Christian Friesl, Division Head of Social Policy in the Federation of Austrian Industry
- Sabine Haag, General Director and Scientific Manager of the Vienna Museum of Art History
- Erwin Hameseder, General Director of Raiffeisenlandesbank Niederösterreich-Wien AG
- Krisztina Horvath, Managing Director of the Hungarian Raiffeisen Bank Zrt.
- Monika Lindner, Manager of the outdoor advertising company Epamedia and member of the Presidential Conference of the Austrian Red Cross
A corporate responsibility project team was formed with members of all the relevant departments to prepare and implement corporate responsibility within the company. The approximately 30 members come from the following divisions:
- Business
- Controlling
- Human Resources
- Investor Relations
- IT Management
- Legal and Compliance
- Marketing
- Procurement
- Productivity Management
- Public Relations
- Risk Management
- ZHS Facility Management
The CR Team under the Managing Board bears the responsibility for implementing and coordinating all corporate responsibility activities within the entire RZB Group.
The following individuals are members of the CR Team:
- Heidrun Kopp MBA MA, Director
- Justus Reichl
