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Linking Bonuses to Profits

Entrepreneurialism is a key tenet: the new CEO is attempting to more closely link banker bonuses to a bottom-line profitability metric. This is a departure from the heady growth era under Boris Collardi, who ran Julius Baer from 2009 until 2017.

The former CEO rewarded bankers for reeling in new assets by the handful – often with little regard for their profitability or, in some cases, for the potential trouble down the road. Rickenbacher’s first step was telling: last month, the new CEO granted the two men he beat for the top job with bigger remits. 

Do More With Less

Europe boss Yves Robert-Charrue nabbed Switzerland as well as Russia and the Middle East, while Nic Dreckmann won the intermediaries business formerly run by Rickenbacher. He also expanded the purview of influential finance boss Dieter Enkelmann to include treasury and markets.

The «do more with less» idea, meant to seep through Julius Baer’s ranks, follows a grueling two-year review of each client under a nearly 90 million franc deep scan of its clients. Robert-Charrue and Dreckman signaled internally they are in place, according to two people familiar with the matter.

It is unclear how each will respond further out. Entrusting the duo with so much more power so quickly after a career defeat represents a big bet on the CEO's part that they will stay on-side.

«Otherwise No One Cares»

Both came away from the year-long search somewhat drained, according to a person familiar with the process. Rickenbacher, who has been criticized for not rising up through Julius Baer’s cadre of private bankers, needs each of the men if he wants to force through uncomfortable changes.

«Either you have a lot of clients or you have a lot of private bankers who report to you – otherwise no one cares,» as one adviser to Julius Baer put it, in reference to the private bankers' insouciance to outsiders.