Focused on Execution
To implement our priorities, we increasingly benefit from a set of capabilities that we strengthened over the last few years and which we manage on a Group-wide basis
Brand management
As part of our integrated bank strategy, we pursue a one brand strategy. The Credit Suisse brand stands for first-class financial advice and innovation. With an award-winning global campaign launched in 2006, we convey our tradition to innovate and continue to increase brand awareness, leveraging highprofile sponsorship engagements such as the New York Philharmonic, Salzburg Festival, Lucerne Festival, Bolshoi Theatre Moscow and Formula 1.
Capital and risk management
In a move to focus expertise and resources within the integrated global organization, we strengthened our funding and liquidity model at the beginning of 2007 by centralizing debt issuance and the funding of our subsidiaries. We experienced the benefits of our conservative liquidity and funding policy in the second half of 2007, where we maintained a comfortable liquidity profile and capital position despite the liquidity squeeze in funding markets. As a globally integrated bank, we have access to markets worldwide, with retail and private client deposits representing a stable source of funds.
We use our economic capital framework as a consistent and comprehensive tool to manage risk and capital as well as to steer the planning process and to measure performance. Economic capital is a robust framework for managing our risk profile and assessing aggregate risk appetite in relation to our financial resources. We have a focus on risk management and we will continue to work to refine our standards.
Centers of Excellence
In order to bundle the processes for the integrated bank and to better serve client needs, we set up global service centers. As of the end of 2007, we employed 5,000 employees, or 10% of our workforce, in our Centers of Excellence in Singapore, Raleigh-Durham (North Carolina, US), Pune (India) and Wroclaw (Poland). The locations were selected because of access to qualified talent and good infrastructure. In addition, they strengthen the global presence of Credit Suisse and confirm our commitment to these regions. Going forward, we will work hard to capture the full potential of our Centers of Excellence.
Cost management
During 2007, we strengthened the governance of our various cost management activities with a small central team to coordinate cost initiatives and divisional teams to drive further compensation and non-compensation cost reductions. We are in the process of implementing Group-wide cost management standards and policies and we will apply internal efficiency, productivity and cost targets to identify and deliver cost synergies.
Operational Excellence
We also made further progress in striving for operational excellence. We have numerous initiatives underway and, during 2007, we further leveraged this program. For example, we shortened and improved the client approval process for private equity funds and improved the market access for high-networth individuals, improving client satisfaction, revenues and efficiency. Our Operational Excellence program has been in place for more than three years, creating a mindset of continued improvement and client focus and an established tool to implement our strategy and key initiatives.
