Assystem - 2015 Registration Document

8

REPORTS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

REPORT BY THE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

quarterly project reviews carried out with operations by the Deputy CEO & Chief Financial Officer and the Executive Vice-President in charge of HR development. The Group’s financial reporting also includes a series of indicators and aggregates which allow for a finely-tuned analysis of the performance of the various subsidiaries and business units. In addition to these indicators, the Group also specifically monitors its indirect costs, billable staff time and billing rates. All of the tools implemented are also rounded out by the Group’s internal control measures. 8.1.3.3.2 INTERNAL COMMUNICATION The intranet and the reporting and consolidation system are the two centralised communication channels used by the Group to relay key information that is necessary for the people concerned to exercise their responsibilities. The Group’s intranet includes the QMS manual and the main procedures applicable at local level The procedures concern IT, human resources and business management. All of the subsidiaries are equipped with the reporting and consolidation system (LINK), It is the platform for the financial information published by the Group. An accounting guide is distributed to all Group subsidiaries to ensure that information is submitted in a standardised fashion. The Group communicates with its subsidiaries by circulating memorandums and procedures in order to ensure that matters affecting the Group as a whole, such as investments, cash management, the monitoring of trade receivables, etc., are dealt with in a consistent manner. Lastly, subsidiaries are responsible for setting up and maintaining information systems that are compatible with the Group’s objectives in terms of reporting financial information and managing projects. At this stage, the Group has not opted to implement a common management information system for all its subsidiaries as the nature of its activities does not require it. It is, however, attentive to the harmonisation of the labels and content of its key performance indicators for comparable activities, in order to carry out transversal analyses (in particular project profitability analyses) on the same basis and to facilitate skills exchanges between business units and countries.

Disposals – Acquisitions The identification of acquisition targets and their pre-qualification is initiated by a dedicated department and/or the operational divisions concerned, then validated by the General Management and the Finance Department. Following operational, financial, HR, tax and legal audits, whose aim is to validate the compatibility of targets with the business model, the financial performance and identification of possible risks, acquisition proposals are presented to the Board of Directors for approval. Acquired companies are immediately integrated into the Group’s operational and management reporting process. Depending on their size, the Group’s information systems are deployed to guarantee the reliability of financial information. Asset or securities disposals are validated by the Board of Directors and the General Management and are subject to management and monitoring at Group level, in liason with the operational divisions concerned. Communication of results The preparation and validation of press releases and investor presentations concerning the Group’s results are governed by a specific procedure involving the Group’s executive management team, the Finance Department, the Communications Department and the Statutory Auditors. Draft earnings releases are submitted to the Audit Committee and the Board of Directors for review. The Group implements all reasonable means to provide regular, reliable, clear and transparent information to its shareholders and to financial analysts. Information is provided through press releases, by the quarterly publication of the Group’s revenue and by the half-yearly and yearly publication of its financial results. Twice yearly, the Group organises “SFAF” meetings, when publishing its financial results, and four times per year, telephone conferences when publishing its quarterly revenue figures. Tools The Group has put in place a set of key indicators which enable it to monitor project management. These indicators are monitored during

180

ASSYSTEM

FINANCIAL REPORT 2015