Mercedes 2003 Annual Report Download - page 87
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Please find page 87 of the 2003 Mercedes annual report below. You can navigate through the pages in the report by either clicking on the pages listed below, or by using the keyword search tool below to find specific information within the annual report.Report of the Supervisory Board
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In six meetings during the 2003 financial year, the Supervisory Board
dealt in detail with the business situation of DaimlerChrysler and
the future strategic development of the Group and its business units.
In addition, various other individual issues were dealt with and
discussed with the Board of Management.
The Presidential Committee met four times in 2003, to deal mainly
with Board of Management issues, but also questions of corporate
governance. The Presidential Committee also prepared the plenary
meetings and participated in the efficiency audit of the Supervisory
Board and its committees that was carried out at the end of the year.
The Audit Committee convened five times with the external auditors
to discuss the financial statements and the consolidated financial
statements for 2002 including the Annual Report in accordance with
Form 20-F, the financial statements for the first half of 2003, and
the interim reports on the first and third quarters of 2003. The Audit
Committee also examined the suitability, qualification and inde-
pendence of the external auditors.
After receiving the approval of the Annual Meeting, the Audit
Committee engaged KPMG Deutsche Treuhand-Gesellschaft AG,
Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft, of Berlin and Frankfurt am Main,
a company of auditors, to conduct the annual audit, negotiated
the audit fee and determined the main areas of the audit for the
year 2003.
During the year, the Audit Committee placed particular emphasis
on monitoring the independence of the auditors, and in this con-
text issued a set of principles governing the approval or prohibition
of other services provided by external auditors.
The Audit Committee was also occupied with the company’s
risk-monitoring system and with the reports of the internal
auditors. Furthermore, it established procedures for dealing with
complaints and criticism with regard to accounting, the internal
monitoring systems and the annual audit, as well as for obtaining
confidential and anonymous information from DaimlerChrysler
employees with regard to accounting and financial statements.
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