Proctor and Gamble 2009 Annual Report Download - page 30

28 The Procter & Gamble Company
At The Procter & Gamble Company, we take great pride in our long
history of doing what’s right. If you analyze what’s made our company
successful over the years, you may focus on our brands, our marketing
strategies, our organization design and our ability to innovate. But if
you really want to get at what drives our company’s success, the place
to look is our people. Our people are deeply committed to our Purpose,
Values and Principles. It is this commitment to doing what’s right that
unites us.
This commitment to doing what’s right is embodied in our financial
reporting. High-quality financial reporting is our responsibility—one we
execute with integrity, and within both the letter and spirit of the law.
High-quality financial reporting is characterized by accuracy, objectivity
and transparency. Management is responsible for maintaining an
effective system of internal controls over financial reporting to deliver
those characteristics in all material respects. The Board of Directors,
through its Audit Committee, provides oversight. We have engaged
Deloitte & Touche LLP to audit our Consolidated Financial Statements,
on which they have issued an unqualified opinion.
Our commitment to providing timely, accurate and understandable
information to investors encompasses:
Communicating expectations to employees. Every employee —
from senior management on down—is required to be trained on the
Company’sWorldwide Business Conduct Manual, which sets forth
the Company’s commitment to conduct its business affairs with high
ethical standards. Every employee is held personally accountable for
compliance and is provided several means of reporting any concerns
about violations of the Worldwide Business Conduct Manual, which
is available on our website at www.pg.com.
Maintaining a strong internal control environment. Our system of
internal controls includes written policies and procedures, segregation
of duties and the careful selection and development of employees. The
system is designed to provide reasonable assurance that transactions
are executed as authorized and appropriately recorded, that assets
are safeguarded and that accounting records are sufficiently reliable
to permit the preparation of financial statements conforming in all
material respects with accounting principles generally accepted in the
United States of America. We monitor these internal controls through
control self-assessments conducted by business unit management.
In addition to performing financial and compliance audits around the
world, including unannounced audits, our Global Internal Audit
organization provides training and continuously improves internal
control processes. Appropriate actions are taken by management to
correct any identified control deficiencies.
Executing financial stewardship. We maintain specific programs
and activities to ensure that employees understand their fiduciary
responsibilities to shareholders. This ongoing effort encompasses
financial discipline in strategic and daily business decisions and brings
particular focus to maintaining accurate financial reporting and
effective controls through process improvement, skill development
and oversight.
Exerting rigorous oversight of the business. We continuously review
business results and strategic choices. Our Global Leadership Council
is actively involved–from understanding strategies to reviewing key
initiatives, financial performance and control assessments. The intent
is to ensure we remain objective, identify potential issues, continu-
ously challenge each other and ensure recognition and rewards are
appropriately aligned with results.
Engaging our Disclosure Committee. We maintain disclosure controls
and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be
disclosed is recorded, processed, summarized and reported timely
and accurately. Our Disclosure Committee is a group of senior-level
executives responsible for evaluating disclosure implications of signifi-
cant business activities and events. The Committee reports its findings
to the CEO and CFO, providing an effective process to evaluate our
external disclosure obligations.
Encouraging strong and effective corporate governance from our
Board of Directors. We have an active, capable and diligent Board
that meets the required standards for independence, and we welcome
the Board’s oversight. Our Audit Committee comprises independent
directors with significant financial knowledge and experience. We
review significant accounting policies, financial reporting and internal
control matters with them and encourage their independent discussions
with external auditors. Our corporate governance guidelines, as well
as the charter of the Audit Committee and certain other committees
of our Board, are available on our website at www.pg.com.
P&G has a strong history of doing what’s right. Our employees embrace
our Purpose, Values and Principles. We take responsibility for the quality
and accuracy of our financial reporting. We present this information
proudly, with the expectation that those who use it will understand
our company, recognize our commitment to performance with integrity
and share our confidence in P&G’s future.
R.A. McDonald
President and Chief Executive Officer
J.R. Moeller
Chief Financial Officer
Management’s Responsibility for Financial Reporting