Reebok 2012 Annual Report Download - page 68

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adidas Group
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2012 Annual Report
To Our Shareholders
46
2012
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01.5
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Supervisory Board Report
Supervisory Board Report
Dear Shareholders,
We look back on 2012 as an extremely successful year. Thanks to strong brands as well as innovative products and marketing
campaigns, the adidas Group was able to grow in all markets, achieving record sales as well as record operating cash flow. The
visibility of the adidas brand at the year’s major sports events and the market share gains of TaylorMade-adidas Golf were key
highlights. The Group was, however, not without challenges in 2012, with the continuation of the sovereign debt crisis in Europe and
the discovery of commercial irregularities at Reebok India Company being particular headwinds. Nevertheless, these issues have
been proactively and resolutely managed. With a strong balance sheet, the Group is well positioned to enjoy another year of progress
in 2013.
Supervision and advice in dialogue with the Executive Board
In the past year, we again regularly advised the Executive Board on the management of the company and carefully and continuously
supervised its management activities, assuring ourselves of the legality, expediency and regularity thereof.
We were directly involved in all of the Group’s fundamental decisions. After in-depth consultation and examination of the detailed
information submitted to us by the Executive Board, we approved individual transactions where required by law.
The Executive Board informed us extensively and in a timely manner through written and oral reports at our Supervisory Board
meetings. This information covered all relevant aspects of the Group’s business strategy and business planning, including finance,
investment and personnel planning, the course of business and the Group’s financial position and profitability. We were also kept
up to date on matters relating to the risk situation, risk management and compliance as well as all major decisions and business
transactions.
The Executive Board regularly provided us with detailed reports for the preparation of our meetings. We thus always had the
opportunity to critically analyse the reports and resolution proposals within the committees and within the Supervisory Board as a
whole and, after in-depth examination and consultation, to put forward any suggestions we might have before resolving upon the
Executive Board’s resolution proposals. In the periods between our meetings, the Executive Board kept us continuously informed
about the current business situation by means of monthly reports.
We held five Supervisory Board meetings in 2012. In addition, we held a meeting in February 2013, at which we discussed matters
relating to the 2012 financial year. Apart from one meeting, which two members were not able to attend due to urgent business
appointments that could not be postponed, all Supervisory Board members attended all meetings in the year under review. The
average attendance rate at Supervisory Board meetings was just under 97%. All the committee meetings were fully attended. The
external auditor, KPMG AG Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft (KPMG), attended all meetings of the Supervisory Board, inasfar as
IGOR LANDAU
Chairman of the Supervisory Board