Fujitsu 2012 Annual Report Download - page 76

Statutory Auditor Interview
Q1: What do you consider an auditor’s role and
mission to be?
Auditors are independent entities charged with safeguarding
shareholder interests. In this capacity, they audit the actions
of directors, corporate executive officers, managing directors,
and other senior management to promote sound, sustain-
able growth. In short, auditors have the responsibility of
ensuring corporate governance that merits society’s trust. The
audits that we auditors perform are of two types—accounting
audits and business execution audits. Accounting audits are
audits of financial and supplementary documentation.
Fujitsu is a company that employs accounting auditors, so
they are responsible for the initial accounting audit, with the
Fujitsu auditors judging the validity of the auditing methods
used and the results. As for business execution audits, here
we audit whether the directors are fulfilling their duties in
compliance with legal regulations and Fujitsu’s own articles
of incorporation. The auditors also check that there are no
violations of duty of care by the directors as good managers.
Simply put, these actions mean that the auditors’ role is to
stand in place of shareholders to check whether manage-
ment is doing its job properly. Our job is not to stand on the
outside and point fingers, but to view the Company from a
different standpoint than management. If problems do arise,
one of our most important duties is to advise management
on ways to take the Company in a more positive direction.
Auditors also have another vital role, which is to check on
the status of development and operation of Fujitsu’s internal
control system. The internal control system is a basic structure
that, among other things, enables a company to autono-
mously comply with legal regulations and to conduct risk
management. The board directors are responsible for the
development and operation of this system. In the case of
Fujitsu, the auditors receive regular reports on the system’s
operational status from the Fujitsu Way Unit, the department
overseeing Fujitsu’s internal control system. We also coordi-
nate with the Internal Auditing Division and the accounting
auditors to check whether the internal control system is func-
tioning properly through the use of PDCA cycles.
Fujitsu recognizes that stronger corporate governance is vital to achieving greater growth
and enhancing its corporate value as a global ICT company. In this interview, we spoke
with statutory auditor Masamichi Ogura about the current state of Fujitsu’s corporate
governance structure and the specific role of auditors within that framework.
(Birth: June 30, 1946)
Apr. 1969 Joined Fujitsu
Apr. 2000 Executive Vice President, Electronic Devices Business Unit
June 2000 Director
June 2002 Managing Corporate Officer
Apr. 2003 Corporate Executive Vice President
June 2003 Member of the Board
Corporate Executive Vice President/CFO
June 2006 Corporate Senior Executive Vice President and
Representative Director/CFO
June 2008 Statutory Auditor
PROFILE
When auditing, I strive to maintain a
fair and unbiased approach to my
work at all times, so that I can better
respond to the roles and
expectations of all stakeholders.
Masamichi Ogura
Statutory Auditor
074 FUJITSU LIMITED ANNUAL REPORT 2012