Ubisoft 2009 Annual Report Download - page 176

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3.1.3.2.5 Ongoing supervision of the internal control system
To provide ongoing supervision of the internal control system and its operation, the Group has
introduced a biannual process for monitoring subsidiaries and key controls, together with the financial
control teams. Self-assessment questionnaires were updated during the first half of the 2010 financial
year.
Their goal is both to contribute to establishing and updating procedures and, above all, to help
managers to pinpoint the fundamental issues regarding the effectiveness of the processes and
controls in question. The introduction of a global formalized approach to internal control thus allows:
o the quality of controls in subsidiaries to be understood, particularly by means of:
 evaluating the efficient utilization of resources (human, material or financial),
 justifying investments and expenditure,
 ensuring that activities carried out locally are in line with the strategy and guidelines of
the Group
o operational and financial practices to be improved by means of corrective and optimization
initiatives to remedy shortcomings;
o effective monitoring of compliance with these procedures and controls.
These questionnaires, which are based on the AMF’s application guide, cover all the activities of the
Company and are sent to all Group subsidiaries. This approach is combined with regular and targeted
reviews.
The recommendations and observations of these reviews, as noted by the Internal Audit Department,
are subject to systematic monitoring, while the progress of action plans in the functional departments
and the Senior Management is frequently reviewed.
Studies regarding the fight against fraud also form part of the ongoing auditing and evaluation of the
internal control system.
3.1.3.3 Internal control of the production of financial and accounting
information
The internal control procedures relating to the production and processing of financial and accounting
information are mainly implemented by the various accounting and finance departments.
3.1.3.3.1 Financial statement production and consolidation processes
The financial statements of each subsidiary are drawn up, under the responsibility of their manager, by
the local accounting departments, which ensure compliance with local tax and regulatory constraints.
These financial statements are subject to a limited review for the interim financial statements of the
key subsidiaries and a complete audit carried out by the auditors for the majority of the subsidiaries for
the year-end financial statements.
Reporting of accounting information, in standardized monthly reports, is carried out on the basis of a
schedule established by the Consolidation Department and approved by the Administration
Department. Each subsidiary must apply Group procedures for the recording of accounting data to
monthly reporting, interim and annual financial statements and quarterly forecasts.
Since April 2006, subsidiaries’ monthly reports have been in accordance with IFRS (International
Financial Reporting Standards), and consolidation statements have been audited under IFRS. Since
April 2008, reporting systems have allowed for information to be reported according to purpose and no
longer purely according to type. Support for local teams, provided by the consolidation, IT and financial
control teams has been put in place in order to ensure compliance with the new internal reporting
formats.
The subsidiaries’ accounting information is uploaded, reconciled and then consolidated in a central
solution, HFM from Hyperion, under the responsibility of the Consolidation Department. This solution