Ubisoft 2013 Annual Report Download - page 188

Governance and Internal Control
2013
183
COMPONENTS OF THE INTERNAL CONTROL SYSTEM 1.8.2
ORGANIZATION OF INTERNAL CONTROL AND OPERATING PROCEDURES 1.8.2.1
Since the internal audit department was closed in 2010, in the interests of proximity and effectiveness,
and in order to strengthen team-working, the regional managers will be in charge of keeping this
internal control process going and improving it from now on.
The internal control system relies on a solid foundation of autonomy and collaboration within the
Group’s teams, encouraging the alignment of goals, resources and mechanisms deployed. It is based
on the clear identification of goals and responsibilities, a human resources policy ensuring that
resources and skill levels are sufficient, information systems and tools that are adapted to each team
and/or subsidiary.
Each subsidiary is responsible for implementing the relevant strategies to achieve these objectives,
although the monitoring and verification of the internal control system and risk management is highly
centralized by the operational departments.
Organization
The key parties involved in the internal control system are as follows:
 The CEO of Ubisoft Entertainment SA: He defines and directs Group strategy. He is
responsible for establishing the procedures and mechanisms employed to ensure both the functioning
and monitoring of the internal control system. He takes charge of the internal control system, more
specifically as part of his duties as Chief Executive Officer with the Board of Directors and the
assistance of the auditors.
 The Board of Directors: Its operations are described in section 1.2 of this report. It primarily
defines the policies governing the Company’s business activities and ensures their application. It
strives in particular to examine the accounting and financial documents and to determine the risks in
relation with the Company’s internal control. It ensures the efficiency of the mechanisms and
procedures applied as part of internal control. To this end, it has access to all documents and reports
required to perform this task. Each director may independently obtain additional information from the
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who is available at all times to provide relevant information and
explanations to the Board of Directors.
 The Group’s managers and employees: The major policies and goals are decided upon by
executive management of each area in consultation with Group executive management and passed
on to the subsidiaries. Each subsidiary has its own executive management and management team
and is responsible for implementing the strategies designed to ensure that these goals are achieved.

Operational management: In collaboration with executive management, operational
managers are collectively involved in setting the key accounting, finance, legal, tax, IT and human
resources policies, and supporting the subsidiaries with their implementation. Specific visits are made
to the subsidiaries in order to carry out audits and training and to make recommendations so as to
ensure that the internal control system is sufficient.
These procedures are presented in detail in the section “Control activities”.
 Finance and accounting teams: These are present in all subsidiaries of the Group and are
responsible for performing analysis and control functions, including budgeting and preparing the
financial statements.