DOHA: Teyseer Group’s Internal Audit Department held annual knowledge sharing and networking event for its senior management with a presentation on “Corporate Governance” at Oryx Rotana Hotel, said a statement yesterday.
Mohamed Al Mannai, Group Deputy Chairman, Adel Al Mannai and Adnan Mannai, Directors were present along with management team from various companies of the Group.
Sundaresan Rajeswar, Group Internal Auditor made the presentation. Anecdotes that reflected laudable or lacking features of governance were used to set the stage for defining the concept and for providing pathway for implementation.
“Everything we do either builds or undermine reputation” Rajeswar said and reiterated with a quote “When you do the right things the right way, you have nothing to lose because you have nothing to fear-Zig Ziglar”.
Glimpses of current business environment with perceived impact included advances in technology, customer sophistication, regulatory changes, economy with low oil price and incidence of frauds.
Recent pronouncements in Qatar had given gravity on governance issues.
The presentation dealt with internal audit as governance function for independent assurance. Internal audit’s value proposition over the years have aligned with stakeholder expectations by building capabilities to deliver quality and increased value.
Thus the role transformed from assurance provider, problem solver, insight generator, trusted advisor to that of a strategic partner who takes holistic approach of combining broad understanding of business with depth of its knowledge. “A good internal audit function is a competitive advantage,” Rajeswar added.
Effective governance means clear, enforced policies and procedures with the right culture, values and tone. The governance implementation methodology implied establishing five pillars: risk management, control activities, monitoring and assurance, information and communication and behaviour and ethics. The operations and management process of companies should adopt these. These areas were elucidated for understanding for implementation.
“Soft control today is hard. One should communicate, reflect, share and learn” Rajeswar emphasised. The assurance function was explained with the topical thinking on the subject based on “Three lines of defence”.
The Peninsula
