Governance (continued) 90 Vodafone Group Plc Annual Report 2024
Strategic report
Governance
Financials
Other information
Risk deep dive reviews The Committee performed a series of deep dives with management as part of the meeting agendas. These reviews are summarised below, together with the Group’s principal risk to which the review relates. Principal risk Area of focus Disintermediation New technologies The Committee met with the Group Strategy Director to review and challenge the Group’s activities and strategies to mitigate the potential risks from new industry challengers and technologies. Cyber security strategy The Committee met with the Chief Technology Officer and the Cyber Security, Technology Assurance and Strategy Director to review the Group’s cyber security strategy and related compliance and assurance activities in this area.
Cyber threat Technology resilience and future readiness Adverse political and policy environment Company transformation Adverse macro- economic condition Adverse market competition Portfolio transformation and governance of JVs
Regulatory developments The Committee met with the Chief External and Corporate Affairs Officer to deep dive on the political and regulatory developments impacting the industry and the actions underway to respond to these risks. Business reviews The Committee met with a range of markets and business units, with a focus on the operational landscape, local risk assessments and related activity, the control environment and progress against any findings from Internal Audit activities. This included: – Germany market review, including distribution channels, with the market CEO; – Business review of Vodafone UK with the market CEO; – Review of Vodafone Business with the Vodafone Business CFO; – Business review of Vodafone Spain with the Europe Cluster CEO and market CEO; – Europe Cluster review with the Europe Cluster CEO and CFO; – Strategy review of M-Pesa with the Vodacom Group CEO, CFO and Chair of the Vodacom Audit Committee; – Deep dive on adverse market competition with the Chief Commercial Officer and CEO Vodafone Italy; – Review of cash flow forecasting and management with the Head of Financial Planning and Analysis; and – Business review with the CEO and CFO of Vantage Towers, which is a joint venture of the Group. Strategy The Committee met with the Global Supply Chain Director to deep dive on the threats of supply chain challenges and the Group’s strategy to continue to execute its logistics optimisation strategy. Data The Committee met with the Head of Legal Privacy twice during the year to review and challenge the Group’s strategy around: (i) the data risk management action plan and (ii) data privacy risk and how compliance standards are being met.
Supply chain disruption
Data management and privacy
Financial reporting The Committee’s primary responsibility in relation to the Group’s financial reporting is to review, with management and the external auditor, the appropriateness of the half-year and annual consolidated financial statements. The Committee focuses on: – The quality and acceptability of accounting policies and practices; – Providing advice to the Board on the form and basis underlying the long-term viability statement; – Material areas in which significant judgements have been applied or where significant issues have been discussed with the external auditor; – An assessment of whether the Annual Report, taken as a whole, is fair, balanced, and understandable and whether our US Annual Report on Form 20-F complies with relevant US regulations; – The clarity of the disclosures and compliance with financial reporting standards and relevant financial and governance reporting requirements; and – Any correspondence from regulators in relation to our financial reporting.
Accounting policies and practices The Committee received reports from management in relation to: – The identification of critical accounting judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty, including the impact of climate change on the consolidated financial statements; – Significant accounting policies; and – Proposed disclosures of these in this Annual Report. Following discussions with management and the external auditor, the Committee approved the disclosures of the accounting policies and practices set out in note 1 ‘Basis of preparation’ and within other notes to the consolidated financial statements.
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