The Audit Committee (AC) is one of the core board committees and plays a critical function in ensuring greater governance oversight, accountability, and transparency. In today’s complex and evolving business environment, the AC’s oversight role has grown more expansive, needing them to understand the current and emerging issues better and apply a more proactive risk-based approach to effectively discharge their mandate.
In our efforts towards strengthening committee roles, ICDM would like to bring together all AC chairmen and members in this networking session to not just discuss the issues and challenges they face or share good practices and experiences amongst each other, but to also pre-empt each other on the potential areas which others may not have a look into.
| Supporting Partner |
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Supporting Partner
The Audit Committee (AC) is one of the core board committees and plays a critical function in ensuring greater governance oversight, accountability, and transparency. In today’s complex and evolving business environment, the AC’s oversight role has grown more expansive, needing them to understand the current and emerging issues better and apply a more proactive risk-based approach to effectively discharge their mandate.
In our efforts towards strengthening committee roles, ICDM would like to bring together all AC chairmen and members in this networking session to not just discuss the issues and challenges they face or share good practices and experiences amongst each other, but to also pre-empt each other on the potential areas which others may not have a look into.
The prolonged pandemic has disrupted the business environment and operations and the way the people work and interact within and outside the organisation. Decisions needed to be made quickly with limited information, almost everything needed to be done and shared online. Even the business models may have changed to cater to the unprecedented crisis.
It is perhaps timely to take a fresh look at the AC’s agenda and workload, prioritising those that may be critical:
- Assurance. With rising risks, ACs are now asking Management to enhance their stress-test risk assessments, conduct scenario planning and strengthen the crisis protocols. Are the existing governance structure and controls providing comfort to the committee, and if not, what areas need to be refreshed?
- Digital. Does cyber risk require more attention at the entire board level, or perhaps a different board committee? Does the current AC composition have the technical capability to look into this area?
- Terms of Reference. Beyond financial reports and related control risks, the AC is also expected to oversee a range of other risks, including data governance, ESG, supply chain, third party risks, anti-bribery & corruption, health & safety, etc. Has this prompted a review of the AC’s Terms of Reference, and how should the committee work together with Risk Committee (RC) in identifying and managing these risks?
- ESG Oversight. Where do oversight of ESG Metrics and reporting/disclosures belong? Have AC members proactively taken the time to understand stakeholders’ priorities and the company’s material ESG issues and make these areas a permanent agenda item?
- Future-Ready. What other areas AC should keep their radar on for this year, especially in mitigating the impact of COVID-19?
We will discuss these critical areas at the networking session under the Chatham House Rule. To ensure continuous support for the AC community, we will also set up an AC Network at the end of the session. More information on the Network will be shared then.
Speakers
DATUK NASIR AHMAD
Chairman, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd
Datuk Mohd Nasir Ahmad is currently Chairman of CIMB Group Holdings Berhad, CIMB Bank Berhad and CIMB Bank PLC Cambodia. He is also a member of the Financial Reporting Foundation and Chairman of the Malaysian Accounting Standards Board. He is a Council Member of ACCA UK since 2013. He is a Fellow of ACCA, a Chartered Accountant with MIA and obtained his MBA (Finance) from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
Datuk Nasir also holds directorships in Prokhas Sdn Bhd, CIMB EOP Management Sdn Bhd and Touch n’ Go Sdn. Bhd.
In addition, he is also Chairman of CIMB Foundation, Trustee of Yayasan Canselor UNITEN and Trustee of Perdana Leadership Foundation.
In the past, he was President of Malaysian Institute of Accountants, Chairman of Media Prima Berhad and served as Independent Non-Executive Director for several companies.
Datuk Nasir brings over 42 years of experience in the areas of leadership, management, finance and accounting. He started as a Trainee Accountant with Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) in 1979 and moved on to be CEO of Malaysia Transformer Manufacturing Sdn Bhd (1994), Sharikat Permodalan Kebangsaan Berhad (2000) and Perbadanan Usahawan Nasional Berhad (June 2001), a position he held until his retirement on 1 June 2011.
DATUK ZAITON MOHD HASSAN
Chairman of the Board Governance and Audit Committee, Sime Darby Plantation Berhad
Datuk Zaiton is a Fellow and Council Member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), United Kingdom, member of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) Professional Accountants in Business (PAIB) Advisory Group, a member of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants and the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
She is currently the Chairman of the Board Governance and Audit Committee of public listed Sime Darby Plantation Berhad, the world’s largest producer of Certified Sustainable Palm Oil.
Datuk Zaiton was the Chairman of the Development Bank of Malaysia. She had led the Board and Management to a new direction and strategic business model to assess projects applying for funding from the Bank using an Impact Assessment Framework, measuring impact to national development on one dimension and contribution to the achievement of the UNDP Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) on another dimension.
She was also the Chairman of the Board Governance and Audit Committee of Tabung Haji (2018 – 2020) and Chairman of the Board Risk and Audit Committees of Bank Islam (2006 – 2019).
LEONG SOW YOKE
AICB Bank Audit and Bank Risk Examination Committee Member
Sow Yoke (FCCA, CA, CB, CISA, CRISC) has 30 years’ experience in 3 PLC banking groups; OUBM, UOBM and Alliance Banking Group. As Chief Internal Auditor / Management Committee member, she worked closely with boards of directors, board committees and regulators. Her experience in emerging risk areas (including information risk management, cybersecurity, and corporate governance) has optimised her contribution during her tenure. Before joining the banking industry, she spent 5 years in financial and IT audit and consultancy with an accounting firm and 2 years with the Lion Group where she set up the IT audit function.
Sow Yoke was conferred the inaugural Presidential Award for outstanding achievement by the ISACA Malaysia Chapter in 2010 and was Runner-Up for the Institute of Internal Auditors Malaysia (IIAM)’s Internal Auditor of the Year Award 2001. She was in the pioneer batch of 45 banking industry leaders to be conferred as Chartered Banker by the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers (AICB) and Chartered Banker Institute, UK in 2015. She was a Panellist at IIAM’s CAE Summit, 2020 and a Panellist in ISACA Malaysia Chapter’s Cybersecurity, IT Assurance & Governance Conference, 2021.
Sow Yoke left full time employment in September 2020. She currently serves in the boards of a private company and several church bodies, and sits in AICB’s Bank Audit and Bank Risk Examination Committees.
Moderator
SHARATH MARTIN
Senior Policy Consultant for ASEAN and ANZ Region
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
Sharath Martin is ACCA’s Senior Policy Consultant, for the ASEAN and ANZ region. He works extensively on thought leadership and professional insights on contemporary business issues.
Prior to joining ACCA, Sharath held senior risk and strategy related roles. These included with a Big 4 firm, a large listed company with global operations and the Malaysian capital market regulator.
Having lived and worked through the Asian Financial Crisis (97), the Global Financial Crisis (08/09), and now the pandemic and climate-induced crises, Sharath believes strongly in the need to think long term in a short-term world.
Sharath has a Post Graduate Diploma in Financial Strategy from the University of Oxford, Said Business School and is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. A father of two whose core passions are yoga and cricket.
