Strategic report Governance Financial statements Other information CORPORATE GOVERNANCE REPORT CONTINUED Board appointment process Training is also arranged to align to any specific development The main features of the Group’s internal control and risk The Nomination Committee leads the process for Board needs identified by the annual Board evaluations, and individual management systems that ensure the accuracy and integrity appointments, details of which can be found in the Nomination Directors are encouraged to devote an element of their time to of its financial reporting include: Committee report on pages 114 to 120. self-development. The utilisation of appropriately qualified and experienced • Non-Executive Directors are appointed for fixed terms of three Board evaluation colleagues, and regular knowledge sharing within the team; years, subject to election or re-election by the Company’s A formal evaluation of the performance of the Board, its The use of appropriate information security and access shareholders at each AGM. At the end of each term, Non-Executive Committees and the Directors is conducted annually, covering • Directors may be appointed for further three-year terms provided topics such as composition, diversity and how effectively the controls around the key systems used in the Group’s financial the Board is satisfied with the individual’s performance and that he Directors work together to achieve objectives. Following the reporting processes; or she remains independent and able to devote sufficient time to externally facilitated evaluation in 2018, internal evaluations have •Appropriate segregation of duties to ensure that no individual the role. been carried out for 2019 and 2020. Further details of the process controls the end-to-end process; Induction programmes include meetings with a variety of key undertaken and how the Chair has acted on the results can be Promoting improvements to risk identification and management found in the Nomination Committee report on pages 114 to 120. • stakeholders to provide the Director with a thorough overview of through the appointment of risk champions; the Group’s business and the environment within which it operates. Audit, risk and internal control This includes meetings with the Chair, Chief Executive Officer, Audit •Detailed processes and controls around the reconciliation of Chief Financial Officer and other members of the Board, as well as The Board is responsible for establishing the policies and the Group’s office accounts, the recognition of revenue and the meetings with senior management, heads of business areas and procedures that ensure the independence and effectiveness of Group’s tax balances, and payment processes; and technical experts, to gain a detailed insight into the operation of the Group’s Internal Audit function and the external auditor, and for •A detailed process of reconciliation and review by management the business and its culture. The Group Company Secretary and satisfying itself as to the integrity of the financial and narrative of data extracted from the general ledger system for the Group Chief Risk Officer will also meet with the Director to provide statements in the Report and Financial Statements. The Board production of management accounts. an overview of the Group’s corporate governance and risk delegates responsibility to its Audit Committee to oversee the management frameworks respectively. Group’s Internal Audit function and the Group’s relationship with Further details can be found in the Audit Committee report its external auditor. The Audit Committee is also responsible for on pages 81 to 87. Statements from the Board as to the adoption An ongoing programme of training is available to all members of monitoring the integrity of the Group’s financial reporting and the of the going concern basis for preparing the financial statements the Board. During the period under review, this has included a processes and controls that support it, and for advising the Board and the Board’s responsibility for preparing the Report and training session for the Board with the Silicon Valley Product Group as to whether the Report and Financial Statements provide a fair, Financial Statements can be found on page 129 of the Directors’ and support for the Board’s Committees in discussions on relevant balanced and understandable assessment of the Company’s Report and the Statement of Directors’ Responsibilities on topics such as: developments in audit best practice; and the impact position and prospects. page 134 respectively. of the Investment Firm Prudential Regime. The Board also carries out periodic ‘deep dives’ into specific areas of the business in order to broaden the Board’s understanding of the Group’s business and the opportunities and challenges it faces. During the period under review, the Board has carried out deep dive sessions on Advice, ESG, HL’s investment strategy; NPS; operational resilience; inclusion and diversity; and cyber security. 79 Hargreaves Lansdown Report and Financial Statements 2021