Experian’s Board is committed to the highest standards of corporate governance and believes that such standards, which apply equally to Experian’s directors and employees, are critical to business integrity, performance and to maintaining investors’ trust in Experian.
It is the Board’s view that the Company is compliant with the provisions set down in Section 1 of the Combined Code on Corporate Governance published by the Financial Reporting Council. The following briefly describes how the Company has applied certain principles set out in Section 1 of the Combined Code. A detailed Corporate Governance Statement can be viewed in our Annual Report 2010.
The Board
There is a wide range of corporate governance issues and items specifically reserved for decision by the Board. Matters requiring Board approval include:
- The Group’s long-term objectives and commercial strategy.
- The annual operating budget capital expenditure budgets and any material changes to them.
- Acquisitions, disposals and other transactions above delegated limits.
- Other matters, including:
- Changes to capital structure or corporate structure
- Approval of preliminary results, half-yearly financial reports and interim management statements
- Treasury policy
- Dividend policy
- Corporate responsibility
View the schedule of matters reserved for the Board (PDF, 30KB, opens in a new window).
For other matters not specifically reserved for the Board, the Group’s delegated authorities’ matrix prescribes the cascade of authorities delegated throughout the Group by respective Group companies and the monetary limits of the delegations. The Board monitors the exercise of the delegations.
The directors
The Board of consists of:
- Chairman
- Chief Executive Officer
- Chief Financial Officer
- Chief Operating Officer
- Seven non-executive directors
The names and biographical details of the directors are shown under Board Members. Experian’s non-executive directors are experienced and influential individuals from a range of industries and countries and, together, they bring an objective viewpoint and range of experience to the Company. Subject to the Board being satisfied with a director’s performance, independence and commitment, each non-executive director may normally serve a maximum of three terms of three years.
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
The respective roles of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer are clearly established, set out in writing and agreed by the Board (view the respective roles of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer) (PDF, 24KB, opens in a new window). The Chairman’s priority is the management of the Board and the Chief Executive Officer’s primary role is the running of the Company’s businesses and development and implementation of strategy.
Senior Independent Director
The Senior Independent Director, who is available to shareholders should they have concerns that they have been unable to resolve through normal channels, is Sir Alan Rudge.
Board committees
The Experian Board has appointed the following principal board committees:
- Audit Committee
- Remuneration Committee
- Nomination and Corporate Governance Committee
Details of the membership and the terms of reference of these committees can be found under Board Committees