Carrefour - 2017 Registration Document

4 MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2017 Internal control system CARREFOUR | 2017 REGISTRATION DOCUMENT 211 Control over financial communications 4.8.2.4.3 Role and purpose of financial communications The objective of financial communications is to provide the entire financial community with clear information about the Group’s strategy, business model and performance, by publishing accurate, true and fair information while upholding the principle of shareholder equality with regard to information. Organisation of financial communications Financial communications address a diverse audience, primarily comprised of institutional investors, individual shareholders and employees. They are disseminated as required by law (Shareholders’ Meeting) or the AMF’s regulations (periodic publications, press releases). The Group also uses other channels for its financial communications, including conference calls, investor presentations on results or events (investors day), meetings, conferences and roadshows for financial analysts and investors, the Registration Document and annual report, and the corporate website. In organisational terms: the Shareholder Relations Department is responsible for ● informing the general public (individual shareholders); the Investor Relations Department, Group Executive Director – ● Finance and Management, and the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer are the sole contacts for analysts and institutional investors; the Group Human Resources Department, with support from the ● Group Communications Department, manages information intended for employees; the Group Communications Department manages press ● relations. Procedures for controlling financial communications The Group Financial Control Department is the exclusive source of financial information. Internal controls regarding the financial communications process focus on compliance with the principle of shareholder equality, among other issues. All press releases and significant announcements are prepared by mutual agreement between the Financial Communications Department, which is part of the Group Finance Department, and the Group Communications Department. The segregation of roles and responsibilities allows for strict independence between Executive management teams, sensitive departments (e.g., mergers and acquisitions) and the Financial Communications Department. Financial communications policy The Group Finance Department defines and implements the policy on disclosing financial results to the markets. The Carrefour group discloses its sales on a quarterly basis and its results on a half-yearly basis. The Board of Directors is informed of all periodic publications and press releases on financial and strategic operations, and makes comments as appropriate. At the beginning of 2017, the Group did not issue guidance on its recurring operating income target. However, throughout the financial year, the Group Finance Department checks that the recurring operating income target provided by the analyst consensus remains achievable and may, where applicable, issue a revision when budget forecasts reveal a significant discrepancy. The Group Financial Communications Department is also involved in setting the financial calendar and reviewing financial communications for Atacadão, the listed Brazilian subsidiary controlled by the Group, and ensures that their financial communications are consistent.