2021 UNIVERSAL REGISTRATION DOCUMENT

The General Management and its Management Committee (Executive Committee)

The role of the General Management is to define the general principles regarding Internal Control and to ensure that they are correctly put in place. In the context of their global Internal Control responsibilities, the members of the Executive Committee rely on operational and functional managers, according to their respective areas of expertise. These managers must ensure implementation of these general principles and the correct functioning of the procedures enabling the level of Internal Control required by General Management to be attained.

The Board of Directors and Audit Committee

The Board of Directors has always asserted the importance that it attributes, together with General Management, to Internal Control and to its main areas of application. The activities of the Board of Directors are reported in section 2.3.2 “Activities of the Board of Directors” of this document, and the duties entrusted to its Chairman in section 2.1.3.2.“Relationships between the Board and General Management” of this document.

Since its creation, the Audit Committee has been responsible for monitoring actions undertaken in the area of Internal Control and it reports there on to the Board of Directors. Its remits are defined in the Internal Rules of the Board of Directors.

Each year, the Committee performs a review of the Internal Audit plan, its objectives and the general conclusions of Internal Audit assignments. Major Internal Control projects and initiatives are also presented to it. The Committee then prepares a report with its own remarks for the Board of Directors.

The Operational Divisions and Geographic Zones

The Group is organised into worldwide Divisions and geographical zones which are fully responsible, with the management of each country, business or manufacturing entity, for the achievement of the objectives for Internal Control defined by General Management.

Worldwide responsibilities for Internal Control of the activities within the scope of their responsibilities are entrusted to each of the members of the Executive Committee. A system of delegating authorities is in place and continues to be reinforced. The powers of the legal representatives of Group companies and of those to whom they delegate are limited and controlled in accordance with the provisions of the Legal Charter.

Specialists in management, information systems, Human Resources, digital, retail, purchasing, logistics and production provide support to operational employees at all levels of the organisation and contribute in this way to the achievement of the Internal Control objectives.

The Support Departments

Worldwide responsibilities for Internal Control of the activities within the scope of their responsibilities are entrusted to each of the members of the Executive Committee.

The Support Departments define, in their own areas, the strategies, policies and procedures which they communicate to the countries and entities. Through their network of specialists or by regular audits, they bring their expertise to the operational divisions and review the correct operation of their respective areas of responsibility.

The main Departments concerned are:

• the Research, Innovation and Technology Department, which is particularly responsible for cosmeto-vigilance and the quality of the formulas used in the composition of the products (see “Product quality and safety: a priority” in section 4.3.1.3.2. of this document);
• the Purchasing Department with suppliers and their working conditions;
• the Environment, Health & Safety Department, for checks related to site safety, employee health and environmental compliance;
• the Quality Department to measure performance and the progress made by manufacturing entities with regard to the quality of production;
• the Global IT Department, primarily to assess compliance with the Cyber Security Policy;
• the Administration and Finance Department;
• the Human Resources Department, which monitors and supervises all obligations related to personnel management, specifies the documents to be provided to employees, the remuneration of the workforce and personnel expenses, the recruitment, training and evaluation procedures, the rules to be followed in payroll management and the implementation of the Share & Care programme;
• the Engagement and Public Affairs Department, which coordinates communications operations, establishes crisis management principles and ensures that they are applied (see section 3.5.3.1. “Crisis Management” of this document);
• the Digital and Marketing Department, the mission of which is to secure the digital transformation of the Group (e-commerce, consumer relations, influencers, digital media, etc.) by defining the policies, tools, and processes and ensuring that they are deployed; and
• the Security Department, which has defined a security and safety policy for people, travel, property, information and data confidentiality (see section 3.5.3.1. “Safety of people and property” of this document).

Indicators and reporting procedures enable regular monitoring of the local activities of most of these Support Departments.