Winpe’s Women on Boards initiative is committed to building stronger and more diverse boardrooms by advancing high-calibre, board-ready women leaders. Through partnerships with forward-looking organisations and curated learning opportunities, the initiative equips women with the knowledge, networks, and practical boardroom exposure needed to contribute effectively at the highest levels of governance.

As part of this commitment, Winpe hosted "Boardroom Simulation: Audit Committee Deliberations," an immersive virtual learning session facilitated by Mr. Subbu Subramaniam. Designed as a live boardroom simulation, the session placed participants in the roles of Independent Directors, management, investors, and auditors, enabling them to deliberate on realistic governance scenarios and experience the dynamics of Audit Committee decision-making firsthand.

Participants highly appreciated the realism of the simulation, the quality of discussion, and the valuable insights shared throughout the session. The exercise strengthened participants' understanding of Audit Committee responsibilities, boardroom dynamics, effective questioning, professional judgement, and governance oversight, while providing firsthand experience of complex boardroom deliberations.

Join our Women on Boards community to gain access to curated board opportunities and stay informed on upcoming sessions, insights, and engagements through our WhatsApp group.

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Session Takeaways:

• Audit Committee Oversight: Audit Committees play a critical role in overseeing financial reporting, internal controls, compliance, risk management, and stakeholder accountability.
• Asking the Right Questions: Effective directors probe beyond management presentations by challenging assumptions, understanding underlying risks, and seeking clarity before making decisions.
• Materiality and Judgement: Board members must distinguish between routine operational matters and issues that could have significant financial, regulatory, reputational, or governance implications.
• Risk-Based Decision Making: Audit Committees must assess legal, financial, operational, and compliance risks holistically while considering their potential impact on the organisation.
• Financial Statement Review: Directors should understand key financial trends, unusual variances, estimates, provisions, contingent liabilities, and areas involving significant management judgement.
• Internal Controls and Compliance: Strong governance requires continuous monitoring of internal controls, timely remediation of deficiencies, and a culture of accountability.
• Managing Stakeholder Expectations: Boards must balance the interests of shareholders, regulators, auditors, management, and other stakeholders while maintaining independence and objectivity.
• Constructive Boardroom Dynamics: Robust oversight is strengthened by open discussion, diverse viewpoints, respectful challenge, and effective collaboration among committee members.
• Role of the Auditor: Audit Committees should engage proactively with auditors to understand key findings, control weaknesses, areas of judgement, and matters requiring enhanced oversight.
• Boardroom Readiness: The simulation highlighted the importance of preparation, critical thinking, and sound judgement in enabling directors to fulfil their governance responsibilities effectively.

Through practical sessions such as these, Winpe Women on Boards continues to prepare experienced women leaders for the complexities of board service by providing exposure to real-world governance discussions and decision-making.