Means and resources
Our work was carried out by a team of fifteen people between December 2023 and April 2024, for a duration of approximately 15 weeks.
We called upon our specialists in sustainable development and social responsibility to assist us in our work.
We conducted around ten interviews with the people responsible for preparing the Declaration, representing in particular the general management, risk management, compliance and human resources.
Nature and scope of work
We planned and performed our work considering the risks of material misstatement of the Information. In our opinion, the procedures we have performed in the exercise of our professional judgment enable us to provide a moderate level of assurance:
- We took note of the activity of all the entities included in the scope of consolidation and the description of the main risks;
- We assessed the appropriateness of the Guidelines in terms of their relevance, completeness, reliability, neutrality and comprehensibility, taking into account, where appropriate, industry best practices.
- We verified that the Declaration covers each category of information provided for in III of article L. 225‑102‑1 of the French Commercial Code in terms of social and environmental matters as well as respect for human rights and the fight against corruption and tax evasion, and includes, where applicable, an explanation of the reasons for the absence of the information required by the 2nd paragraph of III of article L. 225‑102‑1 of the French Commercial Code;
- We verified that the Declaration presents the information required under II of article R. 225‑105 of the French Commercial Code when relevant with regard to the main risks;
- We verified that the Declaration presents the business model and main risks of all entities included in the scope of consolidation, including, where relevant and proportionate, the risks created by its business relationships, products or services, as well as policies, actions and results, including key performance indicators related to the main risks;
- We verified that the Declaration includes a clear and reasoned explanation of the reasons justifying the absence of a policy concerning one or more of these risks, in accordance with article R. 225‑105 I of the French Commercial Code;
- We consulted documentary sources and conducted interviews to:
- assess the process for selecting and validating the main risks and the consistency of the results, including the key performance indicators selected, with the main risks and policies presented, and
- corroborate the qualitative information (actions and results) that we considered most important presented in Appendix 1; For certain risks: business ethics, the fight against climate change and responsible purchasing, our work was carried out at the level of the consolidating entity; for the other risks, work was carried out at the level of the consolidating entity and in a selection of entities presented in Appendix 2;
- We verified that the Declaration covers the consolidated scope, i.e. all the entities included in the scope of consolidation in accordance with article L. 233‑16 of the French Commercial Code with limits as explained in the Declaration;
- We analyzed the internal control and risk management procedures implemented by the entity and have assessed the collection process to ensure the completeness and fairness of the Information;
- For the key performance indicators and other quantitative results that we considered most important presented in Appendix 1, we performed:
- analytical procedures consisting of verifying the correct consolidation of the data collected as well as the consistency of their changes,
- detailed tests on a sample basis, consisting of verifying the correct application of definitions and procedures and reconciling the data with supporting documents. This work was carried out on a selection of contributing entities (Appendix 2) and covered at least 50% of the consolidated data selected for these tests;
- we assessed the overall consistency of the Declaration with our knowledge of all the entities included in the scope of consolidation.
The procedures implemented as part of a moderate assurance engagement are less extensive than those required for a reasonable assurance engagement performed according to the professional doctrine of the French Institute of Statutory Auditors (Compagnie Nationale des Commissaires aux Comptes); a higher level of assurance would have required more extensive verification work.
