Arsalan Baig

Transferred from the Holding Company (Engro Corp) to the largest subsidiary (Engro Fertilizers) to manage the Accounting and Taxation functions post SAP S4/HANA implementation.

I am responsible for multiple automation / improvement / risk & controls initiatives and tax matters.

Also trained as DE&I Leader under the Engro Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) Leaders Program focused on building a strong foundation to understand, promote and pledge our collective agenda to shape an inclusive culture at Engro.

Accomplishments:
- Significant savings and exposure reduction through various income and sales tax-related initiatives
- Enabling management reporting/dashboards directly thru SAP
- Consecutive won of EFert's Annual Report 2020 and 2021 in ICAP/ICMAP 'Best Corporate Report' awards
- Publication of EFert's first Sustainability Report 2021 (won the 'Best ESG Reporting Award for 2021' from CFA Society Pakistan as well as the 'Best Sustainability Report' award from ICAP/ICMAP)

Transferred from an Internal Audit role at Avanceon (Engro subsidiary) to manage the Accounting and Financial Reporting functions of Engro Corp. Later, the role was expanded to include Financial Planning, Group Taxation, Group Employees’ Retirement Benefits Funds and Engro Foundation supervision. Reported to the CFO of ECorp.

Accomplishments:
- Brought down the effective tax rate of ECorp resulting in significant tax savings for the stakeholders
- Collaborated within the Group to avail significant tax savings under Group Taxation
- Visible improvement in governance and internal controls, reflected through satisfactory internal audits
- Annual reports of ECorp won the ICAP/ICMAP ‘Best Corporate Report’ awards for FY 2012 and FY 2013
- Continuous interaction with team members and colleagues resulting in improvement in Employee Engagement
- Assisted senior management in key business decisions and managing operations (annual budgets, periodic monitoring, financial reporting, ad-hoc management reporting)

Seconded to Engro’s subsidiary Avanceon (Industrial Automation provider) with offices in Pakistan, UAE and USA. Reported administratively to the CEO and functionally to the Board Audit Committee.

Accomplishments:
- Established the internal audit function for all three locations and rolled out Governance and Control policies
- Ensured that the company and employees always comply with the Ethical and Business Conduct Standards
- Rolled out the Whistle Blower policy, in consultation with the Holding Company’s Corporate Audit Department
- Developed and helped in carrying out Lean Enterprise Risk Management exercise for Pakistan & UAE offices

LSE is the 2nd biggest stock exchange in Pakistan, acting as the frontline capital market regulator by conducting and controlling the listing, trading and dealing of securities.

I led the internal audit team and reported administratively to the Managing Director and functionally to the Board Audit Committee. Main areas of responsibilities included:

- Planning and executing financial, operational and compliance audits of the Exchange

- Coordinating with SECP, brokerage houses and external assurance providers on various issues such as Self-Regulations, Regulatory Compliance and System Audits, ISO certifications etc.
of risks.

SECP is the apex regulatory body regulating Securities Market and corporate sector of Pakistan. Leading the department, I reported administratively to the Chairman and functionally to the Audit Committee of the Commission. Major achievements during my stay with SECP include:

- Revamped the internal audit department in accordance with best practices of Internal Audit

- Ensured smooth transition from ‘Pre-Audit’ to ‘Post-Audit’ regime

- Ensured compliance with relevant laws, notifications, internal policies and procedures

- Performed risk reviews and identified areas with high risks and/or poor controls and recommended measures to the Commission to be more efficient in management of risks

EIBL is an ‘A’ rated investment bank and also corporate member of Karachi and Lahore Stock Exchanges. Its major operations include Brokerage services, Investment Finance services and Capital and Money market investments. As the Head of Internal Audit, I enjoyed full independence and functionally reported to the Audit Committee of the Board. Major achievements accomplished during my stay with the Bank includes:

- Built an internal audit division from scratch in accordance with best practices of Internal Auditing.

- Recommended various policies and procedures to strengthen Internal Control Environment.

- Pointed out the need for customized Capital and Treasury operations software and licensed software and have these acquired. This on time acquisition proved to save millions subsequently.

- Earlier observation and rectification of major compliance issues, thus saving Bank from potential penalties and reputation loss.

MCB is the third largest Pakistani commercial bank operating with over 1, 000 branches. At MCB, I was responsible for the review of accounting and internal control systems of the Bank and identification of weaknesses in these systems and other issues requiring management’s attention.

Completed four years article ship training covering various aspects of accounting, assurance and advisory services in diversified sectors. The training comprise of detailed understanding of client’s business, review of client’s risk management process, internal controls and its compliance, audit of financial assertions and drafting of audit reports in accordance with the ISA and preparation and presentation of accounts along with relevant disclosures assuring their conformity with SEC regulations and all applicable International Accounting Standards. This experience has provided me in-depth knowledge of different accounting and internal control systems used in different organizational structures. The diversity also helped me to become familiar with varieties of corporate issues involved in the operations of different businesses.