Top 3 Business Areas Requiring the Services of a Secretary
A company is usually composed of numerous stakeholders, each with varying roles to play. Among these essential stakeholders is a corporate secretary who ordinarily has many obligations and duties, such as performing administrative chores and checking the company’s compliance with legal bodies. The responsibilities of a company secretary extend beyond mere filing and correspondence.
For this reason, the job of a company secretary is valued by every board member more than ever. Due to the significance of this job, the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) has even mandated that all businesses should hire corporate secretary services in Singapore within six months of their incorporation. To better understand why company secretaries are vital in business, here are the three major business areas where company secretarial services are required.
1. Compliance maintenance
Among the primary responsibilities of a company secretary is to maintain corporate compliance to make sure that every business operation runs seamlessly without the distraction of missing deadlines. Corporate secretary services should include:
- The submission of annual returns to ACRA.
- Maintenance of minutes of register books.
- The monitoring of corporate compliance with relevant statutes.
If these tasks are not performed accurately before compliance deadlines, the company will likely incur liabilities from regulatory bodies. As such, it is necessary for companies to consider all this when hiring a corporate secretary. In addition, secretaries also make communication easier across management levels within the company by reporting to proper parties and providing important memos.
2. Promotion of the company’s best interests
Acting in the company’s best interests is another essential responsibility of a company secretary. This should be done in good faith, and potential conflicts that may surface within the organisation must be avoided. Hence, companies need to hire a trustworthy, dedicated, and meticulous secretary who will not jeopardise business operations.
If a company secretary embodies the aforementioned qualities, they can surely manage the business effectively and bring it to greater heights. For companies, hiring a corporate secretary should be more than just staff recruitment. This is because they heavily depend on the job of a secretary who can carry out their responsibilities to the best of their abilities. When corporate secretarial services are in place, a company can concentrate on its day-to-day operations and enhance its efficacy.
3. Board director training and development
Although the board of directors provides an advantage to the company with their specific expertise, they still need training and development in order to be well-informed about the latest trends in finance, cybersecurity, and corporate governance, among other things. Therefore, company secretaries should lead board evaluations, help resolve planning problems, and carry out governance audits.
Secretaries should also assist directors by orienting, educating, and training them. Moreover, because a company secretary sets the agenda of a board meeting, they need to collaborate with the executive team. By doing so, secretaries can determine and prioritise what topics must be tackled by the board and committees. The role of a company secretary essentially extends to making annual reports, facilitating executives, re-evaluating implemented policies, and sending financial press releases.
Conclusion
The role of a company secretary is far-reaching; it is not limited to a specific business area. As such, company secretary services are undoubtedly vital to the success and growth of every business. As the role of a company secretary continues to evolve due to developments in corporate governance, it is now the best time to hunt for the most efficient and ideal secretarial services that will give companies the edge they need to succeed in the increasingly competitive market.
For the best and most extensive company secretary services in Singapore, OneStop Professional is the provider you can rely on! We are an esteemed audit and accounting firm in Singapore that provides the most efficient secretarial services for a variety of companies. Aside from this, we also offer many other excellent corporate services, such as auditing, accounting, company incorporation, corporate financing, nominee director search, and a lot more. Do not hesitate to contact us today for more information.