Corporate Governance

The SSG provides guidance and advice to the SSG Management on all matters under SSG’s purview, including its policy, regulatory and promotional roles. It also reviews and approves the strategic plans and budgets of SSG. The SSG Board members come from diverse backgrounds such as the unions, the private and public sectors. This allows SSG to tap on their varied experiences and perspectives. 

Under the SkillsFuture Singapore Agency Act 2016 (SSG Act), the SSG Board shall comprise at least 9 but not more than 15 members. 

The SSG Board Committees 

The SSG Act empowers the SSG Board to form committees, from among its own members or other persons, to support the work of the SSG Board. The SSG Board Committees guide the development of specific areas of SSG and perform the necessary due diligence and reporting to the SSG Board. Each committee is headed by a designated member and abides by its own terms of reference.  

The SSG Board Committees are:   

a)    Audit and Risk Committee – The Audit and Risk Committee ensures that SSG has a rigorous and robust system of internal controls. It reviews SSG’s risk assessment and management systems, as well as the setup of the internal audit function. It also reviews, together with internal and external auditors, the results of their audit reports on SSG’s work, processes, and financial statements.  

b)     Grants Committee – The Grants Committee ensures that SSG has a robust financial system to fulfil SSG’s mission. It provides advice on funding principles and grant policies for SSG-administered funds, reviews the fund allocation for SSG-administered funds,  and approves funding proposals that are within budgetary values specified by the SSG Board. 

c)    Remuneration Committee – The Remuneration Committee sets human resource management and development policies, which include approving staff remuneration policies, major changes to schemes of service, early retirement and early release schemes, the appointment, promotion and performance bonuses for SSG senior management, as well as to review and deliberate on staff appeals related to personnel matters. It also endorses SSG’s corporate performance grade and recommends it for SSG’s Board approval. 

Internal Control Framework 

SSG’s internal control system ensures that assets and resources are safeguarded, and that the risk management, control measures and procedures are adequate and effective. It also ensures compliance with established policies and regulations, proper maintenance of accounting records and reliability of the financial statements. 

The risk items and mitigation measures are monitored regularly by the SSG Management and reported to the Audit and Risk Committee (ARC) and the SSG Board. The SSG Management is responsible to review and monitor the effectiveness of internal controls to safeguard SSG’s interests, and will evaluate the need to implement other internal control policies from time to time, aimed at compliance with all regulatory and statutory standards. 

Internal and External Audit Functions 

The Internal Audit Unit (IAU) functions independently and reports directly to the Audit and Risk Committee and administratively to SSG's Chief Executive. The IAU provides assurance to management through its evaluation of the adequacy and effectiveness of internal controls and processes, and compliance with established policies, procedures and regulatory requirements. Results of audits and recommendations for control enhancements are promptly communicated to the SSG Management. The IAU also monitors the implementation status of the audit observations. 

The external auditor performs the annual statutory audit and its audit observations (if any) are reported to the ARC. The ARC meets with the external auditors, without the presence of the Management, at least once a year. The financial statements are endorsed by the ARC and approved by the SSG Board. 

Business and Ethical Conduct 

All SSG staff must adhere to high standards of professional integrity and personal conduct. They are to avoid placing themselves in matters where a conflict of interest may arise and are to declare these types of situations to their supervisor. SSG staff are also subject to provisions of the Official Secrets Act. 

To reinforce SSG's commitment to a culture of integrity and transparency within the organisation, SSG has in place a whistle blowing policy and reporting mechanism to facilitate the reporting of fraud and wrongdoing of staff (see section on Whistle-Blowing).  

Annual Report and Financial Reporting 

SSG submits an annual report after the end of each financial year to the Minister for Education, which outlines SSG’s activities during the preceding financial year. SSG's full-year financial results are reported to the SSG Board and included in SSG’s Annual Reports, which are published on SSG's corporate website.