A company secretary upholds a wide range of roles and responsibilities in a company. Some core duties are:
1. Understanding the Company
The appointed company secretary will need to first and foremost learn how the company operates. As the role of a company secretary is an important one, they will need to understand all the ins and outs of the company in order to better serve the company’s interests.
2. Ensure Compliance with Statutory Requirements
The company secretary acts as an official liaison officer for your company, as they are the bridge between the company and the Companies Commission of Malaysia (known locally as Suruhanjaya Syarikat Malaysia (SSM)). Under the Malaysia Companies Act of 2016, the position of company secretary within any registered private limited or public listed company (Sendirian Berhad, Berhad) is mandatory, and its function is to assist in the preparation and submission of the company’s statutory returns to SSM.
3. Preparing Minutes, Resolutions, and Attend Meetings
The company secretary is required to attend Board meetings or general meetings and is responsible for taking the meeting minutes. They are present at meetings to attend to Board members at the office and are relied on for providing advice on compliance to the members of the company as well as other senior officers in the company.
A company secretary is to prepare circular resolutions whenever needed by the Board or its members. Another major responsibility of the company secretary is to prepare and file Annual Returns of the company to SSM as per the Companies Act 2016.
4. As an Advisor to the Company
In general, company secretaries are present for general advisory services to make sure that all company records are kept and updated properly in accordance with the current legislation in Malaysia.
5. Other duties
A company secretary also works on other support services such as:
Transferring of company shares, certificate splitting of shares, and creating copies of share certificates
Preparing documents and authorising changes to the name of the company or changes in directors
Certification of documents
Preparation of official documents required under the Companies Act 2016
To conclude, a company secretary upholds a wide range of responsibilities. As senior corporate officer of a company, the company secretary acts as the focal point for communication with the company’s main stakeholders such as the board of directors, shareholders, and senior management.
The role of company secretary is an important one. As mandated by the Companies Act 2016, the company secretary oversees a company’s statutory compliance, conducts any and all official communication between the company and the SSM, and acts as advisor to the Board on all corporate matters.
If you are thinking of incorporating your own business, talk to us today! We are a group of professional Company Secretaries who offer end-to-end business services and are more than happy to get in touch with you to answer your questions with no obligation at all! Call us today at 012-2297733 or email us at general@ashtoncorporate.com