Mediterra established a dedicated Operations Team, İstinye Kurumsal Danışmanlık (IKD) in 2013 to assist portfolio companies on setting strategy, recruiting key staff, developing improvement programmes aimed at revenue management, reducing costs, optimizing process effectiveness, improving working capital management and managing corporate risks. IKD is an integral part of Mediterra’s value creation and plays an important role in risk management at the portfolio companies through operational transformation projects and internal audits IKD also aids in the management of environmental social and governance (ESG), and responsible for impact management and follow up of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)’s in the portfolio companies,

Operations team assists Mediterra Capital Partners and portfolio companies’ management in their oversight, management and operating responsibilities by identifying and reporting ineffectiveness of internal control, risk management and governance processes as well as inefficiencies that cause waste of its resources through independent audits and/or advisory services. All portfolio companies are within the scope of IKD. IKD also mentors, advises and supports CFOs on financial matters, business workflows as well as on managerial skills on a regular basis.

In order to ensure internal audit activities to be aligned with the organizations’ business risks, we conduct risk assessment for each portfolio company, and we base our internal audit activity’s plan of engagements on this risk assessment. The risk assessment process is designed to understand key business objectives and challenges and incorporate multiple types of business risks into a comprehensive framework. Risk assessment resulted in a list of portfolio companies’ processes that are prioritized from high risk to low risk and the list feeds the annual audit plan. During internal audit fieldwork, we are physically on site at the portfolio companies’ locations performing the audit. We evaluate and test the design and effectiveness of existing controls. Internal auditors apply one or more test types including document review, interview, observation, analytical review and etc.

The ultimate product of IKD is the internal audit report submitted to the companies’ management. Internal audit reports include recommendations to remediate the risk findings. We work together with companies’ management on the remediation plans and facilitates best practice sharing across portfolio companies.

We implement operational transformation by executing value-added projects in our portfolio companies. Those projects include system implementation, business process design and improvement, organizational structure design. IKD also assists portfolio company management in the selection and ongoing relations with process, IT, and ERP consultants. In doing so, we consider industry best practices.

IKD supports portfolio companies at the board level and responsible for strategic governance and oversight. IKD partners are also a part of decision making process by participating portfolio companies’ boards of directors and closly monitor the companies with also involving in the board decisions.