Alternative performance measures

The Group has included various unaudited alternative performance measures (APMs) in its Annual Report and Accounts. The Group includes these non-GAAP measures as it considers these measures to be both useful and necessary to the readers of the Annual Report and Accounts to help them more fully understand the performance and position of the Group. The Group’s measures may not be calculated in the same way as similarly titled measures reported by other companies. The APMs should not be viewed in isolation and should be considered as additional supplementary information to the IFRS measures. Full reconciliations have been provided between the APMs and their closest IFRS measures below.

The Group has concluded that these APMs are relevant as they represent how the Board assesses the performance of the Group and they are also closely aligned with how shareholders value the business. They provide like-for-like, year-on-year comparisons and are closely correlated with the cash inflows from the operations and working capital position of the Group.

They are used by the Group for internal performance analysis and the presentation of these measures facilitates a comparison with other industry peers as they adjust for non-recurring factors that may materially affect IFRS measures. Adjusting items for the Group include amortisation of acquired intangibles, acquisition-related expenses, share-based payments, employment-related acquisition costs and restructuring costs. These measures should not be considered a complete picture of the Group’s financial performance as that is provided by the IFRS measures.