For a decade, the Finnish Council of Ethics for Communications (VEN) has promoted a responsible communications culture and self-regulation in the field by maintaining ethical guidelines for communications, assessing ethical issues in the field and issuing recommendations to communications professionals. The main principles of the Code of Ethics for Professional Communicators are openness, honesty, reliability and respect.

VEN's founding members in 2015 included the Global Alliance's Finnish member organisation ProCom – The Finnish Association of Communication Professionals and the communications trade union Viesti ry. Later, the association of public sector communications professionals JAT and Marketing Finland, which represents communications agencies, joined the group.

Päivi Sihvola, who was a member of the Council's original composition, says that the activities started as a loose network, with no resources other than volunteer work.

"We had to balance between ambition and realism. We felt that our most important task was to create uniform ethical guidelines for the communications industry."

Previously, various associations and organisations had had their own ethical guidelines based on international models, but no guidelines covering the entire field nor national body interpreting them.

The Council is not a judge, but a sounding board of ethics

In ten years, the Finnish Council of Ethics for Communications has evolved from a loose network to a recognised actor with defined forms of operation and processes. The Council has 12 members, some of whom are representatives of background associations and some of whom are expert members. They represent a wide range of the field of communication and its academic research.

An important operational change in the Council's work was made in 2022. Prior to that, the Council's statements had been based only on publicly available information, but then the Council began consultations with all the parties involved in the case. The statement was made only after that.

"The consultations took time but brought concreteness and new perspectives to the decisions. VEN does not want to be a judge, but a discussion partner with whom you can reflect on the ethics of your own actions," Sihvola says.

When the Code of Ethics for Professional Communicators was reformed in 2023, it aroused interest among companies and organisations. Although the guidelines are aimed at communications professionals, they also attracted interest from outside the industry.

This prompted VEN to consider whether it would be possible to create a model that would allow entire organisations to commit to the Code of Ethics and receive a visual label to communicate it publicly.

The label indicates commitment to ethical guidelines

The Responsible Communications label was launched in January 2026 at the 10th anniversary seminar of the Council of Ethics for Communications, and since then, the right to use the label has been granted to the first committed organisations, including communications agencies, cities and associations.

Kaisa Pekkala, Chair of the Finnish Council of Ethics for Communications, says that with the Responsible Communications label, VEN wants to encourage organisations and individual employees to think about responsible communications policies and communication ethics in the everyday life of organisations.

"The operating model of the Finnish Council of Ethics in Communications as an independent self-regulatory body is unique even internationally – as is the opportunity it now offers organisations to publicly commit to the ethical guidelines maintained by it," says Pekkala.

Pekkala estimates that in the first wave, organisations for which communication is particularly important will commit to the Code of Ethics. However, she hopes that as many organisations as possible will commit to building a responsible communications culture.

"A committed organisation does not have to be perfect, but it must have a genuine desire and ambition to act responsibly in its communications," Pekkala says.

If an organisation wants to show its commitment through a label, it can apply for the right to use the label from VEN. The right of use is granted for three years at a time and involves a support fee of 300 euros. Committed organisations can use the Responsible Communication label in their communications, for example on their websites, social media and printed materials.

Communication ethics require constant maintenance

According to Kaisa Pekkala, the state of communication ethics is good in Finland, and communications professionals take a responsible approach to their work with professional pride. However, in a digital environment, communication in organisations is also carried out by non-professional communicators.

"With the organisations' commitment to the guidelines, we aim to ensure that all employees understand the principles of the Code of Ethics and consider what openness, honesty, reliability and appreciation mean in their own work. I believe that it will change the communication culture in the entire work community," Pekkala says.

By expanding the opportunities for engagement beyond professional communicators, the Finnish Council of Ethics for Communications also wants to increase understanding that communication belongs to everyone. This requires greater awareness of the Code of Ethics and the work of the Council. Päivi Sihvola, who has been involved in the Council's activities for for the years, knows of cases that would have deserved to be dealt with by the Council, but were never referred to it.

"Too few cases have come to our attention. On the one hand, this is due to excessive caution, but also because the Council is still not widely known," Sihvola says.

According to Pekkala, the discussion on the ethics of communication is particularly important today.

"The communication environment is undergoing a transformation in many ways, and this requires constant reflection on the limits of responsibility and the characteristics of good practices," says Kaisa Pekkala.