Communication beyond transformation - for the good of business and people

Corporate responsibility program

We aim to be pioneers in communications

Nordic Morning’s corporate responsibility (CR) work is based on the triple bottom line: people, profit and planet. These three elements correspond to areas of social, financial and environmental responsibility, respectively, and form the basis of our CR approach.

Supported by our values of renewal, respect and responsibility, the CR program is firmly integrated within Nordic Morning’s business strategy.

We developed our CR program originally in 2010, and an important part of that process was our dialogue with stakeholders in order to map their expectations. We have further measured employee expectations through our staff survey and taken in the views of Group management through interviews.

During our CR development project in 2010, we also defined which aspects are the most relevant for our work and which ones best reflect our desire to be a leader within the Nordic communcations industry.

We aim to be pioneers in developing communications, developing good leadership, attracting and retaining employees and in enhancing environmental responsibility

The grounds for the aspects of leading the way are recorded below together with the goals set for them and the most important measures taken in 2015 in order to achieve the goals.

We re-evaluate the CR aspects annually. At the end of 2013, we decided that the aspects we selcted in 2010 are still valid for us, and nothing was added or removed.

In 2016, we will expand the description of the supply chain and update the relevance analysis in cooperation with our stakeholders. We will also update the Ethical Guidelines of the Group.

In addition to the aspects in which we aim to be pioneers, valuable for us are also those in which we want to be proactive in relation to our stakeholders: being a reliable partner, developing openness and transparency, focusing on knowledge sharing, promoting work-life balance, and providing our staff with career and competence development opportunities.

The full significance of CR for our stakeholders and its impact on Nordic Morning are described in the Materiality Assessment matrix below. The criteria have been selected and their significance and impact have been evaluated by the Group’s CRI team, the CEO and the management of Group companies.

In 2015, the material aspects for reporting were defined according to the requirements of the new GRI G4 reporting guidelines. The aspects identified were already included in Nordic Morning's Materiality Assessment matrix, and there was no need to update the matrix.

The Group’s boundaries

The Group’s boundaries include the parent company, Nordic Morning Plc and its subsidiaries. The material aspects indentified according to the GRI's G4 Guidelines and related boundaries are listed below in the table "Material aspects and their boundaries".


GRI Index »

LEADING THE WAY IS OUR GOAL

Developing communications

The fast-paced digitalization challenges organizations to change. We help our customers to succeed in the change process. Developing communication is a part of our business strategy, of which the Group management team, the CEO and the Board of Directors are in charge.

Goals
Strengthening innovativeness and competence, developing new solutions for communication, increasing cooperation within the Group.

Achievements in 2015
We revised our service strategy: we offer our customers innovative solutions that use new technology and are driven by data and analytics. They combine strategic content, user-oriented service design, optimal visibility and engaging customer dialog.

We have set up a Nordic sales team to boost the development of customer services.

We have set up an Analytics team to strengthen our competence in the use of data and analytics.

We have set up the Innovation Awards contest with which we encourage personnel to come up with new service solutions.

Emphasis in 2016
We set out to develop cooperation within the Group and the activities of the Sales and Analytics teams; encourage innovation by spreading the word about the topic and organizing the Innovation Awards 2016.

Additional information:
Strategy »

Good
leadership

The constant changes in the operational environment create a growing need for the continuous development of leadership. Good leadership contributes to the creation of an inspiring work environment and promotes better motivation and commitment among the employees.

Good leadership is based on the Group’s HR strategy; the development of which is the responsibility of the Vice President, HR, together with the Group management team.

Goal
The Nordic Morning managers are good leaders who, in the middle of constant change, succeed in inspiring employees and committing them to achieve the common goal and to create something new.

Achievements in 2015
The leadership development program for managers and supervisors who are not management team members.
The Nordic Bond 002 program, for potential within the Group.

Emphasis in 2016
Development of leadership by providing managerial training and coaching related to current themes.

Additional information:
Social responsibility »

Attracting and engaging employees

We will be building a culture of engagement, investing in the well-being and development of personnel and good leadership.

Attracting employees and keeping them committed is based on the Group’s HR strategy; the development of the strategy is the responsibility of the Vice President, HR, together with the Group management team.

Goal
Our goal is to attract the best people in communication and keeping them committed.

Achievements in 2015
The Nordic Bond 002 program for potential within the Group.

The social game called HEIMO, a tool for creating a sense of togetherness and strengthening cooperation.

Personnel have been offered training and coaching in lateral thinking, performance skills, facilitation and mindfulness.

We have launched a project on the development of our employer image.

Emphasis in 2016
The Nordic Bond 002 program will continue, the HEIMO game will be expanded, personnel competence will be supported and the employer image of the Group will be developed.

Additional information
Social responsibility »

Environmental responsibility

We will reduce our own and our customers’ environmental impact by investing in environmentally responsible operations, products and services and promoting environmental awareness amongst our personnel.

Environmental responsibility is based on the Group’s environmental strategy and certified environmental programs. The Director of the Green Nordic Morning environmental program, the Group management and, ultimately, the Group CEO and Board of Directors are responsible for environmental responsibility.

Goals
In 2015, our carbon footprint is 40 per cent smaller compared with 2008; all the companies have certified environmental programs; we will increase the environmental awareness of our personnel, customers and partners.

Achievements in 2015
The office premises in the Green Office system were taken into more efficient use.

In Edita Prima, the use of solvents was reduced by 47% and energy efficiency was improved by changes in the paper collection system.

Emphasis in 2016
Our aim is to increase energy efficiency by improving the efficiency of our use of space. We will evaluate the Group’s supply chains and update Edita Bobergs’ environmental management system.

Additional information:
Environmental responsibility »

Materiality assessment

CR aspects

Material aspects and boundaries

GRI aspects (G4 - 19)Aspect boundary (G4 - 20-21)
CATEGORY: ECONOMIC
Economic Performance Nordic Morning Group
CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENTAL
Materials Nordic Morning Group
Energy Nordic Morning Group
Water Nordic Morning Group
Biodiversity Partners
Emissions Nordic Morning Group
Effluents and Waste Nordic Morning Group
Products and Services Nordic Morning Group, partners
Compliance Nordic Morning Group
Transport Partners
CATEGORY: SOCIAL
Labour practices and decent work
Employment Nordic Morning Group
Labor/Management Relations Nordic Morning Group
Occupational Health and Safety Nordic Morning Group
Training and Education Nordic Morning Group
Diversity and Equal Opportunity Nordic Morning Group
SOCIETY
Anti-corruption Nordic Morning Group

Stakeholders

Our key stakeholders are employees, customers, the owner the Finnish state, partners, competitors, unions, the end users of our services and products, non-governmental organizations and society as a whole.

A dialogue with our stakeholders is an essential part of our business. In order to succeed and develop as a company, as professionals, as an employer and as a partner, we need to listen to our stakeholders attentively.

Once a week, we will post a blog entry, article or a video that discusses communication challenges relevant to our customers on our website. We will also use the channels of social media in stakeholder communication.

The Group’s official language is English, but on our web site we share information in English, Swedish and Finnish.

Code of business ethics

We have defined 'Code of conduct and ethical standards' as one of our material aspects. The Code of Business Ethics guides the activities of every Nordic Morning employee in relation to stakeholders such as customers, colleagues, and business partners. We also require our business partners to comply with our Ethical Guidelines.

In 2013, we created Nordic Morning's Code of Business Ethics (COBE) and they are updated annually as necessary. The guidelines were implemented through small groups by using training materials produced by the Group. An online training tool was also developed based on the materials. The Ethical Guidelines are available as a printed brochure as well as a digital brochure distributed on the intranet and on the company website.

In December 2014, we published our Key Behaviours for promoting a good work community and business success.

In 2015, Nordic Morning sold products and services to its customers for the total amount of EUR 108.1 million (114.6) and spent EUR 52.5 million (56.6) on buying goods and services from partners.

Nordic Morning produced financial added value for stakeholders totaling EUR 55.5 million (58.0). Most of this value, EUR 50.6 million (45.7), was distributed to personnel in the form of salaries, pensions and social costs.

Employees

Good leadership and 'attracting and engaging employees' are considered our most important CR aspects. 

The cornerstones of our HR strategy are leadership, competence and a culture of engagement.

With detailed competence development programs, we want to offer all employees the opportunity for personal and professional development.

In the spring of 2015, we launched HEIMO, a social game for the personnel, with the goal of strengthening the sense of togetherness and cooperation within the Group.

In 2015, the percentage of Group personnel who have had at least one development discussion with their manager was 67.6 percent (in 2014: 77.5).

Our aim is to create and maintain a culture of engagement and expertise. If we win the hearts of our employees, we have succeeded.

Customers

Ongoing dialog with customers is part of the fundamental nature of our business. In the companies of the Group, there is daily dialog with customers about their needs and expectations. Most of the companies of the Nordic Morning Group take customer surveys annually.

Our Nordic Morning seminars in Finland and Sweden highlight topical phenomena in the communication sector. Even though these events are primarily intended to be tools for customer marketing, the video interviews of speakers are published on YouTube where anyone can watch them.

We also cater for our customers and anyone else interested in matters relevant to communication by posting a blog entry, article or video discussing current matters and phenomena in communication on the Nordic Morning website about once a week. We are also actively involved in social media.

Our market surveys support our dialog with customers. In Finland, we utilize primarily research information provided by the Finnish Association of Marketing Communication Agencies, the Federation of the Finnish Media Industry and TNS Gallup; in Sweden, information produced by the Institute for Advertising and Media Statistics (IRM, Institutet för Reklam- och Mediestatiastik).

Owner

The owner of Nordic Morning, the Finnish state, is represented as a member of Nordic Morning’s Board of Directors. Furthermore, the owner regularly receives information about our business in the form of various financial reports.

Memberships and certificates

Memberships

Nordic Morning is a member of several business and communications industry-related associations in Finland and Sweden.

The most important of these in Finland are the Finnish Association of Marketing Communications Agencies (MTL), the Federation of the Finnish Media Industry, the Finnish Marketing Association, the Finnish Book Publishers Association, the Helsinki Region Chamber of Commerce and Finpro. In Sweden, Nordic Morning is a member of, among others, the Finnish-Swedish Chamber of Commerce and the Swedish Marketing Federation (Sveriges Marknadsförbund).

Nordic Morning is a member of Finnish Business & Society (FiBS), a network of enterprises that promotes financially, socially and ecologically sustainable business.

Edita Västra Aros AB is part of the UN’s Global Compact initiative. This is a strategic policy initiative in which businesses commit to complying with universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor law, the environment and anti-corruption.

Edita Prima Oy is a member of the Environmental Register of Packaging (PYR).

Edita Bobergs AB is a member of the Swedish packaging industry organization REPA.

Certificates

Climate-neutral business

The Group’s climate-neutral companies in 2014 were Edita Prima Oy and Edita Bobergs AB.

These companies have reduced the carbon-dioxide emissions generated by their operations and compensated for the remaining emissions by funding UN-supervised clean development mechanism projects in India.

Green offices

Over 50 percent of Nordic Morning’s office personnel work in WWF Green Office certified offices.

Nordic Ecolabel

Edita Prima's production plant in Helsinki, Finland and Edita Bobergs production plants in Falun, Sweden are entitled to use the Nordic Ecolabel. The environmental impact of printing production has been considered throughout the production chain. Both the materials used and the production processes comply with the Nordic Ecolabel criteria.

Standard for environmental management

Edita Prima’s production plant in Helsinki, Finland and Edita Boberg's production plant in Falun, Sweden are certified in accordance with the ISO 14001 standard for environmental management.

Forest certification

Edita Prima has certified its system for monitoring the origin of the wood fiber used in its paper in accordance with international standards from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes (PEFC). Edita Bobergs has certified its system in accordance with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). 

These printing companies are thus also entitled to use these labels indicating that the wood fiber used in their paper originates from a forest that is managed in a socially, ecologically and economically responsible way.