In 1986 the Rome Charter was
adopted as the industry guideline for public relations
firms. The Rome Charter has been overtaken by time and
practice and required updating.
This new ICCO Stockholm Charter is its replacement. It
is our hope and expectation that by setting industry standards
we are taking the initiative in defining our firms' business
environment and the expectations of the governments, businesses
and employees in the markets we serve. We have simplified
the language, removed areas that encourage ambiguity and
focused on the behaviour that would be expected from a
professional practitioner.
This new ICCO Stockholm Charter sets professional standards
for public relations firms, which are not the same as
personal or national ethical convictions, rules and laws.
It does not describe how all public relations consultancies
work today, nor does it address every possible situation.
It is only as binding as common sense will allow, but
it does describe how member firms within ICCO are expected
to behave and act.
The ICCO Stockholm Charter sets out common attitudes towards
a number of important issues and thereby:
•
ensures consistency in
how our industry speaks about itself, thus enabling
a clearer picture of our industry standards to clients
and employees which will enhance the industry's
reputation;
•
creates practical and commercially
useful standards to enrich the relationships between
companies, consultancies, clients and other stake
holders; and,
•
minimises the confusion of issues
that only serve to inhibit industry relationships
and growth.
The standards are written as short sentences but cover
a broader line of reasoning. Every country is encouraged
to adapt these standards to its own market and to add
sections providing that they do not break either the letter
or the spirit of the ICCO Charter.
Clearly a Charter must be seen to work and this Charter
is no exception. Should any member demonstrably fail to
meet these standards they will be asked to rectify their
shortcoming. If they fail to do this within a reasonable
time they may be asked to leave ICCO membership. In the
first instance complaints and Charter violations will
be addressed by the secretary general.
As the PR profession evolves, so must the standards. While
these are not written in stone, they should provide guidelines
for our firms and for the development of our industry.
THE
ICCO STOCKHOLM CHARTER
Public Relations consultancies
are professional service firms who help clients influence
opinions, attitudes and behaviour. Along with this influence
comes responsibility to our clients, our people, our profession
and society at large.
Objective Counsel
and Advocacy
Public relations consultancies may not have interests
that might compromise their role as an independent consultant.
They should approach their clients with objectivity, in
order to help the client adopt the optimum communications
strategy and behaviour.
Society
An open society, freedom of speech and a free press create
the context for the profession of public relations. Consultancies
operate within the scope of this open society, comply
with its rules, and work with clients that have the same
approach.
Confidentiality
Trust is at the heart of the relationship between a client
and a public relations consultancy. Information that has
been provided in confidence by a client and that is not
publicly known should not be shared with other parties
without the consent of the client.
Integrity
of Information
Public relations consultancies should not knowingly mislead
an audience about factual information, or about the interests
a client represents. Consultancies must make their best
efforts to strive for accuracy.
Delivering
Promises
Consultancies must work with clients to establish clear
expectations in advance about the output of their efforts.
They must define specific goals for communications actions
and then work to deliver on their promises. Consultancies
must not offer guarantees which are not supportable, or
which compromise the integrity of the channels of communication.
Conflicts
Consultancies may represent clients with conflicting interests.
Work may not commence for a new and conflicting interest
without the current client first being offered the opportunity
to exercise the rights under any contract between the
client and consultancy.
Representation
Consultancies may refuse or accept an assignment based
on the personal opinions of the firm's management or the
organisation's focus.
Governance and
Business Practices
Public relations consultancies are committed to ethical
behaviour and implementation of best business practices
in dealing with all audiences.
