About

Cited by internal sources as a team consisting of ‘lawyers with excellent legal expertise, communication skills and a business mind-set’, the VR Group legal department has been at the forefront of various key developments over the last few years. The Helsinki-based team provides the state-owned Finnish railway with an in depth coverage of compliance; with a recent focus on the increasingly important ethical compliance. To this end, the in-house team recently introduced group wide e-learning programs for code of conduct and anti-bribery guidelines. The team is responsible for the code of conduct training of roughly 10,000 employees across Finland, Sweden, Russia and the Baltics. The legal function additionally demonstrates a tangible impact VR Group’s strategic growth, adopting a proactive approach to the development of service descriptions and models in close cooperation with the business unit management. This advance proved to be highly valuable to VR Group as it has ensured that all service models align and comply with the new railway legislations in addition to the enhancement of efficiency in the everyday practice of the organisation. As the railways open up to new competitors, the competition and compliance parts of the team are becoming increasingly important for the company. One nominator summarises the qualities of the VR Group in-house legal team: ‘outstanding communication skills and understanding of business strategies and functioning of markets’.