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\nWhat is the difference between a truth and a fact?
\nApril 2018 saw an IT meltdown leave thousands of TSB customers locked out of their accounts. CEO Paul Pester scrambled to reassure the bank\u2019s customers that normal service would soon resume, but by July the bill for repairs and compensation had reached \u00a3176 million.
\nNow Pester is gone, a loss of trust in his leadership cited as the primary reason for his departure. The underlying problems were all on display during a bruising encounter with the Treasury Select Committee in which Pester made statements like:
\n\u201cThe underlying engine is doing its job.\u201d
\n\u201cI have data showing almost all customers are getting online.\u201d
\n\u201cThe IT migration went smoothly.\u201d
\nNo one is denying that Pester truly believed what he was saying and no doubt he could point to data to support his statements. The problem was that it didn\u2019t match up to the experience of thousands of customers. In the face of huge disruption to his clients, Pester\u2019s words appeared complacent and evasive, destroying any remaining trust in his ability to lead the company.
\nThe TSB crisis teaches us a powerful lesson about communication in the modern world. Facts and truth are different things, but both must be harnessed to create lasting trust.<\/p>\n