BY JACK WOJCICKI
We’ve all been hampered by tech glitches. They tend to be inconveniences for the most part and they don’t usually affect others. Even in an office having the server go down isn’t that unusual. Often our IT folks are telling us about the problem and when it will be resolved before we’ve noticed it ourselves. But what if that office is the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and it’s not a disruption to email but rather to data feeds of information critical to trading? You’d think that a timely explanation would be called for. And that’s precisely what many traders were expecting yesterday, but they didn’t get it. At this time of year, when people are getting ready for the holiday break, and more significantly in light of the current global economic situation, it was the TSX’s responsibility to adequately explain not just what was happening, but also what wasn’t. We stress during Veritas Media Coaching how important it is to explain what is known, and to allay any fears as soon as possible. Not doing so can lead to rumours running rampant. True to the prediction, that’s what happened with the TSX. Shortly after the suspension of trading, messages on Twitter on blogs and via the media suggested that the problem was due to a security compromise, or even as a sign that the market had crashed to the point where trades had to be stopped. Not providing info immediately to deflect these rumours was bad enough, but to make matters worse, the TSX issued a statement that referred to the complexity of the system and that how despite best efforts it would be impossible to maintain 100-per-cent availability. Adding this layer of doubt only eroded the trust of customers already trying to make the best of a bad situation.
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