Outages, data loss and difficult answers.
WHEN THIS ARISES
An outage Data that cannot be recovered A problem caused by something they did A request you cannot fulfil
WHAT TO DO
Tell them promptly State it plainly Explain what you are doing Say what happens next
THE PROMPTNESS POINT
Bad news told early is a problem.
Bad news discovered later is a breach of trust.
WHAT NOT TO DO
Delay while deciding how it looks Minimise Blame them, even when accurate
FOR DATA LOSS
State clearly what is recoverable and what is not.
Do not offer hope you cannot deliver.
FOR AN OUTAGE
What happened, what you are doing, when you will update next.
Then actually update.
FOR A PROBLEM THEY CAUSED
Focus on the fix.
Then, separately and later, what would prevent it recurring.
WHAT TO OFFER
Something, where you are at fault.
WHAT TO DOCUMENT
What happened and what changed afterwards.
