Tuning In To Trust & Ethics: Leadership At Barclays Bank

Organizations and their leaders often find themselves caught in “trust and ethics traps.”

Jes Staley the newly appointed American CEO of the beleaguered British Barclays Bank is one such leader. In fact, as he recently announced in this BBC News Article “I do believe that trust is returning to our institution. But we will never rest, we are never done. We have to focus on building that trust every day.”

Eerily, Staley’s comments have a familiar ring. In the wake of the Libor scandal in 2012 the Bank’s new CEO, an insider named Antony Jenkins also spoke extensively about rebuilding trust. Yet in an all too common response when faced with a crisis of trust and ethics, the Board Chair John McFarlane recently passed blame to regulators for picking on the bank.

We asked our Trust Alliance members to weigh in on the steps Barclays new CEO should take to build trust and ethics, carrying on the legacy of his predecessor.

Leadership Momentum’s Elizabeth Doty emphasizes the importance of building on the company’s new purpose and values, by making clearer, stronger commitments to stakeholders: