Hearts & Minds: Regulators are human beings too – it’s time to show the world

Damned if they do, damned if they don’t. Regulators are under fire like never before. In the US, they are portrayed as working against society. In the UK, the rhetoric is less shrill, but they are still loathed. The latest casualty is Ofwat, soon to be offed. Numerous others, in health, education, finance and more, are under the spotlight, accused of various shades of inadequacy. Seemingly, they can’t win. They are meant to protect consumers and stimulate competition at the same time. Yet these are objectives that can often appear to be in direct opposition.

What can they do to reform their standing - with the public, with government and with the industries they supervise? First, accept they cannot please all the people all the time. There will always be those who despise what regulators do. Put them on one side and to the rest, the majority, they should prove their mettle, show their worth. Take a hard look at the comms. Begin at the top, by putting faces to names. Most watchdogs are faceless. If folks could see a person who visibly cared and was passionate, about both sides of the job, that would be a start.

Politicians, the media, they are not universally popular either but, in the regulators, they have easy targets, who they pick off with ease. Why? Because the regulators do not present themselves as real, they hide in anonymous office blocks, behind sets of initials. They must make themselves human. That means being physically accessible. It also means speaking language that is understood and impactful. Comms-wise that is quite a task. By their nature, regulators attract those from legal, process-driven backgrounds. Somehow, they must drop the legalese and the ponderous explanations and caveats and get out there and tell how it is. Not simple, and they take extremely seriously the maintaining of their authority. Arguably, too seriously. Because that is allowed to override. Let go, relax, and they may find their influence is not damaged but strengthened. They must be consistent in their messaging, of course, or else that will undermine. But they could take a leaf out of other industries and businesses, the ones they monitor. Remember when supermarkets were awful, cold, unfriendly places? Then they wore name badges and were engaging. Same with airlines. The base is low and the mountain is steep, but ‘every little helps’ as a highly successful supermarket operator says.

Chris Blackhurst is one of the UK’s foremost business journalists. He was previously Editor of The Independent and City Editor of the Evening Standard.