Toothless Tiger

Again this week someone felt compelled to tell me what they thought was wrong with our professional body and concluded “The trouble with the REC is that it has no teeth!”

In my normal, less than tactful, way I was quick to climb onto my soap box and exercise my theory about the reality of trade associations, which is that: All Trade Bodies (from the CBI to the Association of Acorn Crafters) have whatever power their membership chooses to give them. They can be as toothy and voracious as the Membership demands and the good ones (backed by their Members) have bite and the weak ones invariably get bitten. Put simply: “Members get the Trade Association (or Professional Body) they deserve.”

My headmaster’s report on REC Members would say “Good when present!” Sadly all too many recruiters abdicate their corporate responsibility and leave it to the few to get involved. I promise that if more took an active interest in their REC they would see the returns come back to them, ten fold. There would be far less legislation level against the industry, far fewer complaints about it and much higher margins across the board (and yes, it is that important!).

This is just another justification of my belief that “Recruitment is the spotty youth of British business” – see earlier Blog.

Gareth