When the going gets tough, the tough unite.

I am at my most animated when watching a great game of rugby or watching Ed Balls being interviewed. The first fills me with good feelings about skill, sportsmanship and what can be achieved by a truly motivated team. The second, a display of political points-scoring at a time when we need unity, drives me mad.

Professional team games are not just about winning, they’re also about working collectively to make sure the sport is attractive and run properly otherwise the fans will start to drift away.

Most sports have reached this understanding and they try to promote a positive image, interact with their communities, manage individual player behaviour and encourage spectator participate.

Elsewhere we see Journalism, Politics and Banking all acquire terrible reputations as a result of selfish self-interest similar to that shown by Mr Balls. They don’t manage themselves very well and the consequences are there to see. People stop buying Newspapers, start hating Politicians and despise Bankers.

There is a message here for the recruitment sector where for years individual firms have had little regard for how their actions impact on the reputation of the sector. Consequently as the goodwill of employers and candidates drifts away, it becomes increasingly difficult to trade through the head-wind of negativity.

Up until now the recruitment sector has not managed its PR well. This is largely because firms are fiercely independent, don’t collaborate and there is little or no central leadership. It’s also fair to say that when business has been so good the eye has been distracted from the issue of reputation.

Well the tide’s turned and we can now see how damaging that loss of goodwill is becoming. To my mind the solution has got to be to all pull together and collectively re-brand the recruitment sector. Play your part, however small-it’s in everyone’s interest.

Here are some ideas that I’m sure you could add to:

1. Trade Associations.
Join and actively support one of the main recruitment bodies: IOR, REC, ATSCO etc. Support initiatives even if it’s just adding your email address to a group, take part in the 5 minute polls or attending a breakfast meeting in your area. By doing so you’ll strengthen the ability of that body to: provide tangible benefits, improve professional standards and influence change.

2. Local Networks.
Set up a Networking group in your local sector. Put together a website designed to link you and your members with the Client and Candidate markets locally or sectorally. Make it easier for Employers and Candidates to connect/interact at a group level. Give the group local buying power with Job Boards, Software vendors etc. Collaborate on projects with other group members you meet and empathise with.

3. Good PR.
Undertake initiatives that do not have a direct impact on revenues but do raise awareness and improve perceptions. These could be joint-initiatives with Clients or other Employers and other recruitment firms like: Job Centre workshops, school Careers office drop-ins, Charity events etc.
See: http://ukrecruiter.typepad.com/uk_recruiter_blog/2011/11/uk-recruitment-squash-tournament.html

All of this will take up relatively little of your time but the size of your UK team is some 50,000 consultants. Collectively you could make a big difference. It’s a simple choice now: do you want to go down with the Bankers and Journalists or do you want to pull together as a team and turn things around?

In 2005 Liverpool played AC Milan in the Champions League final. At half-time they were losing by 3 – 0 and all but written off. Famously they went on to draw the game at full time and win on penalties. For me it showed everything that’s good about team spirit. We could definitely do with this attitude now in the recruitment sector and as George Osborne attempts to plot a path through the economic rapids, perhaps someone, other than Ed Balls, could step up and galvanise TEAM UK.