Ten years on and we are now an industry of collaborators: interview with RCSA CEO Charles Cameron
Photo credit: RCSA
At the recent Rec Gala (Australia) held at the iconic Melbourne Town Hall, RCSA President Natasha Olsson-Seeto congratulated Charles Cameron on his ten-year anniversary as RCSA CEO (photo, above) and thanked him for his service and commitment to the association.
I followed up with a request for my fifth interview with Charles. Charles, as ever, happily agreed to answer my questions.
Ross: Congratulations on ten years as RCSA CEO, Charles. Your LinkedIn profile suggests this is your longest tenure in any job. Why has this job kept your interest more than any other job?
Charles: Good call, Ross. The closest previous role was running my consulting firm. Three things come to mind and it probably won’t surprise you that it starts with purpose. The power of employment is something instilled in me from a very early age when my father gave those less fortunate the opportunity to find pride in work. The second one is my competitive spirit. I like to fight for what is right and the ideologically inspired injustice of the left, imposed upon our industry, is just not right. I like to take a stand. The third one is creativity. The RCSA Board, in its many variations over the past ten years, has provided me with the room to be creative and that is super important to me. It allows for evolution, fun and not knowing what’s around the corner. Not knowing what is next on offer is extremely important to me. It’s just who I am, and hopefully that keeps the RCSA community entertained and engaged.
Ross: In our first interview (May 2016), a few weeks after you started at the RCSA, you said that you “…felt that more could be done to promote our value to government, enterprise and, importantly, the wider public” and “….that there are many stakeholders who simply don’t understand the value we offer and the way in which we contribute to economy and society.” Three years ago, when I asked you to rate your success in addressing this lack of knowledge across the recruitment industry’s major stakeholders, you said, “we’ve only passed the half way mark. We have a long way to go.” Where are we now?
Charles: To be honest, we aren’t there yet. In fact, we have a fair way to go, and that’s why I’m still here. That said, I recently interviewed the heads of statistics and data from the OECD and International Labour Organisation (ILO) at the World Employment Conference in Toronto and felt that, finally, they see that labour market intermediaries will have an exceptionally important role as we provide a pathway for workers and professionals as we navigate the hollowing out of work due to AI. Unfortunately, in Australia, we are still subjected to union-driven labour market policy, which is all about protecting union power, rather than meeting the needs of workers. This will not be a solution in the age of AI and I feel that we, as the humans in the centre of the future of work, are exceptionally well placed to provide that way forward. Sorry to be all political, but it’s the plain truth, and we need to stand up to it.
Ross: What’s your current assessment of how well the Federal Government understands and listens to our industry? What are your expectations for the remaining two years until the next Federal election?
Charles: As I mentioned previously, I’m really concerned. More than ever! I’m repeatedly told, behind the scenes, that the Labor Government truly understands and respects the role our industry plays, but they are simply unable to communicate this in policy and public because the union movement is opposed to flexible work, because it doesn’t fit their membership business model. Take, as an example, the Government’s reliance on workforce mobilisation to highlight the productivity and pay increase benefits, yet when we put to them that we are the facilitators of workforce mobility they won’t, or can’t, acknowledge that we are super important to the economy. Once again, they are caught between reality and their ideological obligation to those who control them. This government has introduced so many policies that defy good policy, and they will take many years to unwind. Unfortunately, I feel many Australians have become focused on their own personal needs, rather than the needs of a strong economy and industry, which inhibits the capacity of business groups to protect the economy. Everyone is looking after themselves more, and that doesn’t make for healthy policy in my opinion.
Ross: What about globally? As a World Employment Confederation Vice-President for the past six years, you’ve had a global view of the way governments of many different countries work with the staffing sector – what progress, if any, is being made? What are your expectations for the next 5 years?
Charles: Populism and protection from change are a global phenomenon, Ross. I used to think that we were especially exposed down here in ANZ, but the reality is that much of what we face is happening right across the globe. As mentioned, I do feel that we are finally being seen as part of the solution rather than part of the problem. This is because the anti-business policies of many governments across the globe are not delivering the outcomes they promised. At some point in time, we all forgot who creates jobs and who creates the vast majority of tax/government revenue, and business was seen as owing us something, rather than giving us something. This is a dangerous place to be. No new jobs, no new income tax. No company confidence, reduced company tax. Combined, these make up 75% of total government revenue. No government revenue, no government expenditure on all the things we expect. Pretty simple equation. I feel that, globally, we are taking business for granted. It’s time to re-balance…with integrity.
Ross: The current three-year RCSA board strategy period has just concluded. What’s a quick summary of the progress since 2023 and what can we expect in the next three years?
Charles: We’ve done a heap of work on how RCSA can be ‘fit for the future’ and that’s exciting. I personally believe that Australians and Kiwis have a different relationship with ‘institutions’ and RCSA can fall in to that category if we are not changing our brand and our value offering. Without giving too much away, our strategy will deliver more digital engagement, more experiential learning, more opportunity to belong without needing to be a member and a more customised experience.
Ross: As RCSA CEO, what are your two or three key priorities for the upcoming financial year?
Charles: Implementation of our new member and community CRM. Assisting our members to transform and remain relevant in the age of AI. Keeping human-led recruitment and staffing firms relevant, whilst adapting to a digital future. It’s a really exciting, yet often scary, time to be running a recruitment and staffing firm. If we are not excited, there’s something wrong. If we’re not a bit anxious, we are not human. I asked someone in their 50s recently if they would like to be 18, and it wasn’t a simple yes. This tells me there’s a fair bit of trepidation and that’s where communities, like RCSA, come in. Leadership in the world of work is really complex in 2026, and I’m so up for it!!!
Ross: As a father of teenagers, what are you learning from your children about the job and career hopes and dreams of young Australians?
Charles: Great question. It was interesting speaking with Scott Millar at Talent X a couple of weeks back. I mentioned that my children are very engaged in creating side hustles before having a main hustle. He said that was mainly because they need the security of income that may not always be there from a ‘career job’. I feel that the uncertainty of the times chews up a lot of energy for them and that the absence of the traditional trajectory into work is taxing. I’m learning that we need to be extra supportive, even when decisions change a lot, even if that is not what we grew up respecting. Tenure will not necessarily be a sign of commitment moving forward. This will be critical for recruitment and staffing professionals.
Ross: Advances in AI, specifically LLMs, are likely to have a significant impact on the way staffing businesses operate. What’s your one or two sentence advice on this topic for both owners and recruiters?
Charles: Build new commercialisation muscle. We need to mine our greater value, whether that’s human persuasion or data, but above all, we must learn new ways of monetising that value. This is hard when we’ve traditionally given it away as ‘value add’. What has made you successful over the past 15 years will not be what makes you successful in the next 5 years.
Ross: What do you regard as your proudest accomplishment as RCSA CEO since 2016?
Charles: Transforming RCSA from an association of competitors to a community of collaborators.
Ross: In preparation for this interview I asked you to re-read our five previous interviews for any 2026 reflections. Was there anything you would like to comment on?
Charles: Yeah….I need to get some new lines! Seriously, though, I’m proud of my core commitment to what we stand for. It makes me think we need to be more creative in the way we tackle the problem of the ‘politicisation of work’, as I called it in an earlier interview. To be honest, I do reflect on the past ten years and think the next will be so very different, and that our leadership will take a completely different form. We will need to be more commercial and innovative at RCSA, rather than simply strong and resilient. The role of a community leader, like you and me, will need to change considerably. A place to belong is where it will start and finish, but the value equation will need to change far more frequently. It will require huge amounts of energy, and belief, Ross. It won’t be easy, but it will be so bloody important.
Ross: Drake founder, 97-year-old Bill Pollock, in an interview earlier this year, said, “I couldn’t ever consider retiring. That is one of the dumbest concepts on this planet. My concept is if you go into work every day and work yourself to death, you’ll have yourself a much happier, healthier time.” What do you say to that?
Charles: I’ve been to a few funerals and memorials of individuals that have lived long productive lives well into their 90’s lately. The key is ‘core strength’, both physical and moral. Having strong core commitments to others and being physically strong stand out to me. Strong to the Core. Purpose will give you that!
Ross: We are both big music fans. What are you listening to at the moment, Charles?
Charles: Hermanos Gutierrez. Two brothers from Ecuador, living in Switzerland, playing incredibly good, incredibly cool, guitar.
Ross: I’ll check them out (I have and they are great).
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