Recruiter followed Roberts from her tenure in the role of director of external relations of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, to taking on the role of deputy chief executive officer and finally the role of CEO.

At the end of September 2006, shortly after becoming CEO of the REC, Roberts was elected to the Euro-CIETT board, the representative body for the European recruitment industry, made up of national federations from European countries. Roberts spearheaded the industry’s lobbying activities in Brussels.

Roberts said at the time of her election: “It is good news for the UK that the REC is at the heart of European industry lobbying…. we are in a strong position to work collectively with our European partners to promote the good work the employment industry carries out across Europe, while at the same time leading the call to reduce red tape and bureaucracy.”

Perhaps many would wish for her battling spirit to live on in the final throes of the lobbying to get business’s best deal with the Agency Workers Regulations.
She was honoured with Recruiter’s Individual Achievement Award for Outstanding Contribution to Recruitment in 2009, and awarded an MBE in the 2009 New Year’s Honours List for her tireless work on behalf of the recruitment industry and championing diversity.

Ian Wolter, CEO of HB Human Capital, told Recruiter: “Marcia drove the REC’s groundbreaking work in advancing the cause of diversity in recruitment, a project for which she was rightly awarded an MBE. She was not only a great strategist but also highly principled and a steadfast friend to our industry. Her death is a sad loss.”

Former managing director of the REC, Gareth Osborne, said: “I consider myself lucky to have worked with Marcia for four of her seven years at REC and to have seen her rise to take over the chief’s position. She worked tirelessly to win the post and thoroughly deserved to be rewarded with it.

“We often differed in opinion and regularly clashed but I had a huge respect for her lobbying ability and passion for better legislation and will always list her amongst the most intelligent, capable and committed people I have worked with. Marcia was a consummate professional and an all-round star, she will definitely be missed.

“The recruitment industry has much to thank her for and it would have been less well served by UK and European government without her firm but friendly style of lobbying and persuasion.”

Gary Irvine, managing partner of Diamond Recruitment Group and former chair of the REC, said: “Marcia was extremely articulate and a brilliant communicator.She was a superb man manager and worked successfully with outside stakeholders such as the CIPD, IoD, CBI, Jobcentre Plus, CIETT, DfES and BERR to name but a few.

“I will always remember Marcia as being an honest, intelligent, competent and extremely brave person. But most of all I will miss her as my friend. The industry has arguably lost the best advocate it has ever had.”

And former chair of the REC David Winterburn sums up what Roberts meant to the recruitment industry: “When you look up the definitions of bravery, professionalism, compassion and dignity in the dictionary you get Marcia Roberts.”