Get the best from interim managers

Citation

Russam, C. (2012), "Get the best from interim managers", Strategic HR Review, Vol. 11 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/shr.2012.37211caa.004

Get the best from interim managers

Article Type: How to … From: Strategic HR Review, Volume 11, Issue 3

Practical advice for HR professionals

Increasingly, interim managers are parachuted into businesses in times of trouble, major change or organizational restructuring, in addition to taking on the more traditional “gap filling” assignments, including senior level departures, maternity or sabbatical leave. However, with increased pressures on company finances and recruitment budgets, the decision to hire an interim needs to be a careful consideration. Business managers and HR directors need a firm business case before recruiting an interim and to be able to demonstrate return on investment once the assignment is complete. So how do companies get the best out of interims, establish a successful working relationship with them and ensure the project delivers clear business benefits?

1. Get recruitment right

It is important to point out that the success of any interim assignment depends on how a company approaches recruitment. First, the business case needs to be thought through carefully and questions asked, such as does the company really need an interim? Could someone else in the business take on the work instead? Next, the project needs to be scoped out, with a clear brief produced and expectations and time scales set out. Ideally, someone should take responsibility for the project to ensure the assignment is managed well and championed internally. Naturally, employees can be suspicious of “consultants” coming in to a business, particularly during a time of change or restructure, so the way an assignment is promoted can make the difference in how the interim is accepted.

Even though an interim assignment tends to be relatively short term – from six months to a year – companies should apply the same rigor to the recruitment process as would they to hiring any senior business manager. The interim will play a significant role in the business, and their work will make an impact on the business and its employees, so making the wrong decision could prove costly or risky or, worse, result in a setback to the business.

2. Look beyond skills and experience

Companies should not only check the interim has the right skills set and experience, but also is the right corporate fit, as this will impact the assignment’s success. We use personality profiling tools from Thomas International as part of our interviewing processes, and this kind of additional analysis can really help determine if someone will fit in to the working environment and the business. Interestingly, we have just published a piece of research into women working in interim management entitled “Women in interim management – how to succeed, the opportunities and challenges,’ through our business network Interimwomen. The research showed that women in interim have an impressive 22 years’ business experience behind them, which demonstrates the kind of talent available for clients.

3. Get internal buy-in

To ensure a successful assignment, one key is getting buy-in and acceptance from people within the organization. It is a good idea for the interim to meet relevant team members, project stakeholders and key business managers with whom they will be working or into whom they will be reporting. Both parties can then verify they are making the right decision and the interim can get a better understanding of the corporate culture, environment and its people. This process will also create a better understanding among employees of the interim’s role and remit.

4. Be prepared for some home truths

One important thing to remember is that interims are not members of staff. They are hired for their independence and their ability to bring a fresh perspective. They solve problems and, in doing this, tend to uncover other issues and challenges that need to be addressed. They operate at board level and it is sometimes down to them to tell the CEO home truths about their business that their immediate management team has either failed to discover or is too scared to impart. But this is the value they can add – impartial and honest advice and telling it as it is.

5. Make of the most of the time you have

Because they have specialist skills and commercial experience that tends not to exist in the business, it is important that companies make the most of the time they have with an interim and try to set aside some of their time for employee training or development. Interims are adept at transferring their knowledge and skills to others and this kind of training can leave a lasting legacy on a company. So how can you tell if they are value for money? Well, an interim is paid to deliver results and this goes back to the initial brief. If they are clear on what is expected of them, including the goals they need to deliver, and are supported by the business, then measuring their value should be easy.

For more information

To read the report “Women in interim management – how to succeed, the opportunities and challenges,” go to www.interimwomen.com/documents/IWFinalReport.pdf

Charles RussamChairman of Russam GMS and Founder of Interimwomen.

About the author

Charles Russam, FCA, set up Russam GMS in 1982 and the company now claims to be the longest established mainstream interim management provider in the UK. In the ten years before establishing Russam GMS, he gained senior management experience with The Burton Group – now Arcadia – and Whitbread in financial, business development and general management areas and was business development director of Beefeater Steakhouses in their exciting and formative early years. Russam founded the IMA, the industry professional association, in 1987. He was its deputy chairman for eight years and headed up its marketing committee. He has written and spoken extensively about flexible employment at senior levels and the changing ways in which businesses can be managed more effectively through people. Charles Russam can be contacted at: charles.russam@russam-gms.co.uk