Demand for interim managers is soaring so how do you know you can get value for money and what kind of projects should they be used for. How should you prepare staff for the arrival of an interim?
HR Zone is researching this interesting topic and I'd love to hear your thoughts. So let me know by posting your comments in the box below.
Best Regards,
Annie Hayes
Contributing Editor, HR Zone
Annie Hayes
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Hello Annie,
I worked in recruitment for a number of years and specialised in recruiting medical sales managers at UK management level. I found that if a highly valued regional or national sales manager left a team, then the team would often enter a period of flux, appearing to be rudderless and sometimes disintergrating. This often resulted in a panic recruitment of a new manager - who may not have been the right person in the long term.
An interim manager would shore things up, provide a fresh perspective for the team and company and allow a carefully thought out recruitment drive to occur.
If an interim manager has relevant experience and can concentrate on the job of management, then they are a sound investment.
Staff need to be told that an interim manager is arriving to steer and guide them for x period of time, maybe with HR playing a more supporting role for day to day issues.
We are currently working on an MSc in Professional Management, which is looking at transferable, real managerial skills such as effective project management. There is no reason why these skills would not be easily transferable within similar industries, regardless of length of tenure. www.sparktraining.co.uk
Hi Annie
From the other side of the fence, I've just completed an eight-month stint as interim head of Communications while an organisation was going through change. Using interims to be the "bad guys" through change is a traditional role, I understand. Thus, I was responsible for restructuring the department, for the communication while the restructure was going on and took part in the recruitment of my successor.
As a consultant, my work is normally project based and despite the additional staff responsibilities, I achieved agreed monthly objectives, renegotiated existing supplier contracts saving the organisation money and left the comms unit in a leaner, more effective form than it was when I arrived.
Happy to talk further if you'd like.