Making the most of interim managers

Succession planning / 28 October 2011

They’re often referred to as the troubleshooters of the management world, parachuted in during periods of change. But how do you get the best out of your interim managers, asks Nic Paton

They may be little more than a snapshot of how the economy is evolving, but the latest figures from the Interim Management Association (IMA) on the changing use of interim managers nevertheless tell an interesting story of supply and demand.

The quarterly figures published in September found interims coming back into favour in the private sector while, conversely, demand for freelance executives and turnaround specialists within a public sector struggling to justify all and any spending has now slumped. Where the use of interims had been split pretty much equally in 2009, the split was now 61% to 39% in the private sector’s favour, with demand particularly strong within banking and finance, it concluded.

Whether it’s temporarily plugging a talent gap, delivering on a specific project, overseeing a restructuring process or simply driving forward organisational change, interim managers are, clearly, meeting a demand. Private sector organisations enjoy the flexibility of being able to harness a ‘turn on/turn off’ resource that also potentially brings in new skills and perspectives unable to be found internally.

Effective interims

Yet, given that an interim will often be coming in to push through tough decisions (and all at an expensive daily rate), getting the most out of them and working with them effectively has to be a priority. It’s definitely not a case of ringing up an agency and leaving them to it, says Raj Tulsiani, chief executive of interims agency Green Park and vice-president of the IMA.

“There should be shared responsibility and a clear outline of what the mandate needs to be. The key thing is around goal setting and communicating how you want those goals to be delivered,” he explains.

“As an interim, you will bring new skills, new horizons and new ‘stretch’ to situations. But it is very important to have a mandate of what you are there for,” agrees long-time interim manager Celia Adams, who specialises in corporate turnarounds.

You need to be making sure everyone is benefiting from the expertise of the interim, which in turn can help to accelerate the work and mean the interim can bring the permanent team with them. The interim is not there to take over the world.

Jason Atkinson, managing director, Russam GMS

“Whether you are just covering a maternity leave or overseeing a major turnaround, it needs to be clear,” she adds.

An interim will be expected to hit the ground running and be focused on the outcomes of their specific project, but will also normally bring with them a wealth of senior-level experience, often from across a range of sectors, that can be tapped into by subordinates, peers or, indeed, the senior management team.

Definite dynamics

“With those above you, it is a case of simply getting relationships going and ideas into their minds. It is about building up a rapport and developing their confidence. But you do quite quickly need to work out the dynamic of the organisation you are going into.

“With people reporting into you, it is important quickly to be working out what makes them tick. You may need to build their confidence in you and help them to understand what you and they have to do,” Adams explains.

People skills should be a core competency of any good interim, as should be an ability to mentor and coach people as well as prioritise succession planning, as an important part of the role will normally be preparing the ground for their eventual replacement.

“The key thing is always to be engaging with people, to be talking, listening and getting people aligned to the objectives. Unlike a consultant, an interim manager will have some ‘skin in the game’, they will be there for three, four months or however long the assignment is. They can provide the knowledge to help you get to a better place in your career,” explains Andrew Munro, director of the Institute of Interim Management.

But there may also need to be an element of reassurance – from both the management team and interim – around why they have been “parachuted” in, concedes Perry Evans, director of interims agency RSA Interims.

“You do not want the permanent individual to be thinking, ‘this person wants my job’. The interim will have ‘been there, done that’ so they will have the empathy to go in with their eyes open and court the right people to get the job done.

“They can bring expertise in from outside, sometimes from completely outside the industry. That can be a massive factor; when you are not embroiled in the politics or the culture you can often bring a fresh perspective,” he explains.

Working with an interim manager needs to be learning process for both sides, but a directed one, contends Jason Atkinson, managing director at agency Russam GMS and chairman of the IMA.

It is important to identify some “quick wins” but also to set out agreed, deliverable timescales and have a proper exit path for completion of the project and the transfer of skills.

“You need to be making sure everyone is benefiting from the expertise of the interim, which in turn can help to accelerate the work and mean the interim can bring the permanent team with them. The interim is not there to take over the world,” he says.

How to get the most from your interim manager

1. Be clear about when (and why) you need external resource/assistance. Interim managers offer a specialist resource, so make sure you need this level of expertise.

2. Have an ideal candidate in mind and have a clear brief about what you need the interim manager to do.

3. Don’t spend ages deciding who to appoint - the best interims tend to get snapped up quickly, so you need to respond to good ones as soon as you have made your choice.

4. Remember, interims have no ties. Because interim managers don’t have emotional ties to the company they can speak openly about what it should do to achieve its goals. They can tell it like it is, so don’t be afraid to ask.

5. Agree the aims, deliverables and timescales of the assignment at the outset so that both parties know what objectives they are working to.

6. Make the first days really count. As soon as the interim manager signs the contract they have five working days to understand the role and client requirements, the work involved and the deliverables. They must deliver by day six, so ensure they understand your needs from the start.

7. Reassure permanent members of staff that interim managers are not a threat. Also don’t make pay comparisons to permanent staff. Their daily rate may be higher, but will not include pensions, benefits, holidays or the security of regular employment.