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So you want to be an Interim?

By Nick Diprose

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Published: 17Jul2009
Word count: 810
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If you've recently been made redundant, chances are you are now considering what your career options might be. As a seasoned line manager with operational experience, you may be thinking about life as an interim executive. To make an informed career choice, it may be useful to consider what makes this role unique in terms of mindset and attitude, skills and experience, pay and career potential.

Mindset and Attitude

Many successful interims opt for this way of life after reaching a point in their business career where circumstances allow them the choice of going independent. Typically they have reached senior management level but still relish the opportunity to continue to deliver results and lead and mentor others, without necessarily committing to become part of an organisation.

In other words, interims are established in their careers and have nothing to prove to others. They enjoy working but are not motivated to 'climb the greasy pole' and progress up the organisation ladder - they've been there and done that. In fact, interims are often asked to work one or two levels below their capability level and a successful interim is happy to do so - personal status and ego is not a consideration.

This is different to an employee or a consultant working within a large consultancy. Each will typically be looking for a role with some 'stretch' and when working will hope to be operating in a way to promote themselves and their capabilities.

Interims also need to be comfortable and confident to deal with ambiguity and those times when there are gaps in employment. For those who are accustomed to a regular pay cheque, the prospect of gaps in cash flow can be completely terrifying.

Skills and Experience

Typically interims have gained hands on experience within a mix of blue chip and smaller organisations and are less likely to have worked for only one organisation.

Substantial change and large scale project implementation experience is critical alongwith the necessary skills to deliver results including strong interpersonal skills and communication skills, gravitas and team leadership. Whilst many management consultants have these capabilities, most interim providers and their clients prefer candidates to have line or operational experience.

Interim Providers typically look for interim executives who have a track record of at least five to ten years at board level with companies that have £20m to £2bn turnover. Each interim will have held a senior general management position and/or have been a head of function - finance director, IT director, sales and marketing director, human resources director, manufacturing director or logistics director.

Pay

The interim market is diverse and as such interim daily rates vary hugely from £500 for a junior role to £2000 for the most experienced senior executive. A new interim needs to be realistic about their skill set, where they are placed in their profession and in their industry to get an idea of their likely day rate. Market rates are determined by supply and demand so it will always be true that the better interim resource in the market will continue to command the best rates. In parallel with this monetary cost, the added-value provided by an interim resource to organisations is set to escalate in the current climate.

Career

A growing number of executives are now choosing to work permanently as interims. There are estimated to be around 5,000 interim managers in the UK. It is becoming a profession in its own right and a career of choice. Nearly one-third of interims last year worked on special projects, another 19% on issues around human resources and 14% on finance according to figures from the Interim Management Association. Over the next year, demand for interims in the public sector is expected to grow as it turns to short-term contracts to help reduce staff costs. Buying Solutions confirms that the use of interims has risen as contracts for management consultants have fallen.

As an interim, aligning yourself with the right interim provider is a necessary aspect to finding work. A successful company should meet the interims, even on several occasions, prior to considering them for assignments. Consultants should know candidates well and have a good track record of successful assignments. In a recession, clients need a fast, insightful response to their issues. The better they know their candidates, the quicker they can match up their needs and provide them with a very short list of recommended candidates - saving them time and energy.

Good interim executives have a special combination of qualities and are hard to find. They must be able to run their own business, manage themselves (in and out of assignment) and successfully satisfy demanding clients with high expectations of immediate results - where others may have failed. The role and its associated lifestyle are not for everyone, but for those who relish these challenges, it can be a hugely rewarding career choice.

Nick Diprose is Managing Director of BIE, market leader in the supply of Interim Managers across all key business sectors and and functions globally. He has successfully delivered interim management solutions in the UK and in international markets for a wide client base including private-equity portfolios through to large UK, US and European companies. Nick can be contacted at nick_diprose@bieinterim.com or visit http://www.bieinterim.com

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