What is interim management?
Interim management is the rapid deployment of top senior managers and executives - sometimes in a matter of days - to help organizations navigate crucial changes, leadership gaps, or operational upgrades. At some point, every organization faces a major transition or undergoes change and transformation to technology, finance, marketing, or operations. The interim executive - whether a CFO, COO, CMO, CIO - navigates and implements these changes, trains an internal candidate or helps recruit the permanent replacement to step into the role, or grows the company to point of exit.
When does a fractional executive make sense?
Fractional executives are leveraged by companies on an on-demand and part-time basis. For organizations that do not yet have resources for full-time executives or that do not need a fully dedicated executive in the role, a fractional executive is a great alternative, giving companies access to top senior executives for a fraction of the cost. Whether a part-time CFO or a fractional CIO, organizations still get hands-on leadership and can scale up or scale back time as needed.
How can interims work alongside the current management team on big projects?
As companies grow, launch new products, and venture into new markets, they often find that permanent management maxes out on bandwidth to carry out these big initiatives. Management teams can draw on specific expertise and capabilities with interim and project-based executives, who jump into a company temporarily until a project is brought to completion. Interim executives might work with the permanent management team on projects like:
- A project-based CIO to serve alongside the global CIO in completing a new technology implementation
- A COO to carry out process improvement or get a new manufacturing facility up and running as part of global expansion
- A project-based CFO to complete a merger or acquisition
Management teams can breathe easy knowing that on-demand expertise is available.
What is the length of interim executive assignments?
The length of an interim assignment is usually a few months to over a year, but it completely depends on the needs of the company. For example, an unexpected executive vacancy could mean an interim is on board 6-9 months while a permanent search is taking place. A private equity firm may want to grow a company to prepare it for sale, which could take 2 – 3 years. Or a corporation undergoing a technology transformation, may bring on an executive for the project duration.