How Do Interim Execs Approach Assignments?

05: How Do Interim Execs Approach Assignments?

1) Define the time commitment

First, organizations need to know how much of an interim executive’s time they will need. If the company is in crisis and needs an interim to lead the transition, that will be a full-time-plus commitment. Conversely, if the company is a start-up in need of experienced leadership to guide growth, a part-time or fractional executive who works a few hours a day or a few days a week can be a cost-effective way to get rock star leadership for a fraction of the cost. In these cases, the fractional executive could have multiple, parallel engagements running simultaneously.

2) Set goals, deliverables and expectations

Once you have identified the time commitment needed, it’s time for the owner, board, investors or CEO to take an honest look at issues or opportunities the interim will address and come up with a list of the goals and expectations they have for the assignment. You also will need to determine the length of the engagement and whether it is for a fixed duration, based upon the completion of key milestones, or a general timeline with check-in dates.

3) Find the right executive

Next, it’s time to begin interviewing potential interims. While it’s tempting to only consider executives with experience in your industry or business sector, that may not be the best approach. InterimExecs RED Team members, for example, tend to have a breadth of experience across specialties, industries, and business sectors. We believe that cross-pollination gives them a unique ability to use knowledge gained in one sector to find creative solutions to the challenges in another.

4) Negotiate the deal

Once you have chosen the right interim candidate, it’s time to negotiate the deal. Most likely, the interim will expect a cash-based fee for services rendered. If the assignment involves significant potential for upside to the company – either actions in saving or fixing assets, or creating new value – the interim executive may request a performance-based additional fee. In cases where the interim executive believes their efforts will result in orders of magnitude or creation of new value, they may request or require some form of equity, warrant, or other non-cash compensation.

In addition, many interims will be commuting to their temporary assignment. They will need a hotel, car, and meal reimbursement in addition to the management fee.

5) Assignment Kickoff

In some cases, interim executives begin by committing to an initial, short-term assessment or discovery project. That could take up to a month as the interim makes a frank assessment of the company and its current state and sets out a go-forward plan.

This initial assessment limits the risk the organization takes in contracting with the interim executive, and also allows the interim an opportunity to determine if the project represents a best use of her skills and abilities. If both sides agree, the interim then comes on board to implement the go-forward plan.

Whether work begins with an assessment or an open-ended agreement, it will commence on contract signing and fulfillment of any other upfront terms. Because interims believe in the “go anywhere, anytime” mantra, work can commence within days – far faster than any standard permanent hiring process.

Interims on the Job

Since the stakes are always high, Interims come prepared to get started by quickly assessing the health of major functions of the company, working cooperatively with others at all levels of the company to understand the full reality of the situation and developing actions plans designed to deliver the highest value in the shortest amount of time.

As the old adage states, “Execution eats strategy for lunch.” This is particularly true for interims.

The needs of a typical organization can be broken down into four major areas, each of which interims approach from the perspective of “Execution.” The following diagram illustrates the four execution disciplines Interims practice to assess needs and take action.

1) Strategize. While execution trumps strategy in the abstract, excellence in execution starts with sound strategy. A well-thought-out strategy lays out the vision for the project and the company.

2) Optimize. This step focuses on driving efficiency and reducing below-the-line expenses to increase bottom-line performance. This can take many forms but generally involves eliminating redundancy and inefficiency through process assessment and innovation.

3) Maximize. This step is all about maximizing the bottom line by scaling up to drive revenue growth.

4) Organize. This involves properly aligning a company’s people, assets, and processes to meet the strategy and goals outlined in the previous steps.