InterimExecs has joined the WIL Group (Worldwide Interim Leadership), a strategic move to leverage a global network of expertise. This collaboration marks a significant step in expanding InterimExecs’ reach and service offerings, bringing greater international opportunities to U.S.-based clients and executives.
“We were intrigued to learn about a global organization of interim management firms, and now we can expand our service offerings and collaborate on a global scale,” said Robert Jordan, CEO of InterimExecs.
InterimExecs’ WIL Group partnership comes at a time when the U.S. interim management market is poised for significant growth. As interim and fractional leadership solutions become more widely adopted across industries, the ability to offer global resources will be a key differentiator.
“The U.S. is a strategic priority for the WIL Group and its future growth. The concept of interim management is growing and expanding exponentially in the U.S. and becoming a key business solution alongside management consultancy. For five years, we have looked for the right partner in the U.S. and we finally found it in InterimExecs, Olivia Wagner, Bob Jordan and team,” said Jason Atkinson, Director and Co-Founder Member, WIL Group. “We spent time together in London with Bob during the summer (2024) in order to build trust and ensure alignment with values and value proposition. We wholeheartedly welcome them to the WIL Group.”
Core values are the fundamental beliefs, principles, and ethical standards that guide a person’s actions and decisions. They define what is important and provide a sense of purpose and direction. Understanding our own core values and how they impact our decisions and how we interact with others is critically important to understanding how we approach our daily lives and why we make the choices we make.
In the workplace, that means understanding how we react to others, how we manage employees, and why workers who feel the organization’s policies and expectations run counter to their core values suffer “moral injury.”
InterimExecs CEO Robert Jordan invited his business coach, Brett Morris, to sit down for a chat to learn what a core value is, why they are non-negotiable, why our core values are unique to us, what happens when our core beliefs are in conflict with those of other people, and what happens when we believe someone has violated our core values.
Melissa Harris is a newspaperwoman-turned-marketing-exec who has perfected her elevator pitch and wants to help you perfect yours as well.
InterimExecs Chief Executive Officer Robert Jordan knows that the thousands of interim and fractional executives he has spoken with over the years need this. In fact, Jordan needed it himself. So he invited Harris, CEO of M. Harris & Co. to a Zoom chat during which she offered a Master Class on how executives can be far more effective in talking about themselves.
Here’s her 3-step approach to introducing yourself in a short, powerful, memorable way.
Paul Fioravanti is a veteran interim executive. He is a turnaround expert who has been in some 90 engagements across 40 industries — as a CEO, COO, CTO (Chief Transformation Officer, CRO (Chief Restructuring Officer), General Manager or President.
So he knows a thing or two about how to get things done.
In our most recent Master Class video, InterimExecs CEO Robert Jordan talks with Fioravanti about his turnaround process and, in particular, his experience turning around Avara Pharmaceuticals.
Avara is a private equity-backed Big Pharma rollup that posted a loss of $45,000 and faced an imminent cash crisis and looming insolvency before Fioravanti came in as interim Chief Executive Officer. Thirteen months later, the company was $32 million positive and had achieved financial stability.
Chief Technology Officers are most closely aligned with tech startups and software developers. But those are far from the only use cases for adding a chief technical officer to the C-suite.
The reality is that every company today is a technology company. At the very least, the company likely has a website, computerized customer contact data, and a SaaS software solution. Plus, as any conscientious business owner will tell you, there are those niggling worries that can keep them up at night — things like wondering whether the company is vulnerable to a cybersecurity attack that will release their customers’ private data to the universe.
Does that mean you need to hire a full-time Chief Technology Officer or Chief Information Officer? Not necessarily. But you definitely need someone who has the strategic insights and decision-making power to manage the rapidly evolving technology landscape. If you don’t yet need or can’t justify hiring a full-time CTO, a part-time or fractional CTO or CIO can oversee your tech needs at a far lower cost.
But, first, let’s look at the role of a CTO in technology management.
What is a Chief Technology Officer?
Both Chief Technology Officers and Chief Information Officers are senior executives responsible for overseeing an organization’s technology strategy. The difference? The CIO typically focuses on improving processes within the company day-to-day, while the CTO focuses on using technology to better serve customers through product development and improvement.
These chief technical officers are typically expected to:
Create a technology roadmap that aligns with overall business goals, ensuring that technological needs are met and that the digital transformation drives value.
Develop a business strategy for collecting, storing, and analyzing data to gain insights into your customers, operations, and market trends.
Hire, train, and lead the technology team.
Oversee technology initiatives to ensure they are completed on time, within budget, and to the desired quality standards.
Research technology trends and evaluate new technologies to identify opportunities for innovation that will give you a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
Identify and mitigate risks associated with technology, such as cybersecurity threats and system failures.
In short, tech execs are responsible for ensuring an organization’s technology infrastructure is effective, efficient, and aligned with its business needs.
How a Successful CTO Adds Value to Non-Tech Companies
Here are a few times when companies not squarely in the technology space nevertheless understand that adding CTO positions to the senior executive ranks:
Manufacturing: A Chief Technology Officer can help a manufacturing company optimize its production processes using automation and robotics, improve quality control with the latest technological advancements in analytics, and enhance supply chain management with technology solutions.
Healthcare: A strong IT department is critical to managing electronic medical records, protecting patients’ private healthcare data, and complying with complex regulatory requirements.
Retail: A CTO can help a retailer improve the customer experience through omnichannel commerce, online sales, and loyalty program information systems. They also are critical to cybersecurity and using information technology to optimize inventory management and supply chain operations.
If You’re Not Sure You’re Ready for a Full-Time CTO
While every business can benefit from an experienced technology leader, not all organizations have the need or ability to hire a full-time person who has the years of experience and the leadership skills needed for the CTO job. That’s when a part-time or fractional CTO or CIO can be the right answer.
An InterimExecs RED Team fractional CTO or CIO can be on-site in as little as 48 hours and, because the fractional executive is not an employee, there is no long-term commitment. Either side can terminate the contract with 30 days’ notice — without worrying about severance payments or other costs associated with letting go of a permanent employee.
Fractional executives have followed the same career path as full-time tech execs. The only difference? They choose to work less than full-time at a particular organization. Often they will serve in a chief technical role for several clients at the same time.
When a Fractional CTO Is the Right Answer
A few instances when contracting with an experienced executive on a short-term or part-time basis is the right answer for an organization:
When the Company Can’t Justify the Cost of a Full-Time CTO
Fractional CTOs and CIOs can be a cost-effective alternative, especially for smaller organizations or those with limited budgets. Because you are buying only a fraction of the executive’s time — a few hours a day or a few days a week —you can afford a rock star CTO. And, because the interim or fractional executive is not an employee, there is no need to pay for vacation days, sick leave, or health insurance.
For Short-Term Initiatives or Project Management
If you have a short-term project requiring specialized technical expertise, such as implementing a new ERP system or migrating to the cloud, an interim CTO can provide focused leadership for the duration of the project. And then, because the fractional CTO is not an employee, they will leave when the work is done — no severance, no golden parachute, no hard feelings.
When the Company Experiences a Temporary Overload
During periods of rapid growth or peak business activity, extra help is needed. That’s when a fractional CTO who will work part-time for as long as you need — or even an interim CTO who will work full-time over the short term — can help manage increased workloads and ensure the company’s technology infrastructure remains efficient and scalable.
When Specialized Knowledge is Needed
If you need expertise in a specific industry or geographic region, it’s easy to find an experienced fractional CTO with a proven track record of success in that niche.
Organizational Change or Restructuring
If your organization is undergoing a significant change, such as a merger, acquisition, or restructuring, a fractional CTO can provide critical stability and continuity during the transition process and then stay on to help integrate the tech stacks.
New Technology Implementation
An experienced fractional CTO can oversee the implementation process and ensure the organization is well-prepared for the changes.
Finding the Best Fit for Your Company
A fractional or part-time CTO can deliver on clearly defined objectives for significantly less than it would cost to employ a full-time executive.
If you’re considering hiring a fractional CTO, here are some of the benefits you should expect:
Efficient Internal Processes and Security
A fractional CTO in a technology leadership role will select the technologies that best serve the company’s business objectives and secure the company’s networks and systems.
Moving Tech Teams Forward
A company may have a dedicated team that works on their product. They may also dedicate another team for troubleshooting of that product, but they may not have the budget for a full-time executive to oversee the work of all stakeholders. A fractional CTO can step in to bridge this gap. They can set up roadmaps and take on decision-making while mentoring the IT team to handle more complex tasks.
Creating Strategic Partnerships
InterimExecs RED Team fractional CTOs have a long track record of success in their industries. They are respected and well-connected with suppliers, vendors, and other companies. Their connections can help businesses build relationships with potential vendors or partners. As such, a fractional CTO becomes a strategic partner of the company since they can provide additional value to the business in ways that extend beyond their technological acumen. Utilizing a CTO’s network can prove powerful for businesses that are looking to seriously transition into a digital environment and would appreciate valuable connections to do so.
Are You Ready for a Part-Time Chief Technology Officer?
Reach out to us for a confidential conversation about how an InterimExecs RED Team fractional or interim CTO or CIO can help your organization manage the challenges of the digital age.
So your Chief Financial Officer just announced plans to leave. If you’re lucky, it’s a planned retirement several months in the future, giving you the time and space you need to conduct a thorough search for exactly the right new CFO. The stock market will have time to digest the news, the finance department staff and leadership team will get comfortable with the idea of a pending transition, and the bankers will remain calm.
But, what if the CFO leaves unexpectedly? It happens. Perhaps the departing CFO is leaving for health reasons. Or has taken a new position. Or is simply burned out after guiding the company through a pandemic, inflation, global uncertainty, and political upheaval.
Whatever the reason, you’re in a bind. You need to act fast to keep everyone calm — investors, stockholders, bankers, employees, the financial watchdogs who oversee public companies.
“A world of no surprises.” That is the lofty goal of private equity investors Eli Boufis and Steve Thompson when they take on a new company. It involves open communication with the CEO – including reminders of how much money they can make if the acquisition succeeds – and a plan to build a better board of directors.
Building a better board of directors is a four-part process:
Much has been written about board governance best practices. Much less information is available to help you figure out how to fix a board that isn’t delivering peak performance.
InterimExecs CEO Robert Jordan interviewed two experienced private equity investors, Eli Boufis and Steve Thompson, to talk about how to build a better board of directors.
To start, they believe board composition should include independent directors — people who are employed neither by the company nor by the private equity fund — to ensure effective governance. But, they noted, there are six ways independent board members come up short on corporate governance.
Helping them improve on these six issues is the “low-hanging fruit” of improving board effectiveness, they say.
So you’ve decided to bring in an interim executive. Perhaps you need to temporarily fill a leadership role while you conduct a thorough search for a new permanent hire. Or maybe you need an experienced leader to spearhead a new initiative or helm the launch of a new product. Or maybe your company is in crisis and you need a turnaround expert to right the ship.
Whatever the reason you have chosen to bring on an interim executive, you are about to work with someone who works differently. That’s because interims are wired for action.
Here are 11 things to expect from an interim executive during their first 30 days on the job.
Maribeth Vander Weele once saved a client from a disastrous $250 million deal. The client was $90 million into the deal when intuition told him something was wrong and he hired her firm to do a fraud risk assessment. Ten days later, her firm had “put together enough red flags about that individual” that the client was able to withdraw from the deal without losing a dime. A year and half later, law enforcement investigated, shut down the company, and sent the leaders to prison, she says.
Wander Weele, whose company, The Vander Weele Group, now specializes in oversight of large-scale grant programs for government agencies, says that more people need to do “pre-diligence.” That is the deep dive into the background of the partners that will tell you whether they are people you want to do business with.
“People come to us when they have some intuition about a deal. Everything else looks good in the deal, but that intuition is kicking in. We deep dive the internet. We put together facts, dive through thousands of references to that individual or company, and put together a story of who this person really is,” she told Robert Jordan, CEO of InterimExecs in an interview.
In another case, her team investigated a company that grew from $27 million to $300 million very quickly — an unbelievable feat given the company’s limited infrastructure. Learning that requires looking beyond the usual data points of the financials.
First-year Change Agent members have access to the Interim Institute’s 4 hour audio program on the Fundamentals of Interim Management, and a one-hour strategy session to help jumpstart their interim career.
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