Back in the day, companies hired people full-time, in offices on permanent contracts. There weren’t many models out there – the companies gained the talent and fixed costs, and the people loved the permanency of being employed or wished they had a little more flexibility.
Then the one-sized model stopped working as well (partly due to the pandemic and partly the changing demographics and needs in the workplace) and the power shifted toward the person with the skills to do a role successfully, who also wants work and life to work in harmony.
That means people expecting choice when it comes to work contracts – part-time, fixed, short-term, flexible in the hours worked – and employers being open to different ways to get the work done or a problem solved, understanding it isn’t necessary to simply add another fixed cost.
Increasingly organisations are pursuing interim managers, where experienced experts come into a business for a specific purpose and for an agreed period to deliver quality results fast and effectively. This is where the superpower of a proven interim comes in.
As an interim marketer for hire, I have learnt lots about the benefits of interim support, particularly from employers. Here are some of the benefits (or should I say superpowers) which senior leaders told me make a difference to them:
The five superpowers
1. A fresh approach – interims are experienced and seasoned in their specialism, bringing super-charged knowledge of many sectors and what works (and what doesn’t) in different organisations – large or small, start up and established. They bring fresh ideas on how to solve problems or grasp opportunities, and are laser focused on delivering results in a short amount of time
2. Quick contribution – they contribute quickly and honestly, helping leaders understand what is best and how to affect change, without being a threat to the incumbent management team. They are hired to do a job, get results fast and help the company move on, for example sort out a team issue, generate leads, develop new products and services, or build an exciting brand
3. External perspective – interims are used to moving from business to business, sector to sector, picking up valuable experiences they use to benefit others. It fosters proactive decision making and leads to innovation and ideas that can positively influence you and your team
4. Speed to hire – interims are hired in days or at most, in weeks, not the months it takes companies to hire permanent staff into key positions. There is a market out there of proven interim experts, who choose this lifestyle, with the track record and references that also make this a low-risk choice for the hiring business
5. Value for money – although day rates can be high, interims only charge for the time they work and do not get paid the bonuses and benefits that companies offer to permanent employees (these costs can be another 30/40% on top of base pay!). It can be an incredibly cost-effective way of resourcing a particular project or initiative, without having to commit longer term, giving flexibility to bring in the skills only when you need them
If you are a CEO, a leader or HRD who is going through any of the following or similar situations, it could be worth considering an interim marketing expert to help you super-charge your performance fast:
Some of the situations
Crisis – the reputation of the business is suffering publicly, and the implications are worrying for the future
Lack of growth – you feel your business should be growing, and you need to get to the bottom of this and turn it around. Your competition seems to be cleaning up the available business and you want to challenge this
Low profile – your business deserves to be better known in its sector and you need help to figure out how to do that in a relevant and powerful way
Team – your team lacks direction or the support it needs to do its very best. You need someone who can support, mentor, and map out a direction that the team can get behind and shine
Resource gap – for a period, you don’t have the marketing resources you need to market your organisation and you need to fill the gap, without compromising on quality. You need to make progress, fast
I’d love to hear from you if you have any experience of the superpowers you’ve gained from appointing an interim that you want to share. Did I leave anything out? Or
you want to have a chat about the possibilities and find out more?
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