Picture the following job spec: no ties to the company, no office politics, as much holiday as you want and pay of up to£1,000 a day. On paper, this is what a career in interim management might look like. Sounds appealing, doesn’t it?
But what does life as an interim executive really entail?
Retail’s interim sector has boomed in recent years and, in these times of tough trading and cost pressures, these professionals are more in demand than ever before. Not only are they often required to troubleshoot, but they can also be important during times of headcount freezes, when the company cannot recruit a permanent members of staff.
Part of the appeal for many people is that interim work enables them to get well and truly involved in the operational side of the business – something that many permanent senior managers or directors can sometimes become removed from. Furthermore, because the role largely involves project work or problem solving, interims can make a tangible difference to an organisation, providing huge job satisfaction.
Another advantage of the job is the opportunity to tell it like it is. Nick West is a former Harrods distribution director turned interim manager who specialises in supply chain and trading. He says: “You’re totally apolitical and can be open about how you feel. You’re not thinking about how it will affect your career next month, next year, or the year after.”
Former Asda trading director Ian Spence, now an interim director, agrees. “I love the variety, independence and the ability to roll up somewhere new and not be constrained by corporate politics. When you’re free of that, it’s quite cathartic,” he says.
However, there are many misconceptions about interim work that people in the business should be aware of. For example, although there is the potential to take prolonged breaks between contracts, it’s not as easy as it sounds.
Tom Enright, who has been an interim manager for three years and has most recently worked at Liberty, says he was fortunate enough to be able to take a three-month trip to South Africa last year. But, when he returned, it was like starting his interim career all over again. “You’re only remembered for what you did and the last calls you made,” says Enright. “You have to really work at it – your network is very important and you have to have your fingers in lots of pies. Don’t sit at home thinking the phone will ring.”
Harder than it looks
Some might think the life of an interim manager sounds like a dream – it’s not. Successful ones treat their work as a business, not a series of short- to medium-term assignments. Spence believes that you have to make a rapid impact the minute you set foot in the door. “It’s harder than permanent work. What you would normally do in a year in a permanent role, you might have to do in three months as an interim,” he says.
Many people also assume wrongly that they can resign from their permanent role and walk straight into life as an interim. But, as Green Park director Steve Baggi says, you have to be prepared to spend time building networks and a reputation. Enright says he has, on occasion, spent up to six hours a day looking for a new job when the market has been quiet. And, despite it being a booming sector and there being less competition for interviews than you might find for most permanent roles, interim jobs do not fall into people’s laps. In fact, Spence recommends that people don’t start out in interim work unless – in a worst-case scenario – they can feasibly afford to support themselves on their savings for at least a year. “It’s not for the faint-hearted,” he warns.
The pay is generally good, though. George Heppenstall, interim account director at recruitment company Directorbank, says top-end professionals can earn as much as£2,500 a day. Contracts usually last about three months, but can be extended to as much as 18 months or more. However, warns Baggi, you need to bear in mind that this is a life of no benefits, no pension and no paid holiday.
All in all, the life of an interim is not as relaxing as many might assume. Once your interim career starts to snowball, it becomes difficult to justify taking long breaks and even more difficult to turn down offers of work. Heppenstall says: “When you sit down and talk many people through the risks, they’re automatically turned off the idea.”
Interim work also requires a certain type of person. Firstly, says Baggi, an interim professional needs to be adaptable. “The internal team will have a high level of expectation and you can be thrown into a business with 50 stores, or a FTSE 100 business,” he says.
You also have to be a self-starter, comfortable with taking a certain amount of risk and adept at picking up vital information immediately. “Stakeholder management is key. You’ll need to decide quickly who the main decision-makers are. Normally in a job, you have a relatively easy ride for the first couple of months, with inductions and so on. As an interim manager, you’ve got to be up to speed from the start,” adds Baggi. Enright says he has a list of 20 or so standard questions that he will ensure he knows the answer to within hours.
Above all, Heppenstall advises: “Go into it with your eyes open. There are no guarantees and you really have to have a wealth of experience on which to market yourself. This is one area in retail where a few grey hairs really do count.”
Providing you fit the bill, you’ll probably find – like many – that the advantages of interim work outweigh the disadvantages by miles. Furthermore, most people who work in interim management would never dream of signing on the dotted line of a permanent contract. As Enright concludes: “I would never go back to permanent work unless something forced me to. It would feel like an arranged marriage.”
Interim management:the pros and cons
PROS
> The flexibility of being your own boss
> The stimulating challenge of constant exposure to new people, issues and solutions
> Not wearing someone else’s corporate identity
> Not being involved in office politics – you have no personal vested interest to protect
> Being able to concentrate on what you do best
CONS
> Family finances can be strained. A steady flow of assignments is not guaranteed and gaps between assignments when you have no income can be lengthy
> As an interim, you get no paid benefits. You’re responsible for your holiday pay, sick pay, pension, health insurance, etc. So, if you take a holiday, not only do you have to pay the cost of the holiday, but you also miss out on earnings while you are away
> You may have periods spent living out of a suitcase – assignments may not be on your doorstep or an easy commute
> If you’re working away, you may be unable to give quality time to your home life and if you’re between assignments and therefore permanently at home for a period, you may prove an unwelcome disruption to the daily routine
> You may incur personal financial liability if you get things wrong on an assignment and the client takes action to recover damages from you. There are, however, ways of mitigating this risk
Source: Institute of Interim Management
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