So you want to be an Interim Executive?

? Who makes a great Interim Executive?

? How do you find an Interim Exec role?

? What's the difference between Interim Exec, Fractional Executive, Contract and Consultant roles?

A. Meet Ryan Lewis, Executive Interim Management

These and many other questions were asked and answered recently by Ryan Lewis, a longstanding expert in facilitating Interim Executive engagements as Executive Director of Executive Interim Management.

Ryan shared some gold with the 'Product You' Accountability Community, whose members are interested in exploring new and better ways to work.

Among his 'to dos' and 'not-to-dos' Ryan Lewis shared some sage advice for success:

1. Work on solving the problem/s you've been engaged to deliver

- your assignment is likely to be laid out as 4-5 key deliverables

- these are generally big, chunky issues the organisation is currently unable to solve (for various reasons), so needs an interim expert to enact the change

2. Be cautious about extending your own scope beyond the 5-point remit.

Many people see opportunities for continuous improvement. Because as an interim, you're engaged, capable and love adding value, you may believe more deliverables provide greater return.

3. Protect the Problem

The danger in including deliverables outside your remit is in potentially drawing focus from the key problems the organisation really needs your help to solve.

4. Protect your Brand

Not solving the designated problem/s has the potential to damage your own brand as an interim.

You've been engaged for a defined time, to deliver defined outcomes, at a specified price. You need to protect your brand to ensure longevity in your own interim career. So, if you think adding something will work and still allow you to deliver, go ahead. If not, think twice.

5. Keep talking

'Engage, communicate and validate' are key activities you'll need to undertake to regularly confirm you're delivering both agreed and desired value. If you deem another piece of work equally, or more important, get shared agreement on this perception first, before embarking on the work.

B. How is an Interim Exec different from other work types?

Ryan shared how different work types align across the talent quadrant

Interim Execs

• are C-suite. engaged to assist an organisation in developing solutions for turnarounds, scaling, amalgamation, sales etc.
• Interims undertake the initial engagement and then handoff the results to others in the organisation to continue
• The end-to-end interim exec engagement is rapid, taking between 4-7 days. Interims need to be ready to go.
• Interim exec work may be one activity in a portfolio career

2. Permanent employees

• are engaged by an organisation, without a stated end date. Usually this is their only role, worked in accordance with an ongoing role description
• Search process can take 5-7 months from the time an organisation decides a new Exec is required

3. Consultants

• Usually engaged to suggest a solution to a particular problem/s, potentially in new and innovative ways. Consultants generally create the strategy or approach but don't usually undertake the execution of a suggested approach. A team of consultants may be engaged but independent consultants can also be engaged for specific expertise.
• Often engaged by the C-suite or Board, as an organisation, with domain experts pointed at the problem

4. Contractors

• Engaged for a defined period, to fulfil a specific service or complete tasks that are outsourced to them, often in a way determined by the client. Within a contract role, you may extend the scope of the initial engagement as more becomes known about organisational challenges.
• Appointed individually via a job posting or referral. Agreement can usually be terminated with 2 weeks' notice.

C. Diversity in Interim Engagements

For Ryan and EIM, diversity is very important. 55% of all appointments are female.

Cognitive diversity is imperative for Ryan. He summarised his role as:

"Convincing clients that the apples I'm talking about are the same as the pears they're talking about'

D. Some more dos and don'ts

? Embark on an interim career if you're interested in helping solve big challenges, in a defined period of time

? The interim market is growing but not as mature in Australia as in other countries ie Germany has 600 dedicated interim organisations, Australia has 4.

Interim roles usually seek a narrow type of problem and require a particular skillset. This means you're not going to be contacted regularly and may wish to become known to more than one Interim Exec firm. You'll be contacted when an engagement seems 'right' for you

? Your response to an interim brief needs to be clear and specific, think of it as an actionable cover letter

? If you're responding to an Interim Exec brief, make it simple for whomever is assessing it. Help them connect the dots and find the synergies between your experience and expertise and that of the problem. Your objective is to sell the synergy of what you're doing

? Don't wear a dinner suit to an interview (Ryan's entry into the corporate world, as a country lad)

As many of you know, for the past 3 years, I've been running a 'Product You' Accountability Community for people:

?? looking for their next role

?? creating a portfolio career

?? developing a new offer, product or business

As well as providing a supportive environment for people working on 'next', the Accountability Community is challenged to learn and extend their awareness of ways of working through experts like Ryan.

If the 'Product You' Accountability Community sounds like something that could help you, get in touch.

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Hello, I'm Penelope.

I help people craft a live you love, where you can flourish with more fun and freedom