Are you considering interim management?


A career as an Interim Manager can be one of the most exciting, challenging, varied and rewarding there is. It has the potential to offer a real challenge, excellent financial rewards, greater control, less ‘politics’, greater variety, an opportunity to focus on what you are really good at and a better work/life balance.

However, it is not for everyone. There are some very real potential downsides including uncertainty, risk, the need to market and sell yourself (for which many do not believe they have the skills or motivation), time away from home, isolation and a loss of corporate perks.

You will be running your own business as well as delivering services to clients. This means that, in order for your interim management career to remain viable, you will need to address all the areas typical of any business including finance, sales and marketing, research & development and professional development.

Senior executives consider interim management for many reasons. The most common we hear, to name but a few, are:

  • Dissatisfaction with the ‘corporate’ life, especially politics
  • A desire to improve work life balance
  • They wish to regain control over their working life
  • They want to focus on what they are good at and enjoy
  • They have been made redundant and are having difficulty finding a permanent role
  • They have taken early retirement but don’t want to retire
  • They have just sold their business and are looking for a new venture

The reasons usually fall into one of two categories:

  • Things we want to get away from i.e. things we don’t like about our current working lives
  • Things we would like to see more of in our working lives moving forward

Before you begin your research, you may find it valuable to list all the elements of your working life moving forward that you would like to avoid as far as possible and all the elements you would ideally like to see more of. For those you want to avoid, what would you like to see in their place?

The above will give you a description of your ‘perfect’ working life. When you are finding out more about interim management, see how close it gets to your ideal. There may be areas where you need to compromise. Armed with an understanding of the likely challenges you may face, you will be in a much better position to plan your route forward.

Next resource: Upsides and downsides of interim management