Turnaround Interims – Specialist Interim Management

By Author: green park
Total Articles: 10
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Recent figures show that a just over 4000 businesses in England and Wales went into insolvency in July, August and September of 2008, up 40% on the third quarter of 2007 and 20% on the second quarter of 2008. Unfortunately, it appears that trend has continued into 2009, with little sign of relief in the immediate future. With a desperately tough economy, companies are looking to initiate turnaround at organisational, functional and team level.

The simple fact is that not all of them are going to be successful. There are any number of high profile oganisations that have found the going too tough, and those headline examples are just the tip of the iceberg. So what can be done to reverse the slide and increase the likelihood of sustainable recovery?

It is unlikely that the answer will be found within existing teams and structures. Continuing on as normal seems to be a recipe for disaster, but sweeping changes might also kill off organisational intelligence, negatively impact culture, and compromise the brand in the eyes of consumers and potential employees. For a large number of companies looking to initiate recovery, ...
... importing specialist skills on an interim basis is an attractive and cost-effective option.

There’s currently an increased demand in interim management, not only at board level, but also across the range of operational and back office functions functions. As we all know, turnaround very often results in headcount reductions and restructuring, meaning the best HR interims with that kind of experience are in demand.

So what does an HR interim with a specialist focus on turnaround bring to the table?

1. Focus: HR Directors (and their teams) have enough in their day-to-day jobs to keep them busy! A specialist interim takes accountability for turnaround from an HR perspective, taking the burden off teams that are already often stretched – especially in the current climate.

2. Impartiality & objectivity: Difficult times are both professionally and emotionally challenging, and very tough decisions need to be made. Having a fresh pair of eyes is an excellent way to ensure challenges are seen from the right perspective.

3. Experience & results: Nothing beats experience. Turnaround situations are incredibly challenging, and the stakes are high. There are numerous pitfalls and someone who’s done it before is far better placed to find a way through the fog.

In the UK, there is only a very small group of senior HR turnaround professionals with the experience and track record to make a difference. The beauty of the genuine turnaround interim manager is that they are easy to judge on their successes or failures, because their assignments are so tightly focused and closely linked to the results they achieve. But the best aren’t easy to find - these individuals are always in demand, since there are always companies struggling, regardless of the state of the market.

So what can you expect from an elite interim turnaround specialist? Well, you can rest assured that these executive search professionals will be perfectly comfortable delivering on brave decisions: turnaround in HR parlance is often about restructuring, and restructuring almost certainly involves redundancies during a downturn. But HR turnaround interims shouldn’t just be seen as hatchet wielders – there are a range of positive initiatives for which they take accountability (generally at less than half the expense of a management consultancy).

For more information about Interim management, Executive Search and Executive Recruitment, please visit www.green-park.co.uk.

About the Author :- Raj Tulsiani, CEO - Green Park ; Interim Management and Executive Search, Executive Interim Management and Executive Recruitment.