Looking for an interim CEO?

KOLKATA: There’s a new breed of managers prowling on the Indian corporate landscape. They work for a short term, often for just a few months, but in strategic roles to head a function or ensure smooth integration of businesses.

We are not talking about ‘temping’; this is a newer phenomenon, termed as ‘interim management’ in HR parlance. The numbers are not large- some 800 to 1,000 of them are estimated to be dotting the corporate scene. Currently working as CEOs, COOs and functional heads they fill up temporary vacancies or to implement specific duties.

“This breed of specialised managers is not rampant but is now growing at more than 20% annually,” Ajit Isaac, MD, Adecco India, a global staffing firm, told ET.

Interim managers are called in to provide strategic inputs and facilitate out-of-box thinking. “They are normally pressed into action during a major organisational change due to lack of growth, acquisitions, non availability of suitable candidates in senior positions,” Achal Khanna, country manager, Kelly Services India said. Typically, an interim manager’s fee could range between Rs 75,000 to Rs 5 lakh a month. “In addition, they get access to company assets and also receive an assignment completion bonus,” Khanna added. “Interim managers can be hired at a cost lower than consultants,” Soumen Basu, executive chairman, Manpower India said.

Though new gen companies in IT, pharma, and other R&D led businesses are increasingly deploying such managers, they are also being picked up by companies in oil & gas and power sector. The practice of hiring interim managers is widely prevalent in the US and the UK. Ipsos MORI which conducted the first ever national survey for the Interim Management Association, UK, estimated the business at £560m a year in Britain. The survey revealed that one third of interim appointments now take place in the public sector.

In India, the trend is different. The public sector has turned out to be a major provider of talent. Senior functional heads and CEO/COO managers who have retired are being used by companies in oil & gas and power sector as interim managers.

“They come with a wealth of skill and experience and have in the past handled critical situations successfully. Hence they are in demand,” Mohnish Sinha, head (HR Practice), PwC said.

But why would such a high-skill person work in such temporary positions? “These people prefer flexible timings and a differentiation in routine,” said Deep Mukherjee, VP, TeamLease, a temp staffing company. Adecco India itself has an interim manager responsible to implement a new ERP system.

The Essar Group benefited from the services of an HR head till they found a replacement. The Bharti group too is also believed to have utilised a dynamic pool of COO and CEO-level resources picked up from across various sectors to handle integration at a time when the group was on an acquisition spree.