“Interim management is the temporary provision of management resources and skills. Interim management can be seen as the short-term assignment of a proven heavyweight interim executive manager to manage a period of transition, crisis or change within an organization. In this situation, a permanent role may be unnecessary or impossible to find on short notice. Additionally, there may be nobody internally who is suitable for, or available to take up, the position in question.”

The book Leadership on Demand, adds that interim management, while often utilized at the executive level, can also be successfully applied at the group-level position as well.

In essence, interim management is the utilization of an experienced manager to temporarily fill a gap in an organization.

The most common need for interim management occurs when an executive leaves a position for whatever reason, and the firm seeks an immediate replacement, while they search for an ideal permanent replacement.

However, an interim manager often does more than keep the seat warm. A good interim manager will add tremendous value to the organization by applying their experience and skill set to move the organization closer to achieving their goals.

Every large organization should have conversations with an interim management company like OneAccord (which specializes in marketing and sales interim management) or Tatum (which focuses on finance), so that they can tap the vast pool of experience and skills that OneAccord can provide when the need inevitably arises.

Interview with Paul Travis.

How does interim management work?

Well you know your question is so simple yet it’s indicative of much larger things that are going on. There is so much change in today’s business world. It’s very different from how things used to be thirty years or forty years ago. For example, when someone was talking about getting a new car he/she was referring to purchase – where money might have been owed but the ownership was still under the person’s name. Now in the last couple of decades, the institution of car leasing came about and therefore now you have the flexibility. Well I used this as an example because of the mechanism of employment is starting to change. Interim management is a manner or is a means of bringing in talents to accomplish specific objectives and solve specific challenges within companies. But its more like a rental, more like a lease, than it is acquiring a new asset or bringing on somebody who is going to be a long term employee. Instead of spending 3 to 12 months searching for the perfect candidate and putting them through the recruiting process, a hiring company brings in an interim manager very quickly, usually weeks instead of months and that person’s assignment is limited by definition so the interim manager seeks to complete the mission. This is really in contrast to the dynamic where a W2 executive might come aboard and then start to look for things within the organization that naturally align with what they are doing and so they sort of justify their position. In fact those individuals typically expand their division and they want to make themselves important within the company. They hire staff and all the new responsibilities that they have created, then go about filling those positions. But it’s a different thing than interim management.

What would you say are the main benefits of a company using intern management?

Well as I was just alluding to, the speed of being able to bring on talent and to solve problems is a great one. There’s also the philosophical issue of executing real work rather than keeping a chair warm. And then there’s other benefits both tangible and intangible that are pointed out in the book Leadership on Demand. For example objectivity: bringing in somebody who who can assess challenges with a much broader scope in mind. There are times to market, bringing somebody in who can focus and get new products out, being responsive to competitive changes as opposed to the way things have always been done. There’s also the ability to change a corporate focus, by bringing somebody new in, for example an interim CMO marking officer might focus on how to get a product positioned. And then after 6 months they might bring in another CMO who really focuses on going to market. So it’s no longer about positioning. There are other great benefits, for example compliance with publicly held companies. Changing out a W2 vice president is considered by the SEC is a material event and has to be disclosed. Where as interim manager is not.

Great, what size companies would you say typically use interim management?

Well since interim management is a mindset and paradigm change rather than a specific answer to a given problem. It’s useful by companies of all sizes. There are chapters in Leadership on Demand dedicated to the specific benefits in case studies for early stage companies. There’s another chapter which covers interim management in large establishment companies.

And what differentiates what you do for a company compared to a consulting company?

That’s a great question, in particular because one of my non-profit roles is as president of the Pacific Northwest chapter of the Institution of management consultants. I am very well versed in consulting as well as in interim management. In general, consultants operate externally to the organization as much as they’re customers are within the organization and they go in to understand what the challenges are. At the end of the day they have no real authority to see that their recommendations are implemented. They don’t have hiring and firing authority. I really can’t tell you how many CEO’s I’ve spoken with over the past decade who have brought in consultants whom write a great report on the solution to a problem. Then I’ve seen someone turn away from their desk and pull out a great leather binder with a report on it and they tell me they had consultants come in and assess their problems, but nobody actually spearheaded the implementation of that solution or it was given over to employees to implement from an internal mindset. Einstein said, it was hard to solve problems from the same manner of thinking that they were created. So interim executives go inside the organization and have a reporting authority, the change happens because they drive it. And to be honest, if they stay too long after three, six, nine, twelve sometimes eighteen months they end up facing the risk of becoming part of the problem. They lose their objectivity.

What would you say are the biggest challenges companies face when trying to grow revenues?

This is a great way for me to use the classic consultant response which is: it depends. For large companies their revenue challenges tend to be centered around their own success and all of their momentum they have gained. The process of becoming a large company has created systems, that processes, procedures, customer channels and product lines. So if they see the opportunity it’s really like changing the direction of a battle ship. They are very slow to take advantage of new revenue opportunities. My experience personally is more in smaller-mid markets companies where the challenges are at the other end of spectrum and tend to be scale. So they just don’t have the talent to pull off big ideas or sometimes they don’t have enough mind share with dealers to be able to launch new programs. Or maybe they are trying to do so many different things with limited resources that a better outcome could be obtained by focusing on one major initiative and hitting a home run.

And how does interim management help companies grow the revenues?

Well you know every situation is different but in a prescriptive manner I would say that the president or CEO should ask those direct questions to the interim management candidate. Does this person knows what they are doing and will the interim management executive execute? Because that is the whole point of this. On that topic there is something I would caution against because it has happened to me numerous times and that is, don’t ask for a references until you’re ready to make a buying decision. As I’m with clients day after day, I think about it from their perspective. After you have a problem solved would you want a call on a weekly basis to discuss how something has gone. No you want to read a reference letter or a case study and only check in with them if you’re ready to buy. And you just need somebody who can serve as a human validation point.

How can companies that are interested in interim management find you?

They find me on the web or though a recommendation from one of my clients. Almost everywhere these days there is a lot of information known whether you’re buying a car or if your looking up a new appliance or your looking at a new resource for your company. There is a lot you can find out, for example my direct URL is www.meetpaul.us and you can read my bio and I have a blog that is full of the way I think about marketing. It also highlights success stories and also failures and other things which could have been done differently. That blog is at www.marketing-2020.com. And then we can have a conversation about what their specifics are. If I’m the right person, then I’ll structure or suggest a structure that we can go with to the next value of evaluation and if I’m not the right person then iIll bring in a partner of a another company where it would be a better fit for them. So I’m always looking for a way to win.

Paul what blogs and books are you reading at the moment in the marketing field?

I have to say that I have a lot of books on my bookshelf and I’m much more successful when reading things online than carrying books around with me. As I’m focused on bringing social media into the mainstream. I like to watch sites like www.mashable.com and I also like Seth Godin’s work and a lot of forward thinkers on twitter, like Guy Kawasaki.

Great! Thank you Paul for joining us today, how can companies find you or get in touch with you?

If they haven’t remembered the websites that I mentioned before like www.meetpaul.us and www.marketing-2020.com. The great thing these days is that every search engine that I know of of will find me if you type in my name, Paul Travis and marketing. I would be happy to chat with them to see if I’m the right person or where there’s a service organization that I can point them to. You always have to chat with somebody.

The purpose of this phrase is to encourage the transference of ideals and the underlying reason(s) for the operation of an organization.

The truth is that a lot of people in business try to fly high with a vision without executing the necessary tasks needed to succeed. Understanding and implementing the meaning of this phrase creates a balance of a company vision (operating with ideals or values in mind) and pragmatism (performing the necessary revenue or business building tasks). The result of applying this balance is that an organization can continue to operate for the same purpose over time (allowing for smooth generational transference) while executing the tasks necessary to succeed. This balance is the secret to sustainability in the workplace. That is, sustainability of the product quality, and the sustainability of the company or organization’s purpose over the long term.

How does this combine and build upon ideas from your previously published works?

The “Big Idea Series” was published to the OneAccord website and can be found under my biography. The series discusses the idea of the culmination of vision, pragmatism, and leadership into teamwork. It is discussed in a case-by-case basis, for companies such as Pepsi, BMW, and WalMart. Pragmatism of Vision to Transform Culture takes it one step further by making the connection to Interim Management.

How exactly does this idea align with what we do and how we do it at OneAccord?

This can be applied to the way you create a road map of success for your clients. Our underlying vision at OneAccord is to provide absolute truth and absolute compassion through the work that we do. You may be asked to create an updated or new vision casting an ideal meaning for the long-run. When doing this, you must also exhibit pragmatism, a realistic approach to the big tasks and small tasks your client must complete or deal with on a regular basis.

How does this idea align with Interim Revenue Executives helping various companies?

In order to drive revenue, there must be synchronization between an external and internal value proposition. More importantly than providing an immediate boost in revenue, as Interim Executives, we must provide sustainability to our client. Revenue creation is the result of business functions and the corresponding value proposition. By making the necessary functional and value adjustments, you are transforming the culture and moving your client into a promising position for sustainable revenue creation. We should strive for sustainability.

How do you see interim managers being able to refer to this notion in daily interim efforts?

You cannot just go in with a black box (solution to everything) to company XYZ and expect everything an immediate fix. We must constantly keep the whole business in mind. Understanding what needs to be cleared away, to embrace a vision and transform a company in a way that will be sustainable in the future. We must remain pragmatic and evaluate what it will take for this transformation to occur and sustain itself when the engagement ends. We have to leave our clients on stable footing and in the clear.

What experiences did you draw upon in developing this message?

I can draw upon my experience in branding, a process that begins with ideas. Working with companies such as Pepsi and Intel, I was exposed to brands with consistent performance levels, and a well-articulated vision. On the other hand, there were situations when we couldn’t find a consistent vision that could be applied to the work done by a client. It was much more difficult to create a successful campaign. When consistency in vision is developed, the core message is sustainable and can be transferred from generation to generation. For example, Intel is in an industry where the product offering is constantly changing. They have built the brand in a way that encompasses more than the product, so as the products change, the feeling customers have (hopefully a positive one) towards Intel does not.

We are constantly communicating the OneAccord message. Our cultural values are ideal to have in the workplace as well as outside the workplace in our daily lives. Absolute Truth and Absolute Compassion are elements of OneAccord that will always remain. We must expect functional change to occur (such as the use of new social media networks and customer relationship management platforms) but the underlying principals of why we do what we do won’t change

Aside from our cultural values, all else is peripheral, but since we must be functional from day-to-day, there must be a balance. We have to balance our vision and pragmatism (function) to strengthen and sustain the OneAccord message.

Peter Klinge Jr. is a strategic marketing and communications executive with more than 20 years experience with many of the top advertising/marketing services agencies, driving business success for major global brands and early stage companies, in technology and consumer categories.

peter.klinge@oneaccordpartners.com
Tel: 801.755.6820

Photo by Gisela Giardino

My background has been many years working for blue ribbon technology companies- hardware, software, internet technologies. The value I bring to organizations is helping the company see new markets that they haven’t seen before and reach new customers that they haven’t been able to reach before, using research methods, data analysis and market analysis. Also, finding the drivers in a market, I’m able to help them find opportunities that they may not have uncovered before and rally the teams to help the teams really reach these new opportunities.

Sheri Osborn is an interim management executive at OneAccord and a recognized leader in bringing emerging products and services to market and reviving waning products. Most recently she is focused on leading the industry in pushing Social Media and Web 2.0 technology to its limit delivering strategically impactful web experiences for organizations. These web experiences not only increase revenues and market position for enterprises but also transfer the brand value to end users and provide user perspective to the organization.

The metrics that I find to be most important are those that show ‘incremental’ gains (specifically net revenue and net profit) with an interim manager in place as compared with what would have resulted without him or her in the role. This requires having a clear understanding of the trends prior to the interim manager filling the position verses the results they achieve after they implement their plans.

Scott Philips, Principal, OneAccord
scott.philips@oneaccordpartners.com
(503) 913-2705

Effectiveness is a subjective word – First we must define what Effectiveness means and more importantly what does it mean to those have a stake in the interim manager?

Peter Drucker would say that, “Effectiveness is doing the Right Things.” Below is a list of some of the “Right Things” (in my opinion) that could and should be going on in a business transformation engagement. In every case a baseline measurement could be taken to determine the degree of current compliance to a stated requirement. If no requirements are in place then the interim manager along with the stakeholders would determine which are the “Right Things” to be done within the scope of the engagement. Many of the things listed below would be new for the engaging company and therefore any movement – even the establishment of these right things would most likely become a measure of the Effectiveness of an interim manager.

President

• Strategic plan = do we have a plan and can we execute on it?
• Top line growth = revenue acceleration, how much, by when?
• Bottom line growth = more profit
• Cost control = cutting out the fat, saving time and money
• Organizational alignment – right people right place – right org scheme for sales acceleration
• Cultural improvement based on “Best place to work criteria”
• Leadership training and departmental accountability to goals
• Formal coaching program w/SMART goals and measurements

VP Sales & Marketing

• Spreading the customer base beyond 80/20
• Share of market in key product categories
• Churning deadwood clients
• Targeting and adding new value-added clients/sectors
• Growing existing clients via increase volume/breadth of purchases
• Increasing meaningful touches with A & B accounts
• Automation of touch management – who and how many
• Dollars per sale
• Number of sales
• Profitability
• % of product mix sold to customers
• Close ratio on presentations
• Flash sheet development for daily sales inspection
• Pipeline management re: forecast and actual w/% est close
• Sales training

VP Finance

• Reducing bad debt
• Churning dead-wood accounts
• Reducing average date of accounts receivable
• Reducing cost of sales & marketing
• Cash flow management

Operations

• Maximizing inventory turns
• Reducing inventory
• Moving to JIT and cross docking strategies
• Leaning of the key processes in the organization
• Quality team development and process improvement across the entire organization
• Control of RGA’s tracking
• Error cause removal and charting
• Shipping maximizing as decreasing % of budget

Purchasing

• Maximizing vendor relations and driving down costs
• Partner programs and buying concessions
• Inventory management & stocking programs on key items
• Managing down inventory turns
• Applying in-house quality standards to upstream vendors
• Surveying the emerging market for new products/ programs / partners

Customer service

• Customer service satisfaction baseline and assessment
• Outbound customer service calls
• One touch solution program (implies authority to act)

Eric Fry, Principal
OneAccord
eric.fry@oneaccordpartners.com

2. What metrics are the most important indicator of success?

Here I am looking at a bucket of things, all which can be measured, which is the essence of a metric. The relative importance again is in the hands of the stakeholders.

• Viability of the market = is it in growth, mature, decline, crash
• Unique selling proposition USP – does the customer have a niche?
• Sales volume
• Margin
• Profit
• Cost of sales
• Customer satisfaction rating
• Pipeline
• Quality of product or service
• Brand recognition

Can you quantify the ROI of a past engagement?

Yes – in a hard and soft way.

Hard = The actual lift in sales and profit gained because of the interim manager. This is typically measured beginning at month 7 and forward through the life of the engagement.

• Pipeline $ + or –
• Close ratio improvement
• Increased $ per sale
• Increased breadth of product sold
• Increased margin
• Increased number of customer partner programs of various nature (All vital sales numbers and metrics)

Soft =

• Customer satisfaction rating which will gain more business but cannot be measured directly
• Brand awareness greater or lesser
• USP establishment
• Marketing campaigns
• Touch management programs

Eric Fry, Principal
OneAccord
eric.fry@oneaccordpartners.com

Photo by kozumel

Original post at The Executive Marketing Blog.

The challenge kept coming up in internal discussion: Our interim management value proposition is powerful but not self-evident, so how do we communicate the bigger story? Reflecting on my branding study with an anthropology professor at the Harvard Business School, I saw the opportunity to use a book rather than another brochure or white paper.

[What does one think of the contents of the bag one leaves a trade show with? Propaganda. In contrast, what do we think a library is filled with? Information.]

So a few of the principals at OneAccord LLC collaborated on a book aimed at Presidents, COO’s, CEO’s, and outside Directors of emerging and mid-market companies. Our nationwide firm positions itself as a ‘Catalyst for Revenue Growth’ providing interim executive talent in the sales and marketing realm.

Our goals with the book were to:
1.Communicate the OneAccord value proposition and return-on-investment

2.Highlight both successes and failures (more learning happens with the latter)

3.Demonstrate credibility and instill confidence in the reader

4.Be readable on a plane ride, i.e. not 392 pages

5.Drive interest in our services without being a blatant advertisement

6.Serve a bigger universe than just ourselves.While most of these points are straightforward, the latter deserves elaboration. We’re championing a new way of engaging seasoned expertise, rather than promoting ourselves as ‘the answer’. We may learn that other interim management practitioners start promoting L.O.D. as well (if anything, we’ve been too subtle about the book being ‘from OneAccord’).

Note that revenue is not mentioned as a goal. While we wanted to cover ongoing costs of selling the book, operating the corresponding website, etc., we knew that first-time authors rarely made enough to ‘pay’ for the hundreds and hundreds of hours that go into the creative process.

By all predetermined measures, the endeavor has been a success for myself, my co-authors, and OneAccord. In addition to hearing from longtime friends (professionals in their own right) saying ‘I finally understand what it is you do’, I’ve turned prospective clients into paying clients by letting them consume the philosophy themselves.

In the months since Leadership on Demand was published, principals with OneAccord have held multiple speaking engagements with professional associations or complementary firms, where the book has been sold in the back of the room or the wholesale price was included in the event cost. This is a win/win/win, being unique for most associations and attendees (and, of course, reinforcing our uniqueness in the marketplace).

Our referral sources who read the book are far more knowledgeable about recognizing a potential introduction, where one might have ‘slipped away’ beforehand. And because many people define ‘marketing’ very differently, the case studies in Leadership on Demand help referral sources to see how our practice focus differs from, say, a graphic design firm or a market research firm.
It’s working.

After mailing the book to the managing partner of Accenture in a Midwest market recently, one of our partners in the region received an appreciative reply with a meeting request to talk about a specific situation!

Paul Travis is an interim management executive with OneAccord and helps companies create a screaming value proposition and accelerate sales. He can be reached at paul.travis@oneaccordpartners.com. He also blogs at Marketing 2020.

The book, Leadership on Demand is available at http://leadership-on-demand.com/.

Objection: I have to hire someone after you leave which means we’ll be starting over from scratch.

Response: OneAccord provides a ‘front-end’ Revenue Review that is completed by 2 or 3 CEO-pedigreed Principals with proven revenue growth history. This work, coupled with their subsequent Rapid Revenue Plan will ensure the initiatives they implement produce results. And, OneAccord will not ‘leave’ an engagement until the transition to new, capable leadership is complete.

Scott Philips
Interim Management Executive, OneAccord
scott.philips@oneaccordpartners.com
(503) 913-2705

Objection: AS CEO I’m concerned about the impact of OA on our culture…

Response: OneAccord is there to deliver impact on transforming the revenue culture of a company for a finite period… typically 6 to 9 months. It’s important for the CEO and his management team to acknowledge that CHANGE is needed and to commit w OA leadership to defined roles to affect the necessary change.

Cultural change is always challenging. BUT the breakthrough is realizing there’s opportunity and seeing results.

The purpose of OneAccord’s principals is to help a company’s organization get through the change cycle of their business and transition the benefits of our experience, talent and skills to the company’s stakeholders. Our seasoning has brought us much hard earned wisdom in evaluating difficult changes and the effect on people’s lives in and out of the business. We strive to bring that perspective to the relationships and work we create with our client companies.

Peter Klinge
Interim Management Executive, OneAccord
peter.klinge@oneaccordpartners.com
801.755.6820

Objection: We could never have an interim overseeing our overall game plan, because they’d leave with our entire customer list!

Response: As mentioned in Leadership on Demand (www.Leadership-On-Demand.com) which I co-authored with Charles Besondy, interims are professionals, just like your accountant and your lawyer. Just as you’d not expect them to keep your confidence among competitors, good interims provide that same discretion. An interim CMO or CRO is working at the strategy and process level, not on any particular account. In fact, you incur greater risk any time you face disgruntled/outgoing account executives who not only take their (electronic) black book but also muddy the water with their comments to the rest of the staff!

Paul Travis
Interim Management Executive, OneAccord
Paul.Travis@oneaccordpartners.com
www.60-Second-Marketing.com
Tel:  206.910.2222 | Skype: PaulTravis

Objection: It costs too much.

Response: It’s true – our work this is not inexpensive. But because our work is interim meaning short–term and the fact that we are focused on lasting trans-formation at the top and bottom lines, the returns we provide through our mutual effort during and after the engagement far out way the investment over time.

The advantage to you is a low risk controlled change that registers as sustained profits in a number of levels;
1. Leadership excellence
2. Process improvement
3. Sustained growth
4. Revenue acceleration & profits

The real advantage is the long-term growth and profit your company will gain due to our short-term engagement.

Objection: We’ve tried consultants before.

Response: Our real difference is we not only assess and develop a plan, but come align side, roll up our sleeves and work with you until sustainable change is owned by the leadership and employees across the company.

The advantage of this for you is; we are able to walk away and you receive the full benefit of lasting change.

Because the organization is 100% involved with the change process (top down) it (the company) now has the ability, through modeling, to produce ongoing needed change while continuing to grow and drive profit

Objection: Our company is different.

Response: We draw on our 40 plus stable of tenured leadership and C-level principals. Our first goal is to match your culture and needs to those of our OneAccord principals. This ensures the very best experience, needed tools and cultural fit for your engagement.

The advantage to this means we mesh quickly to your culture and business needs which allows us to move to solutions much quicker.

The real benefit of this is of course savings of time and money – at the very front end – which is exactly why we make sure the culture, experience and engagement fit is spot on.

Objection: I don’t have the leadership in place to support this.

Response: We believe people are your most valuable resource. We are always surprised at the talent we find inside the individuals on staff. One of our best values is to help you identify and grow.

Allowing the right people to rise as leaders sends a clear message through the organization – new energy is released, new ideas are born and leadership transformation begins.

To have a united, focused and energized leadership team takes the pressure off you! You in many ways will be freed to do strategic, visionary and key guidance activities.

Objection: These kind of initiatives never last.

Response: Our overall transformation goal (or specific project goal) is to build and install processes which have identified owners who carry authority, responsibility and show the desire to maintain and even improve the processes over time.

Top-down / bottom-up Ownership is key to the success of all of our engagements. The advantage of sustained change is that you can now shift your attention as a key leader to future growth and profits and rely on “employee ownership” to sustain your processes.

Letting go of the daily tactical challenges fees you to tap and release the leadership value which is called for from your position.

Lasting change is about buying-in from top to bottom. Our processes provides buy-in from leaders to teams and individuals. – There is nothing more powerful than a volunteer army! Can you imagine the success we’d have if this was true in your company today?

Eric Fry
Interim Management Executive, OneAccord
eric.fry@oneaccordpartners.com

1. Significant revenue or marketing event is in jeopardy

A significant revenue event could include an upcoming valuation, fiscal year-end, or a pending merger. Bringing in an experienced interim executive can give the organization a “shot in the arm” to help meet revenue goals when they carry additional significance.

2. Totally new strategies or programs must be implemented or tested

According to David Altounian, CEO of iTaggit.com, “I’ve learned that interim leaders in marketing are particulary useful when we’re implementing a type of marketing strategy or tactic that is completely new to us”. When an organization is implementing a new marketing or sales strategy but lack expertise, hiring an interim manager with specific experience in this area can help successful implementation of the new strategy.

3. A gap exists in a key position

When a sales or marketing executive leaves your company, an interim executive can fill the position and maintain momentum until a permanent replacement is found. Since there can be great opportunity cost to leaving the position vacant for months, hiring an interim executive can be an ideal solution to fill the gap.

4. A specific skill set is needed, but not permanently

If you recognize that your organization needs a particular skill set, but the skill does not exist within the organization, an interim manager can be a great source for that skill.

5. Additional bandwidth needed, but not permanently

If your company faces a temporary need for additional bandwidth at the executive level, such as during a product launch or formulation of a new strategy, tapping an interim executive can be a successful method for temporarily increasing bandwidth.

6. Objectivity in a leadership position would be beneficial, especially during strategic planning

An objective and outside perspective can help an organization make decisions that are less affected by internal pressures, politics, and myopic thinking.

7. Hands-on coaching and training is required to elevate skill and process knowledge of existing staff

Bringing in an experienced interim executive can provide existing staff with beneficial executive coaching and training. Interim executives often have 20+ years of experience, and they can transfer their knowledge and advice to current executives.

Photo by barunpatro

My expertise is in sales and the business development side of the house. My gifts center around recognizing, pursuing, and closing revenue opportunities, and determining where revenue is sticking and unsticking that and assessing and building world class sales and business development teams. I help launch new products, I help launch new markets, and I help build declining or collapsed revenue growth into profitable growth for companies.
-Jonathan Gilliam, Interim Management Executive
jonathan.gilliam@oneaccordcorp.com

My practice specializes in generating revenue growth by improving the performance of the marketing function within B2B companies. This outcome is delivered by transforming how marketing contributes to company goals, aligning marketing and sales to the buyers’ journey, and creating a culture of accountability and clear, unfiltered communication.

-Chuck Besondy, Interim Management Executive
chuck.besondy@oneaccordpartners.com

The thing that I do is I help business leaders create screaming value propositions, compelling and differentiated for each of my clients customer segments. An example or illustration of this is a few years ago with a technology company where I drove a 1000% increase in revenues and eventually a 77 million dollar acquisition, all within one year. This came from a comprehensive series of initiatives from packaging, to pricing, to communications strategy, all the kind of things that come from 25 years work in technology, food and beverage, and manufacturing.

-Paul Travis, Interim Management Executive
paul.travis@oneaccordpartners.com

I help companies define and execute their sales strategy and structure and implement a sustainable sales execution framework. I have extensive experience in high tech and international expansion. As a OneAccord partner I can fill a position as the Interim VP of sales or business development for a company with $5-100 million in sales or I can come along side the leadership on a project basis to develop a sales strategy international expansion plan.

-Casey Leaman, Interim Management Executive
casey.leaman@oneaccordpartners.com

Although my marketing track record has both breath and depth, my primary focus has been on developing products and brands effectively and profitably. Most of my direct experience has been in the retail and restaurant area where I believe in creating, as a team, the total customer experience.

-Jim Fisher, Interim Management Executive
boston@oneaccordpartners.com

I focus on solving complex sales and marketing problems as they are associated with sales and marketing program development, product strategies and channel partner development strategies. My experience has been broadly in business to business and in business to consumer scenarios both in direct selling and in channel sales. My skills in the marketplace are focused primary in two vertical areas: manufacturing and financial services. I’m comfortable serving as an interim VP of sales and marketing or in standing by the leadership of your company and helping develop the sales programs that will deliver growth and top line revenue.

-Dan Garrison, Interim Management Executive
saltlake@oneaccordpartners.com

How to Find a Interim Management Executive
Experienced marketing and sales executives with a proven track record are difficult to attain, even in a recession. You could tap into your network and find an executive that is currently out of work and who is willing to take on an interim role, pay a headhunter, or post the opportunity on a job board. But the best way to find an interim management executive is probably to contact an interim management company. These companies have a diverse network of experienced professionals with specific skill sets or experience to fit the specific needs of your company. They are also accustomed to working on interim engagements and are not just looking for a paycheck until they land their next job.

How to Set up the Interim Engagement
After you have found the right individual to take on the interim role at your company, you will need to establish the scope, goals, and compensation. Define clearly what the pain or opportunity you want addressed. Describe what a successful outcome of the interim engagement would look like. Discuss specifics such as expectations, limits of authority, and time they will be on site. You should also agree on the details of the compensation, whether it will be based on time or based on results such as sales growth over the next year.

To learn more about interim management, you can visit OneAccord’s website or email us at info(at)oneaccordpartners.com.

Photo by woodsy