Interim Marketing in Uncertain Economic Times

by Interim Marketing Executive, Charles Besondy

With my conservative-realist hat squarely placed upon my shaved head I ask you to consider that the economic environment we are seeing today (August 2009), specifically the unemployment rate, is what we’re going to see for many, many months to come.

I’m not going to be misled by politicians telling me just prior to 2010 elections that the days of milk and honey have returned. I know that the shaking we feel beneath our feet isn’t an earthquake; it is the vibration from countless business plans going through the shredder. There is fear and uncertainty in the land, but we must move forward even if on a different path with a different view of our business model.

Our economic world has changed–big time. I’m not an economist so I can’t and won’t talk about what the change means. I just know the business environment in which I need to succeed and help my clients succeed is very different from the one I was operating in prior to 2009.

What does this mean if you are a CEO or a marketing executive?

I believe that companies are going to be more and more reluctant to hire permanent marketers. Instead, companies will look to fill their needs on demand. They’ll augment skeleton marketing departments with interim and contract talent as they need it.

There is too much uncertainty in the land to confidently invest in a strong and capable marketing department. There is too much volatility in the marketing programs budget to justify a fully staffed marketing department. Better to keep fixed labor costs to a minimum and bring in the rock star interims for a few months as needed. No long-term commitments, no health insurance concerns, just the perfect skills and knowledge applied to the opportunity or problem for a season.

In past years, in a different economic climate, a high percentage of executives in the U.S. would scoff at the idea of relying on interim talent in marketing. Those same executives have no choice now but to seriously consider the interim option. They can’t stop marketing or else their companies will fall prey to the competition. However, they should think twice before burdening the operating budget with a fully-staffed, permanent marketing department.

Here are two sobering stats from The Financial Forecast Center.

They forecast the U-3 unemployment rate in the U.S. to be 11% in February 2010. (A group of economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal estimated the unemployment rate for December 2010 will be 9.5%.) We’re looking at 10% unemployment for at least the next 16 months, if you wish to belief these sources.

The other sobering forecast is the GDP. The Financial Forecast Center shows the GDP improving from -3.8% in June 2009 to zero GDP growth in February 2010. I like seeing the numbers heading north, but we can’t expect much, if any, growth for the foreseeable future.

Low growth GDP and 10% unemployment is the new business environment for the U.S.

Those who adapt to the new reality will succeed. Those who manage with an eye in the rearview mirror will stumble.

Let me know directly if you’d like to discuss what an interim marketing solution might look like for your organization. To learn more about interim management within the marketing and sales function check out my book, “Leadership On Demand: How Smart CEO’s Tap Interim Management to Drive Revenue.” It’s also available through Amazon and other online book resellers in paperback and eBook formats.

This post has been republished from Charles Besondy’s blog on interim management, One Riot, One Ranger.

Why Every Company Needs Interim Management

Whether you are a brand new start up or a Fortune 500 company, your organization can benefit from interim management. An interim management executive goes into an organization to solve a problem or develop and execute a strategy, but only on an as needed basis. Here are some reasons that every company should consider using interim management.

Save Money
One of the benefits of having an interim management executive is that you can conserve cash. The alternative of hiring a full time interim management executive can cost significantly more to an organization. There’s often head hunter fees, the cost of a benefit’s package, employment taxes, in addition to full time wages and bonuses. Interim management can cost a fraction of the cost, but still accomplish the desired objectives.

Tap A Pool Of Specialized Marketing Executives
Finding an executive with specific expertise to solve a specific need in your organization can be very difficult and expensive. Instead, work with an interim management company that has a pool of dozens of experienced interim management executives, each with a specific area of expertise. Need someone to come in to execute a marketing roll out in China or someone to streamline the sales funnel? Develop a relationship with an interim management company so that you can tap these skill sets when your company needs them.

Get An Outside Point of View
Hiring an interim management executive during strategic planning can provide a much needed outside point of view to combat group think and bring a new perspective. While you can get an outside point of view by hiring a consulting company, you may prefer a marketing executive with 20 years experience,  who has first hand experience dealing with the problems you may have.

Reduce Opportunity Costs
When there is a gap in a key position, there is an opportunity cost of not having an effective executive in the role. Often organizations spend months to fill a key position with a C-level executive. During this time there can be a significant loss of revenue or market share. Interim management solves this problem for organizations by filling the position temporarily, until the permanent hire can take over.

See more on the benefits of Interim Management:
When to Hire Interim Management
7 Ways Interim Management Can Help an Organization

12 Reasons Your Company Needs Interim Management

Here are the top 12 reasons your company needs an interim marketing executive:

1. You can’t afford to lose ground to the competition while you search for a new executive for 3-6 months
2. You can’t afford to hire a full-time experienced senior executive
3. You need to boost sales this year
4. Your marketing and sales are misaligned
5. You want to take your company to the next level in sales
6. You need the expertise to enter a new market
7. A significant revenue or marketing event is in jeopardy
8. Totally new strategies or programs must be implemented or tested
9. A specific skill set is needed, but not permanently
10. Additional bandwidth needed, but not permanently
11. Objectivity in a leadership position would be beneficial, especially during strategic planning
12. Hands-on coaching and training is required to elevate skill and process knowledge of existing staff

What is Your Greatest Accomplishment for an Interim Management Client?

What is the greatest accomplishment that you have made for an interim management client?

1. Instilled confidence to think strategically about their Plan, Structure, People and Processes and act tactically with laser focus speed on the implementation.

2. Building a strategic plan with those who will own it is not an option.

3. De-hiring the right people who do not fit the position profile, culture or exhibit a persistent negative attitude, sends a clear message to the entire company and helps the company in the long run.

4. Teaching how to hiring slowing against a predetermined criteria adds immeasurable value and stability to a company and team.

5. Bringing the leadership team together formally (once a week to start in a C.O.R.E. Team) to work through challenges and determine the best course of action is indelible to a companies success.

6. Streamlining and or building better sales processes and skills with accountability.

7. Teaching and helping the company empower their employees from the top down.

Eric Fry
Interim Management Executive
206.617.1188
eric.fry@oneaccordcorp.com

Helping an emerging global company create a value proposition that helped them close major account deals, and then teaching the people how to do this for themselves.

Peter KIinge
Interim Management Executive
801.755.6820
peter.klinge@oneaccordpartners.com

Interim Sales and Marketing VP: Richard Brune

I help transform companies and sales process and methodology and help with sales metrics and profit and loss. I have over 25 years of experience building and managing consumer brands and products selling to all retail channels: department stores, mass merchants, clubs, specialty stores internet and broadcast media. As a OneAccord partner I can fill a position for an emerging or SMB company as interim VP of sales or I can come along side the leadership on a project to develop the sales and revenue generating growth of an organization. The value that OneAccord brings is that we have the experience having walked in the shoes of the client. We’ve held the executive leadership positions and are willing to come into your organization to not only strategize but execute the deliverables. We are scaled nationwide so we have the resources and expertise that is needed and can work collaboratively providing our clients with a wide range of revenue focused expertise. In addition OneAccord partners tell the truth about where a company is and where it needs to go.

Richard Brune is a interim sales and marketing VP for OneAccord with a strong track record managing some of America’s most recognizable consumer brands. Mr. Brune has an unbroken record of substantial sales and market share increases with such brands as Stanley Tools, Hartmann Luggage, REI Inc., Swiss Army Brands and licensed products with Eddie Bauer and Disney. Richard has a proven ability to develop new markets and expand existing ones. He is an effective leader with the ability to build highly productive and motivated sales teams. A bottom line executive with the ability to reduce operating expenses while continuing to enjoy growth and profitability.

Richard Brune can be contacted at richard.brune@oneaccordpartners.com

Interim Executive Leadership: Peter Klinge Jr.

The main competency that I’m able to bring is the ability to help companies communicate to their external stakeholders, the message of what their mission is. And the ability to communicate their value proposition, how they build a brand, and how they do a better job at selling their products and services. OneAccord is a wonderful opportunity for me to be able to help companies move forward by surrounding myself with a quality team of competent sales and marketing executives and our primary mission is to find ways to help companies and their stakeholders build and grow their business to sustainable revenue growth.

Austin Interim Management Executive: Larry Snyder

My specialty is in the design and execution of high performance marketing programs for technical product companies. These programs are all designed to stimulate sales through improved market visibility, brand strength, and targeted messaging programs. I can fulfill roles for small to medium sized technical product companies as VP of marketing or I can come alongside existing leadership to support special programs.

Larry Snyder is a seasoned general manager with a marketing posture and deep technical credentials. He drives organizations, instills a revenue oriented growth culture throughout the organization, and is particularly well suited for small to mid-sized engineering product and service companies. With a foundation in engineering and scientific software, Larry has experience in a range of market verticals including power generation, computer simulation, manufacturing, semiconductor, biotech, and aerospace. Key skills include strategic planning, market planning, business development, team building, and organizational management.

Larry Snyder, Principal
OneAccord
512.772.1806
larry.snyder@oneaccordpartners.com

Interim Management Executive: Sheri Osborn

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.

Interim Management Executive: Jeff Bradley

My focus is helping big market and emerging companies really transform their trajectory and helping accelerate revenues and really focus hard on strategy, structure, process and culture. How do we develop and align those components and most importantly how do we help unlock the unique gifts and talents of individuals and teams? My particular area of emphasis involves manufacturing technology companies with a focus on changing the revenue trajectory, helping align strategy, structure, process and culture.

Jeff Bradley is an experienced senior business executive with 25 years in the technology and manufacturing industries. He has developed high-performing teams across sales, marketing, new product development, strategic planning, and business development at companies like Eastman Kodak, MCI, US West, Josten’s Learning, Xerox and IBM.

Jeff Bradley
Interim Management Executive, OneAccord
seattle@oneaccordpartners.com

Interim Management Executive: Eric Fry

I specialize in organizational transformation and cultural empowerment. I do that specifically through identifying and closing performance gaps in the area of planning, structure, people, and processes. Ultimately what that does is it increases productivity, profits, and increases overall value of the company.

Eric Fry
Interim Management Executive, OneAccord
seattle@oneaccordpartners.com

Next Page »