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

Marketing Transportation in China

Here is a question asked of our expert panel of interim marketing executives. If you have a question about marketing or sales, you can submit it here.

Question: I have a US-based company that is launching a product into china into the city transportation space. How would this marketing effort differ from a similar marketing effort in the US?

The fundamentals of defining & finding customers and marketing won’t differ significantly from a US approach. The most important differences in doing business in China will stem from culture, patterns of consumption, & channels.

For example, in promoting Intel Inside into China in the ’90’s media and channel outlets we’re accustomed to in the US at the time didn’t exist or were pretty fragmented or cluegy. In that period one of the most reliable & significant channel’s of mass communications was millions of bicycles and riders that commute each day. So millions of the familiar Intel Inside logo were handed out as stickers,reflectors and decals to put on the bikes. Lots of media impressions during ‘ride time’ morning, noon, and night!!!

-Peter Klinge, Interim Management Executive

Marketing is much less defined and fragmented than in US. If marketing into governmental channels culture will become a dominant factor. Commercial channels are much more multi-layered and fractured than in US. Most essential ingredients for success are trusted partners with management talent who understand and operate comfortably and effectively in the Chinese market. Although the quantity and quality of the human capital in china is very strong the country still lacks good middle and upper – level managerial expertise thus necessitating expensive expats to support operations. Think long term and cultivate relationships for the long haul. Skimming strategies may work in the very short term, but the Chinese learn quickly. Consequently, penetration strategies will reap optimum benefits. In the US companies are accustomed to competitors who are focused on profit. In china, there is a mix of private companies, state-owned companies and hybrid businesses. Government businesses exist to provide jobs, rather than to create profits.

-Joe Heaney, Interim Management Executive

Is it a product that will be sold to the city or sold through advertising on transportation?

One of the most significant differences compared to US is the amount of government involvement that will be required. Here we think about he government only when it gets in our way. There, you have to have a deliberate plan to deal with the government and officials that are involved. At the worst case the Company will have to anticipate requests for direct payoff and should be very knowledgeable of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. This applies to how they deal with people and how their contractors or employees deal with people that ask for payment for influence.

Another consideration is who they work with in China. A common mistake is picking a contact based on relationship, e.g. a brother of someone they know in the US. This person may not know the market or vertical. It’s important that you recruit for industry and market knowledge and do the background checks.

-Dave Parker, Interim Management Executive

Like peeling an onion, Developing personal long-term relationships has to be one of the primary objectives to develop a lasting market presence in the Far East. Although placed at a arms-length at the beginning, once the trust and personal connection is established will the benefits of the launch will be achieved.

-Rich Hennessey, Interim Management Executive

Claim Your Personal Brand Online

Facebook and Linked In can be a way to build relationships and help people get to know, like, and trust you. Paul Travis from Marketing 2020 describes some ways that you can claim your personal brand on the main social networks.

I don’t normally “tweet” about a new feature in a given company’s product or service. But I know how much our “collateral” affects our personal brand!

For example, when I meet someone whose business card says “Get YOUR free business cards at VistaPrint.com”, I take them less seriously. Business cards ARE your “leave-behind”, and have such impact on making and supporting the first impression you’ve made — that it makes no sense to skimp here.

Same goes if I read the email address on the card is “SmithFamily@comcast.net”. It is so inexpensive these days to get your own domain name (I have one for my family as well as multiple business domains) and forward your email that it absolutely makes sense. Your domain registrar will understand this, even if you don’t.

Similarly, if you are on LinkedIn, I highly recommend that you get a personal link. That way, whether you refer to it in your email signature — or more likely, people point to your LI public profile when making an introduction — it shows as

http://www.linkedin.com/in/paultravis

rather than something like

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/ptravis/2/3b/241.

FaceBook just implemented usernames as well (last night!) So especially if you are an occasional FB user, I recommend you take a moment to see if your proper name or favorite nickname is available.

It’s all about taking the time to plan (and then execute) that thing many people struggle with — your personal brand.

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

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

Best Buy CMO on the Future of Marketing

I think a company that really understands the new digital marketing landscape is Best Buy. The CMO has a blog and twitter (@bestbuycmo) where he talks and learns from customers. Greg Verdino discusses engaging consumers with digital media and how Best Buy is building credibility for social media marketing.

The importance of listening, and engaging with customers directly in an open and honest way. The growing importance of the mobile web and the ways it can empower consumers throughout the buying process. The fact that everything is going digital and what this means for the products and services companies offer. The realizations that a great customer experience is the best marketing money can’t buy, and that brands are inherently social.

Heard it all before? Of course. But somehow it sounds more credible when spoken by the CMO of a large corporation, even more so when that CMO works for a company that actually practices what he preaches.

Check out this video of Best Buy CMO Barry Judge, talking about the future of marketing. Judge offers a nice overview of how Best Buy’s marketing approach has evolved from old school tell-n-sell, where it is now, and where it’s headed tomorrow.

This article was originally posted at Greg Verdino’s Blog, and is licensed under the Creative Commons 3.0 license.

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

How Home Depot Uses Social Media to Engage Customers

Social media is the hottest topic in marketing right now and larger companies are starting to test the social media waters. Home Depot has been one of the front runners and in this video from the Blogwell Conference Home Depot’s Nick Ayers describes their successes and challenges in social media.

Groundswell: How to use Social Technologies to Market More Effectively

by Charles Sipe

I really liked Groundswell by Josh Bernoff and Charlene Li, for several reasons. It not only gives examples of how social technologies have been used effectively and made a significant impact, but also provides examples of when the best intentions in using social media have blown up. It discusses several possible uses for social technology in marketing, such as marketing research, customer support, providing information for customers in the middle of the sales funnel, building long term relationships with customers, empowering promoters, dealing with a PR crisis, getting customer feedback, building a community for customers, and several more uses that I can’t think of right now. I also like that the authors delve into the ROI of social media tactics, and provide estimates of ROI, which can help marketers to convince management that they should support social marketing initiatives.

The biggest reason I liked this book is because it covers a tremendously significant trend that is currently changing marketing. Old marketing tactics are becoming obsolete (to a degree) and the marketing world is in the middle of a once in a lifetime shift due to advances in technology, especially the most powerful media ever invented- the internet. Change presents organizations with tremendous opportunities to become leaders in a new brand world. This book presents a compelling case why utilizing social technologies can propel your organization to market leadership, or at least achieve better results than you are currently getting from traditional media.

Learn more at The Groundswell Website

Drive Revenues With Executive Interim Management: Interview with Jeff Rogers, Co-Founder of OneAccord

Why does OneAccord exist?
It’s serving companies with a variable cost model, in project or interim, best in class people to to help companies with flat or stuck revenue.

What’s the mission of OneAccord?
The mission of OneAccord is to multiply business success, but do it through relationships, yet driving results. It’s not to write reports. It’s not to exist just to do strategy, but it’s to bring results for companies. It’s built on the relationship side, both internally on a collaborative model as well as what we do to facilitate working with the client.

What makes this the right time for OneAccord in the market place?
On the people side, there are more and more talented and savvy senior executives that are the market than ever before. Companies want a variable cost. They’re getting away from just the W2, long term, with all the associated benefits.

There’s a lot of mergers and acquisitions at the mid market level…so you have all these companies coming together. All of a sudden you have redundant management teams so people are getting popped out.

The gray ceiling, the reported age, where your viability in the market starts to shift, keeps coming down. They say it’s dropped a decade over the last few years. What that means is the average tenure has dropped. For an executive, the average tenure is typically 2-3 years. There’s a lot of great people who are at the peak of their knowledge and at the peak of their experience. They’ve got great convictions, they’re not political, they’re not trying to climb the corporate ladder, but they can bring tremendous benefit to companies. So those two influences of the right people and the right corporate environment make it great timing for OneAccord.

How do you see OneAccord developing in the future?
Fully built out we see OneAccord being about 500 partners,  multiple disciplines, but all around sales and marketing which is our expertise, serving as a catalyst for increasing top line revenue.

Jeff Rogers is co-founder of OneAccord Principals, which helps companies grow revenues with interim executives that can serve your organization on a project, interim, or permanent basis. He has been involved in both sales and management development for the last 25 years and has taught every aspect of selling: prospecting, presentation, closing, and answering objections. You can contact Jeff at Jeff.Rogers(at)OneAccordPartners.com.

Photo by kozumel

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