Alan Daifuku is an Associate Director at IMfinity Services. He clarifies this relationship through 3 questions.
In a tight labor market, companies are increasingly finding it difficult to find the rare pearl. While the recruitment process lasts several months - from sorting out the applications, to interviews, negotiations and notice periods - those who call on an interim manager to replace a departing employee, for example, discover a professional who is immediately operational, expert in his or her field and capable of producing top-quality deliverables. That's why some of them, at the end of the assignment, may be tempted to offer the interim manager a permanent contract. This is a risk-free solution for both parties, who have had time to get to know each other, assess the situation and evaluate whether an open-ended collaboration would work.
This is primarily due to the profile of legal interim managers. Many of them dedicate their careers to interim management, passionate about new challenges and discovering different environments. In assignments linked to the implementation of a well-defined project, some professionals don't see their role beyond the "build" phase: starting from 0 to set up a new branch, re-founding a structure, creating a project, and so on. On the other hand, the "run" phase, once everything has been deployed, sometimes corresponds less to their expectations and taste for novelty. What's more, this is not really the interim manager 's vocation: he is present in the company to deliver, not to negotiate his future hiring. A fundamental element that changes everything! The state of mind counts for a lot, and that's what makes interim management so effective.
It's often a question of bringing together a person and a team, a company and assignments that match each other. In this case, the interim management contract includes a clause in the event of permanent employment at the end of the assignment. Then it's up to the company and the future employee to negotiate the terms of their collaboration. At the end of an assignment lasting several months, for example, the trial period can be shortened or even eliminated. In the end, it's a real gain in time and efficiency for both parties, but also a question of opportunities. I have in mind the example of a job-seeker who preferred to embark on an interim management assignment rather than wait to find the ideal job by staying at home. In addition to staying active, enriching his experience and enhancing his CV, the 3-month assignment ultimately had unexpected consequences... as it led to a permanent contract!
"Companies that call on an interim manager to replace a departing employee, for example, discover a professional who is immediately operational, expert in his or her field and capable of producing very high quality deliverables. "
