HR Interim Management

Is it time to take the interim plunge?

The number of HR professionals leaving permanent jobs to take on interim roles is rising. Is this really the best time to do it?

The start of a new year is often reason enough for professionals to consider where their careers are going. Add a recession into the equation, though, and the temptation to up-sticks and find something safer is even more compelling - and HR professionals are no less immune than anyone else.

In fact a survey by online intelligence company XpertHR claims one third of HR professionals who left their posts in the past 12 months did so by choice. The report puts staff turnover in the HR sector at 15.1% with 5.2% resigning - up from 4.5% in 2008. With CIPD membership up by 2%, it is clear these people are not leaving the industry entirely. What does seem to be happening is that many of those who have left are deciding to make a lifestyle decision by shifting from a permanent role to setting themselves up as an HR interim.

It is difficult to know exactly how many HR professionals are seeking to become interims, but with interim agencies (see below) saying more candidates want to be added to their books, is now really the best time to become an HR freelancer?

According to the Institute of Interim Management (IIM), the HR interim market is worth between £80 million and £100 million a year. HR constitutes about 10% of the total interim sector, but this has actually declined by about 20% since the start of the recession.

It points to life as your own boss being erratic at the very least. So what is the true picture?

IIM director Ad van der Rest is an HR interim himself through his company, Visible Goal. He says work is still around for those seeking this lifestyle but what he is more concerned about is what he calls 'cowboy interims' - those who are entering the marketplace with extensive HR experience but who are unaccredited and uninsured. The IIM only accredits members if they have professional HR qualifications and experience, are covered by professional indemnity insurance, have examples of assignment achievements and references from clients and are continuing their own professional development so that their skills remain up-to-date.

"Some HR professionals have simply been made redundant and are looking for temporary roles and are calling themselves interims," van der Rest says. "But it takes a lot of work and energy to set up your own business, sort out your branding and get an accountant. Employers can confuse interims with contractors, so employers must look at people offering solutions to their problems and not those simply presenting a list of previous HR jobs."

That said, van der Rest insists HR directors should not be put off becoming an interim if they genuinely want to establish their own business. Specialist areas career HR interims can exploit as the upturn accelerates include change management, restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, employee engagement, performance and talent management, as well as learning and development.

One problem for new entrants is that they can find it particularly tough to win their first assignment. The advice from the experts is to accept a lower than average day rate to get a foot in the interim door and to nurture relationships with potential clients and recruiters cultivated through networking. Andrew Pope, a director at interim provider Kingsley Search, says HRDs need to time their arrival into the interim world carefully.

He says: "I did advise someone not to leave a permanent role because, as an interim in a recession, you are a commodity and the supply and demand ratio is not in your favour. There are lots of long-established HR interim managers waiting for their next assignment and many clients still automatically look at these first."

However, a study by talent management consultancy Ochre House reveals there are still opportunities for interim newbies. It has discovered the highest level of demand for interims is at HR business partner level, paying an equivalent permanent salary of between £40,000 and £60,000. Those particularly in demand are interims with change management experience.

Intriguingly the study suggests full-time interim managers are actually in danger of being ousted by the growing number of redundant professionals. Ochre House finds 70% of organisations recruiting interims to fill short-term senior vacancies would actually prefer someone who has just come out of a permanent role rather than a longstanding career interim, because they have not had time to get blase about what they provide.

The Interim Management Association (IMA) also believes now is a good time to consider an interim career. Its view is that employers and agencies are looking for new talent. In contrast to the IIM, the IMA says up to 30% of new interim placements are HR-based because of the skills needed. It says this has been the case irrespective of the recent economic climate.

But the IMA does make one point absolutely clear: "There is not much demand for people who are just 'dabbling' at being an interim," says IMA chair Paul Botting. "Over-qualification is what good interim placement is all about and clients want people with scar tissue from a long career in HR."

For HRDs who do decide to take the plunge, finding a reputable interim agency can be difficult. The recession has enabled providers to become much more choosy about who they take on.

Raj Tulsiani, CEO of Green Park Interim & Executive Resourcing, says his company only accepts about 15% of the people who walk through its doors, and it uses strict psychometric testing to assess candidates. He says interims have had to accept lower day rates. For top-level generalist HR interim roles these have dropped from about £1,500 a day to £1,000 in some cases and at the lower end of the market from £750 to £550. "Some people made redundant or who have resigned have got bad career advice about how attractive it will be as an interim," says Tulsiani.

Similarly, Kate Mansfield, a managing consultant at independent senior interim provider Alium Partners, says only people with broad experience and a depth of marketable skills will succeed as interims. Alium takes on about 10% of the people who ask to register. "Ideally we are looking for people with at least one interim assignment under their belt, their own company and who are looking at a long-term interim career," says Mansfield.

BIE Interim has about 400 HR professionals on its books. Executive director Nick Diprose says he has now become "very careful" about who he registers. "As an interim you need credibility and to be able to make an impact personally and professionally," he says. "The HR function has taken a hit this year and there are fewer interim posts. The demand is for ex-HRDs who can really add value."

Actual demand for HR interims has flattened off significantly over the past 12 months, by as much as 50%, according to Gareth Jones, managing director at Courteney HR. He says some day rates have even fallen to as low as £300. "Even interims who we know have had continuous work for years are coming out of the woodwork saying jobs have dried up. Others have had to take roles that are not really challenging them," he says.

Such negative stories can easily put off HRDs considering making the leap into the interim world.

Catriona Drysdale, head of interim at FreshMinds Talent, hopes the current climate will not deter people who would make very good interims. She says her company saw a 350% increase in demand for interims during October and early November compared with the previous year, even if day rates were lower. "Anyone who is a great networker and who has the skills to impress even the fussiest employers will make a success of an interim career," says Drysdale. "Even if you are new to the market and do not have a history of interim assignments you can still package the individual projects you have managed during your permanent career."

Over the next few months, as the economy creaks along, HRDs considering life as an interim will need to weigh up the obvious lifestyle benefits of being their own boss against whether there is a real demand for their skills at this time.

Source: Human Resources Magazine

Posted by Human Resources Magazine