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High plains drifter
The enigmatic stranger, a mysterious past, face etched with life’s challenges, rides into town. Slowly, dusty boots climb the stairs, the slow chink of spurs catching folk’s attention. They pretend not to stare, but who could it be, why is he here? The door swings open and twelve pensive faces turn as one. Our stranger, cheroot playing between his teeth, speaks: “Good morning ladies and gentlemen, I’m Graham, your new interim HR director”.
Having held both permanent and interim HRD positions, I have come to realise that the concept of interim management, especially in the field of Human Resources, is a very complex and multi-faceted arrangement. Whether I was undertaking an interim role or managing interim colleagues, it has never been so much about being “interim” as it was about being “evident”. It was never so much about fitting a predetermined “shape” as about being pliable and able to fit into exactly what the organisation needed at a given point in time. In a role that you know from the outset is not permanent it is all about making a difference and not simply an opportunity to serve as a placeholder. The situation is not helped by many within an organisation set on sabotaging your work or discrediting your efforts.
Whilst in interim roles I have been reminded that “I am only a temporary gap filler”, I have come to realise that in effectively fulfilling the role of an interim, you must be neither the permanent solution nor the temporary stop gap. As an interim your purpose is to address the problems as if they are challenges that are meant to be solved, choosing not to complain, worry, or cry about them, instead look to address them and where possible resolve them. With work colleagues not always happy to see you it makes your position distinctive if not unique, you are not about providing a solution you are the solution. or as Nanny McFee described it: “There is something you should understand about the way I work. When you need me but do not want me, then I must stay. When you want me but no longer need me, then I have to go” However, it is important to be mindful of the temporary nature of interim positions, but this cannot be allowed to impeach the unique transitory space that interims inhabit. Taking full advantage of the distinctive nature of the temporary yet powerful arrangement interims need to find a way to make their tenure memorable for all the right reasons. Many observers may feel it is a simple process to achieve this uniqueness I have to disagree.
The differences between permanent and interim roles are far too significant to be addressed by accident. And the ability to manage interims is very different from any other type of management role. Let’s not forget that new permanent post holders often receive a grace period of settling in often called the “honeymoon period” or “the first 90 days”. Interims on the other hand are expected to hit the ground running as most interim appointments will be half over by the 90th day. In spite of this, I have found that becoming an interim HRD is a highly exciting and rewarding way to experience the work of modern HR at double speed. Or as one CEO described it, “it looks to me like you are juggling hedgehogs, you are in control of everything yet you can never stop to admire your work”. Some years ago I was the HRD of a large haulage and distribution company which had many hundreds of vehicles on the road at any one time across UK, Ireland and the Continent. As part of my induction I spent time out on the road with one of the experienced old hands. During those few days he taught me a lesson that I have never forgotten and it has transcribed so effectively to the work we do in HR. He told me there are two types of people who work in haulage and distribution. There are “Steerers” and there are “Drivers”. He went on to explain that it was not hard to see the difference. He said “a steerer turns up in the morning and picks up his load sheets and delivery notes and drives out and delivers the goods, comes back to base, drops of the empty vehicle and goes home”. And then he explained “and then there are drivers, from the moment they enter the yard they are checking. Is the vehicle clean? Are the tyres looking right? Is it well loaded. Once on the road at each set of traffic lights they are cleaning their mirrors. Under their seat they carry touch up paint for road chips and once back at the depot they are cleaning the cab, brushing out the lorry and filling the fuel tank for the next user”.
I was astounded as I listened to the perfect description of Interim HR roles. Having both used Interims and been an interim I have sadly in my career seen too many interim HR steerers and not enough interim HR drivers. I have seen our profession disgraced by those who look to interim work believing it to be an easy option following a redundancy or job loss. Entering the work lacking any expectation of accountability knowing that if they play their cards right they will be long gone before anyone realises they did absolutely nothing. So here is my guide for helping you determine whether you made a good choice in your selection of your latest interim HR professional. And if you happen to be an Interim HR Professional you might want to test yourself against my four measures of success and discover whether you are an HR steerer or a HR driver?
Whilst it’s a blinding flash of the obvious the first measure of success to test for when you hire an interim HR professional no matter what their experience or what type of job they take on is, are they making an impact? As explained earlier unlike the equivalent permanent role there is no time to get your feet under the table. Interim HR employees if they are worth the title of HR professional need to be focusing from day one on having an almost instant effect and impact. I still shudder every time I relive a conversation I had some years ago with a recruiter who had placed an interim into my new organisation just ahead of me joining. I asked what where the objectives set for this interim role when we commissioned it? The reply still haunts me “They will be too busy to have objectives……” If you manage interim staff the first measure of success is very simple. Are they making a positive difference from the very moment they enter your organisation.
Workplaces of every shape and size have one thing in common. They rely on team spirit, camaraderie and high levels of respect between staff members at all levels within the organisation. It goes without saying that an interim staff member will not have the time to build extensive bonds with other workers but that does not excuse them from building relationships built on integrity and respect with everyone they work alongside or engage with . This measure of success for good interim HR professionals anticipates that they will always find a way to reach out to work colleagues in a manner that engages them sooner than you might normally have expected. A quick test to see if your interim placements are making a real success of the appointment is to check whether they have the respect of staff. That does not always mean they are liked or embraced as a close member of the team. However they are engaged and treated with the respect that the role deserves
As with any interim position, taking over as a manager on a temporary basis in a new and unexplored environment means that one thing is sure, you will have to deal with uncertainty. How you address this vagueness and how you tackle ambiguity will establish your credibility from the very first day in the new situation. In a recent interim role I found myself deposited into an office somewhere in the middle of the building only to sit there for over 30 minutes wondering what was going to happen next. So I decided to manage the uncertainty rather than let it control me. I took the lift to the top floor and proceeded to walk around every floor introducing myself to everyone I met. One floor at a time I visited and talked with those I was expected to support. By 10.00 am that first morning the canteen was buzzing about the new interim HRD.
A final measure of success, and probably the most critical in assessing the quality and impact of the assignment after it finishes is whether you would have the interim back. As I outlined earlier many so called interims appear to work on the basis that there is always another employer to work for. This misses the point of interim work entirely. As a readily available source of professional support interim staff need to build a reputation around integrity and commitment. The global world of work is actually a village and your credibility and reliability will quickly become known and whilst it may not be tattooed to your forehead it is quickly implanted in the minds of recruiting managers. And never be misled by the farewell speech that says “I hope we can work together again soon”. Listen instead for the recognition that you made an impact, you engaged quickly with the workforce and nothing you faced fazed you in anyway. A final thought – an anagram of interim is termini which is plural for the end of the road.
uk.linkedin.com/in/graham-white-508230a
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