Growth in Interim Sector
Survey reveals significant growth in interim sector.
A national poll from the interim management Association highlights some transformations, writes David Harries
The first annual ipsos MORi survey of the interim Management association shows
the sector is growing significantly. it is now estimated to be worth £1 billion in the UK, including IMA and non-IMA members.
We are seeing a transformation in how interim executives are being used to deliver business-critical operations.
Historically, interims were used for gap-management – to fill a key vacancy at short notice. However, our results show that in 2006, 70 per cent of assignments in the public and private sectors were for change, programme and project management, as well as business improvement.
There are a number of factors driving up the use of interim management but the main one is the speed at which businesses are operating today. Increasingly, they want action to be taken quickly and to be executed effectively.
Previously, organisations would have called in management consultants to advise them and they would have relied on their own staff to implement the recommendations. nowadays, with more lean management structures, organisations are recognising the immediate requirement of external capability to implement major, strategic programmes.
IMA’s aim is to build on these results and to track the size of the interim management market, its growth and the value interim executives deliver to the uK economy. Within this context the IMA has developed the only training course to help potential interim managers make a quick, informed decision as to whether this is a career choice for them.
IMA has partnered with Results-in-Business, a leading training provider, to run a highly recommended one-day workshop that enables new interims to make a fast start and learn how to avoid many of the costly mistakes of those less well-informed. delegates also get a Certificate of Completion that serves as a mark, in subsequent interviews with service providers, of their serious intent and commitment.
Key results show:
1,297 assignments were completed by IMA members.
Aerage length of each assignment was five months.
Fees ranged from £500 to over £1,500 a day.
HR was the most common job function performed at 26 per cent, followed by finance at 16 per cent, with marketing and special projects each at 15 per cent.
Top reasons for assignments were change and transition management and programme and project management, each at 25 per cent. Followed by business improvement at 20 per cent; gap management at 17 per cent, and crisis management at nine per cent.
62 per cent of assignments were in the private sector. Chemical, pharmaceutical and biotech were the top industry sector at 15 per cent, followed by banking and finance at 14 per cent; manufacturing at 13 per cent; business services at 12 per cent; retail at 10 per cent and iT/Telecom at nine per cent.
38 per cent of assignments were in the public sector. Local government dominates the sector at 40 per cent, followed by health at 17 per cent; education at 11 per cent; non departmental government bodies at six per cent; central government at seven per cent; not for profit at six per cent and charity at five per cent.
More Information
Executives who want to know more about the dedicated interim
management workshops should visit www.results-in-business.com/imw
Businesses interested in finding out how interim management works
and the benefits it can bring should visit the interim Management association
website at http://www.interimmanagement.uk.com/
This article is from Summer 07 edition of Recruitment Matters Magazine
