Handling the Assignment Profesionally

Phase 1 Congratulations : The assignment has been confirmed to you

You are able to quickly adapt and analyse, to work autonomously, to be result oriented, stress resistant, communicative, etc.

You also understand the objective of your mission, potential deviations, means at your disposal and the company you get involved with.

Phase 2 : Prepare the assignment

Preliminary meetings should be used to gather information on the market, the company, the operational rules, the current businesses and the staff. Once on the job, you will have to quickly get your own opinion on many issues and persons; thus, all the information previously gathered will make your work easier for you.

Phase 3 : Operational start of the assignment

The new manager should prepare your arrival well to ensure that he gives you an impression of authority and serenity right from the beginning. You will have to quickly implement the first levers of power: set up a management committee, build a circle of trustworthy people who will be your sources of information, etc…

In the third phase, you quickly imposes your mark by setting the first rules and by taking some safe decisions.

Phase 4 : Observe, analyze … and navigate at sight

When the circumstances are favorable, the transition manager takes some time to study the environment he is in charge of before determining how to achieve the defined goal.

Mostly you must act quickly though. You may even have to take important decisions right from the first day. In that case you must do everything at once and to the best of your abilities - manage, observe and analyze the company in order to be able to get to the following phase as soon as possible.

Phase 5 : Action plan definition

The action plan must be a mix of ideas from the interim manager, bringing an external point of view and expertise, and the best ideas from your staff who will feel valued when their opinion has been taken into account. Sometimes circumstances need a quick reaction and priority changes. It is very important though that some actions with strong impact are carried out as soon as possible.

Phase 6 : Execution and communication

Once you as the interim manager has established your leadership and the action plan has been announced, you need to prove yourself. The action plan must remain the axis of the assignment. It can be adapted if some actions prove irrelevant or unfeasible. The regular publication of its progress is vital to show the team as well as the client the progress made to reach the objective.

Phase 7 : Power transfer

Once the objective has been achieved, you finish your mission by transferring to the succeeding management all your knowledge regarding the entity you were in charge of, the progress report of the action plan and your advice for the future. An evaluation meeting is held with your Talent Interim Consultant and the Client.