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Interim Management

Helping you sustain success

First Counsel is one of the leading specialist providers of expert interim managers serving the professional service industry. We cover all management functions and each of our managers has been carefully evaluated to meet specific criteria. Constantly appraised and supported, they offer much more than a stop-gap solution. An effective interim manager is overqualified for the task, bringing a wealth of experience and insight, unconstrained by personalities or politics and focused on delivery. Our senior interim managers are judged on results and they know how to add value quickly.

The interim management industry is relatively new, but has grown quickly during the last 25 years to become big business. In the UK alone, the market is estimated to be worth £1bn per annum. The concept is one of the by-products of significant social and economic changes that have taken place over the last two decades and which have had a profound impact on our working lives. It reflects the move towards more flexible working patterns and the adoption of more versatile approaches by organisations to the management of their human resources. On the one hand, as individuals we are now much more in command of our own careers; on the other hand, employers are able to respond to economic conditions with far greater ease and speed. In short, we have become a more nimble, more efficient workforce.

Why might you need us?

There are a variety of reasons why an interim manager could be required by an organisation. These include:

• Short term management and leadership challenges (additional management strength required)
• Sudden departure – senior executive gaps
• Organisational restructuring and change management
• Fast-tracking of special projects
• Merger/integration projects
• Implementation of new strategy
• Maternity or sabbatical cover
• Drift avoidance
• Business improvement or turn-around
• Crisis management
• Specialist skill and experience to get things up and running

What are the key benefits?

Our interim managers offer a number of key benefits:

• We have an in-depth understanding of the way professional service firms work
• We are totally results driven
• Our approach is entirely objective
• Project leadership is our core skill
• We are highly motivated team players
• Our people have high energy levels, instant credibility and excellent communication skills
• We ensure the transfer of specialist knowledge, skills and experience
• We add significant, measurable value – more than just a safe pair of hands
• Your risk is managed and the continuity of your business assured
• We undertake a full post – assignment review and facilitate a smooth hand-over of responsibilities.

Covering all the bases

When it comes to professional service firm management, we’ve got it all covered:

• General Management & Turn-around
• Procurement & Outsourcing
• Business Development & Sales
• HR
• Learning & Development
• Finance
• PR & Marketing Communications
• Bid Management
• Knowledge Management
• Risk Management
• Project & Programme Management
• Change Management
• Business Process Management
• IT

The process

• Meet with client to take full brief
• Deliver 2-3 CVs inside 4 days
• All candidates interviewed, assessed and approved (references readily available)
• All candidates have PI insurance and the majority trade through a limited company
• Water-tight IR35-compliant agreements with client and interim manager
• Interim manager commences assignment within a few weeks or less
• First Counsel maintains a watching brief
• Monthly tracking of progress and relationship by phone and email
• Service reviews as required by client
• Project de-brief prior to end of assignment
• Seamless, planned hand-over

More than just a safe pair of hands, each of our senior interim managers adds demonstrable longer-term value to client organisations over and above the immediate scope of an assignment. The relationship doesn't end just because the project does; to us, it is more of an ongoing partnership than a short term contract. So, for results that are anything but interim, contact Asha Lutchmun on 020 7332 6310 or asha.lutchmun@firstcounsel.com, or Simon Slater on 020 73 32 6336 or simon.slater@firstcounsel.com