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While companies are increasingly outsourcing their resource needs – whether for operations, strategy, transformation or reorganization –, nowadays this calls for managers from a range of backgrounds.
The long-established perspective of the interim manager nearing retirement, with a career firmly entrenched in the corporate world, is no longer the one and only paradigm. Today’s market affords greater importance to hybrid career paths with combined experience in consulting and operations; gone are the days when seniority was the main benchmark.
Drawing on their wealth of experience, these “contemporary” interim managers enjoy a sense of heightened perspective. Freelance managers are no longer exclusively called upon to conduct interim assignments or fill vacant positions. Out of nothing, they are able to establish a position within teams, as part of a process creating a new role by way of example. Such freelance managers are now key to transforming the world of work. Arnaud Sourisseau, OMS Founder, and Damien Aimon, Transformation Director at Moët Hennessy, sat down to focus on what is special about these new candidates.
Arnaud Sourisseau
OMS Founder
What are the successful ingredients of an interim management assignment?
Priority number one is to match the customer’s needs with the right freelance manager.
At One Man Support, our human touch – which is sparked by several one-to-one meetings with each freelancer – serves to guarantee that assignments run smoothly.
Priority number two is to help freelance managers “stamp their mark” and gain credibility. The customer team must set the conditions for success by unlocking the company’s doors for freelance managers, placing emphasis on support from Top Management, quickly arranging meetings with the right contacts, and providing the necessary tools and documents.
Lastly, the interim manager’s human qualities and interpersonal skills are vital for a successful assignment; through instant immersion in the company’s activities while maintaining a global perspective, identifying issues that require added value from said interim manager and actively listening to and motivating teams on the ground.
What top 3 qualities should a freelance manager have?
To gain credibility in-house, freelance managers must demonstrate strong people skills:
An ability to adapt and adjust to all environments, within tight schedules
Interpersonal skills, to successfully “stamp their mark” and become accepted and valued by teams
Fresh perspective: actively play their role as outsider, daring to challenge and make things happen
How can the boom in freelance managers transform our recruitment strategy?
Periods of transformation – and even times of crisis – can represent an opportunity for companies. By entrusting external resources, we naturally discover a different standpoint with best practices sourced from various sectors and industries at times. This paves the way for a new outlook! More often than not, freelance manager assignments single out a candidate and personality providing the perfect fit with the company. As a result, many an OMS assignment results in permanent contracts. Much more than a job opening, freelance management presents a golden opportunity for HR!
Transformation Director Moët Hennessy
What drives a successful interim management assignment?
Very few companies are equipped with enough elite performers in-house to manage their complex projects and implement their strategic roadmap. This scenario can lead to costly delays, sometimes bordering on failure.
Against this background, OMS is increasingly sought after to fill the gap in top-performing project managers as well as freelance project management offices (PMOs) with leading-edge expertise and the requisite flexibility.
But the question is how can a freelance manager successfully onboard within a fast-paced organization? Exactly what added value do they bring to the table?
February 2021 saw Damien Aimon conduct an assignment as an OMS consultant at Moët Hennessy (LVMH’s Wine & Spirits subsidiary) where he was responsible for the company’s transformation plan. Today, Damien Aimon is Moët Hennessy’s Transformation Director!
Below, Damien shares his testimonial, from onboarding to gaining credibility and the need for agility.
Testimonial – Damien Aimon, Transformation Director, Moët Hennessy
What were the key challenges of your assignment?
Upon joining Moët Hennessy as an OMS consultant, discussions were already underway regarding long-term strategic issues. It was now a case of establishing them firmly in reality, with short-term execution and a results-first approach.
The company’s Management Committee identified a number of priorities, focusing on profitability, the future of retail, marketing, organizational structure and not forgetting business transformation as well as mindset and behaviors. All this work was conducted against a backdrop of far-reaching ambitions to achieve organic growth and deliver on acquisitions.
How did you contribute to this transformation?
I was tasked with spearheading the coordination and implementation of the transformation plan, providing regular reporting updates to the Management Committee.
I operated like a “jack-of-all-trades,” structuring projects, uniting skills and challenging the content of the assignment. One of my main tasks was to support teams on-site in their daily activities.
In your opinion, what were the critical factors behind your successful onboarding?
After just two months, I felt fully integrated into the company; everyone forgot that I was an external consultant!
I think there were two main reasons for this success:
Zero individualism: freelance consultants must reaffirm their position at any given moment, suppressing ego but prioritizing resilience. Parallel to this, they must not lose sight of the direction they are headed and maintain a laser focus on succeeding.
A constant ability to take a proactive approach toward help and support, even on the practical side of things where some tasks can seem rather “basic.”
By contributing added value while avoiding any power plays, I gained inside access into teams, including senior management. Naturally, this opened the door to multiple projects!
How has your assignment developed?
At Moët Hennessy, transformation is not some sort of side project; it actually forms part of day-to-day business! When the Management Committee decided to make my assignment permanent with a job opening as Transformation Director, the transition was smooth.
What was your standout strength to succeed in your freelance manager assignment?
The Transformation Director acts as the driving force behind high value-added projects. Like the Duracell bunny, they constantly look to pick up the pace!
To that end, my hybrid background in the Consulting and Corporate worlds enabled me to adapt and grasp the challenges from an operations standpoint, while contributing a practical outsider’s perspective as a manager who knows the field.
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