When to use an interim
“One of my division heads has just served notice that he is leaving, and it’s April. Do you think I will find the best candidates if I post the role as an interim?”
Finding the best candidates happens more consistently when you clearly articulate the new person’s remit. What are you asking someone new to do? What is the current status inside your organization, what do you need to have changed, and what support will you be able to offer to accomplish those goals? When candidates detect a lack of transparency - or what we like to call organizational self-awareness - they are unlikely to engage. That’s true for interim and permanent roles.
The idea of ‘best candidates’ is defined in our minds as the person who can be effective for the specific needs you have. Few, even those who are credentialed and experienced, can be effective when you don’t know or can’t agree on internally what it is you truly need and where the challenges lie for someone new to a role. So what do you really need?
The key thought experiment is: What will you wish the interim had accomplished before inviting someone to take on the role permanently? Is there assessment of the team to be done? Are there hard conversations that need to be had? Are there areas of underinvestment that need to be addressed? The value of an interim is often in undertaking the activities now that will allow someone new to start in their role without having to make all of the identified unpopular decisions right away.
Your school community - and especially the direct reports to this role you are going to do a search for - deserves for you to take the time necessary to get the reporting structure, title, compensation budget, and commission for someone new correct before posting the job - interim or permanent.
“An interim executive is a terrible thing to waste”