Venture Capitalists and Business Angels have a continuing need for highly experienced and flexible senior executives who can step into one of their portfolio companies and provide the hands-on management needed, for as long as it is needed.
A particular breed of executive fills this role, the Interim Executive. They go by many names – Locum Executive, Freelance Executive, Consulting Manager, Change Manager, Gap Manager, Interim Manager, Interim CEO, Contract Executive, Temp-Exec, even Honcho-for-Hire.
They are highly experienced, well-educated mature business people and can point to a track record of success.
Generally, they are in the Baby Boomer generation. It's not solely a function of age but it does take a while to amass that depth of skills and experience.
They have reached a stage in their career where they are attracted to a portfolio career, as opposed to a more traditional corporate career within the one organisation.
They will accept roles of varying structure. This may be three days a week or a full-time role for a defined period. This 'contract' period usually ranges from three months to two years.
A recruitment agency deals with the placement of personnel in an organisation – so does GreyHair.
A recruitment agency can offer extensive (and expensive) additional services such as skills testing, psychometric appraisals and the like – GreyHair does not; sticking to the core business of introducing executives to organisations that need them. Quickly.
A recruitment agency deals with all levels of personnel – GreyHair focuses on the executive and managerial levels to provide contract, temporary and permanent placements.
A recruitment agency goes to the marketplace and searches for someone to fit a company's requirements – GreyHair already has the people within the ranks of the AIEA members.
A recruitment agency can take weeks or months to find the right person, particularly for higher level positions – GreyHair usually has a shortlist ready for presentation within three days.
A recruitment agency charges a percentage of the total salary and benefits package and often additional costs for advertising, etc. – GreyHair charges a fixed fee with absolutely no additional costs. The GreyHair fee is usually between a half and a sixth of the agency fee for a comparable executive search.
In days gone by, one of the ways to quickly build a million-dollar company was to set up a recruitment agency, especially one that specialised in Executive Search. We can all name some of these self-made tycoons.
But times are changing. The Internet Age brought is Seek, then LinkedIn, then Jobs Boards. Now a new phenomenon is emerging – business institutes and associations have realised that they need to assist their members to find meaningful assignments, paid or pro-bono.
What is really powerful about this approach is that nothing is put between the job advertiser and the potential candidate. Results can be very quickly achieved.
This is very important when an employer needs to swiftly find an interim executive (say a CFO) to fill a gap caused by a resignation.
Other business institutes are reportedly moving in this direction. CPA Australia has a similar facility but is limited to pro-bono assignments only. MEGT does a similar thing to connect apprentices to jobs.
What Does a Typical Interim Manager Look Like?
It made me start thinking about the individual members of the group in question and realise how diverse a group it is.
When I do a presentation, I often start off by asking this rhetorical question "What's the difference between a 25-year-old candidate with a business degree and a 50-year-old candidate with a business degree?" Of course, the answer is 25 years of practical business experience.
AIEA members are categorised into four levels according to predetermined criteria.
AAIEA: the Associate is the entry level, showing a willingness to work as an interim but may not be dedicated to the path. Many retrenches take this quarterly option.
The last two levels are regarded as the premium members and are proudly listed on the Membership Honour Board.
Maybe the question should have been "Why does a person join AIEA?" Different aspects of AIEA will appeal to different people.
Recognition: Each level of AIEA membership has its own post-nominal and these are proudly displayed on their business cards and LinkedIn profile.
Networking: An Interim Manager is usually self-employed and works from home or a small office. They enjoy meeting their fellow members and gaining the mutual support that comes from one's peers.
Lead Generation: It is common for members to swap leads and opportunities. Everyone knows of an assignment that doesn't suit them but will suit a colleague.
Professional Development: AIEA offers various forms of CPD, including the Guest Speaker at the monthly networking events but, in reality, the best form of CPD is interaction and learning from your peers.
Jobs Board: The big difference between AIEA-Jobs and other jobs boards is that the employers and recruiters who advertise there are actually looking for the expertise that only years of experience can bring. It is a free service to members and to advertisers.
Member: The annual membership works out cheaper overall and allows an upgrade path to CAIEA and FAIEA. The premium members do not pay any more for the privilege.
With the introduction and growth of the AIEA-Jobsboard, there has been a surge of interest from executives whose primary motivation is to find paid assignments, interim or permanent.
To cater for these people, AIEA has introduced the Affiliate (AAIEA) Membership and made if a three-month plan at a lower price point that the Full Member (MAIEA) plan.
The new AAIEA membership is renewable. Click on the link for further details.
It is particularly attractive to those who see their 'interim' status as being temporary whilst they search for their next permanent position. The AAIEA will receive all vacancy postings from AIEA-Jobs and from the Corporate Affiliate members.
An Associate Membership is for three months' duration and is available to individuals who desire to be part of the Association for networking and personal development purposes and also want AIEA assistance with their job search.
Associates will receive the AAIEA Post-Nominal and the discounted member rates for all events, training courses and material. Associates may upgrade to full membership at any time by application and payment of the fee to receive the additional MAIEA benefits.
AIEA members are special people.
They are at the peak of their profession, having honed their skills working for corporations big and small. Now most have taken the step to incorporate and become their own commercial identity.
They are professional Interim Managers.
They all have a business card extolling their independence and outlining their services. Depending on their line of work, some have a corporate office. They all have a web presence and many have a referral page containing accolades received from their customers and colleagues.
These third party referrals are very important to an Interim Manager. It tells prospective clients that the Interim Management is known and trusted. You can never have too many. But how can you encourage people to provide the cherished recommendation without being crass or pushy. The secret lies in an old saying that starts with 'do unto others'.
So, working on the concept that 'givers are receivers', consider who deserves a meaningful referral from you and pay it forward. A good place to start is with your fellow AIEA members.
If you aren't already LinkedIn with them, do so (a form of recognition in itself). They write a thoughtful recommendation they can post on their LinkedIn profile. This is like gold.
Don't confuse it with a LinkedIn Endorsement where you simply tick off their top skills; a recommendation is much more meaningful.
Have you ever looked at the list of hundreds of awards published on Australia Day or Queens Birthday and wondered how they are selected? Many come from the military, the government or by self-nomination.
But others come about by nomination by members of the public – you and me. Like most voluntary things, most of the public don't take part so it's a narrow field.
Let's see if we can get one or two 'gongs' awarded within AIEA. It's a two year time lag on the process.
The Interim Executive needs to look at each new or potential client engagement as the start of a New Venture. With that mind set they need to address the 5 key points below to align their service with the customer's needs and requirements, and make sure that it is a viable engagement for the Interim Executive.
LEIGH SALES, PRESENTER: Australians of the future will live longer and be expected to work harder, until the age of 70 and beyond.
But what if they can't get jobs?
Age discrimination's always been a problem in the workforce, but now for the first time the trend's been mapped and more than a quarter of over-50s feel they've been discriminated against because of their age.
The challenge is to convince employers to choose experience over youth.
HAYDEN COOPER, REPORTER: At 68, Andrew Shilton is going strong. Still in the workforce, he's forging a second career as a Melbourne handyman, driven, like most, by necessity.
ANDREW SHILTON, GREY ARMY: I've got a mortgage and my mortgage probably won't expire for another 15 years, so that'll put me into my early 80s, so I have to keep working. It's as simple as that.
HAYDEN COOPER: He is one of the lucky few at his age to find a job that works for him and keep it.
ANDREW SHILTON: I knock on the door, ring the bell, I'm always bright and breezy, I'm on time and I want that work. So, they have to like me. I've had nobody turn me away, so I'm doing it right, I hope.
HAYDEN COOPER: Increasingly, many others are not so fortunate. As old age approaches, holding a job becomes harder. When discrimination is added to the mix, it's impossible, as more experienced workers are passed over for promotion, laid off or struggle to find a job at all.
SUSAN RYAN, AGE DISCRIMINATION COMMISSIONER: The report we've just launched shows that it's very serious, that over a quarter of people over 50 experience age discrimination in very damaging ways.
HAYDEN COOPER: The Human Rights Commission report provides a compelling picture of this growing problem. It found that a third of those who'd experienced discrimination gave up on the job hunt. Almost half thought about retirement or using superannuation. And often discrimination strikes those who are most vulnerable.
SUSAN RYAN: The people most likely to experience age discrimination in the workforce are low income people and single parents and they're the people who can least afford to lose a job.
HAYDEN COOPER: Susan Ryan is the nation's Age Discrimination Commissioner. A former Education minister in the Hawke Government, she's now on a mission to convince Australian companies to change their attitudes to older workers.
SUSAN RYAN: Well, companies, like all of us, appreciate the fact that young people just recently finished their university training, whatever it is, have the latest ideas, they're terrifically energetic because they want to get their careers moving in the right direction, and they're good things. But at the same time, those things don't replace experience, knowledge of the company and of course older employees are very enthusiastic too.
BRUCE WILLIAMSON, JOB SEEKER: Consistent work: extremely difficult. In the last probably two years I would've put out easy 200, 300 resumes every year.
HAYDEN COOPER: Bruce Williamson is a highly skilled business consultant in Brisbane, but at the moment he's in a hard place.
BRUCE WILLIAMSON: I'm on the dole.
HAYDEN COOPER: And how difficult is that?
BRUCE WILLIAMSON: Extremely difficult, extremely difficult. Yep. Unemployment benefits.
HAYDEN COOPER: He suspects that his age is the reason that so many companies are knocking back his applications.
BRUCE WILLIAMSON: You're either overskilled, overqualified, which you can either put down to being age, but when you're after a C-level position, how can you be overqualified?
HAYDEN COOPER: He's now sought the help of a recruitment company that specialises in older workers. Here, age discrimination is on frequent display from employers, who themselves are often young.
MALCOLM WALKER, GREYHAIR ALCHEMY: They see this grey-haired person sitting in front of them and they think, "I can't relate to this person. Why is he looking for a job? Why is she looking for a job? And I'm going to promote into that role somebody that I can relate to."
HAYDEN COOPER: And then there are the job seekers who never even reach the interview stage.
BRUCE WILLIAMSON: A few years ago I was actually told by an admin' assistant inside one of the organisations, her instruction was to throw or disregard any application that was over 35 years old.
SUSAN RYAN: The recruiters make their money by successfully placing people. Now if the recruiter thinks that an employer doesn't want anyone over 50, they will not put forward the CV's of anyone over 50, no matter how perfect that person would be for the job. You raise this with the recruiters and they say, "Well we have to have a business. It's the employer's fault." You raise it with the employers and they say, "We've never given these instructions." But somewhere between the two, older, experienced, valuable workers are being squeezed out.
HAYDEN COOPER: Susan Ryan is urging the Government to give this issue much more attention and more funding to retrain employees, especially if it wants Australians to contribute for longer.
BRUCE WILLIAMSON: We're not even getting work at 55, forget about going up to 70 and I'm fit and able to do anything.
HAYDEN COOPER: It's an age-old dilemma: the wisdom of experience versus the enthusiasm of youth.
ANDREW SHILTON: Some of the kids do have the latest techniques, they can do things a lot quicker, 'cause the old aches and pains do creep in, getting on and off the steps, etc. Memory goes. You lose your bloody tape measure wherever you go. But that's about it. Hare and the tortoise. Young guys get in there, they can probably do their work in the morning. It takes me all day to do mine. But they charge an awful lot to do a morning's work; I charge the same amount for all day. But I get it done.
LEIGH SALES: Hayden Cooper reporting.