:quality(80))
For everyone involved, it was one of the most moving moments of the anniversary celebration: In his retrospective on the company’s history, the senior partner specifically addressed the interim managing director, who had just stepped down, and thanked him for his work. The senior executive emphasized that the interim managing director had made an enormous contribution to successfully completing the succession in the family business. He recalled that the handover of the business to his son had to be brought forward because he, the senior executive, had been forced to step down from his positions prematurely due to an unexpected illness. At that time, the son had not yet been fully prepared to take over. Thus, the interim manager took over the business until the son took office, provided the company with the necessary continuity, supported the son as he stepped into the role, and gave him the preparation and training time he needed to ultimately run the company successfully on his own.
The situation outlined here is typical—a classic succession scenario, so to speak: After all, the handover of a company from one generation to the next cannot always be planned as perfectly as would be desirable and necessary. The senior partner may want to—or be forced to—hand over the business earlier for personal or health reasons, but the potential successor is still too young, not yet ready to take over, not fully trained, or lacking confidence. This can lead to turmoil in leadership and, in the worst case, to a leadership vacuum. However, in addition to the transfer of ownership and assets, professional leadership is a crucial factor for the success of any generational transition. Potential risks arising from unforeseen events that could disrupt management continuity should therefore be identified and mitigated in a timely manner. In such situations, it makes sense to temporarily transfer leadership to an experienced interim CEO.
In addition to maintaining leadership continuity, however, there are other reasons to appoint an interim CEO during a generational transition: On the one hand, an interim manager can contribute resources and expertise that are neither available within the company nor possessed by the designated successor, but which are necessary at the time of the handover. On the other hand, the interim manager, in the role of co-CEO, can also serve as a coach for both generations or as a mentor for the successor.
As a family consultant with 15 years of experience in generational transitions within family businesses, I can summarize one thing: While typical patterns can be identified in succession scenarios, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. This is because, in practice, almost no handover goes exactly as planned. Time and again, unforeseen events and challenges arise within the family, within the company, and in the market. Every company and every family therefore needs an individualized, tailor-made roadmap that, on the one hand, ensures a rigorous implementation of the handover, but on the other hand is flexible enough—that is, provides for sufficient alternative scenarios—to be able to respond to a wide variety of events and deviations.
In this context, interim management is increasingly being used as a flexible solution. Kai Reddig, Senior Consultant at Management Angels GmbH, an experienced interim management provider based in Hamburg, can certainly confirm this: “The temporary engagement of a professional leader as an interim manager not only plays an important role in traditional vacancy fill-ins but, in our experience, is becoming increasingly significant as a solution for generational issues.”
Incidentally, in the example cited at the beginning, the junior manager also thanked the interim manager: “Your experience was an invaluable resource for me. What I learned from you through our day-to-day collaboration is something I could not have learned better anywhere else.”
