Can you be a portable executive?

"Portable" executives are professionals who are self-sufficient, self-directed and who relate in a dramatically different way to their profession, job and employer than they have in the past. As interim staff members, they see themselves as a business and their skills and experience as their product. They view the employer as a client and, rather than working on the job, they understand their role is to use their "product" to add value to their client's operations, and to manage a situation to achieve specific results.

If you think portability is not for you, think again. In only 20 years, the average length of an executive position has decreased from 25 years to only five years. Interim or project managers have become an important element of the management landscape. Interim financial executives are particularly in demand, especially among Fortune 1000 companies that must implement multiple projects across functions.

This is an era in which you must become solely responsible for your career, your professional choices, your growth and your failure. And your career success will undoubtedly depend on your ability not only to work with contract managers but also to think and operate like one. Here are some pointers on what to do - and what not to do - if you are considering a foray as a portable executive into the world of contract management.

CASE ONE: A CLASH IN OPERATING STYLES

When the CFO of a re-seller of hightech equipment suddenly leaves, the company's CEO engages an interim CFO to backfill the position until a permanent replacement can be found. Only two months into the interim assignment, the CEO becomes unhappy. When interviewing for the assignment, the CFO had said he was action-oriented. This was a critical attribute, because the company the CFO was joining operates on very tight margins that require employees to make good decisions quickly, to take action promptly and not to become mired in financial analysis.

The CEO, however, soon concludes the CFO moves too slowly and exercises his option to replace the financial executive with another interim executive.

Lesson one: Know thyself. In the new world of portability, tolerance for poor performance diminishes. Many executives find they can expect little in the way of on-the-job training, professional grooming and patience on the employer's part to work on and turn around an undesirable situation. In the case above, it was not the CFO's professional skills but his operating style that caused a problem. He was working in a culture where cash flow restrictions and narrow margins called for decisiveness and fast action. He could not orient himself quickly enough to this environment.

This CFO knew he preferred a slower, more measured, analytical style of decision-maker, and he left himself open to criticism in a business culture where a "ready, shoot, aim" style was encouraged. It may have been better for him to pass on the assignment than to take it and "fail."

Lesson two: Read the signs and adapt. On assignment, or in a new position, portable executives' main focus should be to uncover the company's or the department's goals and work to get results without allowing their personal operating style to get in the way. (The flip side of this, however, is when a company employs a portable executive as a change agent, inviting the executive to be objective, take a strong position and argue effectively for a new approach.)

CASE TWO: THE DANGER OF THINKING "PERMANENT"

A mistake financial executives often make when interviewing for an interim assignment is they begin to question the client about the possibility of the assignment becoming more long term. Clients often choose an interim approach because they want the flexibility it offers. They expect to see candidates who are as ready and willing to see the project come to a close as they are, with no rancor, no long-term commitments, just a good parting of the ways after a job well done.

Sometimes a candidate who has his heart set on a permanent position slips through the screening and lands the assignment. This happened when a medical supplies company engaged an interim financial executive to support the implementation of a new financial accounting system. Three months into the estimated sixto nine-month assignment, the executive, who had temporarily relocated for the assignment, began looking for a house in the area and applying for country club memberships. Although the executive performed well and concluded his assignment successfully, the employer was aggrieved by his attitude and would not consider the executive for a longer-term role in the finance department, even though the opportunity existed.

"I thought the guy was a little disingenuous," said the employer. "He was planning on staying, while we were still unsure if hiring him permanently was right for the department."

CASE THREE: A MODEL INTERIM EXECUTIVE

A mid-sized, Alabama-based retail chain of jewelry stores needed immediate financial restructuring to avoid, or at least postpone, bankruptcy. The company CEO opted for an interim CFO because he wanted the person to work for an undetermined amount of time on an unrestricted basis, instead of using a management consultant who might have to divide time among various clients.

The contract terms: A 90-day commitment at a fixed monthly rate for pay comparable to what the company would pay a permanent CFO. The contract contained an automatic 90-day renewal clause, after which it reverted to a month-to-month arrangement. The interim CFO would receive vacation pay from the company but no other benefits. The job would last about a year, so the CFO relocated to Alabama.

Experienced in the retail industry, the interim CFO was asked, in addition to handling all the duties of the departed permanent CFO, to install new financial information systems, put together a restructuring plan, prepare a descriptive memorandum to potential investors, assist with banking relationships and diffuse legal issues. A tall order. How did he do? "Throughout his nine-month tenure," reports the company's CEO, "this executive had substantial influence, was very active and worked many hours."

In running the financial department, more than 50 percent of all employees reported to the CFO, and he greatly influenced retail store arrangements. He reversed an outsourcing initiative, bringing in the company's information systems. "His decisions about those systems are really his most powerful legacy to the company," says the CEO. "He was also very well liked and had good interpersonal skills, enabling him to avoid potentially negative repercussions. He was not autocratic. He focused on training and development." The CFO's training skills, in fact, enabled him to train a company employee to replace him.

Mr. Thompson is CEO and founder of IMCOR, a Stamford, Conn.-based interim management firm that supplies interim and project managers. He also is author of "The Portable Executive" and was formerly executive vice chairman of KPMG Peat Marwick and chairman of KMG Main Hurdman. You can reach Mr. Thompson at [phone].

RELATED ARTICLE: What Portable Executives Need To Succeed

* Broad experience - Executives, even those employed at one company, should seek new assignments in their own function to broaden their experience and knowledge base.

* Leadership and maturity - It is one thing to build up relationships over time and quite another to be dropped into a situation for nine months and immediately develop credibility and respect. Many portable executives are able to do this because they are not playing politics, seeking status or a power base. They focus on results, which makes it easier for co-workers to follow their lead.

* Communication and interpersonal skill - With exceptional inter-personal skills, an interim CFO can quickly overcome the skepticism of non-believers and convey tough messages, while still retaining loyalty.

* High energy and hard work - Interim assignments are one area where slow and steady do not win. Most interim assignments come with contracts that spell out scope, duration and sought-after results. Often an interim manager's compensation includes a performance incentive that kicks in when results are achieved on schedule. It's not uncommon there for contract executives to work more than 60-hour weeks.

* Innovation - Financial executives must use innovation and imagination to respond to increasingly complex financial accounting, legal and tax rules and regulations.

* Ability to coach - Like all executives today, financial executives are learning that the "worker knows more than the boss." Therefore, they must serve as leaders and coaches to those they work with to coordinate diverse talents for the best results. - JAT