Ad Interim Details

An ad interim is a temporary “employee” or position holder who offers his services only for a set amount of time. In some instances, the time frame is agreed upon before, or a “stand-by” interim fills in a position unexpectedly left vacant. The job itself isn’t really in the definition of an ad interim. It could be almost anything, from government officials to business management.

Nowadays, we’re seeing more interim CEOs and company Presidents. What businesses usually do is hire an interim as either co-CEO or President for a short time to bring in an outsider perspective. These interims are professionals in business affairs and management, after all. They are also used as “test runs” for the acting CEO or President to get a feel of what it’s like to manage with another person before making any full-time long-term commitments. Even on some occasions, an ad interim is hired when the workload is too much for the current staff and helps stabilize the company through rough times, then leaves.

Although an ad interim isn’t supposed to motivate or lead, some companies find that a part-time interim stimulates the business and serves to remind and revisit their original goals. It’s sometimes dangerous to set a routine that gets you comfortable, so sometimes ad interims are hired to stir things up just enough to keep up the energy.

Some companies that don’t cover all corners of their business will hire interim CMO’s or VP marketing to fill the gap that they don’t have themselves. These types of ad interim hirings are usually during the time of a new project or new business venture. Ad interims are also used in most democratic governments when a position is left empty, either by unexpected resignment or other unforeseen circumstances that prevent a person from continuing his work either temporarily or permanently.

Ad Interim Example

Let’s say a company dedicated to IT and Technologies hasn’t done any particular marketing strategies to attract more customers since they’re the only company dedicated to IT in their respective area. After some years, there are now many IT and technology businesses set up. This company decides to hire an interim VP marketing strategist to reinvent their image and reach out to more clients. After six months of campaigning and indulging in the services of the interim and their marketing strategies, they part ways and move on.

Another good example would be the case of a company CEO who, although thrilled about their company’s success, is now swamped with more and more work. What he decides to do is hire an experienced ad interim to run the company side by side to evaluate the quality of the work and the flow of everything as well. Sometimes, even when both parties mean well, two leaders end up doing more clashing than working. To get a feel for it, this person also wants to know how to co-exist with another leader so that when this interim is gone, they have the social skills to avoid unnecessary conflict.