Which role fits depends on two questions: how far does the responsibility to be taken on extend – a single topic, a department or the entire company? And how large is the backlog, meaning the problems and opportunities that exceed the company's own problem-solving capacity? The chart places the four roles along these two questions. You will find the same number and colour in the descriptions below.
1 · Lead for a field of action – when a single topic exceeds the company's own problem-solving capacity
2 · Interim head of department – when production or order processing get out of hand and delivery reliability falls
3 · Chief restructuring officer (CRO) – when a restructuring or turnaround needs to be led alongside the existing management
4 · Interim managing director or CEO – when management drops out, succession is open or the transformation belongs in one pair of hands
Differentiation
Interim leadership at 10-P Consult is taken on by consultants with their own management experience in industrial SMEs. They know manufacturing from their own work and have been leading restructurings and transformations for years.
They combine operational leadership with the methods we use to enable organisations: key figures, the leadership control loop and structured problem solving.
Phase 1
It starts with conversations with managers, employees, customers and lenders, an honest review of the figures and first immediate measures where things are burning.
At the same time, we run day-to-day business: customers, employees, lenders and shareholders need a reliable point of contact from day one.
Where it makes sense, a Corporate Health Check supports the assessment with substantiated findings.
Phase 2
We run day-to-day business and transform the company at the same time: clear responsibilities, key figures that are used in daily work and a prioritised programme of measures, steered by a steering committee.
In doing so, we distribute the work across the organisation: managers take on fields of action, develop as entrepreneurs within the company and grow with the task.
Phase 3
Responsibility moves back into the company step by step – to existing managers or to a new appointment that we help select and onboard if you wish.
What is handed over is not just a function but a management system: transparent key figures, defined standards and a management team that solves problems itself. We call this delegated management – from day one, the mandate works towards its own replacement.
PRACTICE: interim managing director
On behalf of the owner, the company was to be fundamentally restructured. Starting point: a dysfunctional organisation, years of investment backlog, processes without system support and dissatisfied customers.
After two years: 23 percent higher sales and a gross margin improved by 7 percentage points. In production, output rose by 50 percent with a workforce 30 percent smaller.
At least as important: the company now solves new problems on its own faster than they arise.
Read the case studyPRACTICE: chief restructuring officer
On behalf of the shareholder family, the loss-making business was to be returned to profitability at short notice. The mandate lasted ten months.
Implemented were a liquidity plan, prioritised fields of action with immediate measures, lower inventory and savings in purchasing, a sharpened positioning with a growth strategy, and a planning system for sales.
The CRO is responsible for the restructuring alongside the existing management – with a direct line to shareholders and banks.
More about restructuring
ASSESSMENT: does your company need interim leadership?
Whether an interim mandate is the right answer depends on the state of the company. In optimisation, targeted projects are often enough; in restructuring and turnaround, someone often needs to be accountable for implementation.
Start date, workload and duration are based on your needs. We clarify them in an initial conversation.
If you would like an initial assessment first, use the Quick Health Check: completed in five minutes, reviewed by an experienced consultant as a five-page profile and free of charge.
Book an initial conversation
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Interim management means filling a management position with an external executive for a limited period – for example in the event of a sudden absence, during a restructuring or until succession is settled.
No. 10-P Consult is a consultancy for industrial SMEs and does not place interim managers. We take on interim leadership only within our own consulting mandate: with a diagnosis first, the methods of the 10-P model and a planned handover to your own management.
Start date, workload and duration are based on your needs. We clarify them in an initial conversation.
The chief restructuring officer (CRO) is responsible for the restructuring or turnaround alongside the existing management. The interim managing director takes over the management of the company.
With Delegated Management, we not only take over the function but at the same time build structures and capabilities within the organisation. The goal is that external support is no longer needed after the mandate.
At different management levels up to managing director or CEO. In restructuring and turnaround, we also take on the role of Chief Restructuring Officer (CRO).
In German-speaking Switzerland and southern Germany.
With tailored approaches and proven methods, we support you in aligning and developing your company — independently, and starting from your current economic situation.
Sharpen your strategy and develop a holistic alignment to realize growth opportunities.
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Increase your problem-solving capacity and develop your organization from mediocrity to peak performance.
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Secure your company's viability through structural interventions and sustainable earnings optimization.
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Secure your company's liquidity and continued existence and restore its earning power for the long term.
Learn moreFive forms of collaboration, from workshops to interim leadership. The goal is always the same: your organisation solves its problems on its own in future.
