When Should You Hire an Interim Executive?

Getting good help represents a Board-level headache. Reading the financial press, it may seem that CXOs come and go with the frequency of jetliners at O’Hare International. While executive churn does not merit that comparison, C-suite turnover is commonplace, with a new wave of executive musical chairs ensuing after the 2008 recession.

Many reasons can lead to job vacancies. Someone gets a better position. Someone gets caught with his or her hands in the wrong places. Someone decides to found his or her own company. Someone was hired to do one job, but the company’s needs changed. Someone goes to sleep – or worse – on the job. As a result, boards and private equity owners may find themselves scrambling to fill key management positions.

Contributing Authors: Bennett E. McClellan and Sumeet Goel