The US Opportunity for Professional Interim Leadership

Periods of significant change do not always align neatly with an existing leadership role. An acquisition can expose operational priorities that require concentrated attention; a performance issue may extend across several functions; a transformation can call for experience that the organization has not previously needed to retain.

Some of these requirements will become a permanent part of the leadership structure. Others are connected to a defined period of work and require an experienced executive who can take ownership alongside the existing team until the change has been delivered.

Miramar has supported private equity and industrial clients with interim appointments in Europe over a number of years. The firm has now appointed Simon Gough to lead its Interim Management practice, building on that work in Europe and developing its offering for US clients. Simon brings 20 years of interim-management experience, including previous US mandates across operations, general management, finance and plant leadership.

Where I see the opportunity in the US is in the space between a permanent appointment and a large consulting engagement. Businesses are looking for highly experienced client-side leaders who have dealt with the problem before and can come in for a defined period to lead transformation, improve efficiency or bring a different perspetive.

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What this looks like in practice

Quality,customer returns and a growing backlog

In one mandate from Simon’s previous work in the US, a manufacturer operating across several sites was experiencing product quality failures, rising customer returns and a growing order backlog.

There was no common view of the cause.

The commercial team believed products were not being manufactured to the required specification, while the operational team questioned whether those requirements had been properly understood. Manufacturing quality, supply chain handling and damage during delivery were also potential contributors.

Two interim executives with complementary experience in quality, manufacturing and supply chain were appointed to examine the process from the original order and specification through to production, delivery and the customer response. Their remit was to identify where the issues originated and develop a coordinated response across the relevant functions.

The requirement was not built around a vacant position or a single functional brief. The business needed experienced leadership across the problem as a whole.

Productivity across long-established manufacturing sites

A second US mandate involved a group of manufacturing sites where productivity had become a persistent concern. Many people within the operations had spent decades in the business, and established practices were proving difficult to challenge from within the existing structure.

Rather than replicate the sector knowledge already present, the business appointed an interim executive with relevant operational experience from another industry. This gave the organization a different frame of reference: someone who could draw on how comparable productivity challenges had been addressed elsewhere, distinguish genuine sector constraints from established habits, and introduce solutions that may not have emerged from a conventional sector-led search.

The interim was asked to assess the operation, identify the priorities and begin the change. That diagnostic work gave the business a clearer basis on which to shape the subsequent permanent brief.

Interim leadership did not replace permanent recruitment; it broadened the thinking around the immediate problem before the longer-term appointment was defined.

Miramar’s US interim offering‍

“What we are talking about is bringing in highly experienced client-side leaders who have been there and done the job multiple times before,” says Simon.

Under Simon’s leadership, Miramar is combining its existing interim experience in Europe with its industrial and private equity relationships in the US. This gives clients access to highly experienced operators selected for their track record in comparable situations and their ability to diagnose the underlying issue, navigate organizational complexity and take responsibility for delivering change.

Forbusinesses facing a transformation, performance issue or temporary capacityrequirement, Miramar can support the early definition of the mandate andidentify an interim executive with the experience to take ownership of it.

Continue the conversation

If you are considering an interim appointment, or have a business challenge that may require experienced leadership for a defined period, speak to Simon

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simon.gough@miramar.global

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