Interim Director

(Business Unit Director)

Consumer Service Group
c£1,000 – £1,250 per day

This is an outstanding opportunity to join an impressive, well-established, marketing-leading group, taking overall leadership for one of its key divisions following a group wide restructure, itself following substantial growth and diversification.

The group, an entrepreneurial, privately owned, innovative business services group, has set new standards in operational excellence and corporate culture; both backed by substantial recent investment. 

This division sits as one of the largest and therefore most significant within the group. The successful leadership of it is therefore critical and needs to be covered on an Interim basis due to impeding secondment.

The role as Interim Director is an outstanding opportunity to not only take a key role in this exciting business, but also to be instrumental in the strategic development and vision of this business. 

This appointee will above all else, provide Executive Leadership to the business, as well as becoming the single point of contact and accountability for the Group SLT plus internal and external stakeholders.

Beyond overall leadership, continued organisational development, service delivery, operational performance and customer service remain the key priorities for the business, helping to strategically deliver on all aspects, as well mentoring and developing the teams therein, will therefore be critical.

The appointee will be a strong figurehead and motivational (and motivated) leader, an experienced Managing Director level individual. The appointee will need to engage a varied senior management team, as well as a very diverse and large workforce. Strong interaction with the operational and customer facing teams will be vital, but all whilst engaging with colleagues from across the group. The ability to be chameleonic will be essential.

The Interim Director will inspire, lead and develop the entire business and its people, with clear objectives and focus, seeking to maximise commercial growth. They will have a keen focus on stakeholder engagement, internal and external; customers, partners, external bodies (including market regulators) and the Group Board.

Alongside being a strong and entrepreneurial leader, the appointee will need to be able to connect and inspire all individuals in this open and authentic corporate structure. They will influence, communicate, educate, develop and encourage all those around them whilst empowering others to do the same, with clear objectives and focus, seeking to maximise long term sustainable growth of the business through knowledge and the communication of that knowledge. They will continually improve operational standards, applying an operational excellence approach and drive forward new initiatives.

This will be a highly operational delivery focused role, and thus the appointee will already have an impressive track record of achieving both in terms of operational efficiency/management as well as strategic & business leadership. This is a consumer service environment but a B2B business, and whilst specific sector exposure is not essential, the demonstrable ability to lead a high volume, large headcount, consumer service environment is. 

You will thrive on exploring new initiatives and relish the opportunity to lead this high-performing business, further drive growth and seek to take general business performance to new heights. It will be immediately obvious why this interim appointee has been selected, their presence, personality and career achievements will make them stand out from the crowd and engender immediate respect and buy-in from the business as well as the entire group.

Primary functions:

• Strategy and business planning
• Team direction and leadership
• Stakeholder engagement
• Business performance against all metrics & KPIs set
• Adopting the group culture & values.

Key Attributes

• Proven business leader, experienced General Manager, with experience in a consumer service industry, or regulated sector, complimented by strong commercial and operational leadership achievements.
• The ability to very quickly get up to speed and assume a strong leadership role across a service-led operational business.
• Demonstrable skills at instilling and heading up a strong but open leadership culture within an established, but still lithe business.
• Ability to lead and manage a growing operational team (through the management team)
• Ability to refine, design and take ownership of the strategic vision for the business, reflecting multiple different (and evolving) customer groups, sector and challenges, as well as communicating, orchestrating and leading its delivery.
• Someone who has driven operation efficiencies whilst commercially driving a diverse business to sustainable delivery and growth. Experience of expanding a business into new markets would be an added benefit.
• Proven experience of leading a fast growing and highly successful business with a diverse service portfolio.
• A charismatic leader who clearly demonstrates an ability to empower and motivate a team with openness and humility.
• Ability to manage risk, across all functions, ensuring the efficiency of an integrated structure.
• Exceptional skills in communication, motivation, and interpersonal relations both internally and externally, and able to convey a message that is understandable and relevant, linking business issues, financial results and strategy.
• Experience of operating at the highest level of professionalism and personal integrity
• The successful candidate will have a passion for continuous improvement, commercial and operational performance and a strong sense of accountability.
• They will also be normal, driven by common sense and enjoying a shared sense of purpose with colleagues of all levels.

The successful candidate will be an accomplished business leader and experienced General Manager (by whatever designation). They will possess a demonstrable track record and proven ability to drive operational excellence as well as growth through the optimisation of existing strategies and working practices coupled with the creativity to identify new initiatives. 

They will furthermore have a track record of providing meaningful leadership, ideally (but necessarily) in a modern/consumer-centric/service-led environment, developing successful, high-performing teams and fostering a ‘can-do/will-do’ attitude. Additionally, they will bring a depth of experience in true overall business leadership.

They will have had significant experience in a business leadership setting and will have the demonstrable ability to cover and add value to all areas. They will have recent, significant exposure to an entrepreneurial environment with a flat, direct management structure and a very strong action orientated culture. They will ooze entrepreneurial spark, flair, drive and vision and be a natural leader. It will be immediately obvious why the appointee has been successful.

Qualifications, Knowledge and Experience

• Proven track record leading a commercially focused, innovative business
• Strong collaborative & influencing skills – internal and external
• Proven stakeholder engagement
• Experience of planning and organising multiple teams in a lithe, young-business environment
• Ideally experience of a consumer service sector

Competencies and Personal Attributes

• A natural leader who will identify and create opportunities by working across internal teams and external partners – prioritising and personally managing where appropriate the key stakeholders and the introduction of new ideas and initiatives
• Strong influencing and motivational skills to lead – internally and externally
• Adaptable and flexible in style and approach
• A hands-on self-starter
• A natural coach and leader who will support both his/her and the wider team

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