But for this price we have highly involved people

E have come to the management of transition by circumstances in 2005 while I was looking for a job. "Now, I exercise this profession by choice," explains Pierre Billaud, one of nine permanent staff of the Nantes firm Avedia Transition (previously known as the MFT resources). Consultant or coach, transition manager is mandated by the officers or shareholders to physically join a business to to resolve a particular situation.

"We were struggling to release us from the restrictive image to intervene in situations of crisis to go to other missions: helping companies to deploy, to absorb an acquisition or even to cope with the absence of one of the leaders due to illness or death", recognizes Marc Grivel, founder in 1990 of CWM Managers in Lyon. Directorates General, financial, industrial, human resources, procurement... "We can hold either of these positions of the Executive Committee", details Frédéric Marquette, head of ADR France. This subsidiary of a Dutch Group Announces manage between 100 and 120 missions per year with 5 permanent and a regular wheel of a hundred people working for it, as a Commission or fee.

Back on its feet

At his own account, Michel Finance, former Senior Executive in the pharmaceutical industry (Sanofi Pasteur) and a Lyon biotech (Flamel Technologies) provided Carmat (artificial heart) branch before to integrate Neovax (biotech) as Deputy Director-General. "Two years ago, I would have probably not found me to hire to interesting positions which have allowed me to find my previous compensation level.". "In addition, I could do things that I would have probably never had the opportunity to do otherwise" for example, this young quinquagénaire "Carmat was a strategy that I had to evolve into a full company that collected 33 million euros of funding," enjoys. But there are setbacks, "he must accept a certain insecurity and financial opportunity to cross hollow of a few months."

Save time

The duration of the missions can oscillate between three months and a year and a half, but the average gauge is between six and nine months. Thus, Pierre Billaud left June 30 the company Loueul and Piriot, where he entered on 5 October 2009, to ensure the direction of the cutting unit and conditioning vacant, after the Manager in title had been thanked. "We had then failed in our recruitment, and we cannot afford another failure." "This formula gave us some time before a new hiring and restore serenity", says André Maléjac, President of the Executive Board of the company, European leader in the slaughter of rabbits and kids.

This group had already uses Avedia Transition in the past to face a period of intense activity in the management control and help it to finalize its budgets. "These are expensive missions, between EUR 1,000 and 1,200 euros day." But for this price, we have highly involved people. (...) "In six months, a wanton factory can be returned on foot, while it should probably be double using the internal forces," said Serge Bonnet, President of Avedia Transition. Not that these managers are better than others, but because their trade is to intervene in such missions to the raised foot and emergency. It is essential that they have occupied several times of the functions of management in the past - they rarely less than 45 years-, which allows to be quickly to joysticks. "To be oversized position gives the possibility to provide a rapid response", said Michel Finance. But, it is important to "have a clear mission letter."

Initiate a dynamic

Firms have ground their methods with binomial systems. Thus, in CWM, each manager field is followed by a Directors Associates, which provides the cockpit of the mission. Among leaders and investors, one of the pioneers, associates found each month to make the point about the missions. EIM has even built a theory of the "100 days for success": "the first few months are crucial to the success of any decision-making function and more of any mission" relief or development, justify Frédéric Marquette. During this grace period "should initiate a momentum for change." "The first steps must be announced before the end of the first month."

In a context of globalization and increasing unpredictability, this job is called to develop. The employment situation requires, the candidates are not lacking. Marc Grivel said receive "between 7 and 10 CV per day coming from people who have more responsibility".