CHEMISTRY – WHOLESALE CHEMICALS AND SPECIALTY CHEMICALS & INTERIM MANAGER
with technical know-how
Occupy the management of the chemical products production plant in a timely manner
Thanks to interim management, a key position such as production management or plant management in the chemical industry can be competently filled on an interim basis within days. Medium-sized chemical companies in particular do not have personnel reserve capacities. Production downtimes or quality problems exceed the costs for the assignment of an experienced interim manager by a factor of tens. The experience of the interim production manager (“Best Practice”) can make the difference.
What tasks does an interim manager perform in the chemical industry?
Typically, in addition to interim leadership of operations (COO), key positions in purchasing/procurement are often requested: Chief Purchasing Officer, CPO with a focus on direct purchasing, indirect purchasing or CAPEX. Interim staffing of functions such as EHS/HSE, Quality Management, Quality Assurance, Logistics, etc. are also frequently observed. Either there are unexpected vacancies on the management level where a precisely selected, experienced production manager has to take over the operational responsibility within days. Or the need for a digitization expert with experience in the chemical industry to lead a digitization project operationally. Depending on the constellation, it is the task of the interim manager to ensure operational continuity, to bring calm to a possibly unsettled workforce, or to contribute specific know-how. Accordingly, an interim project manager can also be selected and deployed for the optimization of processes, for a process reorganization or for a production transfer.
Interim managers come from the chemical industry and initiate new things?
Specific industry experience or at least a high affinity to the chemical industry is a great advantage for many management positions. The desired technical chemical experience is taken into account when selecting candidates for a quality interim management service provider. Interim managers bring on a broad, but at the same time in certain topics a specific technical knowledge and experience. They have a “best practice” in certain topics. Thanks to his independent external view and special role, the interim manager can also constructively scrutinize the existing situation and point out optimization approaches to the existing management, for example in internal processes. If the client so desires, the interim manager implements his suggestions himself.
The key to success lies in the short-term provision of the interim manager who exactly fits the situation.
A mid-level specialty chemical or wholesale chemical manager serves as an interim bridge, but not only…
Interim managers in the chemical industry are not administrators! They come to implement a specific operational solution in the chemical plant or in the administration without delay. Typical assignments are: Bridging at management level (Finance, HR, IT, Purchasing, Quality, EHS, etc.), or assuming the task of a digital transformation in the company, both conceptually and operationally. Especially in a medium-sized specialty chemicals company that produces fine chemicals or active pharmaceutical ingredients/APIs, an energetic approach is required. Due to the professional and life experience brought along, including above-average social competence, the learning curve is eliminated and the error rate during implementation is minimized. Thus, the set goals are achieved much faster and costs are saved. At the same time, the use of an interim manager promotes internal junior staff. With interim assignments, the learning effect and sustainability is considerably greater than with purely corporate consulting mandates thanks to daily operational cooperation.