Interim Manager Strengthens Integration of New Employees in International Group
Two large integration projects of new employees required experienced HR competencies.
Two major employee integration projects required experienced interim HR competencies — but with a different emphasis on core skills than Pia Metzlaff initially thought she needed.
The Circle K Group faced a challenge. The company was in the middle of a rebranding of former service stations from STATOIL, while at the same time acquiring Shell Denmark and a number of stations in Ireland. This meant that more than 1,100 employees had to be integrated into the new global organization.
In the middle of this integration stood Director of Organizational Design and Efficiency, Pia Metzlaff, who was responsible for the employee organization in both the former Shell stations and the new stations in Ireland.
“”“Nextt & Mason were very accommodating and understanding regarding the requirements and needs I had. I was probably a bit demanding because when I first reached out, we really needed a candidate yesterday.”
Understanding the Situation
The integration of the new employees was a complex task requiring both experience and expertise. Pia Metzlaff contacted Nextt & Mason to get competent help with her many HR tasks.
“I think it was crucial that they quickly understood that I needed a candidate right away. And they were very flexible in terms of making the agreement work, as I have many internal processes that need approval — and that doesn’t always move quickly.”
Pia Metzlaff had been recommended Nextt & Mason by colleagues who said the firm offered efficient service at a very fair price.
Insight Built Trust
Even though it was important that Nextt & Mason quickly found the right candidate, Pia experienced no compromise in service or professionalism throughout the process:
“They were very service-minded and asked detailed questions about what I wanted and needed from the candidates. And they were kind enough to explain the process along the way so I could give input and clarify what I was looking for.”
Respect for the process created both trust and better insight into which competencies Pia actually needed to solve the task.
A Clarifying Process
Nextt & Mason presented Pia Metzlaff with two qualified candidates with very different strengths. Pia had requested both strategic understanding of the task and practical hands-on experience. Through the interview process, it became clear that the hands-on experience was most important — and the practically oriented candidate she chose quickly began delivering results:
“The candidate managed to take over all the administrative tasks that I found difficult to prioritize while running two large projects at once,” she says.
A Qualified Competence Boost
As a result, Pia Metzlaff’s workload has been reduced, giving her more time and energy to focus on her core responsibilities. At the same time, the interim manager ensured that the quality of practical work remained high:
“The consequence of not having found an interim manager would have been that we’d have to use internal candidates — and therefore less qualified labor — to handle the integration of the new employees. That would not have been desirable for anyone.”
Therefore, Pia Metzlaff is eager to work with Nextt & Mason again, and she believes that interim management is an excellent solution when an organization needs a temporary competence boost.
“”The consequence of not having found an interim manager would have been that we’d have to use internal candidates — and therefore less qualified labor — to handle the integration of the new employees. That would not have been desirable for anyone.”
