The client was the German branch of a US medical technology company with around 5,400 employees worldwide and 180 employees in the DACH region. The interim manager was approached by the VP Human Resources Europe, whom she already knew from a previous assignment.
The establishment of European HR management had significantly changed the reporting relationships of the local HR managers. The German HR manager now reported directly to the VP HR Europe and indirectly to the managing director of the local organization. Against this background, the communication and reporting requirements also changed. This type of organization was new to the local HR manager and she found it difficult to implement the changes. The interim manager was to provide the HR manager with both professional and personal support as part of a mentoring program to help her cope with the urgent tasks ahead as part of a restructuring in the Sales & Marketing area. Furthermore, the existing tasks and areas of responsibility in HR were to be reviewed and possible process improvements suggested.
Recruiting process revised
The restructuring process already underway in Sales & Marketing (role changes, territory changes, management changes) was reviewed again and structured more clearly. In particular, ambiguities regarding budgeted, advertised and actually filled positions were clarified. The new employees required as a result of the restructuring were quickly recruited as part of a revised and streamlined recruitment process. The skills profiles, interview guidelines and assessment centers developed by the interim manager helped in this process. Due to the role changes in the sales & marketing positions, there were also changed requirements for the employees' skills. To this end, the interim manager initiated training courses and workshops on the topics of "benefit-oriented selling", "leadership and coaching in the sales force" and "collaboration in sales and marketing".
Bonus calculations made transparent
Since the bonus calculations for the sales representatives repeatedly gave rise to complaints regarding accuracy, transparency and comprehensibility, the interim manager clarified the calculation basis in consultation with the sales managers and the sales information department and developed an adjusted calculation model with the responsible HR employee that was less error-prone, more transparent and easier to understand.
The interim manager's task was also to work with the managing director and the VP HR Europe to identify the management potential in the organization. To this end, she conducted a talent review for the DACH region with the EMEA management team, from which succession planning and development needs for individual employees were then derived.
Mentoring and career positioning
The HR manager's mentoring ran alongside these activities and also included coaching elements, as it was also a matter of career positioning for her and a reassessment of her career planning. Ultimately, she then decided to leave the company to pursue a completely different path.
