Mike Walmsley Joins Page Overton
by Colin Ransom - July 10th, 2006

We are delighted to announce that Mike Walmsley will be working with Page Overton in the future. Mike has worked all his life in the Pulp, Paper, Packaging and Printing Sectors.

He graduated from Manchester University with a First Class degree in Paper Science and joined the Reed Paper Group at Aylesford.

Five years after graduating he emigrated to South Africa and worked for Ngoye Paper Mills, South African Board Mills (both now part of Mondi), Premier Paper and Nampak. Mike ran a number of Paper Mills and Companies and was a Main Board Member of both Premier Paper and Nampak, both Public Companies.

During this period he also obtained a degree from Harvard Business School.

He returned to the UK after 19 years in South Africa and joined the Board of J.Bibby and Sons Plc, where amongst other responsibilities he was Chairman of J.Bibby Paper. Mike subsequently worked for St. Regis Paper and finished his full time career when he retired from the Main Board of Polestar in 2005.

He is currently a non-executive director of Millfield Plc and Peters Papers Ltd in South Africa.

Profiling At No Extra Cost
June 28th, 2006

Page Overton have always offered clients either a full personal face-to-face assessment or an online personality profile as an at cost option.

Effective from July 1st, Page Overton are pleased to announce that for all future retained search or Interim Management assignments, a full online personality profile, competency-based assessment and candidate report for all short listed candidates will be offered free of charge.

Mark Thompson Joins Page Overton
by Colin Ransom - June 1st, 2006

I am delighted to announce that effective from June 1st, 2006, Mark Thompson will be joining Page Overton as an Associate Consultant.

Mark has spent over twenty years in the Paper and Packaging industry at senior management level.  Most recently he was managing one of the largest tissue operations in the UK.  Mark lives on a farm in Wales with his wife, twin daughters, mother and father in law, as well as lots of sheep!

He will be covering Wales and the south west, as well as the UK tissue industry.

Page Overton Opens New Office
May 26th, 2006

On June 1st, 2006 Page Overton moved to 40 Princess Street in Manchester City Centre.  Operating from a prestigious address near the junction with portland Street, the offices offer good access to both clients and candidates and are equipped with meeting, conferencing and video-conferencing facilities. Managing Director, Colin Ransom says "Not only will this help our UK clients, but provide much better access and communication for our International clients".

Reproduced from Paperboard Industry October 2002
"Interim Management - The Modern Resourcing Option for the Packaging Industry"

How often are the senior managers and directors in our industry faced with the prospect of planning and managing a major event for the company but are swamped with other priorities or simply do not have the human resources. After a decade of closures, mergers and cost cutting to the bone, is it any surprise? Replacing a corrugator for example, a new factory layout, the inevitable rationalisation following a merger. There are many other examples. Quite often, if part of a group, this can be coupled with an embargo on permanent recruitment. How do you cope? Increasingly, for managers "in the know" they will turn to an Interim manager.

What is an interim manager? A quasi consultant? A "clapped out" executive nearing retirement? Somebody, looking for a "proper job", picking up some "temp" work? The answer is it's none of these things!

If you look, as we all do, at the recruitment pages in the trade or national press, you will have noticed the reduction in the number of executive positions on offer compared to a few years ago. If you are looking through the same papers, purely out of interest, of course, for jobs in our industry, you could be looking for a very long time.

However, the market for interim managers has grown at a rate of 20% p.a over the last five years, and is expected to grow at a similar rate over the next five. Even with this prodigious growth rate interims still only represent 0.7% of all senior managers and directors earning in excess of £50,000p.a.

If one examines the recent trends in not just our industry you will find phrases that are all too familiar. Downsizing, cost reduction, mergers, acquisition, closures, delayering. This is coupled with an acceleration of change management programmes and greater staff mobility. Where does this leave many of our most experienced senior managers? In many cases walking down the road with a black bin bag containing a severance package and thinking about the options of trying to find another job in a very difficult environment or taking early retirement. The future can indeed look bleak. But there are cases that prove the proverb "what is sauce for the goose, is sauce for the gander".

As pointed out above, having delayered and reduced cost where do companies find the talent and experience that they need to carry out some of the programmes mentioned above without adding to permanent staff numbers? The answer increasingly is interim managers. There are many more examples of where an interim can be used effectively, for example. A key member of your team "leaves" at short notice and you cannot replace them effectively in the short term. A business needs to be turned around fast. You need a resource to manage a specific project to allow your permanent executives full concentration on the business, capital projects is an example of this. There are many more situations like these, as any interim will tell you!

But who are these interim managers and what do they do? A typical interim will be over 40, but increasingly younger. They will have prolonged senior experience in your industry, where, when in employment have earned at least £50,000 p.a. They operate through their own limited company with full professional indemnity cover. Many will have made a conscious decision to become a professional interim manager and enjoy the lifestyle. On average they will have 1-2 assignments per year that will last for a total of 7 months out of 12. They will earn an average of just under £100,000 p.a. They will be prepared to travel anywhere, live out of a suitcase, and take up an assignment in a matter of days. When they do take up an assignment, they will join as an executive member of your team. Therein lies the difference between a consultant, who can only provide advice, and an interim who will do the job as well as advise. This is usually at a much lower cost and with somebody who knows and has worked in your industry for many years. Assignment length is extremely flexible. This can be 2,3, 4, 5 days a week for as many weeks as you like. Typically, assignments are between 3 to 9 months duration. Notice is normally 20 days and of course no baggage at the end. Interims are not usually seeking an employed career. Therefore, they do not disrupt management succession. They can be painfully, sometimes brutally, honest, as they don't have to worry about company politics. They can mentor a talented younger manager. Objectives will be agreed with the client on appointment and they will expect to be measured against them on a regular basis. An interim lives by reputation and referral; therefore failure is not an option.

How does it work, and importantly, how much does it cost? If you contact a good provider of interim managers they will meet you within days, sometimes the next day. This will involve taking a very comprehensive brief to include the company profile, reasons for the appointment, ideal candidate profile, budget and so on. The purpose of this is for the provider to gain a full understanding of your business and the position required, so that a good match can be provided. The provider will probably check the register or database of candidates the same day and will start to make phone calls to arrange initial interviews with potential candidates. They will normally choose those candidates who are overqualified for the job. For example, if a client required a very experienced Operations Director, it would be normal practice for the provider to check the register for interims who were previously M.Ds with a production background in their employed career. From these interviews a short list will be offered to the client for them to make their selection. Once made, the assignment can start. The whole process from brief to assignment start will take on average between 10 to 14 days, but can be much quicker. Interims are contracted to the provider, providers to the client. A daily rate will be agreed, invoiced weekly or monthly. Usually, a provider will require a minimum contract of 40 days followed by agreed extensions of typically 20 days. A good interim provider will follow up on progress with both interim and client on a regular basis, require a written monthly report on objectives v achievements and carry out a post assignment audit.

Interim daily rates vary wildly. There are rates as low as £150/day and as high as £3,500/day, but these are exceptional. Therefore, it is sensible to provide typical examples in our own industry. If we took a single site operation with a turnover in excess of £25m p.a for example, an interim M.D/G.M would expect £450-£600 day, an interim sales, production, finance director £350-£500/day and interim engineering, quality, commercial, supply chain managers about £250-£400/day. The interim provider is likely to add between 25-33% to these rates.

If you add up the rates, multiplied by the number of assignment days it might frighten you at first. But not if you compare it to the real cost of employment. Employment costs at senior level can contain not just base salary, but bonus, share options, car, pension, phi, health cover etc. This is ignoring costs of recruitment, relocation or hotel costs, expenses and of course potential severance and outplacement if things go wrong. Independent surveys conclude that at senior level the real cost of employment is 2X base salary. Interim management therefore, in many cases, can be cheaper than a full time employee, with none of the associated risks.

How do you find a good interim manager? For safety, simplicity and to provide a choice of candidates, selecting a good interim provider is a sensible option. There is only one interim provider dedicated to our industry and that is Page Overton.

Colin Ransom has spent 38 years in our industry, many of them at senior level. After becoming an Interim Manager he acquired Page Overton Associates, an Executive search and Interim management provider only operating in the printing, packaging and paper industries. www.pageoverton.co.uk

Reproduced from Paperboard Industry December 2002
"Executive Recruitment Understood"

In this article we attempt to shed light on the various ways of effective executive recruitment for our industry. This is a personal view based on a lifetime of experience in our industry as a recruiter, a candidate and most importantly to you, as a manager seeking the best way to recruit the right candidate.

DO IT YOURSELF!
Could you really be hearing this from somebody from the recruitment industry? I might be drummed out of the regiment for admitting that in the right circumstances this is your very best option! This particularly applies when there is an internal vacancy that can be relatively easily and painlessly filled from within the company or group, by transfer or promotion. After all, who knows their people better than you? And what's more, it's cheap and sends the right messages to other ambitious employees! A slightly bigger challenge is presented, when you decide to recruit from outside the company. This might involve preparing a brief, to include job description, candidate profile, and package details. Discussing an advertisement and negotiating price with an advertising agency and or with a newspaper or trade journal. You then await the possible deluge of replies to cover your mat, before you start spending weekends on sifting, replying and arranging interviews. Do you have a big H.R department, or managers with a lot of time on their hands? You do! Then this is your option. Or what happens when the recruitment is confidential? In these cases read on.

AGENCIES
There are dozens of agencies operating in our industry, and you will see them advertising every week in the trade press. Their main method of operation is to hold a vast register of candidates (The main reason for advertising is to attract candidates), awaiting an enquiry from a potential client. Many of the candidates on the registers are likely to be unemployed, disenchanted, or have been on the register for a long time. Most candidates are unlikely to have been interviewed by the agency, and some will send lists of candidates to you piecemeal. However, fees tend to be low, 15-20% of starting salary, very occasionally 10%, and you are likely to get somebody quickly if candidates are unemployed.

EXECUTIVE SELECTION
Or should it be executive rejection? This is the normal newspaper, web site or trade journal advertisement. A full brief should be agreed with you, the client. A good company will spend time with you to discuss the company background, reasons for recruitment, job description, candidate profile, package details, as well as getting a feel for the company culture, and getting to know you and the way that you and your team work. They should then validate this with you, and the process begins. Following this, an agreed advertisement will be placed either in the national or regional press (If the client wishes to "trawl" outside their specific sector), or in the trade press. The recruiter will then process the applications to exclude those people who do not closely match the brief. (In the case of the "Telegraph" you might get as many as 500 applications. The recruiter will then interview the best of the candidates and present a short list to the client for selection. Whilst this is a much better method of recruitment than agencies, the process could be called "rejection", not "selection". This is due to the likely size of the postbag if advertising nationally. Candidates can be rejected ruthlessly against criteria agreed with the client, and occasionally "gems" can miss the cut, particularly if the recruiter chosen isn't an industry specialist. Timing typically will be 6-8 weeks for the assignment, plus any notice period. Fees are likely to be 15-25% of starting salary, with 1/3 up front, plus costs of advertising. The trade press is likely to cost an average of £500 per insert, dependent on size. The "Telegraph" many thousands. When should you use this method? Usually when not confidential in nature. If the position must be filled by somebody from the industry and is fairly generic, for example a Field Sales Person, then the trade press can be a good option. Recruiting in the regional or national press can be most effective when recruiting personnel who don't necessarily need to come from the industry, or when recruiting for multiple positions. However, it is still wise to use recruitment companies from the industry, who will understand the culture that the successful applicant will be working in. This will even apply to positions at company or divisional level in finance, H.R and supply chain. Increasingly, recruiters are advertising positions through their own web site; this can be used most effectively to attract potential industry candidates. Naturally, of course, this can include your own staff!

RETAINED SEARCH
Popularly called "headhunting". A full brief will be agreed with the client, in exactly the same way as executive selection. On signing the contract, 1/3 of the fee is normally paid to the recruiter, to retain them for the search. You are not always obliged to offer exclusivity to the recruiter, because of this, but some companies have this clause as a condition of working with you. The recruiter will then discuss the brief with their research teams. The researchers will discreetly contact potential candidates, usually from your competitors, or gain referrals. Most industry specialists, however, will carry out their own research. At this stage it is unlikely that the clients name is divulged. Candidates will be chosen from the list of those interested and interviewed by the recruiter. Recruiters will produce a report and should meet you to agree a short list. Once the short list is agreed a further 1/3 of the fee is paid to the recruiter and the balance, the remaining 1/3, is paid when the selected candidate accepts. Most companies offer a limited guarantee, usually 3-6 months. Timing will be 8-12 weeks for the search plus notice periods. Fees by this method are typically 30% of first year salary, but can have marked variations. Due to the positive nature of searching for candidates who meet the brief, this method, in my opinion, offers complete confidentiality and the best opportunity of a close match to the brief with a better chance of good performance thereafter.

EXCLUSIVE CONTINGENCY SEARCH
The methodology and timing is exactly the same as Retained Search. However, fees are paid on results, i.e. when the chosen candidate accepts. Normally, this is 30% of starting salary. In return, the recruiter normally expects complete exclusivity and usually cancellation charges. As with Retained Search the results should provide first class candidates.

HYBRID SEARCH/SELECTION
This is used when the field of search is likely to be very narrow. E.g. Designers, Corrugator Manager, Technical Manager, Quality Manager or Chief Engineer very specifically from the industry sector. The normal methodology is to supplement the researchers results with an advertisement in the technical trade press. Timing is similar to search, as are fees.

INTERIM MANAGEMENT
This subject was covered in some depth in the October 2002 issue. However, it should not be discarded as an option when recruiting a permanent member of staff. As you can see from the "words of wisdom" above, when you are in a situation where somebody "leaves" in a hurry and then add the time that it takes for a traditional executive search or selection, plus any notice period, it could be 6-8 months before your position is permanently filled. What do you do in the meantime? Rush to an agency and buy somebody off the shelf and perhaps make a mistake that you will come to regret? Or do you cover the period with an experienced interim manager and give some breathing space and time to settle for a new recruit. What about your own resources? Do you have a talented, but inexperienced manager, who will be able to be promoted to do the job in question, but not quite yet? Of course you still have the option to recruit, but what will this do to the career prospects of your talented young manager and what message does it give to the rest of your staff? You can save money by not recruiting, not adding to your headcount, and keeping your succession plans intact by covering the period required to bring the young manager up to speed with an Interim manager. The Interim concerned will both do the job and mentor the manager until you are happy to pass the torch to the future generation, without him or her burning the house down in the process!

SUMMARY

Always look to cover the job from within first.

Don't forget that you can cover time or training gaps with Interim managers

Many agencies are candidate, not client driven.

In many cases advertising nationally or regionally can be more expensive than search, with no real time or quality advantage.

Choose a recruiter who understands your company, your objectives and your industry.

Consultants should not offer a prescribed recruitment option. This should be agreed only after full consultation and understanding of the job in question.

Check to see how the consultant follows up progress following appointment. Do they offer any guarantees?

Finally, don't ignore your instincts; only you will know the candidate with the right chemistry!

Colin Ransom has spent 38 years in our industry, many of them at senior level. After becoming an Interim manager he acquired Page Overton Associates, an Executive search and Interim management provider only operating in the packaging, paper and printing industries