They say that sometimes it is worth looking at processes from a helicopter perspective. This is certainly easy for our colleague György Uray, who has worked as a pilot for many years. But the interesting facts about him don't end there, as he was a client of ours for many years after his ‘landing’ as a manager in a corporate environment. After his official retirement, he moved to the Interim Chair at our request. Meet György, who works for us as a project manager and brings invaluable experience in helping companies work with interim managers!

György, how did you end up as a Project Manager with us? What did you do before Interim?

It is a long story, but not without precedent. My background is technical, as I graduated from the Nyíregyháza College of Mechanical Engineering, and in addition to my degree in plant engineering, I also obtained my pilot licence. In other words, I (also) became a pilot, so much so that I stayed on as a flight instructor at the college for four years and then joined MALÉV. In this capacity, I managed flights for TNT, and it was with them, after a successful tender, that my career as an operations manager began. Afterwards, as a Hungarian manager in several foreign companies, I got to know the logistics business, absorbing more and more knowledge. At the end of January 2023, I retired from Sonepar Hungary, which I built up with my manager colleague and made massively profitable.

How did you get involved with interim solutions?

During my career, especially at Sonepar, I was confronted with several sudden changes in management. I was assigned a freelance manager from Germany, but Hungarian, to work alongside me in the hierarchy of the French-owned but German-managed company. In the meantime, at a German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce event, I met one of the late owners of Interim, István Fekete, who died this year. At the end of 2011, it so happened that our financial controlling manager suddenly resigned, creating a gap in our senior management - and in December, at the financial close. Time was very tight, so we turned to Interim Ltd. and managed to find and recruit an excellent candidate for the interim manager position in a flash.

What was the outcome of the new person's entry and how long did he stay with you?

We were talking about 3-4 months, which the interim leader arrived in the controlling area and completed with a brilliant performance. We also used the services of Interim to replace one of our chief accountants and our IT manager.

How did you see the benefits of interim managers at that time, from the inside?

Almost without exception, they quickly established themselves in the organisation, and in addition to their professional side, their human personality was very good. In practice, their induction period was extremely reduced compared to that of a permanent manager. They understood the tasks quickly, managed them and added the extra that management and the owners can rightly expect from a manager.

How has life been for you after retirement?

Even though my last few years were very good in terms of performance, I knew I didn't want to be a manager anymore. I wanted a job where I had less responsibility but where I could use and pass on the experience and skills I had built up over the decades. It was in this situation that Interim's offer came, to which I happily accepted.

Project Manager is next to your name. What does that mean in your daily life?

I am the one who connects the client with the interim manager. I'm there for the selection of candidates, the presentation and the contact. This is what I am close to, where I can put my skills to good use: people management first. As a flight instructor, I was also tasked with passing on certain skills to others - and that's what I do now.

You've got experience as a client, but what's it like working from the inside for Interim Ltd?

From the first meeting, I saw how good an interim manager was. I think many more companies should know about this opportunity! I know several managers who are terrified that one day one of their key people will resign. It's a natural process - burnout or a better offer, or maybe a career change - and it's not preventable. In many cases, it seems that the departure of a leader is the result of a process. In such cases, gap management is not enough, we need to look behind the scenes to see what has led to this. That's why we do a lot of in-depth interviews at the beginning to unravel these threads find the reasons and find out exactly what the client needs. You need to understand the client and get behind their problem. This requires much more complex thinking than in my previous role.

Is it possible that the client thinks one way and you suggest another?

Of course! Fortunately, we have built up such a professional reputation with our clients that they accept our suggestions in this direction.

What other criteria do you take into account when making your selection?

For example, how the candidate fits into the organisation, what type of person is needed in a given hierarchy and company culture. We then try to include objectives and KPIs in the agreement so that the work of the interim manager we propose can be objectively measured.

Assume that the interim is already working hard for the client. What else do you need to do?

Oh, I still have a lot to do at this time of the year! For example, I talk to the management once or twice a week, and I check with the client every two weeks on progress. There are also situations where the interim manager, who was initially hired for three months, has not yet been replaced at the end of the project, but cannot be extended because he or she has already committed to other tasks after the three months stipulated in the contract. Such situations also need to be addressed.

What does success mean to you?

It's simple: a successful project start and a satisfied client afterwards.