Matching and mandate

The right match is not determined by the title on the CV. It is determined by whether the executive has solved precisely this type of situation before. And even the best match does not deliver without a clear mandate.

In brief:
  • We match on situational experience — not CV titles or sector knowledge alone.
  • A clear mandate defines responsibility, decision authority and success criteria before the assignment starts.
  • The mandate is communicated clearly to the organisation — that is the prerequisite for real impact.
  • We typically present two to three matched profiles within 48 hours.

What makes a match work?

An interim CFO with strong M&A experience is not necessarily the right choice for a turnaround situation. An interim CEO who has led growth companies is not automatically the right fit for a crisis leadership assignment. The situation determines the profile — not the other way around. We ask three questions before identifying candidates: What has the executive solved before? Not which titles they have held — but which specific situations they have navigated. Leadership vacuums. Turnaround. M&A integration. Transformation under resistance. Under what conditions? Organisation size, ownership structure, stakeholder complexity and time pressure. An executive who has delivered in a PE-owned portfolio company under hard exit pressure is a different profile from one who has built a public sector organisation. With what result? Documented outcomes in comparable situations are the strongest matching parameter. Not aspirational CV language.

How matching works in practice

Once we understand the situation — typically after one conversation — we identify the profiles that fit this specific assignment. We present two to three candidates within 48 hours. Each profile is accompanied by a situation-specific rationale: why this executive is relevant to your specific situation, and what they have concretely solved that is comparable. The organisation chooses. We can facilitate one interview per candidate before the decision is made. The mandate is then finalised.

The importance of mandate

Even the best match can lose its effectiveness without a clear mandate. And it happens more often than one might expect — because mandate definition is treated as a formality rather than the critical prerequisite it actually is. A clear mandate answers four questions:
  • What is the assignment and the expected outcome? Precise and measurable — not “create stability” but “ensure the quarterly accounts close on time and the CFO team operates independently by end of Q3”.
  • What decision authority comes with the role? What can the interim executive decide unilaterally? What requires approval — and from whom?
  • Who does the interim executive report to? One reporting line. Not three.
  • What is the timeframe and the handover plan? The end date is defined from the outset — not when it approaches.
The mandate is communicated to the organisation — not only to the interim executive. Employees and middle managers need to know who the interim executive is, what they are responsible for and what decision authority the role carries. Without that communication, the interim executive risks being perceived as an external observer rather than an integrated part of the leadership team.

When matching and mandate go wrong

Most disappointing interim assignments can be traced back to one of two places: the wrong match or an unclear mandate. A wrong match typically occurs when the organisation selects the most available profile rather than the most relevant one — or when matching is done on CV titles rather than situational experience. An unclear mandate occurs when the organisation has not spent sufficient time defining the assignment precisely before the start. The interim executive steps in, and no one is quite aligned on what they are actually supposed to do. Both situations are costly. Both are preventable. Read: common mistakes when using interim executives.
Want to discuss which profile fits your situation? A 20-minute conversation is typically enough to find out. Get in touch How we work

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