Reproduced with permission of Executive Grapevine and
originally published in Interim Management in Europe
2005
Project Management
In 2002 the Paris-based United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) ran into
difficulties. The organisation had recently implemented
a SAP system and there were significant challenges
related to the timeliness and accuracy of the financial
data.
UNESCO decided to bring in an interim manager with
skills needed to rectify the problem. They approached
OdgersInterim.
The Provider: Chris Behan, Managing Director, Odgers
“In over 17 years of proving Interim Managers, this
assignment was probably the most challenging and
demanding. The client is a high profile world
organisation politically driven by governments of all
colours. The assignment was in Paris, speaking fluent
French was mandatory, not just for the interim but for
the provider. The decision makers comprised a Russian
lady, a French lady, an Englishman and the Brazilian
Deputy Director General of UNESCO. Culturally we had to
accommodate all their national differences and had to
organise the logistics for all of us to meet at the same
time, on the same day. We were successful thanks to
being part of a large organisation with over 40 offices
world-wide in all the countries in which UNESCO works”.
The Interim: Alf Oldman, Interim Transition
Director
I was the successful candidate as I proposed a programme
of work almost identical to that which I had just
completed at Remploy in the UK. I was also comfortable
in conducting the panel interview in French, until a
Russian Assistant Director General asked for it to be
switched to English. Most importantly though, I proposed
a facilitative approach that was non-confrontational and
this was seen as most suitable to the multi-cultural
context at UNESCO.”
Oldman was faced with a number of different challenges
to overcome during his time at the organisation. “UNESCO
was an unusual interim management challenge because of
the protracted deployment of analysis and intervention
over an extended time period and the multi-cultural
context. I deployed a powerful change methodology called
Action Research. At the end of the day, I was the
catalyst and facilitator; this was an unusual role for
an executive interim manager. I reported directly to the
Deputy Director General and had unwavering support from
UNESCO senior management, which was a critical success
factor. The overall outcome was an enormous success. The
External Auditor publicly congratulated the Director
General on the improvements achieved”.
The Conclusion
Oldman’s role as Programme Director for the Financial
Performance Improvement Programme lasted eighteen months
and included pulling in a number of specialist interim
managers. The programme included a mix of technical and
process improvement projects with heavy emphasis on
organisation development with a focus on structure,
processes and training.
For a formatted copy of the original article with
graphics,
download the PDF version reproduced with permission
from Executive Grapevine.
