With a background from companies like ISS and CBRE, Søren Stampe has worked as an Executive Interim Manager for over 15 years, primarily in roles such as COO or Country Manager within medium-sized enterprises. His assignments have consistently focused on change management and optimizing change management processes. In addition to his work as an Executive Interim Manager, he is also active as a senior advisor and co-owner in several companies and serves on multiple boards. He recently concluded an assignment as interim COO at Håndverksgruppen through Nordic Interim Danmark.
We have talked with Søren about his experiences in driving complex changes and what it takes to achieve success.
Why did you choose to work as an Executive Interim Manager?
“I felt things were becoming too ‘corporate,’ there was too much administration and internal politics. I’m driven by being operational and finding the path forward and driving it. Management consultants come in and give advice, but they don’t implement what they suggest, which often results in changes never being implemented. The advantage of working as an interim is that you get to both set the strategy and implement it together with your team! Another great advantage is that I learn so much, with each assignment, I develop both my industry knowledge and my leadership skills, and it’s incredibly rewarding to share this with the organization.”
When Søren starts a new assignment, the first thing he does is analyse the current situation. What opportunities and risks are there, how will it be financed, and what are the possible solutions to the main challenges? Driving a change is a significant investment in both money and personnel and if it fails, it has serious consequences for the company.
You have extensive experience in driving business-critical changes, how do you ensure a successful transformation?
“Leadership is the most important of all, and much of it is about using the resources already available in the company. You need to go out into the business and see the situation with your own eyes and talk to the employees. Often the solution already exists, you know what doesn’t work and what needs to be done, and there is incredible knowledge in the companies. Much of it is about maintaining focus and speed. The analysis phase must be quick. The next step is to anchor the strategy with stakeholders at different levels in the organization. My task as a Change Manager is to listen, understand the challenge, and find the solution. Many changes are similar, and leadership is always number one, but there are always company- or industry-specific things that are important, you cannot believe that you can know and do everything.
In one of my assignments, we were working inefficiently with customer projects, and it took too long before we received payment. We streamlined the processes with clear responsibilities and structures for billing. We reduced the project time from over 100 to about 40 days, which also meant that we could invoice the customer much faster.”
When driving a transformation, there is often concern and resistance within the organization, how do you handle that?
“You have to be clear and transparent about why this change is necessary and what it means for everyone on an individual level. It is important to involve stakeholders and internal influencers. Communication is very important; you must understand individuals’ situations and what the change means for them. Communicating clearly and transparently, explaining why we are making the change and what it will mean for them, is crucial for the project’s success. A Change Manager must make everyone feel safe and motivated.”
What is the most common reason for a change project to fail? “The most common reason is being too quick and not identifying the real problem. But it can also be being too slow. When implementing a transformation, there is limited time; otherwise, everyone continues to work as before. It is important to have patience, do a thorough analysis, have consensus in the management team, and anchor the strategy with stakeholders. It is easy to think that everyone is on the same page and has reached the same level of understanding of the project, which is rarely the case.”
Why should you engage an Executive Interim Manager to drive a change instead of using internal resources?
“Often, you only need this knowledge of leading change during the change itself. If an internal resource is to drive the project while also performing their regular duties, it is very difficult to succeed, and that person will also need to consider internal politics, which you avoid with an interim who comes in from the outside with an objective perspective.”