Veronika Kaštovská has 25 years of experience in executive search in the Czech Republic and Slovakia and is a Partner of AGIM (Accord Group Interim Management). AGIM was founded by Accord Group, the leading player within Executive Search in the region since 2009.
As Accord Group saw a rising need for Interim Managers among their clients, they decided to create a company and bring Interim Management to the Czech Republic and Slovakia, a whole new market. Interim Management was still quite unknown. Veronika has been with Accord Group since 1998 and with AGIM since 2010, and has a deep knowledge of executive search, Interim Management and how to build a business in a new industry.
How has the Czech and Slovakian Interim Management market developed in the last couple of years?
“Interim Management is not very mature here, and we still need to educate some of our clients. Sometimes Interim Management is understood as a synonym for Crisis Management, so the other aspects of Interim Management need to be emphasized. Companies are mostly not looking actively for Interim Managers, full-time employment is still preferred. It is not common for Managers to work as freelancers and people are generally not open to becoming Interim Managers, mainly due to the uncertainty. But the business is growing, as is the competition, also from our neighbouring countries, like for example Germany. Currently, there are a number of professional Interim Managers actively working in various industries and with a successful track record. Most of our Interim Managers are active in finance, HR, plant management and production, and crisis management which is a “hot topic” these days.“
Clients can hire very senior persons who can, for example, set up structures and processes for reporting and controlling
Veronika Kaštovská
Partner, AGIM, the Czech Republic and Slovakia
What is the advantage of Interim Management?
“Clients can hire very senior persons who can, for example, set up structures and processes for reporting and controlling. An Interim Manager has done exactly the same thing before and has the needed skills and experience and can even have done it before in the role as CFO. It is also cost-effective and can even be cheaper than a permanent employment fixed costs, and you do not have to go through the trouble of letting someone go. An interim is more focused on the job and does not have to take part in internal politics, which makes it easier for making quick decisions. During the assignment, we talk to the client and Interim Manager every other week to make sure that everything goes according to plan. We play an important role between the two parties.”
How do you make sure that you have a good work/life balance?
“I have small kids and it was hard during Covid to work full time and manage homeschooling at the same time. When Covid broke out I panicked, but soon realised that I could be more flexible and plan my work according to the situation. Now we work part-time from home and part-time at the office. This way of working helps me to have a good balance between work and leisure time.”