At least, according to Robert Wasson, the chief executive of Watershed Consulting, which specialises in “interim management”, it is.
With 250 high-achieving executives on its books, Watershed earns its corn by plugging skills gaps at high levels in Irish and British corporations. “Filling positions like that used to be done on the basis of the old school tie,” said Wasson, “but not any more.”
Wasson, 46, fell into the interim management business by accident. “It came out of the blue,” he said. “I had spent my life consulting for companies on their strategy. The nature of that work is that you build up trust with clients, and when other things happen in a business, you get the call.”
The “other things” that typically provoke a need for an interim manager are maternity and, increasingly, paternity leave, illness or extended holidays. “In a buoyant labour market, a high-achieving executive can call the shots more,” Wasson said.
The former head of KPMG’s strategic consultancy division, Wasson is not beyond a bit of constructive criticism when it comes to his former profession. “I was a consultant, so I know the pitfalls,” he said. “A lot of consultants are not doers, they are advisers, and I think many businesses are unhappy with that model.”
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Another key edge is cost, he says. “Typically our consultants charge a fee of €750-€1,200 per day,” he said. “The large consultancies charge between €1,200 and €2,500 and even more if a partner’s services is required.”
Usually, the “interims” on Watershed’s books are called in to replace a senior manager — such as a finance director — and keep the ship steady.
After leaving KPMG, Wasson served as chief executive of Country Manor Bricks, a small but highly profitable Dublin brick manufacturer. After a year he wanted more independence and set up Watershed three years ago so that he could “operate my own agenda”.
This year, the company will earn fee income of about €2m, but Wasson says the unique selling point of the business is his hands-on knowledge of every client. The client list includes Allianz, Nestle, Irish Life & Permanent, RTE and Bord Gais.
Personal contact is an important part of the business. “I spend at least two or three days a month in Britain, where we have a small office and where the interim management business is very well developed,” he said. “There is a bit of administration work, but the key is getting to meet people face to face. It’s really all about getting out and meeting prospective clients and prospective interims.”
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Despite likening his panel of interims to the “Red Adairs of the corporate world”, Wasson himself is anything but flash.
Born and educated in the north, he is an on-message, focused and super-logical character. A graduate of Queen’s University in Belfast, he also has a master’s in business administration from University College Dublin. It’s not hard to see why he is called when entrepreneurs and senior executives need good people fast.
The business model is that Watershed gets paid by the client company and the interim gets paid by Watershed. A fee of about 30% is usually levied on the interim.
So, has he ever done any work for that well-known consultant-basher Michael O’Leary? Wasson laughs briefly but the game-face quickly returns. “Well, we have a no-bullshit model,” he said. “Ryanair would be welcome to use us for interim management because there is an actual value proposition there and I’m sure someone like Michael O’Leary would see that.”
Hard sell and soft soap all wrapped up in one: the consummate consultancy.