Interim MD · Managing director · Fixed term
Interim managing director · what one does, how long, what it costs
An interim managing director is a senior executive who runs a company or a division full-time for a fixed term: through a gap after an MD leaves, a turnaround, a sale, or the step back of an owner. They hold the authority of the MD seat while they are there, answer to the board, the owners or the parent group, and hand over when the term ends.
Across every discipline, the Institute of Interim Management’s 2026 survey puts the average assignment at 10.0 months. Below: what an interim MD does stage by stage, what one costs, how the title differs from an interim CEO, and when to bring one in. We recruit interim, fractional, part-time, temporary and permanent executives.
How a brief runswhat we undertake
- 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
- 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
- 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
- 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
- 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief
Shortlist3–5
15 minutes · video or phone
Book 15 minutes to hire an interim managing director
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with interim MD candidates, their day rates and availability.
- 0115 minutes, video or phone
- 02We scope the role and the days a week
- 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
- 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Pick a day that suits · live availability
On the board · last 3 months
Interim managing director jobs on the board
Managing director roles sit with chief executive roles on our board.
Live interim chief executive and managing director roles
Fractional recruiting starts with the brief, not the CV pile. Send a interim MD brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five candidates, each through five-stage vetting.
01/ the role
What is an interim managing director? The top executive seat, for a fixed term
What is an interim managing director? The person who runs the business, full-time, for a set period, then leaves. The Institute of Directors describes the managing director as the most senior full-time executive of the company, responsible for its performance as dictated by the board’s strategy. The Institute of Interim Management defines interim management as leadership by an independent, board or near-board level manager or executive, over a finite time span. An interim MD is both.
Where the title is used
Three settings account for most interim MD briefs. An owner-managed business, where the MD is the top executive and often reports to the owners. A subsidiary or division of a group, where the MD runs one business and answers to a group CEO or a parent board. And the UK company of an overseas group, where the MD is the local leader and the statutory director. For what the permanent seat covers, see managing director.
A director in law, whatever the contract says
An interim MD is often appointed to the board, and even if not, the law may treat them as a director. Under the Companies Act, “director” includes any person occupying the position of director, by whatever name called. Companies House’s guidance on being a company director sets out the duties that come with it, and they apply to an interim exactly as to a permanent MD.
02/ scope
How to hire an interim MD
Write down why the seat is empty, what the interim must achieve, what they can decide alone, and what must be in place when they leave, before you write a job title. Say who they report to: the owners, a chair, a group CEO or a parent board. Then test for the situation, not the sector: an interim who has run a business through a sale is a different hire from one who has run a turnaround.
We have no separate interim MD hiring page; managing director roles sit with chief executive roles on our board. Browse interim CEO jobs or send the brief there, and say the title is managing director. We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting. For permanent and interim MD roles side by side, see managing director jobs.
03/ economics
What an interim managing director costs the day rate, and the permanent comparison
An interim MD is paid a day rate for the days worked, usually five a week, with no bonus, pension or notice period on top. No source we can verify publishes an interim managing director day rate today, so we print none. The rate moves with the size of the business, how much trouble it is in, whether the brief is a sale, a turnaround or cover, and how soon the interim must start. We set out each candidate’s day rate on the shortlist.
For context across all disciplines, not for MDs alone, the IIM’s 2026 Interim Management Survey puts the average interim day rate at £907. Treat it as an all-discipline average; the top executive seat sits well above it.
Against a permanent hire, Exec Capital, a recruiter, puts a managing director’s base salary at £130,000 to £280,000 for mid-market businesses with £20m to £200m of revenue, before bonus and employer costs. More on permanent pay: managing director salary.
04/ comparison
Interim MD, fractional MD or a permanent hire
The same seat, filled three ways. Choose by how many days the business needs and whether the need has an end.
05/ vetting
How we vet interim managing directors
What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify interim MD tenure, sector context and stage fit.
SOURCING - 02
Mandate fit
Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.
MATCHING - 03
Reference deep-dive
We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.
VERIFY - 04
Shortlist
Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
SHORTLIST OF 3–5
06/ interim managing director
Interim managing director: what one does, stage by stage
An interim managing director works through an assignment in stages. The IIM’s guide to interim management names them: entry, diagnosis, proposal, implementation and exit.
Entry and diagnosis
The first weeks go on cash, customers, people and the numbers the board has been given. If trading is weak, the Insolvency Service’s company health check sets out the cash flow and balance sheet tests, and an interim MD runs them early.
The proposal
Then a plan to the board or the owners: what to keep, what to stop, what to sell or close, and what the business must look like when the interim leaves. The IIM expects the proposal to challenge the brief where the diagnosis says it should.
Implementation
Running the business while changing it: the leadership team, the budget, the banks and the big customers. If the company may be insolvent, directors’ priorities shift from the shareholders to the creditors, and an interim MD needs to have led a board through that before.
Exit and handover
A written record of the plan, the risks and the open decisions, a leadership team that can carry on, and often help appointing the permanent MD. The managing director job description is a starting point for that brief.
07/ md vs ceo
Interim managing director vs interim CEO two titles, one seat
The Institute of Directors says the roles of managing director and chief executive are virtually the same. The difference is usage: chief executive is common in listed, investor-backed and larger companies, managing director in owner-managed businesses, subsidiaries and divisions. An interim CEO and an interim MD do the same job; choose the title your board, your staff and your lenders already use.
Where the difference matters is the reporting line. An interim CEO usually answers to a board and investors. An interim MD of a subsidiary or division answers to a group CEO or a parent board, works inside group policies, and often has less freedom over capital and people. Write that into the brief.
If the business needs senior direction for part of the week rather than a full-time leader, see the fractional managing director.
08/ when to hire
When to hire an interim managing director and for how long
Four situations account for most interim MD briefs. A departure: the MD leaves, and staff, customers and lenders need a named leader now, while the board searches properly. A turnaround: trading, cash or confidence has broken down. A sale or a new owner: preparing a business for exit, or running it through a private equity owner’s first months. An owner stepping back: the founder moves to the chair or out, and the business needs a professional MD before the long-term choice is made.
How long? Tie the term to the outcome, with a review point and an agreed way to extend. Across all disciplines the IIM’s 2026 survey puts the average assignment at 10.0 months; it is an all-discipline average, not an MD rule.
Most interim MDs work through their own company, so the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply, and a statutory directorship needs particular care. In most cases a medium or large client makes the determination (HMRC’s guidance for clients); status turns on how the assignment runs in practice. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.
09/ questions
Interim managing director FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in an interim managing director.
Book 15 minutes · shortlist of 3–5
Bring the brief. We architect the team.
A shortlist of 3–5 with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.
