Executives can be hired on a contract basis in a variety of industries. Although the manner in which executive positions are filled reflects the cultural business norms that prevail in each country, executive temporary employment can be classified as unplanned, planned, or temporary-to-permanent. These various types of executive temporary jobs serve a variety of human resource needs for hiring companies.
Temporary workers are used by businesses to fill short-term needs. They typically do not need to devote the same amount of employment resources to a temporary employee as they would to a permanent hire. Under normal circumstances, employment agencies handle executive temporary job recruitment and placement.
When an executive is suddenly relieved of their position and another executive is slotted into the title on an interim basis, this is the most sporadic type of executive temporary employment. An interim executive may not be the person the board of directors would choose to fill the position permanently. Because the position requires staffing, the executive is asked to fill it until a permanent replacement can be found. In this case, the executive is frequently a permanent employee who is serving in a temporary capacity.
Another type of executive temporary job offers structured assistance on projects that require extra capacity on a temporary basis. A law firm with a class action case, for example, might hire temporary attorneys to handle document production. These attorneys may work on a single case for months, but the case will eventually be resolved, and the firm will not have enough revenue to keep the additional staff on the payroll indefinitely. To complete the project, firms work with employment agencies to bring in temporary executive-level staff with high-end skills.
A periodic position vacancy due to health reasons is the other type of executive temporary employment situation. A female executive, for example, may take a six-month maternity leave, or a male executive diagnosed with cancer may take a medical leave of absence. In many jurisdictions, the company is required by law to keep the executive’s job open until he returns. In this case, the company can fill the position with a temporary executive who can perform the duties of the job while knowing that the position will be terminated once the permanent employee returns.
A final type of executive temporary job occurs when a company is hesitant to fill a permanent position and wants a candidate to demonstrate suitability before extending a permanent job offer. This is the typical temporary-to-permanent job, which is frequently presented as a conditional job offer. Temporary agencies are heavily involved in recruiting and placing executives in these positions, and they are frequently compensated with a bonus if the temporary placement leads to a permanent position.