Reference Calls for an Interim CEO: 12 Questions
Reference calls for an interim CEO fail when they ask about culture and communication. They work when they ask about decisions taken in the first 30 days. These 12 questions separate real operators from packaged consultants.
Why standard reference questions fail
Most reference calls ask about culture, communication style, and stakeholder management. Interim CEOs need to have made hard calls fast. The reference questions have to test that directly.
The 12 questions
- What decision did they take in the first 30 days that you would not have taken?
- Who did they let go, when, and how did the team respond?
- What did they stop doing that the previous CEO would not stop?
- Which two P&L levers did they pull first?
- Did the board hear bad news from them or from someone else?
- What was the handover state at month 12?
- What did they miss?
- Would you rehire them for a different mandate, and for which mandate?
- Give me one concrete example of political cost they paid personally.
- How did their successor describe them six months after handover?
- Did the top team hire more senior after they arrived?
- Were the KPIs at exit the same KPIs at start, or did they redefine them honestly?
How to score
A real operator answers each question with a name, a date, and a number. A consultant answers with framework language. If you get frameworks on three answers in a row, end the call and move on.
https://niklaslindahl.com/guides/reference-calls-for-an-interim-ceo